Healthy Baby!

We had an ultrasound this morning and everything looks great! We are SO relieved! The baby is healthy and measuring eight weeks and my official due date is January 4th.

We met with Dr. Sine this time and we both really liked her. After a quick exam, she said that the bleeding from the other day was just what she thought it was (a result of my swollen, sensitive female bits). It isn't too abnormal for that too happen and she said not to freak out if it happens again. I had more blood work done and left with lots of reading material. Overall a good visit.

Another Scare . . .

After a wonderful date night with Jason in San Francisco, we headed back to our hotel room and had a wrapped up the evening the best way we knew how (wink, wink). Our lovely night took a turn for the worst when I started bleeding. Scared and worried, we called the nurse practitioner that is available through our insurance. Based on the amount of blood, she recommended either calling my OB or heading straight to the emergency room. We decided to page my OB (at 2:00 am her time) and she said that there was no need to go to the ER. Furthermore, she said that sex can't cause a miscarriage. My womanly parts are apparently more tender and prone to bleeding while preggers. Chances are I broke a blood vessel or something. I wasn't having any cramping, so it didn't appear I was miscarrying, but it is still a cause for concern. The bleeding was slowing down by the time we talked and she said I should be fine to wait and see her for my scheduled appointment on Friday (tomorrow).

Jason and I were both really scared but were relieved when I woke up with my same old pregnancy symptoms (tender breasts, nausea, dizziness and extreme hunger!). I've never been so grateful to feel so crumby! I didn't end up having any cramping and the bleeding was gone entirely by morning.

Needless to say, we're still a little freaked out, but there isn't much more we can do than just put things in God's hands and hope for the best. I'm trying to relax and take things easy (although I really want to go mow the lawn!) and I'm making sure to get lots of rest. There isn't much more I can do at this point!

Martini Time!

In honor of my green olive olive-sized baby, I am going to celebrate today with a martini. Mmm. Just kidding of course, but I have had some interesting conversations recently about drinking during pregnancy.

We are currently visiting family in California and I had a funny conversation with a relative about when she was pregnant thirty some odd years ago. Her exact words were, "I used to get blasted!" The interesting thing is that her kids are both super geniuses and have no signs of alcohol damage. Another relative said that she drank and smoke during both her pregnancies, and again, she has extremely bright and successful kids. Now, I certainly don't think this is a sign that drinking and smoking is okay during pregnancy (fetal alcohol syndrome is a really horrible disease) but it is fascinating to me how much things have changed only in the last thirty or so years!

In this same vein, I thought I would post a picture of an oddball book Jason found online. Yes, this is a real book:

Here is the description from Amazon.com:

Many people are parents, and many parents are thirsty. Yet too many parents allow their infant sons and daughters to lie about idly: napping, drinking milk, and whatnot. Why not put them to work? Observe how tots enjoy the shapes and colors, all the while learning how to mix a variety of basic cocktails. Thanks, Baby!

For those interested they've also written "Baby Fix My Car", "Baby Do My Banking" and my personal favorite, "Baby Plan My Wedding."

Maternity pants

My Old Navy/Gap order finally arrived yesterday and I'm so excited to have pants to wear again! Not everything I purchased worked out, but I was certainly surprised by what fit the best: my first pair of maternity pants! We leave for California today and I have planned just about all of my outfits to include the pants. They are pretty casual, but I think I can dress them up enough so as not to look too dumpy (they are workout pants afterall!). Pairing them with a pair of cute flats, a stripey button up shirt and maybe my black down vest will make for a perfect (and most importantly comfy) traveling outfit!

Our Little Raspberry

I am currently seven weeks and four days pregnant. Solidly in my eighth week of pregnancy, our little one is currently the size of a raspberry.

I am still feeling a lot of dizziness and am having more and more bouts of nausea. I was hit pretty hard with nausea yesterday during a rehearsal and had to stop and get some toast. One of the other musicians brought me some ginger gumdrops (mmm!) and some Altoids which also helped. It went away within an hour or two and really wasn't all that bad. Knowing my delicate system, I'm expecting to be hit pretty hard with nausea and I truly appreciate that it has been pretty mild thus far!

Pre-maternity Clothes . . .

Even though I'm only seven weeks along, I already can't comfortably fit into my pants. After talking to both my mom and my sister, it seems that this is normal for women in my family. We show early and big! My mom said by the time she was six months, she looked nine months. Oh boy.

I've been wearing lots of dresses and even sported a rubber band through the button hole of my jeans yesterday when it was too cold for a dress. I ended up ordering some pre-maternity pants yesterday that will hopefully last me a few months.

