Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Week 9, Day 2


So I fell miserably behind. I knew it was bound to happen. I am NOT a blogger. I can’t believe I missed more than one full week. I have just been so painfully tired that all I can usually manage in the evenings is a nap, dinner, and then bed. I know, pretty pathetic, but waking up at 4 am is just not what my body was meant to do! Overall the past two weeks have been pretty tolerable on the nausea front. Morning sickness doesn’t exist for me. Instead, it is more like after dinner sickness. I’m thinking it is an acid reflux issue that I’ll have to discuss with my doc at the next appointment. Any suggestions for dealing with the reflux? I’m not burping, or feeling a burn, just an icky feeling high in my belly.
So my belly is definitely starting to pop. I’m trying my best to hide my “bump” at school and I think I’m doing a pretty good job. At this point I look like I’ve gained a few pounds. It doesn’t look like a baby bump, just a forward facing muffin top (my muffin top sides have actually almost disappeared since I haven’t been eating much). I hope I can keep it a secret for at least a few more weeks. I plan on telling my students just before Christmas break, after I have an ultra sound picture to show.

- The Weekly List -
How far along? 9 Weeks 2 Days
Total weight gain/loss: Loss of 3 pounds total. I have about 8 more pounds I can safely add between now and New Years Day.
Maternity clothes? No, but I got my first “donation” last week. My work pants are definitely feeling snug, which is weird since am still down about 7 pounds since the beginning of the school year.
Stretch marks? No, but sometimes it feels like my insides are stretching a bit. Not painful, just a different kind of feeling.
Sleep: Eight-ten hours a day/night, including my naps.
Best moment this week: Being able to actually cook a Thanksgiving dinner without wanting to vomit all over the place.
Miss Anything? Chocolate, Salami, feeling well rested
Movement: No...
Food cravings: Pears, clementines, salad, apple juice, mangos.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Drinking soda, eating chocolate. Yesterday I tried 2 Kisses at lunch, which caused me to break out into a cold sweat and had to mentally talk myself out of vomiting in front of my coworkers during lunch. I guess baby still does not want chocolate, even if I really do!
Have you started to show yet: Yeah a little (you can probably tell from my pic). But it still just looks like I’m stuffing my face with bon bons every night to most people.
Gender prediction: Boy. I had another dream and it was a boy again. I’m pretty convinced. (Only 2 months and 2 days till we find out for sure [hopefully]).
Labor Signs: Absolutely not!
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, but tired, so I’m not feeling like myself again quite yet.
Looking forward to: Having energy. Although I shouldn’t complain since the morning sickness has been very tolerable compared to what I was anticipating.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Attack of the Grocery Store-7 weeks 2 days



So Sunday morning I woke up feeling AWESOME. I hadn’t felt that great in weeks! So, naturally, I was freaking out. If I’m not feeling sick or extremely exhausted there must be something wrong with the baby, right? I was so nervous all day. I was looking up all sorts of things on the internet. And luckily, everything I read told me to relax and rejoice, since I must be one of the lucky ones. I tried to relax and keep myself busy and decided to take back one of my household chores and hit up the grocery store. Before I knew it the smells were too much for me to handle. The rotten meat, the steamed seafood, the PEOPLE! I had to grab everything and get out of the ASAP. For the first time in my life I was thrilled to feel like I was going to hurl all over the customer in front of me in line. Sadly, however, I got home and pretty much haven’t had a non-nauseous moment since. Yay, the baby is okay!!
- The Weekly List -
How far along? 7 Weeks 2 Days
Total weight gain/loss: About the same, about 3 pounds down
Maternity clothes? No, but I can’t wait to start shopping for them. I am getting super uncomfortable with my boobs not staying completely in my shirts!
Stretch marks? Nope
Sleep: I’ve been feeling stressed at work so I have been waking up around 1 or 2 a.m. and just stressing for 2-3 hours. No fun!! (How am I ever going stay awake for the midnight showing of Breaking Dawn Part 1 in two days?)
Best moment this week: While talking on the phone with my mom, hearing her get all excited when she walked into her house and see all the boxes of baby stuff she ordered had arrived.
Miss Anything? Feeling happy. I hate that this is probably THE BEST time of my life and I feel miserable all the time!
Movement: Can’t wait for this!!
Food cravings: I’ve been eating a lot of onion and pepper pizza and BLT’s. Carbs and veggies!
Anything making you queasy or sick: The smells at the grocery store.
Have you started to show yet: No. I took my first pregnancy photo last night and I intend to have it uploaded with this post. Just have a lot of bloat going on, especially during the evening hours.
Gender prediction: Still convinced it is a boy.
Labor Signs: Nopers
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Still really cranky. Week 13 begins Christmas Day. I CANNOT wait for that day so I can hopefully start feeling a bit more normal.
Looking forward to: Hearing and seeing the baby!!

