The cat's out of the bag

It was really windy! Thanks Mom for taking the picture!
12/26

After my appointment on Tuesday I decided it was pretty safe to let the rest of the world in on the secret. I posted this picture on facebook with no other information, just the picture. It didn't really take too long for people to catch on.  I got the idea from a friend to take a picture by the "expecting mothers" sign at Hyvee. Everyone loved it and thought it was so cute (thanks Emily)!
I hope everyone has a great New Year! I think 2012 is going to be a pretty awesome year!

15 Weeks

This picture was actually taken Christmas evening so I was about 5 hours shy of 15 weeks. Close enough!
12/25

It was great to see family on Christmas and even more great to see how excited everyone was.  Tuesday I had an appointment with Kim. Everything looked great. The heart rate was in the 150's and sounded good! I scheduled my appointment for my ultrasound on January 23rd. So excited to find out what we are having!  I was not as excited to step on the scale and see how much weight I gained. 7 pounds! 7 pounds! In one month! Are you kidding!? It didn't help Christmas was two days before my appointment.

How far along: 15 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 7 lbs if you didn't figure that out from my rant above

Maternity clothes?:  yup
Stretch marks?: nope
Sleep: I have my good nights (the italics have returned ughgh)
Best moment this week: Lots! Seeing family on Christmas, good appointment on Tuesday, scheduled my ultrasound appointment, and let the world of facebook know (more on this in next post)
Movement: I don't think so

Food cravings: Sweets. I'm going to need to lay off those a little bit. 7 pounds really!?

Gender: We'll find out soon!
What I miss: My memory! (So as I'm typing this I was thinking 'there was something I thought of earlier this week that I was going to put on the what I miss portion. What was it? ughgh I wish I could remember!' and then I remembered... I think)

Milestones: Strong heartbeat, another week closer.

From Babycenter:
Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eye lids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds.

14 Weeks

No picture this week. Sorry, it's about the same though

I am safely into my second trimester. The first trimester was a bit rocky, hoping this one goes a little smoother. Christmas cards went out on Monday and people started getting them on Tuesday. The mail is surprisingly fast! Everyone was excited to see the news! I am excited for Christmas but not at all ready. We have a baby tree up because we ran out of time to get the big one down from the attic, I don't have all my Christmas shopping done and there are no other Christmas decorations up in the house! Thankfully, both of our families are getting together after Christmas so I will have a few more days after Christmas to get some shopping done. I'm hoping to get some good after Christmas sales!

How far along: 14 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Haven't checked, can't be good though 

Maternity clothes?: Everyday, wearing sweats anytime I can!

Stretch marks?: nope

Sleep: Not as great as I would like. Thinking about getting a body pillow

Best moment this week: Telling our extended family.

Movement: Maybe? (if someone could tell me how to fix this italic thing that would be great!)

Food cravings: Fruit especially cutie oranges

Gender: Who knows really. Maybe it will be a girl! :)

What I miss: Salads and hamburgers (they don't taste too great)

Milestones: Safely in the second trimester! Bring on the energy!

 

From Babycenter:

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.
In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

13 Weeks



First time wearing maternity pants
12/12

This week I decided to let the Bunko girls in on the big secret.  They were all very excited! I told a few girls at work a few weeks ago and the news is starting to slowly leak out. This week my mom brought by all kinds of goodies. A few maternity pants, a cute maternity top, and a few things for the baby.

Maternity clothes my mom bought. Very cute! Good job mom!
12/12

How far along: 13 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: I got on the scale at work, big mistake! Up 3 pounds! 

Maternity clothes?: Yes. Mostly sweat pants. The belly band isn't really comfortable anymore

Stretch marks?: nope. Using lots of lotion!

Sleep: Still exhausted but tossing and turning at night. (this line wants to be italicized and I can't do anything about it. Sorry)

Best moment this week: Telling Bunko girls and getting tons of cute clothes

Movement: nope

Food cravings: Burritos

Gender: Still thinking it's a boy, Chris is hoping I'm right (dang italics!)

