11 Weeks!

Good morning! We have made it to 11 weeks! I know I say it every time but these weeks really do fly by! We are almost through the first trimester already. Some say the second trimester starts at 12 weeks and some say it starts at 14 weeks. 40 weeks divided by 3 is 13.3. I think I will go w/ 13! =) Right in the middle.


How your baby's growing:

Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden.

She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

Note: Every baby develops a little differently — even in the womb. Our information is designed to give you a general idea of your baby's development.

How your life's changing:

If you're like most women, you're feeling a bit more energetic now and your nausea may be starting to wane. Unfortunately, you may also be suffering from constipation (caused by hormonal changes, which can slow digestion) and heartburn (hormones again, relaxing the valve between your stomach and esophagus). Just remember, all this discomfort is for a good cause.

Don't worry if nausea has made it impossible for you to eat a wide variety of healthy foods or if you haven't put on much weight yet (most women gain just 2 to 5 pounds during the first trimester). Your appetite will likely return soon, and you'll start to gain about a pound a week.

Luckily, I never really had much nausea… just a little here or there. Thank goodness! Some days I feel like my energy levels are rising but some days I feel super lazy. So I am not really sure if there are any changes taking place there quite yet. The only change I can tell you for sure is that my pants are definitely tight in my belly! I am wearing my BeBand to work pretty much everyday! My jeans are still fitting comfortably which is nice. Might be time to buy some maternity pants soon for work though!

As you know, I work in a medical facility. My office is in the same building as our Radiology department. Yesterday I was cruising through the department delivering paychecks and the nice ladies asked if I wanted to see my baby. Um… OF COURSE I DO! LOL So we did a quick little ultrasound.

I would LOVE to post my pics BUT for some reason I can't upload them to Blogger. =( Blogger FAIL!
The ultrasound totally made my day! I got to see our little baby's heart beating away at around 163 bpm and he or she was moving around like crazy. That baby is doing flips already! So crazy that it's so small I can't feel it yet.

The lovely Radiology lady said that she can get me in at around 17-18 weeks and we might be able to see the gender! How exciting. I will have to get Craig here for that one =)

10 Weeks and a Doctor's Appointment!

10 weeks is here! We just got done with our doctors appointment. I was disappointed (and a little worried… even though the doctor told me not to be) at first because the doctor wasn’t able to find the heartbeat with the doppler. He tried for a couple of minutes and then decided to do an ultrasound. (YAY!) He did the ultrasound and found the baby. We saw the heartbeating up a storm and the baby was doing a lot of moving around! That totally put me at ease! I was so happy to get to see our little baby! Definitely made things even MORE real!

While we were in the room having the ultrasound I thought for sure I would cry like a "baby" when I saw "it"… but I didn't. I teared up a little but nothing like I thought. When I got back to work, I started feeling emotional about it! It totally hit me that I got to see my little baby and he or she was moving a ton inside my belly! So emotional! You can never imagine what it feels like until you are living it. It's amazing! I am so glad Craig got to be there to experience it with me. I was a little worried that w/ the job he's working on he wouldn’t be able to make it… but he came through! Such a wonderful hubby/daddy!

How your baby's growing:

(sorry I can't get the picture of what the baby looks like to upload but you can see HERE)

Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.

He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.

If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

How your life's changing:

At your next prenatal visit, you may be able to hear your baby's rapid heartbeat with the help of a Doppler stethoscope, a handheld ultrasound device that your practitioner places on your belly. Many women say that the beating of their baby's tiny heart sounded like the thunder of galloping horses and hearing it for the first time was very moving.

Before you got pregnant, your uterus was the size of a small pear. By this week, it's as big as a grapefruit. You may or may not be ready for maternity wear now. Even if you're not there yet, your regular clothes are probably feeling uncomfortably tight and your blossoming breasts are straining the seams of your bra. The thickening in your midsection is most likely due to slight weight gain and bloating. If you're between regular and maternity clothes, pants and skirts with forgiving elastic waistbands (or low-rise waistlines that sit below your belly) will provide some much-needed comfort.

Depending on your level of fitness, you can most likely participate in a wide range of activities during pregnancy. Swimming and walking are excellent choices for the whole nine months. Exercise promotes muscle tone, strength, and endurance — three qualities that can help you carry the weight you gain during pregnancy, prepare you for the physical stress of labor, and make it easier to get back into shape after your baby is born. (Unfortunately, there's no evidence that regular exercise shortens labor.)

I have to say that I have been feeling really good! I get tiny bouts of nausea randomly but it's really not bad! I have been so lucky! The only thing I can really complain about is my sensitive sense of smell. That mixed w/ my dogs' gas is NOT good! I will leave it at that!

I hear that around the 2nd trimester the fatigue subsides. I think I am already feeling that... a little. I still feel tired and need my sleep but my workouts are becoming a little easier.

My pants are definitely getting tighter in the belly area. I broke down and bought a BeBand from Target. It's a stretchy piece of material that you wear around the top of your pants so you can leave them unbuttoned and no one will know =) Love that thing!

9 Weeks!

Wow… 9 weeks already! Seems like we just found out we were having a baby. Time flies! Before we know it we will be in the delivery room getting ready to meet our little angel! I can't wait. I know, I know… I should be enjoying my ME time and our alone time and I am, but I am eager to meet the little one growing in my belly. I can't wait to see which one of us he or she looks like!


