Yes I'm showing! or, yes, I'm showing...

I'm pushing toward 21 weeks pregnant now. There have been two responses that are driving me crazy:
1. "Oh, you couldn't tell it." This from an older gentleman at my part-time job who I don't see often. He's a nice guy, really, but I want to punch him in the face. Because at this point in my pregnancy, telling me that I don't look pregnant sounds to me like "You are really fat."
2. "Oh, you look great, you're glowing." This one maybe doesn't drive me crazy but since I feel like I look like crap and I definitely don't feel like I'm glowing, it makes me a little nuts. It's easy to respond with a "Thanks!" but when you're walking around, constantly hiking up the belly band and adjusting your jeans, "great" is not an adjective you'd use to describe yourself.

It's only logical that this pregnancy would be different. I didn't show with Baby M until I was about 6 months along, and my belly popped out at 16 weeks with this little one {a BOY!}. I didn't even post a "belly pic" until I was 28 weeks!
I'm going to get real here: This does not excite me. I would be much more satisfied if my belly was displaying the adorable roundness that other (thinner) moms display so freakishly.
The reality is the only reason my belly is popping out is the extra pregnancy pounds I never lost from M and probably added on to those extra pounds that I had before I was pregnant, ever. Bah, humbug.
My dear friend said to me at one point during my first pregnancy that I was the only one she knew who was worried about weight gain during pregnancy. Well, let me put it this way: Those L-Bs don't come off easy and I knew/know that should the weight I gain be the right amount, shedding it shouldn't be difficult. Shut up already, "What to Expect When You're Expecting" e-mails!
Who really wants to chow down on spinach and carrots, every. single. day.?!
So to get back that feeling of "great", I have to primp. I choose to wear cute shoes or lipstick or something that makes me feel like some random person who fleetingly looks at me in Costco isn't looking because they're trying to figure out if I'm pregnant or well rounded (ha). Yes, I am wearing a bright shade of pink on my lips, thank you very much! Bright, isn't it?! feels nicer than Stop looking at me because you can't figure it out! At least ask if you're that interested!
Because I know we all have these moments while pregnant.  

...

Right?

Here's my get-the-heck-over-it pic. I never feel more 17 than when I'm snapping my own picture in a mirror. Which happens never. Except today.

Hot showers, after noon...

I got to take a hot shower today! And when I mean "hot," I mean, "almost-scalding-your-skin" hot, which I only get to do when there's not a toddler in the shower with me.
Why am I telling you this, you might ask? Well, I'm really just rejoicing in the fact that I was actually able to shower without my munchkin, because she was sleeping. The timing on my showers is clearly imperfect, because I should always plan them this way!
Today, it was even before 12 a.m.! That's an accomplishment, too, although it's embarrassing to admit it. Mommys all know that showering in the morning while baby is between 0 to 6 months of age can be impossible; over six months, and it starts happening more... At almost 15 months, shouldn't I have it figured out by now?
I'm only that motivated on days that I have to be somewhere early, and if I can schedule it, it'll happen later. There's just so much more to get done in the morning now that M is getting older! Making sure she eats and is clean while trying to get some work (housework, work-from-home work) done sometimes (a lot of times) pushes showers to after noon, maybe an hour or two before I have to leave the house for the part time job I have.
On the other hand, am I the only mom who has a problem with showering, only to spend the morning cleaning the kitchen and downstairs bathroom? Gross! Why get clean if I'm only going to get dirty cleaning? (Hello, oxymoron.)
Usually by the time I'm done cleaning anything, my hands are so dry from multiple washings and various chemicals that I need to bathe them in petroleum jelly to get the moisture back. (I'm okay with this, on principle—I at least know there are no bacteria or germs in my kitchen until the next meal is made. Go on, try finding a germ.)