What I miss: Coffee, fitting into my old clothes, SHRIMP (hoping that passes before New Year's Day!)

Milestones: I used the doppler at work and could hear the heart beat!

From Babycenter:

How your baby's growing:

Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

12 Weeks

This is right after the church board Christmas party so most of that is chips and salsa!
12/6

It's official, none of my regular jeans fit!

How far along: 12 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: trying no to keep track. Hoping it's the same but probably not 

Maternity clothes?: Using the belly band for now.

Stretch marks?: nope

Sleep: Often! I'm exhausted all the time! We had windows put in this week and I slept in a bright room with pounding going on right outside.

Best moment this week: Visible signs of being pregnant. It's a little sad but exciting at the same time.

Movement: nope

Food cravings: Carbs, anything that doesn't make me nauseous. NOT seafood! :(

Gender: I have a gut feeling it's a boy. I don't know why.

What I miss: having energy, unlimited coffee, sleeping on my stomach

Milestones: 3 good sonos, heard the heart beat on the doppler

From babycenter:

The most dramatic development this week: reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder.
Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over 2 inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce.

This is a long one!

Christmas cards went out this week making the big announcement to all of our family that another baby was cooking.  Hopefully this one gets to finish this time.  I am just over 14 wks and and due June 18th (2 days after our 5 year anniversary). So, let me catch you all up on the last two months.

The miscarriage was devastating and I wanted so badly to have the joy of being pregnant back.  I thought I would feel so much better if I could just get pregnant again. Monday, September 10 was the day my monthly friend was supposed to arrive.  She wasn't there in the morning so I took a pregnancy test (I guess I'm not very patient! I don't let anytime pass at all!) and it was positive.  Unlike last time, the line was so faint I could barely see it.  I had to tilt it a certain way and squint a little and then I could see it.  The joy I thought I would have was replaced by extreme fear and a "here we go again" attitude. I called the Dr's office right away because i knew Kim (my midwife) wanted to do testing as soon as I found out.  I was at the hospital in a class most of the day so it would have been convenient for me to get the labs drawn while I was there but of course the office didn't call me back until I was on my way home. She wanted an hcg and progesterone level drawn. I made a quick u-turn back to the hospital hoping there was enough time in the day to get the labs resulted and back to Kim to see if I needed to start on progesterone supplements.  I had one of the nurses on my floor draw my lab (the only one that knew about the previous pregnancy before I miscarried) and we sent them down right away.  The results came back and both levels were low so I started a progesterone supplement that night and was to repeat the labs in 48 hours.  The nurse at Kim's office warned me that the pills would make all the symptoms of pregnancy intensified and would possibly make me sleepy but they had to be taken the same time every day. Not a good thing for a girl that does not have the same sleep schedule every day.  I decided I sleep more often at night than I do during the day so I would take them at night.  The labs 48 hours later were ok but not great. Kim told me to keep taking the progesterone supplements until I was at least 12wks pregnant and repeat the labs every week for the next 3 weeks.  I worked three days in a row that week which normally makes me exhausted by the third night. The pill was terrible to take at work! I was so exhausted I felt like I was going to pass out, I couldn't keep my eyes open literally, it was awful. It would last about an hour or two and then I was fine. I decided that was not going to work at all.  I started taking the pills in the morning. I would take them as soon as I got home from work or Chris would give them to me when he got up in the morning.  He did great and didn't complain one bit. The best part was I didn't have to get out of bed!  Oh, I forgot to tell you how I told Chris.  It wasn't very exciting.  I had been pretty cranky the whole week before so I said, "I know why I've been so cranky...".  He said, "Are you pregnant?" That was it.  Again, the fear of it all was taking over. There was no excitement whatsoever. I was pretty much an emotional wreck that week, Chris will tell you! :) 

See how faint it is!

