17 weeks

17 weeks!!!

Week 16 was pretty similar to week 15 as far as sickness goes. I still spent good quality time hugging the toilet at work and at home. Coworkers and patients have been great to me. It is so ironic having your sick patient asking you if you're ok. :) However sickness is not as much as it has been. Nausea seems to be constantly lingering, but I am also trying only to take medicine before I go to bed. Overall I am just so thankful we have made it this far with baby being healthy and growing.

size: Baby O is now as big as a sweet potato! measuring 5.5 inches and 5 ounces. Aunt Ellen looked ahead and said next week's piece of food is her favorite. I am excited to see what it is! 

 what's going on in my body: my uterus is the size of a cantaloupe. and boy can I feel it. I have been having muscular pain from my abdominal muscles stretching. It was alarming and a little scary at first, but the heart beat was still strong, so I am trying not to worry as much. I can handle the pain and discomfort as long as I know bean is ok in there! I had a somewhat emotional day this week and apologized to poor Philip, but it is scary when your body is changing and hurting in ways you don't understand. I just want someone to tell me it's all normal, because my first thought is always the worst case scenario. So add hormones to the list of growing things :) We also watched Hunger Games this week (obvi I had seen it but philip had not). within the first 15 minutes I was sobbing uncontrollably. Philip was like 'um did you do this in the theater?'. no, i did not. i'm a mess. 

what's going on with baby:  baby weighs about as much as a boneless chicken breast. This week he/she has mastered the art of yawning. But from the ultrasound last week i'm not convinced baby ever sleeps! I am anxiously awaiting getting to feel the baby move for the first time. People keep telling me I will probably think its gas the first couple of times I feel it. I think that's funny. Baby's nervous system is developing rapidly. My app says baby can now hiccup, but we knew that from the ultrasound last week. cutest hiccups ever! :)

cravings this week: french fries. I only let myself have them twice, ok three :), but I could've had them way more.

* stay tuned for the next post-- it's an exciting one:) * 

16 weeks!

Let's put week 15 down as one of the top 3 sick weeks, shall we? :) so now we have 5-10-15. maybe baby hits a growth spurt every 5 weeks or something. That being said, this week was still not as bad as weeks 5,6&7 were, it's just disappointing when you think you are getting better and then have a week where you are afraid maybe you aren't!:) However this week held one the best times of pregnancy thus far for both of us :) :) (ill explain below) 

my bridesmaid outfit for Lee & Dawn's wedding today!!

size: baby O is as big as a turnip, 5 inches long and weighing 5 ounces. My app said if you open the palm of your hand that is about how big baby is:)

what's going on in my body: My appetite is supposed to be increasing soon. I am back to eating like normal but i'm not out-eating philip or anything yet. I am still taking Zofran quite often for nausea. This week has started headaches that almost make it hard to keep my eyes open! I had read these were common but I was hoping maybe they would pass me by :) People are starting to say you can see my 'bump' which is fun but also makes me a little self-conscious:) My uterus is now the size of a large melon. I am thinking more honeydew though, not like watermelon yet:)

what's going on with baby: baby is growing like crazy! His/her chest is expanding and drawing amniotic fluid into lungs helping prepare them to breathe. Baby can also hear things now! loud sounds like Jackson barking or a car honking will startle them. so funny! they say if we let Jackson bark a lot around me that baby will be used to it and won't wake up when he does bark. I am def not scolding him for barking at the squirrels anymore!:) Baby can perceive some light through their still sealed eyelids. 

Also this week the baby's fingerprints start to develop- sealing in the fact that they are truly one of a kind:) 

most exciting event of pregnancy for us: Philip came into my work yesterday on his day off to do an ultrasound on me!!! He pulled the ultrasound into an unused room and we got to see our little bean! The ultrasounds we have in the ER aren't as good quality as the ones at the OB office. But we were able to see their face pretty clearly. We saw both of their hands that he/she kept putting up around their face. We saw the little legs and feet. Baby flipped around like crazy literally flipping multiple times. At one point baby had hiccups and we could see their little body and head heaving with every hiccup! We saw the little butt (we knew baby would have a little butt, both of us dont have much in that area!). Philip is pretty confident he knows what the sex of the baby is, but we aren't saying until we know for sure!

It was such a neat and memorable moment for both of us. Neither of us could believe how big the bean has gotten since we last saw the flicker of a heart beat at 8 weeks. And to see how much it is moving around in there, and I dont even feel it, is so crazy! I can't wait to start feeling Baby in there:) 

Philip thinks baby has his sharp nose:)

baby's face but pic didn't come out great

15 weeks

Today we turned 15 weeks!!!

