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Showing posts from March, 2010

19 weeks...

The weeks really seem to be moving quickly now! I'm savoring every second that I'm pregnant and actually feel like maybe I'll be sad when it's over. We worked so hard to get here and it really is the most amazing feeling in the world! I've started gaining wait now. I'm steadily gaining 1 pound a week, so I'm up to 6 pounds total. I actually expected more at this point, so I'm thrilled with that. Especially since I'll probably accumulate 50 pounds of fluid in my ankles in July and August... The tummy really popped out this week. It's crazy how certain weeks it changes SOOOO much. Aaron even noticed the difference when he took the picture. It's the first week that we were really surprised by the change. Pretty much all of my patients now talk about me being pregnant because it's obvious in EVERYTHING I wear. I was using charts to cover my tummy, just to save the time of answering the same questions over and over, but it doesn't even

Blog Title

I've been thinking about changing the name of our blog. But after much thought, I've decided to leave it the same. Our stork really isn't great with directions. Sure, we're pregnant now and it appears that our journey really is leading us to a baby. But it's definitely not been the quickest, easiest path. We took many wrong turns, hit several dead ends, and ended up on detours for way too long. There's been too many tears cried and my heart has been broken time and time again. It's been a long, hard road to get here and the stupid stork assigned to us put us through a load of crap to get to this point. I'm certainly thankful for the road we're on now, don't get me wrong. I'd do all of it 30 times again if I could be where I am now. (Money and biological clock allowing...) But the title should stay the same. 2 years have passed, 3 surgeries, 1 hospitalization, my miscarriage, hundreds of doctor's visits, thousands of dollars s

Anatomy Scan

Our anatomy ultrasound went perfectly today and like any really annoying new mommy, I'm going to show a ton of the pictures they took today and act like you really wanted to see them all!!! And if I can figure out how to download the DVD, I'll be torturing you with it later this week... It's even cuter than the pictures... That's a leg propped up in the right corner there. This is the baby in a thoughtful pose. I'm sure he/she is sure to be a genius! It's a.......... BABY!!!! (Did you really think I was going to ruin such a fun surprise?) Little worried about the size of those feet in such close proximity with my fragile little ribs... Being shy... We weren't camera ready for this shot! This leads me to think it's a girl. :) Baby is measuring 9 ounces which is great for this point and all measurements were good. The brain measured the smallest which makes me think it has to be a boy. :) The tech was easily able to tell what the gender is

18 whopping weeks!!!

We are nearing the halfway mark and I can't believe it. I'm actually getting to the point now that I almost want things to slow down a bit because I'm really loving the whole pregnancy thing. It's more fun to get dressed now because I have a new curvy figure, I don't worry that my belly looks "fat" in something, and I have tons of new/borrowed clothes to choose from. Speaking of my new figure, here's what we're looking like this week. It's crazy how much Gil is already showing! I went with a more forward view of the tummy this week to capture what is going on with my belly button. It's always been a serious innie, but we're working on popping out soon I think. And I'm starting to have some major curvature around the bottom of my belly which is super fun to put my hands on. I feel like I'm holding my baby! We've got the big anatomy scan tomorrow (minus the genital anatomy portion) which I'm getting freaked out abou

Poll on Gender

Sarah from Baby Talk so kindly helped me figure out how to add a poll on to my blog, so please make your guess on what we're having. We're not finding out til the baby gets here in August, but I thought it would be interesting to see what everyone thinks! Thanks Sarah! I really appreciate it.

Happy

My pregnancy hormones are definitely in a good place now. I'm no longer aggressive towards strangers ( except for a little road rage at times), my husband is my favorite person in the world again (the mangos helped), and I feel just generally happy about everything . The excitement over this pregnancy is growing day by day. I'm still scared, don't get me wrong. But I'm no longer checking the toilet paper every time I go, I don't listen for the heartbeat quite so many times a day, and I no longer cry unexpectedly because I'm just sure something must be wrong. I can't believe the love I feel for this baby. What an incredible blessing it has been to be pregnant and watch the little one grow through ultrasounds. Best part of infertility is the increased number of ultrasounds you get! I was able to see Gil as a little gestational sac, then a tiny embryo with that amazing heartbeat, growing into a gummy bear, moving those little stubby arms/legs, etc. And I can&

I'm too sexy for this snuggie...