We have an appointment with our OB next week. We should be able to hear the heartbeat at that appointment. That's a big milestone! We got to see the little flutter of our "peanut's" heartbeat at the last appointment but I think hearing it will make things even more real.

These pregnancy hormones are really getting to me! LOL I tear up every time I think about meeting our baby! So exciting!

How your baby's growing:


Your new resident is nearly an inch long — about the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks. Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain.


How your life's changing:


You still may not look pregnant even if your waist is thickening a bit. You probably feel pregnant, though. Not only are morning sickness and other physical symptoms out in full force for most women, but you may feel like an emotional pinball as well.

Mood swings are common now — it's perfectly normal to feel alternately elated and terrified about becoming a parent. Try to cut yourself some slack. Most women find that moodiness flares up at around six to ten weeks, eases up in the second trimester, and then reappears as pregnancy winds to a close.

Mood swings? Check! LOL… I have burst into tears a total of 3 times so far… over pretty much nothing. Totally blaming the hormones. As you can see here, that should subside in the second trimester! Whew! The bad news is it looks like it returns in the third trimester! Sorry Craig! =)

I torture myself every week by watching 16 & Pregnant. I cry every time! I don't know why I do it to myself! I just can't help it.

I can definitely see that I have a "bump" forming and Craig has confirmed =) It's tiny and its not quite the baby yet but my body is making room! I have taken a couple of "bump" pictures but there's not much to see so I think I will post a few of them all together later on so you can see the progress as it gets bigger.

That's all I've got going on at the moment! Stay tuned for next week's update!

8 Weeks

As you can tell, it's still very early in my pregnancy, but I thought a little weekly update would be a good idea!

Here's an update I receive weekly from BabyCenter.com

How your baby's growing:


New this week: Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. You may be daydreaming about your baby as one sex or the other, but the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl. Either way, your baby — about the size of a kidney bean — is constantly moving and shifting, though you still can't feel it.


How your life's changing:


You may notice that your bra is getting more snug. Soon you'll likely need a larger size with better support. Rising levels of hormones cause breast growth and other tissue changes, all in preparation for lactation. Your breasts may continue to grow throughout pregnancy. Don't be surprised if you go up a cup size or two, especially if it's your first baby. Keep this in mind, and allow for room to grow when investing in a new bra.


Feeling fatigued? Hormonal changes — in particular, a dramatic rise in progesterone — may be contributing to your sluggishness. Nausea and vomiting can certainly cost you energy, too. And you may be having trouble getting a good night's sleep at this point, especially if you're uncomfortable or find you need to get up to pee.

Let me just say that I am definitely feeling the fatigue and excessive peeting! Other than my symptoms are pretty minimal! One of the lucky ones! Even though I am having minimal symptoms right now, I realize that "morning sickness" can hit me at ANY moment. I try not to take it for granted and enjoy feeling good as long as I can =) My fingers are crossed that I skip that symptom.

I don't quite have a "bump" yet, but I did leave my pants unbuttoned this morning. Thank goodness I wear LONG tanks under everything! Ahhhh the freedom!

Cravings? It's hard to say. I do have cravings but they change day to day. Let me say that pregnancy cravings are MUCH different and harder to fight than a regular " I feel like ice cream" craving!

Some exciting news...

I have been sitting in pins and needles waiting to write this post! I know most people wait to spread news like this but it's just too exciting… I can't take it anymore…


WE ARE HAVING A BABY!!!!!!!

I wanted to wait until we had our first appointment w/ my OB to verify there is, in fact, a "bun in my oven".

I can't tell you how excited we are! We both had trouble believing it, but it is really happening!

To tell you the truth, I had a feeling weeks before it was confirmed. I could just feel it... mostly in my boobs! LOL!!!

I took a test one lonely Saturday and I saw a very faint line. See below =)

You can BARELY see the line… some may not see it at all, but I just knew I was pregnant even if the line wasn't a bold hot pink one!

A couple days later I broke out of the stone age and got a digital test. You know… "pregnant" or "not pregnant". I took the test before work and it didn't even need time to think about it… almost immediately it flashed "PREGNANT"! As you see here…

I played it cool and got ready for work while Craig laid fast asleep in bed. Finally, I woke Craig up and told him that he was going to be a daddy! He was a little groggy but got very smiley and gave me lots of hugs and kisses. I totally started sobbing before I could even get the words out!
 
I left for work and immediately contacted our OB department. I was able to get in to get my blood drawn asap and they even put a "stat" on my results =) A perk of working here! The results were, of course, POSITIVE!!!!!
 
We started telling family and close friends right away. Everyone has been so happy for us and its really an awesome feeling! We couldn't be happier and are loving sharing the news.

Oh... and before I forget, I just can't resist sharing what Craig said to me a couple nights before our appointment. He says to me "So at the appointment on Friday, do they give you a print out of what they find?" LOL I had to remind him that IT'S REALLY A BABY! LOL Not a puppy or the Lost City of Atlantis! LMAO!

We had our first OB appointment last week. We LOVE our doctor. He's very laid back and knows his stuff. He also gave us a "print out" of what he "found" =)

The first picture of our little baby! 4.2mm at 6 weeks!  

Ahhh it feels so good to finally let the world know =) LOL well the part of the world who reads my blog.