Wow, this is going to be a long post!  There is so much to tell! Ok, moving on. At 6wks and 4 days Kim wanted a sono (ultrasound) done to make sure everything looked good.

6w4d sono

That little spot that says baby with an arrow pointed to it was flickering away at about 115 BPM.  I felt I could breathe a little easier but knew we were not out of the woods yet. I was a little worried about the heart rate being so slow but the sono tech said it probably just started beating and wasn't concerned about it at all. I continued to have labs drawn and they were not increasing as much as Kim wanted so she did another sono a week and a half later at 8wks.



It's crazy to me how big of a difference there is in just 1 1/2 wks!



Another breath of relief when I saw the heart beating again. This time it was about 150BPM. The baby was measuring a little behind my original due date but right on track from the last sono.  We decided we better tell our parents sometime soon. That week we went to dinner with Chris's parents and brother and told them. Again, not very exciting or creative this time. Chris texted them all a picture of the sono picture.  They were pretty excited. We stopped by my parent's house that same evening and told my parents.  They were also pretty excited. We decided not to tell JanMarie until Jessica came in town for Thanksgiving.

I felt like I was already showing at Thanksgiving and wasn't sure how I was going to hide it. Only a couple of pair of pants fit and the others I had to use a belly band so that I could keep them unbuttoned and slightly unzipped.  Thankfully no one noticed. That night my mom, Jessica, JanMarie and I were all sitting around trying to plan our plan of attack for shopping that night and I said "Can we stop by Babies R'us?  I might need to stock up on a few things." It took a few seconds for them to get it but they finally figured it out.  Of course JanMarie was screaming!

That weekend we had a Christmas bazaar at the church that I was supposed to decorate for on Friday. As I was getting ready to head to the church, I went to the bathroom and noticed the smallest amount of blood but still more than with the last pregnancy.  I freaked out and called the Dr's office. Of course they were closed because of Thanksgiving so I called the hospital to get the number of the midwife on call. Thankfully the nurse that drew my lab answered the phone and was very helpful. The midwife on call called me back and explained that this is probably just normal spotting and not to worry about it.  She could tell I was very worried about it and said to go in for a sono to put my mind at ease. I was terrified that they wouldn't see the heartbeat again but they did! It was about 150-160 BPM and the little thing was squirming all around!

It actually looks like a baby. I think it's a boy.

The following Monday I had an appointment with Kim. I was 11wks and could hear the heart beat on the doppler. It was a great sound!  So far, everything is looking great!