What a fantastic evening I am having! I came home this evening exhausted from work only to look in the fridge and find that my dear husband went to the store today and got some stuff I really love. First I noticed the strawberries which are my #2 favorite and then I found my #1 favorite thing in the world: MANGOS !!! They've been out-of-season since what seems like 8 years ago, but he dug through them all today until he found 2 softer ones. And they were absolutely heavenly!!! So I thought I'd include a picture of me enjoying this wonderful surprise. You might start by noticing that I am wearing my zebra snuggie, very stylish alongside my slippers. Aaron also wants me to point out that I am using an 8 inch butcher knife to cut my fruit instead of one of our more manageable ones. He kept looking over and cringing every time I would cut a piece off since it would slip all over the plate. His money was on me cutting a finger off or stabbing the dog. And yeah, I know it

17 weeks

Wow, I cannot believe I'm 17 weeks. I know I say this every single week and you're getting tired of hearing it. But every single week is an accomplishment I never thought I'd reach. I remember reading blogs where the girl was 17 weeks and thinking how impressive that seemed. And I'm there. 7 weeks until viability. Seems like an eternity, but things are going so fast these days that it's really just around the corner. My specialist's office called today to say that the 2nd part of my "triple screen" looked great too. What a relief. Now, we just have our Level 2 scan next Wednesday and I'll be feeling much better. No movement yet that I am willing to definitively call "movement". There's some strange feelings at times but I'm known to be a little gassy, so I keep blaming that. Plus, I'm consuming massive quanitites of mexican food due to this little bambino's cravings. So, who knows? Wow, I sure do love this baby.

Just a regular old couple expecting a baby

We ventured out into the world yesterday as expecting parents. And subjected ourselves to places that are known to have high numbers of new and expectant mothers. And I survived . First, we went to the baby expo downtown which was overall really lame except I got the cutest maternity shirt. (It says "rockin' the bump" and I'm quite sure you'll see pics on here eventually.) Mostly it was 3D-4D ultrasound centers advertising. And we're not doing one. (We think they're creepy.) Point is, we were surrounded by baby bumps and strollers and I did not leave in tears. Second, we bravely chose to look at Babies-R-Us for furniture. We still aren't buying anything until 25-28 weeks (our rule from the beginning), but I saw a set online that I liked and wanted to see it in person. Of course, it's probably their most expensive set but it's made of mahogany and seems to be really good quality. Plus it's the 3 way convertible bed. And I love that you can

Looking Back

Yesterday, I realized even more how lucky I am to be pregnant. There is the obvious reason that I'm no longer in fear of never being able to get pregnant. Now, it's unfortunately replaced with the terror that something could happen to my baby, we can't afford a child, choosing daycare if we have to, things I'm eating, ways I'm sleeping, choosing safe carseats/strollers... I've only had blood drawn 6 times in 4 months. And 3 were for HcG levels. This is a huge improvement from the million blood draws I had done the last 18 months. When the phlebotomist went to find a good vein yesterday, I remembered the days when I was having daily blood draws for IUI and we'd use the "least bruised" vein. And in the hospital when I already had an IV each arm and they were using "fresh" veins to draw samples several times a day. Those nurses get pretty creative. I was starting to look like a cocaine addict. Most doctor's visits I get to keep my pants

Bloodwork

I went to the high-risk specialist's office today for my 2nd set of bloodwork. We saw him at 12 weeks for the first triple-screen panel and ultrasound which showed my chances of birth defects to be around 1 in 10,000. I still chose to do the 2nd set as well, so I went in for bloodwork today. Today it was all cute couples who looked like they should be parents. Last time, it was the biggest group of misfits ever. None looked capable of filling out their paperwork, much less bringing a child into the world. Somehow, I felt like I fit in more with the misfits. Walking into an OB office makes me feel like I'm cheating the system or lying to someone. I keep expecting someone to say, "ummm, you don't belong here. We only see pregnant women." But that's me... I'm pregnant... And I'm actually showing... I do belong there. And I am starting to really LOVE the whole thing. I look forward to everywhere we go now because I get to pick out which cut

16 weeks..

I'm 16 weeks now which is crazy. I feel like time is finally moving again and we're getting somewhere. I also feel like my belly ballooned this week. One morning I woke up and thought, where did this bump come from??? It's too heavy to sleep on my back now and of course my tummy is out of the question. And my body pillow has become a necessity. Showing off my very sexy maternity jeans here with the secret fit full panel belly. I really can't figure out who decided that jeans needed buttons and zippers that actually do something. Elastic is where it's at. My books say I'm producing colostrum (1st breast milk) as of this week which is kinda weird. My boobs feel a lot heavier this week, so I guess I believe it. Does this mean they can start leaking? One of my friends says she never leaked before her baby was born. I'm hoping not to start lactating pre-baby. :) Also, I know quickening (feeling movement) can start around now. I don't think I&

Are you SURE I'm pregnant?