I'm hoping I'll be able to dress these Old Navy pants up with some flats and a cute top:




I ordered these Gap pants in a size larger than I normally wear. They're cute, on sale, an will hopefully be something I can still wear after the baby.




I already have this Old Navy skirt in the color below and it is SUPER comfy! I ordered another one in black so I can wear it for my church gigs on Sundays.


The next step will probably be to buy a Bella Band. This ingenious invention allows you to wear your regular pants unbuttoned and unzipped. They get great reviews and are under $20. I'll probably end up with one in white and one in black but will hopefully be able to put this purchase off another few weeks!

More Nursery Inspiration

Here is another fabulous, and fairly gender neutral nursery. (This one happens to be for a little girl and comes from www.withtwocats.com.) I love that everything is pretty neutral and then the curtains and bumper are bright and fun. I think it works well for a tiny nursery (like ours will be!).


We've thought about using this shelving (though a bigger version) from Ikea in the baby's room. I love the idea of having books and baskets of toys where the baby can reach, but also having storage space and more valuable keepsakes higher up. I also LOVE the "love" poster. I've wanted one of these for the living room for quite a while, but I think it is so appropriate for the little one's room too! (http://www.madebygirl.com/product.php?sku=PR-20)



Lastly, I love the idea of having simple toys for the baby. This one is so cute and happens to be from Ikea! Love it!

Keeping Fit

One of the few directives I received from my doctor at our visit was to exercise at least 30-40 minutes a day. I don't think I've ever exercised that much in my life! He said it would be good for me and the baby both and would help enormously during labor. We have an elliptical machine in our house and he said that that would be perfect. I would also like to try out some yoga videos. With the beautiful spring weather, however, I am more excited about a lovely walk at this point. I might as well enjoy being outside while the DC weather is still tolerable. It won't be long before the heat and humidity settle in for summer!

Nursery Inspiration

I love the idea of a fairly gender neutral nursery. The young couple on a house blog I follow is expecting a baby any day now. They transformed a guest room into a gorgeous baby room and I love it! I especially love that they did a lot of the projects themselves and were able to complete the nursery on a really tight budget.

Check it out!
http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/04/the-big-nursery-reveal/

First Doctor Visit and Due Date Info

Today was my first visit with an OBGYN. It wasn't the doctor I will be working with, but one of her colleagues. He was great, but I know I will be much more comfortable with a woman. Still, I LOVED the office staff and the office itself is clean and updated. It is also a mere four minutes from my house. I could walk there! I found the office through a referral service at our nearby hospital. The hospital is only about five minutes from our house. It is also Catholic which we like.

I was happy that Jason came with me to the appointment. We started out chatting in the doctor's office and then moved to the exam room. He kept asking if we had questions, but we really didn't have many. We've been reading a lot in books and online and so far didn't have many pressing questions. They didn't do an ultrasound, but I got a full physical and exam. Good times. They also took some blood and will have me back in in a few days or a few weeks depending on what the results are.

I just got a text from my mom asking if we found out the due date and, stupidly, we forgot to ask! A book a friend lent me has a chart to figure out the due date and according to the chart I am due January 7. According to an online "calculator", however, I am due January 4th. Both dates are later than what I had originally figured out, so who knows at this point! I'm just glad it will be far enough away from Christmas. Jason laughs, but I have always said I didn't want a Christmas baby. I think a June baby would have been perfect as it is a good six months away from Christmas, but I guess it is too late now! Maybe we can work on that for next time. ;)

Sad news

We just found out some devastating news about my fourteen-year-old nephew: he has cancer. We are all in shock. The good news is that they operated and it looks like they got it all out. The bad news is that it sounds like he'll still have to go through chemo and radiation. He just turned fourteen yesterday and will be going into high school this fall. Please keep him in your prayers.

As far as the baby and I go, I've been doing my best to keep relaxed and not too stressed out. I am supposed to take finals this week at school, but contacted three of my professors to let them know that I will be taking incomplete grades. I have spoken with my profs and with the dean and they all are fine with this. I now have until October to finish my classes, but I intend to finish everything up within the next couple of weeks. I just needed to do something to make all of this more manageable and I feel really good about my decision. I hate to drag things out, but I just can't imagine pulling all night study sessions when I'm already so stressed and exhausted.

I see my OBGYN tomorrow and Jason will be coming with my to my appointment. I am a little nervous because my cramping has continued, but we're assuming everything will be normal.

In the meantime, we're sending good thoughts and prayers to our nephew. He has come to stay with us every summer for the last three years and we would love to have him out again this year. Here's hoping! . . .

