My new favorite drug

I'm taking a water aerobics class for pregnant women. It's great. Buoyancy is a good friend to people with watermelons in their bellies. Plus the water is warm. And it's fun to share stories with other pregnant people. Alan gets tired of me rehashing the newest ache or twinge I'm feeling, so it's nice to compare notes with other similarly-situated women.

Tonight, we sort of sounded like a bunch of old men comparing prostate exam scores. "Do your fingers go numb and wake you up at night?" "Yes, what are you taking for it?" "My doctor recommended Tylenol PM." "My legs really bother me at night." You get the idea...

My contribution to the discussion was about my newest favorite drug: Prilosec OTC. For the last several months, I've had fairly consistent heartburn and acid reflux. I started by eating Tums, and then I advanced to Zantac. But still I had problems if I didn't take the Zantac soon enough. So my doctor recommended (ooh... I sound like a commercial!) Prilosec OTC. It's a preventative acid reflux medicine that you take every morning instead of whenever you start to feel the burning sensation. I've been taking it for a week now, and it's fabulous. I haven't had any heartburn troubles.

And today--get this--I could actually drink Diet Coke! I haven't had a Diet Coke for 7 months. The queasiness of morning sickenss prevented Diet Coke drinking during the first trimeseter. And since then, the bubbles in Diet Coke have upset my tummy. I know, I sound like a real wuss. Frankly, I felt like a disgrace to my family. I come from a long like of diet pop drinkers. My Grandma came to visit us here in Tuscola and, after noticing our constant guzzling of Diet Coke (Diet Pepsi for Alan) bottles, commented that we "ate and drank more than anyone she knows." When my Grandpa was living in a hospice center during the last week of his life, he could no longer take his medication or eat any food, but still requested a Diet Coke. We're hard core. And today, thanks to Prilosec OTC, I have redeemed myself and can stand proud again in the branches of my family tree.

In other baby-related news, we spent the weekend putting together baby furniture, rearranging the upstairs, and getting a nursery set up. At last, the baby has a place to sleep (and not just the cardboard box lined with an old towel and sitting by the radiator).

And, just for fun, here's me, as of last week (week 34 out of 40):