12 Weeks

We spent the day at Del Mar on the beach. Del Mar is like a mini-vacation, like Coronado Island is for us, only 20 minutes away and another world where breast implants are more common than coffee shops and the atmosphere is filled with the kind of indolent relaxation that money can bring, when no worries of car payments, water turned off, affording birthday presents or necessary medication cloud an otherwise beautiful day. The shoreline was busy, like I like it, but not overly crowded, something Mr. Curry dreads. It is pressed up against a bustling and beautifully architected stretch of shops and restaurants that overlook the ocean. We bought KFC, potato salad, red grapes, Oreos and let the kids each pick a soda at the local gas station. Mr. Curry and I spent ten incredibly hot minutes in the bathroom with the door locked before we left, and we both were glowing like babies in the sun. We had a Breast Implant Counting Contest and I won, counting 7 over Mr. Curry's 2. Of course, I started the contest before I informed him it was happening. I wore a Billabong turquoise bikini with gold hoops on the hips and one gold hoop in the Cleveland (as I call my cleavage) and felt like a sexy but slightly insecure and self concious preggo. I kept calling images of celebrities on the beach to mind to make me feel better. Sad? Or a cool commentary on the influence of US Magazine? I've been very lucky in that the worst that has happened to my body in my 34 years and 3 pregnancies is some cellulite on my ass and thighs, but no stretch marks or egregious weight gain. I work hard at eating healthy and staying active so I like to think I'm holding strong. Of course, I nearly crapped my pants when I went to Dr. Tseng (before I knew I was pregnant) and found that I weighed 146 instead of the expected 135. I'm 5'7 and 135 is the top of comfortable poundage for me, and I had been working out and eating smaller portions, so WTF was not a strange reaction. I'm so glad I hadn't been doing anything crazy like a pineapple diet and draining my body of it's nutritional stores before I knew I was pregnant.

Lola Ian and Dakota played well after a good half hour of complaining about various issues including the wind (which soon died down and relented to the sun) and Lola's concern that she would not make it back in time for her playdate/spend the night with her best friend Kaylen. YES LOLA WE KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS. Holy persistance, Batman. Ian and Dakota boogie boarded and Mr. Curry jumped around with Lola in the water while I basked ( 30 sunblock over evere inch of my fair skin ) in the sun and watched some frat like guys get busted for drinking on the beach. The five of us went down the beach for a walk and laughed hysterically as a small boy chased a barking leaping black dog down the beach, who pulled a Marley and stopped to squat, IN THE WATER, and take a gynormous POOP. We ended up eating Oreos and grapes and being completely uninterested in the rest of the food we bought. Dakota again was the chosen one to be buried in sand, and Lola and Ian spent a good hour doing so. Our car holds about 2 pounds of fine Cali sand now, and who knows what our pipes look like.

The baby is now moving. My doctor has told me this is unusual so soon but not unheard of for sucessive pregnancies, and I also have a very small abdominal area- it's wide enough, I have hips, but it's very small in width, so my uterus is pressed right up against my tummy, and I can feel, for the last week, the baby fluttering or contracting in there. The nausea is better and I am only occasionally throwing up, which I can control mainly with Sleep, Gatorade, Eating Regularly and Protien at every meal. I am finally able to eat vegetables and fruits again without puking and am feeling much less guilty.


yours,
maggie may