The Party Has Been Postponed

Warning: This post may contain more information than you care to know. Read at your own risk.
Last Wednesday we went to our first appointment and didn't hear a heart beat. Kim(the midwife) didn't seem too worried. She said my uterus was tilted back and I probably just needed one more week to be big enough to hear the heart beat.
Sunday night I noticed a very small about of old blood which worried me a little but I assumed it was from the appointment.  The only other thing that had me worried was the increased amount in cramping I had over the weekend.  It wasn't terrible, just more noticeable than before. 
Monday morning, with much debate, I decided to call the office to talk to Kim's nurse and have her tell me everything was normal.  She called back and told me she scheduled an ultrasound appointment for me that afternoon at 3, and to come with a full bladder.  At this point I was excited that I got an early ultrasound, a little nervous that they thought something was wrong but quickly reassured myself that they are just doing this to make sure everything is ok which it will be. 
We finally get into the room and they tell me my bladder isn't full enough. I chugged 36 oz of water and waited 30min. My bladder felt like it was going to explode!  The ultrasound tech started looking at everything but seemed to be having trouble. She told me that my uterus was tilted back and that's why she was having trouble seeing anything. She said we would have to do a vaginal ultrasound.  She let me pee (thank goodness!) and proceeded with the vaginal ultrasound.  She told me it wouldn't hurt, it would just be some pressure. She obviously had never had one because that thing pinched like crazy.  I was unable to see the screen and was trying to lay as still as possible so she could get all the pictures she needed.  And then the words that I never thought I would hear came out of her mouth "well, I couldn't find a heart beat..."  My heart sank but I was still holding on to a glimmer of hope.  Maybe she is new and she doesn't know what she's doing, maybe the machine was broken, anything. She sent us to the Dr.'s office to see Dr. Goularte (the only person left in the office by this time of day).  We waited forever, ok maybe only 10 minutes but still. We finally got called back and the nurse was asking me all kinds of questions.  Dr. Goularte walked in and immediately said "I am so sorry!"  At that point I knew she had looked at the ultrasound pictures and the report from the radiologist and there was no way the tech had made a mistake. Dr. Goularte told us that the baby was only measuring at 7 weeks instead of 10 and you should hear a heart beat by 6 weeks.  She gave us the option to do some blood work to confirm but she was pretty certain what the outcome would be.  Although I wanted to do as much confirmation as possible I knew that the numbers weren't adding up and I would just be let down again when I saw the results from the blood work. 
She gave us three options: let the baby pass on its own, use a medication called cytotec to induce the process, or do a D&C and surgically remove it.  I was ready to get this over with and move on so I decided to go with the cytotec.  So if the day didn't suck bad enough, since my blood type is O negative I had to get a rhogam shot! IN MY BUTT (sorry mom)! 
Chris was very supportive and sensitive and did whatever I asked him to do, and even some things I didn't ask him to do.  He did a great job taking care of me. 
One thing I learned from this experience is I am definitely going for the epidural!  The cytotec caused some pretty intense "cramping".  I think they were more like contractions but what do I know. Tuesday I spent most of the day drugged up on the couch. Thank you Lortab!
Thank you to everyone that has been there for us and is praying for us. We really appreciate it!  We will let you know when the party is back on!

First Appointment

Well, today was our first appointment and sadly we didn't get to hear the heart beat.  We decided to try again next week.  If we don't hear the heart beat at that time we will get an ultrasound done.  Kim (the Midwife) said she was pretty sure there was only one in there.  Hopefully we will have better luck next week!  Sorry Dad, you have to keep the secret a little longer!

8 Weeks

If you can't tell, that is a white undershirt!

This last week our immediate family received the news that they are going to be grandparents, aunts, uncles and great grandparents.  They were all excited in their own way. JanMarie thought it was a thank you note from Titus (she watched him while we were on vacation) haha. She figured it out pretty quickly and started screaming. Chris and I thought we were being sneaky sending out the invitations and taking our parents to dinner but they all said they had a feeling something was going on.  Oh well, we tried.

 

From the bump.com:

Baby's now the size of a raspberry!
Baby is growing like mad, putting on about a millimeter every day and continuing to straighten out in the trunk. Though you can't feel it yet, baby is moving those little arms, legs, and (now only slightly) webbed fingers and toes like crazy. 

  

A little something I stole (thanks Ashley!)

How far along: 8 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: trying no to keep track. Probably the same

Maternity clothes?: No, but sometimes I can't button my pants when I leave work in the morning.

Strech marks?: nope

Sleep: Often! I'm exhausted all the time!

Best moment this week: Telling our family!

Movement: nope

Food cravings: Carbs (PBJ, cereal, pancakes, etc), anything that doesn't make me nauseous

Gender: I have no idea, just hoping there is only one

What I miss: having energy and unlimited coffee

Milestones: none yet

 

Our first appointment is in a week and a half.  I am so excited and hoping we get a quick ultrasound just to see the heartbeat and make sure there is only one in there!

Invitations

This is how we are going to tell our family our little secret.  Thursday we are going to dinner with our parents where I will give them these invitations and see how long it takes them to realize what the invitation is really saying.  I can't wait to see their reaction!