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Week 6 Day 5

Good thing the blog world is going to see all of these first trimester posts in the same day, since I have been neglecting you. This week was miserable for me. I just cannot get enough sleep. I guess waking up at 4 am and commuting for 2+ hours a day really got to me this week. When I got home I pretty much had time to eat, shower and hit the sack.
Thank god for my amazing husband who, has been not only taking care of his own household chores, but has taken on all of mine as well. As miserable as we preggo ladies are, our husbands take the brunt of mood swings and laziness. All I have to say is that I would not have been able to have gotten through this week alive if it weren’t for Kiel, and I don’t say thank you nearly enough.
How does a single mom do it? I don’t even want to begin to think about it. I could never survive as a single pregnant woman!



- The Weekly List -
How far along? 6 Weeks 5 Days
Total weight gain/loss: So at my lowest (late last week) I had lost about 5 pounds, but I have since put on 2 pounds. Total loss at 3 pounds.
Maternity clothes? No, but by dinnertime I am unbuttoning my work pants. I feel super bloated by the evening.
Stretch marks? The baby is only as big as a grain of rice so no need for stretch marks yet.
Sleep: As much as I can get.
Best moment this week: Buying the first outfit.
Miss Anything? Chocolate. Usually my stomach wants it but my head says no. Now my head wants it but my stomach says no. What’s up with this?
Movement: No...
Food cravings: Ha, my last weekly list stated that I couldn’t stop eating the Halloween candy. I believe that was the last day I even touched a piece of chocolate. My go-to foods are fruits and veggies. That’s all I can really stomach right now.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Mushy food on pots and pans in the sink. Earwax in hearing aids!
Have you started to show yet: Nope. Although one of my students told a para that she thinks I’m pregnant because “she used to be skinny and now she has a belly.” That probably had a lot to do with my outfit. Guess I won’t be wearing that again anytime soon!
Gender prediction: Boy. Just saw this Chinese gender chart on a phone app I downloaded today, which is supposed to be 90% accurate, and again that says I’m having a boy. (more on the chart in a later post)
Labor Signs: Absolutely not!
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Super bitchy week and I hate feeling that way!
Looking forward to: Hearing the heartbeat at my December 13th appointment. Couldn’t hear it at my appointment on Thursday, but everything else seems good!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Signs

So anyone who is trying to get pregnant knows the two weeks between ovulation and getting your period seem to last F-O-R-E-V-E-R. Each month I had a hopeful feeling in my gut that I misinterpreted as being pregnant. Not knowing if what I was feeling was real or not was killing me. I hit up tons of websites hoping that some of my “signs” were pregnancy signs.
Well, when it comes to being two weeks pregnant or less here are the signs I felt when it was really happening:

Holy Sore Boobies!
Eight days after ovulation I went for a run. Anyone who runs probably has 15 sports bras, but only 3 that really work. (Or maybe that’s just me.) Well, I was wearing one of my top three sports bras and said out loud to my hubby, who was riding his bike beside me, “I have to throw this bra away when we get home.” As I continued running I was a little shocked that one of my best bras was hurting me more than one of the bras I never pull from the bottom of the drawer, but I didn’t think much of it. Then the next day I noticed as I was getting into the shower and took off my regular bra, they were killing me more than ever before. Think of the feeling when you have your hair in tight ponytail on top of your head for 12 hours then take it out, except now transfer that feeling to your boobs. For me, I never experience any PMS symptoms (except bitchiness) and this was something new for me.

