24 In Thailand

This time around we're celebrating week 24 in Phuket, Thailand. It's our final leg in our mini "tour de Thai."  After Bali, we packed up our backpacks and spent a few days in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and now Phuket. Each Thai region has been so unique and beautiful in its own way. I'm a city girl, so naturally Bangkok and its energy was my favorite. Chiang Mai, serene and boutiquey, was a welcomed relief from the hectic atmosphere of Bangkok. Phuket was like hitting the Pause button. The pristine beaches are the best I've ever visited. Our guesthouse is in a small Thai village far away from the touristy areas, so the local beach is nothing but peace & quiet. Husband, baby and I had a blast splashing around in the Thai Indian Ocean. 

Besides this growing belly, there isn't much new to report from last week. Baby is still kicking up a storm, I'm feeling great, and husband appears to be enjoying making fun of my disappearing belly button. I can't believe how well this trip has been going. I'm sure some people think I'm absolutely crazy for deciding to backpack for 2.5 weeks through 3 completely foreign countries at almost 6 months pregnant. I had my reservations as well, but figured that I'm feeling as well as I'll ever feel. And this was the last time that husband and I will be able to travel this way in a long time; all on our own, semi-planning things, mostly figuring it out as we go. So why not, eh?  We have managed just fine and all has gone swimmingly. 

I can't explain how thankful I feel for all of this. I use the Baby Center app to read up on the baby's weekly developmental updates, and one of the app's features is a "Birth Club" message board. Other women using the app are automatically placed in a certain month's Birth Club, depending on their due date. I'll usually browse the message boards for fun when I have down time and wifi. Most of the posts are fun or silly, like "today I cried because my husband ate the last bag of Fritos."  But some posts are scary and almost make me want to cry. For example, one woman, also due in July, who posted a picture of her son who was born prematurely. Or other women posting about how the have been put on bed rest due to premature labor, severe preeclampsia, or some other serious complication. It makes me so sad to come across these posts. Here I am, on the other side of the world, doing yoga in Bali, canoeing through caves in islands off of Phuket, bargaining for goods in the Chiang Mai night markets. I feel almost...guilty?  I don't know. All I can do is remain positive and be really, really effing grateful for all of this. And send positive vibes to all those mothers and their little ones being born early. 

We have one more AirAsia plane to catch before our journey back to the states. We'll land in Singapore, spend a night, and then board our Cathay Pacific flight to LAX. I'm looking forward to beig back in the comfort of our home, but will forever be thankful and happy that we took this trip as a little family of three. 

24 weeks in Phuket