Table Rock Lake

For the past two years a group of us from church has gone on vacation together. Just 4 couples and no kids! Last year we went to Breckenridge and this year we went to Table Rock Lake.  We were going to be tubing and skiing and all kinds of fun things that I wouldn't be able to do. I wasn't sure how I was going to keep the news that I was pregnant a secret but I was sure going to try! I made it through the first day with no problems. Saturday night was a long day of shopping and seeing Noah at the Sight and Sound theater. Heather was so observant and called me out on it. There was no way of hiding it, it was written all over my face! The girls were so excited I knew there was no way they could keep this secret from their husbands (the guys were golfing at this time). Every time one of the guys called to say they were on their way home, the girls all giggled. Chris told the guys at dinner shortly after they got home from golfing. They didn't show their excitement nearly as well as the girls (thanks girls!). I felt bad that our families didn't find out first but it was a relief to go the rest of the trip not having to hide anything.

Best quotes of the trip (before anyone knew I was pregnant):

Last summer Heather was pregnant and this year Megan is pregnant so on the way to Table Rock lake Megan said, looking straight at me,"So who is going to be pregnant next summer?"  Me:"Not me! Seriously I will NOT be pregnant next summer"

Walking into the Site and Sound theater as the smell of animals hits us like a ton of bricks Megan says, "Oh that smell! I'm glad I'm not in my first trimester!" Me, secretly thinking "I am!" but thankful I haven't hit the nauseous stage yet.

All of us outside at Branson Landing

Chris and I on Tabelrock Lake

WHAT!?

 

There it is, the proof! So here's the story:

The first of this year Chris and I decided to start a family. It was so much harder emotionally than I thought it would be. So May came and I noticed a lot of cramping most of the month but no other real signs of pregnancy.  I knew my monthly gift was due to arrive around the 6th of June which was the Monday before we left for vacation with a group of friends for five days.  Sunday night was the worse the cramping had been the whole month.  I just knew that my little friend was coming soon. Chris kept saying he thought I was pregnant, he just had a "feeling". I was so sure I wasn't pregnant, I made a bet with him.  Monday morning, June 6th, I went to the bathroom and to my surprise there was no sign of my friend. I decided to run to Walmart and get a pregnancy test, of course not peeing so I could be sure to get "the first morning's pee".  By the time I got back from Walmart I about peed my pants! I hurried and pulled the test out, did my thing, and set the test in the sink. I noticed there was a line there but was still too asleep to realize it was the "you're pregnant" line and not the control line. 5 min later (I really had to go!) I looked at the test, saw two lines, looked at the box, then the test, then the box, then the test. I thought I was seeing things! I quickly took a picture and sent it to my friend Sarah to make sure I wasn't losing my mind (I know, I should have told Chris first but I really wanted to tell him in person and I needed to tell someone immediately.).  Chris was at the dealership trying to get a new truck. I called him and asked what he was doing for lunch and asked him how the truck situation was going. He asked me to meet him at the dealership and pick him up and then we could go to lunch. When I got to the dealership Chris was still taking business with the dealer while I'm standing there freaking out.  So, finally, he got in the car and I start driving and say "I'm a little upset" hoping he would think that my friend came that morning. Of course his mind was on the truck so he didn't even hear me. So I said, "Did you hear me? I'm upset!". Finally he says "Why?". I said, "Because you won the bet!" He just stared at me and said "What? No way! Shut up!" I'm pretty sure his eyes were huge at this point but he had his sunglasses on so I couldn't see.  We headed home and I should him the proof! That night we spent the evening at the dealership trying to sign paperwork for the new truck. Neither of us slept at all that night. He was thinking about his new truck and I was thinking about this thing growing inside of me.

Pre bump pic

The picture above was taken on June 6 (the day we found out) so I am just over 4 weeks pregnant.

First blog post ever!

Well here it is. My first blog post ever!  I decided to start this blog when I found out I was pregnant (still feels weird to say). I thought it would be great to share this exciting time with my friends and family. Also, I want to remember all the fun and not so fun times throughout my pregnancy. Some posts may have a little more information than you want to know, so I apologize in advance. Enjoy!