Hard Uterus
Okay, so maybe I imagined this, or maybe not. After I noticed my sore breasts, I put a little pressure on my uterus and it felt hard. At the time I had wished I had paid more attention to how my uterus felt on a typical day. But even though I wasn’t completely sure how it “used to feel” I knew something was different. Different enough for me to tell Kiel and for him to respond “Don’t get your hopes up.”

You are getting very sleepy…
Okay, so I work A LOT. I am up everyday between 4 and 4:30 a.m. and commute 2+ hours roundtrip into Boston where I teach special needs kids. After that, I work as a private tutor anywhere from 3-6 days a week. I am constantly on the go. I never say no to anyone. Oh, and I just finished a half marathon. I go go go and when I couldn’t go anymore, I was more than confused. From day 7-14 after ovulation I came home and napped everyday. I still forced myself to run since I wanted to keep up my endurance and work on my speed for my upcoming 5k. Usually when I run (even when I’m exhausted), I wake up and feel invigorated. During these days, running made me feel worse. And that totally killed my self-esteem. Just weeks before, I was on top of the world when I finished 13.1 miles in goal time without stopping once, and now I can’t even run one mile. What was wrong with me?

Get away from me
Now this may sound weird, but people really stink! I had read that a pregnant woman’s sense of smell is stronger and that some scents can be a real turn off. For me it was PEOPLE! I felt so bad, but I could not stand anywhere near some people at work or out at the store. I could smell their body odor. Not the underarm kind of body odor, just their natural scent (or whatever you want to call it) and I wanted to puke! I prayed that people wouldn’t notice I was holding my breath around them!
So my advice for anyone trying to get pregnant and wants to know as soon as possible if they are preggo or not, is to pay attention to your body now. Take note of how you feel those weeks between ovulation and period. Anything you notice that is different from your usual self could be an early sign that you, too, are carrying a little bundle of joy!

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Got ESP?

So some random premonitions surround the conception of this baby. First things first.

Premonition 1:
In August I asked my sister to bring me to a psychic for my birthday. She brought me in addition to her friend Hillarie and my bestie, Debbie, from work. While there I took off my wedding ring and he knew right away that I was married and in a strong relationship. He knew we had been trying to get pregnant without much success. He knew that I was beginning to think there was either something wrong with Kiel or me. He told me not to worry and that I would find out I was pregnant in October. Back then I was really stressing. My goal had been to become pregnant in August and October had just seemed too far away. Well he was exactly right about conceiving, and surprisingly, I think giving birth in July will be better for my career now than giving birth in April or May.

Premonition 2:
On the night before I took the test I had a super vivid dream that I was giving birth. My OB-GYN was at my feet saying “I can see HIS head.” “Keep pushing, here HE comes.” At that point I did not want to find out the sex of the baby. And I yelled at my “dream OB-GYN” about giving the surprise away.

Premonition 3:
Three days after I found out I was pregnant, and before we had told anyone my sister sent me a text message while I was on my way to work.
She wrote: “I had a dream u that u r pregnant. Are you?” (just as I was retyping this did I even notice her blaring typo).
My coy response: “Haha. I wish”
Corey: “Aww me too.”
Me: “Hopefully soon”
Corey: “:)”
It is scary how good I was at lying when it came to keeping the pregnancy a secret.

Premonition 4:
About one week after I found out I was pregnant I had another dream that I was holding my 3 month old son. Again another boy dream. Why can’t I at least have a girl dream to keep me guessing and on my toes?