A Blueberry

In the midst of a crazy schedule I'm trying to find time to relax. I nap every chance I get and am trying to simplify as much as I can. It is a little difficult, however, during finals week at school when I have two big concerts and a recording session all within the next week-and-a-half. I'm also throwing a friend of mine a baby shower next weekend with absolutely zero time to clean and prep for it. Blergh. Once school is out things will (hopefully) ease up quite a bit and I can get more relaxation time in.
Luckily there hasn't been much nausea so far, which I'm enormously grateful for. I still have fits of cramping every now and then but I'm learning what makes them better: heating pads and drinking lots of water. I had some cramping this morning and they went away almost immediately after I drank a big glass of water. Hey, whatever works!
According to an app I have for my iPhone, my baby is now the size of a blueberry. I can't believe I'm already six weeks along! I have my first meeting with my OBGYN on Tuesday, so I'm sure I'll have lots to update you all on then.

Crazy, I know . . .

So, I know y'all won't believe me, but I swear I'm showing! I've been bloated for the last couple of weeks and, despite having dropped a few pounds, I haven't been comfortable in my normal pants. In fact, even my "fat pants" were feeling snug. I've been checking my belly profile in the mirror and have been hoping to see some change but so far, nothing.

Then this morning I checked and saw that my normal fat bulge was poufing out ever so slightly. It looked different in that it is poufing out really low on my belly. I immediately ran into the bathroom where Jason showering and threw open the shower curtain to show him. He noticed it too, but doesn't seem entirely convinced. Oh well. Regardless of what is causing my poufing belly, it is still pretty exciting to think about how much my body will change over the next eight months. I'm sure gaining weight will lose its charm here pretty quickly, but for now I'm certainly enjoying the thought of it!

Symptoms

-a dizziness that feels like I've just gotten off of a carnival ride
-slight nausea
-lower back/butt soreness
-light lower belly cramping
-sore boobies!
-big time bloating

From what I read, most women don't have so many symptoms so early on in pregnancy, so I'm just lucky I guess! My biggest surprise is that I haven't been hit by vomiting and severe nausea. The nausea I do have is pretty mild at this point and hasn't even affected my appetite.

My other big surprise is that my fat pants are already tight. What the heck?! I haven't gained any weight (I've still managed to keep up the four pounds I lost a few months ago) but I just feel huge in my belly. At this point there is no way it could be a baby belly because the little guy is only half a centimeter long! I've worn dresses and stretch pants for the last few days and will probably keep it up as long as I feel so enormous. Luckily the weather is lovely here in DC, I'll fit in nicely with lots of loose, flowy dresses!

PS: We will get started with some belly pics this weekend. I'm going to try to keep a week by week log of the belly!

A Little Scare

I woke up this morning with severe cramping in my lower belly and back. This was the second day in a row this had happened, but this time it was even more severe than last time. After 15 minutes of constant pain Jason went and got my mom (who is still visiting from Washington). We eventually decided to call a nurse practitioner through our insurance. After listening to my symptoms and asking a lot of questions, she said we should head to the emergency room. Talk about scary!

The cramping lasted a total of 45 minutes and by the time we got to the ER, I felt a lot better. I was tired and sore, but the cramping was gone. After waiting a few hours (the hospital was pretty busy!) I finally got a bed. Another few hours past before I was able to see a doctor who recommended I get an ultrasound. Thankfully the ultrasound revealed a healthy little blob that was already five weeks old. They put me on miscarriage watch and sent me home. I'll remain on miscarriage watch until I speak with my OBGYN on May 11th. Until then I'm just trying to take it easy. Jason is taking good care of me and we are overall just so grateful that we still have the baby!

I'm Preggers!

Jason and I have been trying to conceive since January. We had our hopes up really high the first few months but as the weeks past without any sign of pregnancy, we stopped thinking about it so much. The morning of a friend's bachlorette party I decided to take a home test to make sure I would be able to drink freely that evening. I was shocked to see the second little line appear on my pee stick! I woke up Jason and had him look at it and then brought it to my mother (who was was visiting from Washington state) and had her check it out too. The verdict was in: I am pregnant!

A look at the calender shows that I'm about three or four weeks along. Knowing I'm preggers explains the nausea (that I had attributed to bad food and stress) and the exhaustion (I actually had to lay down in a dressing room while shopping with my mom because I was so overwhelmed with exhaustion!). Though it is on the early side to be telling everyone about the pregnancy, the cat quickly came out of the bag when I had to avoid drinking at the bachlorette party, rehearsal dinner and now the wedding tonight. We decided to tell family, so we'll be making those calls today. It is such an exciting time!

We're grateful to have so much time to prepare for Junior, but we're also so anxious to meet him/her! Until then, I've started this blog to keep family and friends updated on the pregnancy news.