12/01/2018

Gender reveals, belly photos and pregnancy massages

I'm aware I'm a bit late to the party, but 2018 is here which means I will be popping a baby out this year.

Holy moly.

Christmas and New Year absolutely wiped me out, we were so busy visiting family and friends we didn't have a single night where we just sat at home and lounged in front of the tv for over two weeks.

Peanut did pick up some lovely little presents over Christmas, though - not a bad haul for someone who isn't going to be making an appearance until the summer!


I was shattered when I went back to work and was really dreading going to London last weekend to see my uni girls. I was so, so excited to see them and catch up, but I was so worried I was going to be exhausted and unable to enjoy myself properly.

However, out of nowhere, I seem to have got this new wave of energy.

The spa day on Saturday most definitely help with that, I am sure.


I had the most amazing pregnant lady treatment - they started soaking my feet in rose water and did a foot scrub and moisturising treatment, then I had a back massage which was rather strange as I lay on my side with my leg cocked over some rolled up towels. I then had to roll onto my other side, for her to do the other half of my back, as I can no longer lay flat on my front. Then followed a neck and shoulder massage, as well as this strange yet satisfying thing she did to my head, a foot and lower leg massage, and a facial. I felt absolutely amazing afterwards. Although, I did try and stand up too quick so felt a bit light-headed!



I came back from London feeling refreshed, revitalised and reenergised. I think *touches wood* I might finally be entering into that period of pregnancy that everyone says they love.

I'm not struggling with sickness anymore, my appetite is back to normal, my food aversions have all gone, and I no longer feel like I could fall asleep standing up at any given opportunity.

I also now have quite the noticeable baby bump, which literally seems to have appeared out of nowhere the last week.

It's now rather round and a bit more obvious.


Liz and Hannah got me a 'baby on board' badge to wear on the tube around London. The idea is that people see it and let you sit down. In reality, it didn't quite work like that. However, I did point out I was wearing lots of layers, so just looked like a big eskimo lady, and the people sat down couldn't see the badge pinned to my coat as it was much higher than their eye line.

We are rapidly approaching the halfway point of this pregnancy now, which is a little bit scary. I have a feeling that the second half - bar the last couple of weeks - is going to by so quickly and I definitely don't feel ready quite yet for that.

The nursery, which started off as a nice blank canvas once the spare bed had gone, has turned into a dumping ground-come-washing room.

We have barely bought anything yet for the baby, just a few vests when they were on offer at Tesco and M&S and a crib which had lots of money off in the Boxing Day sales.

On Wednesday, we have our next scan so will be given the chance to find out whether we are having a boy or a girl. We both said, pretty much straight away, that we would find out.

While I love the idea of keeping it a surprise until it is born, and wish I could wait that long to find out, the temptation to know now is too much. To know I could be told there and then, and not find out, is too much.

It's one of the first questions people asked me, too, when I said I was pregnant: "Are you going to find out if it's a boy or a girl?"

So many people have been quick to judge my response, which I suppose just gears me up for what motherhood is going to be like with people judging everything you do...!

Most people have said it's lovely to find out and get prepared, but some people have simply just asked me "why do you want to know?" They've said it'll ruin the surprise, but I don't really look at it like that.

It's still going to be a surprise for us whether we find out now or in another 20 weeks.

A lot of people I know who are also pregnant are keeping it a surprise until they give birth, and I am so admirable of their willpower to do so. I can't imagine people would turn around to them and asked why they don't want to find out now and why they don't want to get organised or prepared. It's every couple's personal preference, and everyone is different.

So we will be finding out whether our little peanut is going to be baby girl Kershaw or baby boy Kershaw. And I can't wait!

I love the idea of doing a big gender reveal, so having the sonographer write the gender in a sealed envelope and us give it to a balloon maker or a cake maker for us to do a reveal for us with our family and friends. Tom, however, is not so keen on that idea. He wants to know there and then, and says he couldn't possibly wait from the Wednesday until the weekend... So that idea is off the table!

We both have the following week off work, as it's Tom's birthday, so we are hoping to start planning the nursery out then. It's going to be grey and white, regardless of what sex the baby is, but with little splashes of either pink or blue. Maybe the odd cushion, blanket or rug.

That's about where we are at at the moment.

I've started feeling the flutters from peanut wriggling around now. After seeing how much of a wriggler he/she was when we had our first scan, I am sure I'll know about it in the next week fews when the kicks start.

I'm super excited to see it again on Wednesday and see how much it has grown/developed since November, and of course finally be able to stop referring to "it".

Keep your eyes peeled for the 'big reveal' next week! For now, here's a peek at my ever-growing gut.

Avert your eyes if you're easily offended.


You may also like: Learning to love my belly

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