I just read another girl's blog who is 9 weeks pregnant. She's also had a hard road getting there and she talked about feeling detached from her pregnancy. Interesting post, and it kinda hit me that I can relate to it. Every time I listen to the heartbeat or see the baby on ultrasound, I'm relieved that the little one is doing well. And it takes my breath away. But I feel like all that I can accept is that the baby is okay at that moment. I am not able to feel any sort of confidence about the future. Every now and then, you might hear me say, "when the baby comes", or "next year when the baby is here". But mostly I still think " if ". Looking at the ultrasound screen, I can't even begin to believe that the baby is actually in my uterus. That it's my baby. If I did fully believe it, it would make the fear of losing him/her that much more debilitating. And let's face it, there won't be a guarantee until that baby is in my arms.

Maternity Pants, where have you been all my life?

Today as I was squeezing my ever-enlarging tummy into my favorite pre-pregnancy jeans, and then squishing my way into my bella band that never seems to sit in the right place, and trying on pre-pregnancy shirts that are too small, and borrowed maternity shirts that are still too big... I came to the realization that I needed some clothes. So we went to Target. Which failed miserably. First of all, the maternity section is TINY . And it's mixed in with the plus-size dept. Which gets confusing. The clothes did not fit well and made me look fat. Not pregnant. Next stop : Motherhood Maternity. This is a store I swore I'd never enter pre-pregnancy. The mannequins in the window always looked frumpy and miserable. But I'm desperate, people. So in I went. Not only were the sales people SUPER helpful, they have some great stuff. I found the best maternity shirt ever! It looks like something I'd get out of the Victoria's Secret Pink collection and it's my favorite col

I Did Not Ask for your Opinion...

Funny how women have soooo many opinions about MY pregnancy. It's been happening everywhere since I started showing. Women just can't help but tell me their opinions about everything pregnancy/childbirth related. Today, we had a new lady at work who continuously told me that I need to be reading to my baby all the time. Ummm, my baby doesn't currently have functioning ears. The baby is working really hard just to grow and develop vital organs, not read novels. Yet, I'm already being accused of being an unfit mother. :) People like to tell me how my life is never going to be the same, I'll never sleep again, the baby will rule our household, my marriage is going to fall apart, to enjoy these last days with your spouse... I'm sure there is some truth to some of it, and lots of truth for some people. But we're all very different. Maybe you didn't plan on getting pregnant and maybe you don't have an involved husband. But we've been to

Where in the world is Carmen San Diego?

How about we tell a little story about how incredibly dim-witted I can be at times? Aaron calls me at work and tells me that they had an earthquake in Taiwan today. At this point, my mind starts spinning as I try to figure out what is wrong with the word Taiwan. I suddenly can't remember where I've heard it before and actually think he's pronouncing it wrong. Seriously. I wish I were kidding. So I finally come to a conclusion about it, but need some reassurance. I ask, "In Mexico?" Aaron pauses for a very long time and then replies, "what?" I again ask, "Mexico?" His response once figuring out that I was unfortunately serious and that I am responsible for carrying our child, "Umm, China." At this point, I realize that this isn't a Jeopardy type question and that I'm an idiot. Of course it's China. All I can figure is that my jumbled pregnancy brain was stuck on Tijuana. Which is indeed in Mexico. Or is i

15 weeks... how time flies!

Hey friends, Well, I've made it to 15 weeks which seems really crazy. I remember how incredibly slowly the minutes passed at the beginning. We were always waiting for another milestone. Will there be a gestational sac? Will there be a heartbeat? Will the baby make it past the crucial development weeks? We were literally counting days at that point. Now, I'm obviously looking to get to the halfway point, and then viability. Mostly, I still can't believe I'm actually pregnant and that this isn't all a big fairytale. Warning: I had just eaten a lot of tacos before this week's shot, so I may be a tad bloated. :) Let's cover that bump up! So, I went to see the cardiologist today. Last week I had an episode where my heartrate was around 130 and I felt really dizzy and short of breath. My OB had me do an EKG and rhythm strip at work which showed some arrythmias. Then they hooked me up to a holter monitor for 24 hours to watch my rhythm and rate