Earlier today I decided to cash in my push present and went for a steam perm and cut — my first in almost a year!

Sitting patiently through the 3 hour process, I took a look at myself in the full-length mirror and was dismayed to see how fat and swollen my calves, ankles, and feet have gotten. I realized right then and there that I am now the proud owner of cankles:

I took the above picture with my camera and uploaded it to Facebook, in hopes that mommy friends will chime in to reassure me that the swelling will disappear after giving birth. And they did — most said that their calves, ankles and feet returned to normal just a few short weeks post partum.

I have hated being pregnant in the hot summer months, and this year’s record-breaking temperatures did not help much. (I can already imagine that years down the road, when my daughter is giving me a hard time, I will remind her that I carried her during one of the hottest summers on record.) However, one good thing about being pregnant in the warmer months is that I can wear flip-flops. If I had been pregnant during the winter I would most certainly have had to purchase new shoes in larger sizes.

I am now in my 34th week of pregnancy. We are starting to receive presents from our baby registry…it’s scary to think that we will actually be using these items in 6-ish weeks!

P.S. — For those that may be wondering, I love my new haircut and perm! I will post pictures later, but suffice it to say that I have never been more pleased with a perm while walking out of a salon. The staff at Hidy II were super-accommodating for this preggo — they periodically asked if I needed bathroom breaks (which I did), let me walk around to relieve swelling and pressure, and served me refreshing water and tea. I didn’t get my hair done by Jay this time, but by a stylist named Jenny who did a fantastic job and went the extra mile to make sure that I was comfortable at all times.

P.P.S. — I asked my stylist what the difference is between a Digital Perm and a Steam Perm. She told me that a Steam Perm is a combination of the Setting Perm and the Digital Perm; it follows the general procedure of the Setting Perm but uses the less damaging chemicals of the Digital Perm…in other words, the best of two worlds! The only problem with Steam Perms is that it is still not yet offered by most salons in the United States (even most Korean salons do not have it), so not only is it difficult to find a salon that does it, the price still remains pretty high (mine was $250, not including tips).