Time is flying by, it is hard to believe that in less than a month we will find out if the little bean is a boy or a girl! 

going into work!

size:  baby is now the size of an avocado!  measuring  4-5 inches and weighing 3-5 ounces.

what's going on in my body:  I still haven't reached the 'honeymoon phase' and am still pretty nauseas. Luckily I am not puking anymore which is allowing me to keep food down and gain some weight! They say my gums will start to swell but luckily they are just a little tender. I have been told I have acquired the 'pregnancy glow' but it is mostly from co-workers so I think it might just be sweat:) 

For those of you who told me a few weeks ago you couldn't tell I was pregnant, you definitely can see a pooch now! I feel like it is the awkward 'pregnant versus beer gut' phase. trust me, there has no been beer in this gut for over 15 weeks! :)

what's going on with baby: Baby's heart rate was 150 at the doctor this week and was the sweetest little sound:) you can supposedly now see facial expressions that baby makes. the bone's in baby's ears are formed this week. saying it is likely he/she will be able to start hearing our voices:) the backbone is stronger now and helping them strengthen their little head. baby now has eyebrows and eyelashes. their skin is still translucent with no fat on it yet. he/she little's heart is now pumping out 25 quarts of blood a day.

Cravings: I def went to Josie's this week and ate lunch, by myself. I was running errands and baby decided it had to have chicken salad! I saw two of my friends there and they were like 'um are you eating alone?'. haha
also, pancakes. I have always loved Cracker Barrell but am more in love with it the past few weeks.
I have also been doing much better about eating fruit at least twice a day. still not so good on the veggies:/ (sorry mom!)

I have switched from working 3 12 hour shifts a week to 1 12 and 2 8 hour shifts. when I get up at 5am, work 12 hours and get home at 745pm- I am nauseas almost the minute I hit the door and spend the whole night & next day unable to get the nausea under control. I am praying the 8 hour shifts are a little easier on my body.

I had my first prenatal massage yesterday and it was heavenly. I had had a rough night the night before so I was feeling sort of yucky but I was able to still immensely enjoy it. It was different, laying on your side surrounded by pillows. But definitely something I will be doing again in the near future (hopefully Aunt Ellen will be coming with me to get herself a massage too!)

14 weeks

Friday we turned 14 weeks! 

size: baby is now the size of a large navel orange (2-3 ounces). 

whats going on in my body: supposedly the 'first trimester woes' turn into the 'second trimester honeymoon' soon. and while my good days are getting more frequent, i still have really rough hours and days. You can now feel my uterus if you push on it, which is so crazy to both of us. 

what's going on with baby: baby is now 4.5 inches long. He/she can breath, suck, and swallow. They can also kick and move their arms and legs. the ears are now where they are supposed to be and eyes have moved from the side of the head to the front of the face. 

pic from my app 'sprout lite'

my goal was to start exercising again once I started feeling better. I  had a stretch of days off so I decided to start walking every day. Philip and I took Jackson to the park, I walked him tonight, and I plan to walk him again tomorrow night. Once I get back to exercising I will venture back to the my gym to start getting back into shape. 
We go to the doctor on Monday so hopefully she will tell us things are going smoothly and just like they are supposed to be :)

4 years :)

Let me preface this by saying that my husband spoils me. I realize this. I don't take it for granted. and I love that he takes the time to be thoughtful when he can. 

Yesterday marked our 4 year dating anniversary. I'm not always good with dates but this one is easy for me to remember. 8-8-08 was our first date. 

I had to work all day yesterday and Philip got home around 2am wednesday morning. So I left him a card to find when he got home ( I should have known he would do more than just the usual card)

When I came home from work I walked into this:

He had set the kitchen up for us to make sushi (non-seafood, of course) and gotten me a new computer:) (now he may or may not have used some of his continuing education money from St Claire to purchase new laptop, which made me all the happier!) Philip has been trying to get me to get rid of my beloved pink Dell laptop for over a year now. It isn't functional, the mouse works 50% of the time, and it is old. But I have been stubborn about it :) 

We have talked about trying to make our own sushi for some time now and last night we finally did! we had so.much.fun. we made a huge mess but they actually turned out really good!

I was quite impressed with our masterpieces and am looking forward to our second attempt :)

Frozen Meals

My eating habits have been less-than-healthy lately. I am just starting to be able to stomach vegetables and foods that are actually good for me. But I still can't go through the actions of actually cooking a meal. the time, smells, planning- its just too much for this queasy stomach. and poor Philip- luckily boy can cook :)

My mom had the brilliant idea of her and I getting together and making a bunch of meals that are freezable. So today I went to Gtown and we cooked, assembled, and now have meals freezing! 

