oh! what the body goes through

i cannot in all good conscience complain about my pregnancy. it's been great when compared to a lot of other people & the things i have read. i attribute this to staying active, doing the usual things my body is used to & my mind needs: working, walking a lot, carousing with the boyos, having good times with heng ji & of course to being unbelievably lucky! maybe because i have had it relatively easy, any discomfort now is really trying! i am experiencing crazy rib & side aches, especially when i breathe deeply. (heng ji always reminds me to work on my shallow breathing, ha!). it's pretty bloody constant now & when reading about it, it appears that these symptoms are more obvious to those in later weeks. we have our monthly prego doc meeting coming up & boy do i have a list of things! actually this is about the time for birthing classes, searching for a pediatrician, tour of the hospital, etc. add to that: search for dogwalker, babysitter, acquisition of robot! i am also waiting on the HR plan for my maternity leave so i can plan even further.
i hope this doesn't make me come off as a type A planner because i am not. i am mostly a very good researcher & well read as best as i can on any subject of interest to me. this is of extreme interest to me. i suspect it will be for a while.
there is a lot of movement right with the baby girl. it's most obvious at home in my resting stages or right after eating. it's like shaolin style training! thus, i try not to have such late meals because the digestion time is damned slow & occurs when i am in bed & that along with baby activity keeps me up. i do notice it at the office even if i am preoccupied with work or am running around. also a tired chad is a crabby, short tempered chad. no one wants that.
i have also finally been "outed" at work. the belly is impossible to disguise now. as i approach no one notices or says anything but the minute i pass them or they see the sideview it's all over! the worst thing of all is that most things still fit except around the belly! you could say i am dressing creatively. a pity it isn't summer time when we can wear next to nothing.
moreover, the last week, kind strangers have been giving up their seats on buses & subways to me of all people! i have refused a few times because i found it creepy & a tad insulting but i am sure it is not meant to be that way! my growing lack of balance thanks you people even if my ego does not.
there is quite a lot of literature out there about how amazing the human body is in being able to conceive & produce a child. i cannot entirely disagree. however what would most impress me will be the "bounce back" post baby body. getting back to normal or better is a goal for the near future. that's where i look to shaolin training & scheduling. but i suppose it's best not to get too too ahead of ourselves.
right now my aching ribs tell me to breathe slowly & take my time.