Premonition 5:
Last weekend we had a bunch of friends over to watch football. When Daner and Erin pulled into the driveway they said Nater said “Manda, Kiel, baby.” Daner quickly responded, “Amanda and Kiel don’t have a baby.” Without missing a beat Nate replied, “Meow.” Yes we have cats not a baby. Or do we?
I can’t wait to hear if others have had similar promotions but haven’t said anything yet since they either don’t feel comfortable telling me or just haven’t had the opportunity to do so.
I’ll keep you posted.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Five weeks two days

This begins my blogging journey that hopefully will last nine months and beyond. This is actually being drafted and saved in Microsoft Word until I am ready to tell the world about the little bundle of joy that is growing in my belly.
Some background:
Last Sunday I took a pregnancy test that came back negative one day before I was supposed to start my period. For some reason I just had a feeling I was pregnant. About 6 days after I thought I ovulated I experienced some severe stomach pains that I initially attributed to the devastating news I had heard about one of my students. Then I tried running to prep for my measly 5K, (I had run a half marathon about 2 weeks prior) and I could not muster up the strength to run 2 miles. There was something seriously wrong. Usually when I am tired running wakes me up, and by mile two I am feeling invigorated. Not so much this time, I had zero energy. I figured it was just from the stress I was experiencing at work.
I rested up and hoped for better results next week. No such luck! Pretty much everyday after school I came home and slept. I thought it was how my body was coping with the secondary trauma I had experienced. Then when the following Saturday rolled around, I knew I needed to get my butt into gear. The 5k was just a week away and I had to be able to run more than a mile. Ha, I barely finished one mile and had to walk the rest of the way home. Whenever I tried to run I barely made it ¼ of a mile without feeling like I was going to keel over! I was exhausted and wanted to puke!
So the next day when I took the test and it came back negative I was a little bummed that I had no excuse for my less than stellar running performance. However, I didn’t lose hope. The test said it was over 99% accurate when taken on the day of your missed period. That was still a day away.
Well, Monday seemed to last forever. I had cramps. I felt sick. I just knew it would come. And it didn’t. I went to bed with every intention of taking another test Tuesday morning.
4:15 came and still no period. I took the test and waited. And then I saw it. A super light purple test line. I open the bathroom door and told Kiel. He hugged me. That’s it.
We didn’t sing.
We didn’t dance.
We didn’t cry.
It was nothing like what I had pictured telling him would be like. I guess it was because neither of us really believed it. I mean, it was a Dollar Tree pregnancy test after all!
All day Tuesday I planned on my monthly visitor to make her appearance. Still nothing. Nothing but serious cramping.
Well one blood test later and a whole lot of cramps. Here I am, 5 weeks and 2 days preggo! Who woulda thunk it?

- The Weekly List -
How far along? 5 Weeks 2 Days
Total weight gain/loss: I have inadvertently lost about 3 pounds. Could be due to my food aversions as well as losing some muscle mass since I am no longer training for a ½ marathon.
Maternity clothes? No. My pants are actually feeling a bit loose.
Stretch marks? Negative. Any suggestions to prevent these?
Sleep: I can’t get enough. I have been leaving work with the kids everyday this week. (I.have.never.done.this.EVER!)
Best moment this week: Getting flowers from the hubby just because.
Miss Anything? I made (what I think was) killer Sangria for some friends that came over this weekend and I watched Kiel down the last of it and THROW AWAY the alcohol infused fruit. Major bummer!
Movement: No...
Food cravings: Nothing really, but can’t stop eating all the Halloween candy everywhere.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not yet. Just feel sick when I wait too long between snacks.
Have you started to show yet: Nope. Waiting for the day one of my 10 year olds asks if I am pregnant.
Gender prediction: Boy. I’ve had two dreams about boys already.
Labor Signs: Absolutely not!
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, but stressed that I can’t do everything that I usually do without feeling exhausted.
Looking forward to: My appointment next Thursday Nov 10. Probably too early still to hear a heartbeat, but I’m hopeful!