Lucky for me, my mom thought ahead and browned the hamburger and cooked/deboned the chicken ( I am so spoiled). On the menu was cannelloni and chicken pot pies. We had left over hamburger from the cannelloni so we made mexican stuffed shells and with the left over chicken we made hot chicken salad. So I have 2 trays of cannelloni, 3 chicken pot pies, mexican stuffed shells and hot chicken salad. SEVEN meals! and it took us less than 3 hours! 

The best part is- these aren't just meals that freeze well. these are meals of my mom's that philip and i both love. So now when I have worked all day, or philip has, or one of us just doesnt feel like cooking- we have a homemade meal we can just cook up and serve!! and I wont be eating out as much:) (mommas take care of their babies)

first tri recap

Helllloooo second trimester! 

I remember during week 5, laying on the bathroom floor thinking " I am never going to make it out of this first trimester". and here I am! everyone tells me around this time I will start feeling better so I am hoping for that soon:) I cant believe we are 1/3 of the way through our pregnancy!

Favorite times of trimester #1: 

Seeing the baby's heart beat for the first time. 

Peeing on a stick multiple, multiple times in one week to make sure that line was really there. 

Praying throughout the day for the littlest things about baby (thanks to the 'praying through your pregnancy' book crystal got me!)

Feeling the love Philip has for me and the baby by the countless numbers of things he has done the past 8 weeks. 

Having my bf whitney and aunt Ellen download apps about pregnancy and text me facts and things I need to know several times a week. 

The pure joy and happiness my family and friends have shared with us. I seriously have the best family and group of close friends anyone could have. 

learning week by week what is going on with baby and what new things he/she is developing. 

Not-So-Favorite times of trimester #1

weeks 5 &10. by far my worst 2 weeks with 5 taking the cake. 

3 am. it seems to be my standard 'wake up and start puking/gagging' time. 

insomnia. the first 2-3 weeks after I started getting sick I literally could.not.sleep. I think a lot was anxiety. 

puking in at least 4 restaurant bathrooms. including philip's fancy fav winery. 

cravings:

I have eaten out more these past 12 weeks than I ever eaten out in my life. Because I dont feel good enough to plan a meal to cook, and have to make a gametime decision when its time to eat. So i find something that sounds halfway appealing, go get it and pray it stays down :)

I did eat at Cracker Barrell by myself because I needed their chicken salad sandwich. and I have ordered a chicken salad sandwich from Josie's To Go at least 3 times. Philip bought me 4 different kinds of chicken salad from various places because that was all I wanted for a few weeks. 

aversions:

nothing consistent. some days things sound good to me, some days they dont. I know one thing for sure. i will NEVER eat another Saltine cracker in all of my life. weeks 5&6 did me in with them.

*please know I am not complaining about being nauseated/sick. I would endure much worse if it means baby is healthy and growing like he/she should be. i just want to remember what time time was like for me:)*

back to the grind. and smells.

Yesterday was my first day back to work after almost 3 weeks off. I would say the alarm at 515 came way too early, but 300 was what came too early (the time I woke up and couldnt sleep anymore). I even woke Philip up at 4 to see if he would talk to me:) -- no luck:) it was like I was nervous about going back or something!

It was funny at work to hear so many people comment on 'how much weight I have lost'. like ' oh you look so good! what have you been doing??'. like i have been hittin the gym and working real hard at it.  i wanted to laugh and say 'look good? im green!' but I managed to divert the conversation some and in others just tell them the happy news:) It is so weird to me that people are starting to know about our little secret we have kept for almost 8 weeks. Dont get me wrong, I love sharing this with people who care about us. it's just weird that its not just us and a few people who know. It makes it so much more real. :)

Being at work is a definite challenge when you are pregnant and already nauseated. I had a burn patient several weeks ago and had to walk out from the smell. Luckily my manager was there and took over for me once she saw me almost run for the bathroom. But let me tell ya- the ER is not the place to be when aren't feeling well. the sights and smells will tip you right over the edge :) (then there is my husband who dry heaves every.time. there is a patient laying in poop. should make for an interesting first few weeks with baby!) :)

I made it the through the day though and got to tell several more people at work which was fun:)

Today I am off to have lunch with  my college roommate Robyn and her little boy Jack. I haven't seen Jack since he was days old and I am so excited:)

last time i saw him!