First Appointment

Friday was our first appointment with the doctor. I had just been there last month for my yearly and told her that I was interested in potentially getting pregnant this year. So, when she walked into the exam room and saw me, we both looked at each like, “I guess it worked!”. She proceeded to examine me, date my pregnancy, and let us ask all the questions that we had. She insisted on dating my pregnancy based on my last period which means that I am 8 weeks today! My official due date is Monday September 12, 2005. That means that I will be very close to giving birth near our 4^th wedding anniversary. (Coincidentally, one of the reasons that we chose to get married in September is because it was not near either or our birthdays so that would give us something in celebrate in February (me), June (him), and September (us)). So, now September will have two occasions for our family to celebrate!!

J was a lot less shy than I thought he would be at the appointment. He asked the doctor about our pending trip to Breckenridge, CO next week. The doctor suggested that I don’t ski since I am a novice. I am definitely cool with that because there are 2 other pregnant girls (much further along than I am) that are going with us. I plan to hang out with them while the guys ski.

My doctor said that she would do my blood work at my next visit in 4 weeks (at 11 weeks, 4 days). Right now we have an appointment for February 25 at 9:05 but, J has something at work that day so, we may reschedule so that he can be there again.

After the appointment, J and I had lunch together at Schlotsky’s. While we were there, my mom called because she was so anxious to hear how the appointment had gone. I told her the details and she was so excited to actually have a date to write down in her calendar. When I originally told her that I was pregnant, I asked her to not tell anyone until I had gone to the doctor, at least. On Friday, I asked how many people she had told and she named about 20!! But, that’s my mom…I expected nothing less…

So, this week, I’m going to get better about my eating and exercise. I’ve already gained 6 pounds which is just blowing my mind. It will help when we finally get some food in our house…yes, we eat out for every meal because there is not a single edible item in the house. More importantly, I’ve been a little reluctant to continue with the more rigorous exercise schedule that I used to have (say this time last year) but, the doctor thinks I should keep doing what I was doing with the exception of crunches. Hmmm…that ruins the excuse that I’ve been using…

Telling the Parents

So, J and I were mentally prepared to tell our parents, grandparents, and sisters about the pregnancy on Monday night but, it didn't quite turn out like that...

Sunday night we had meetings at church - a Sunday School leadership dinner and then an actual meeting with our class leadership. We got home around 9:45pm and when we walked in the phone was ringing. I saw that it was a St. Louis number and knew that it wasn't for me. J was trying to turn off the alarm and so we missed the call all together. So, he checked the voicemail and it was his mom calling. She called to tell us that she had had "the dream". Apparently, she dreams about poop every time someone close to her is pregnant. In the message, she said that she was calling everyone that she thought it could be and yes, we made the list this time. Along with her message was also a message from my mom. So, we took that as a sign to just go ahead and tell our parents...after all, it was only a day early.

It was SO FUN hearing their reactions. Both of our moms screamed and our dads simply said, "Congratulations". My sister let out an emphatic "ewwwww!" (apparently at the thought of us having had sex in order for this to happen). As soon as she let that out, I could literally see her smiling through the phone. I even woke my grandparents up to tell them that they were going to be great-grandparents...which I think is VERY exciting! Telling a few people made it seem so much more real and exciting. I could hardly sleep on Sunday night!!

I've been feeling pretty good this week - probably eating a bit too much though. The nausea has been minimal but, there enough to remind me that my body is not in its normal state. I've had slight headaches. But, I think the hormones are reaking havoc on my attitude! I have just not been the most pleasant person over the past few days...primarily at work. I'm trying my best to recognize the hormones and be more cognizant of how I act during the day. Today was a really good day as far as my attitude went. I can feel a ball in my lower abdomen which I am assuming is my expanding uterus. According to various Internet sites, it is about the size of a plum this week. This is also the week in which my baby is supposed to double in size. I am hoping that we will be able to see the heartbeat at our appointment on Friday. I am still nervous when I don't quite "feel" pregnant so, I'm hoping the visit to the doctor will help to alleviate some of those fears.

It's the toothpaste...

that makes me nauseated in the morning! It only took me 10 days to figure this one out. The first time I experienced the nausea in the morning (i.e. morning sickness), it was while brushing my teeth. On this past Thursday when I experienced the nausea in the morning (i.e. morning sicksness), it was while brushing my teeth. Now, this morning, I had to get up a bit early for a Saturday morning after having a somewhat late Friday night (we had a fun date night that included Outback - my craving for the day - and Meet the Fockers)...my tummy apparently didn't like that. I was supposed to meet some friends at 9:30am to go on a 3-mile walk. It took me forever to eat my breakfast because it just didn't feel like it would stay down. But, I knew I had to eat something if I was going to have a chance at getting through the walk comfortably. After finishing my breakfast, I had to get dressed. I waited until the absolute last minute to brush my teeth because I had a feeling that the nausea would kick in. Sure enough, upon performing the necessary evil, I was overtaken by nausea. So, now my quest is to figure out if it's just my toothpaste or if the whole brushing of the teeth thing is my newest enemy!

In other pregnancy news, I think I was suffering from dehydration on Wednesday!! I was so exhausted and my mouth was really dry. I kept feeling like I needed to drink but, there wasn't enough water in the entire city supply!!! I usually drink lots of water on a regular basis and had probably unknowingly only consumed maybe 64 ounces where I would usually consume 120 ounces. So, on Thursday, I was determined to rehydrate myself. I drank, drank, drank all day long. My manager at work even noticed...made the comment, "Girl, you're going to float away from drinking all that water!" But, in my effort to drink all day Thursday, I didn't eat as much food. So, I ended up going to bed kind of hungry and waking up famished on Friday morning...which inevitably lead to a morning of nausea. So, I've got to some how figure out how to eat and drink the right amounts on the same day!

Other than that, I am doing great. My doctor's appointment has been moved back to next Friday, January 28 at 10:40. I am okay with that just because I will be a little bit further along, which may make the appointment a little more interesting. My husband is going with me so, it should be fun. We've decided to go ahead and tell our parents this Monday night as planned and then after the doctor's appointment next Friday, it's free reign to tell everyone. Although, I'm sure we'll start with our closest friends and family rather than just randomly telling anyone. I wanted so bad to tell the girls on the walk this morning. The irony is that they are my friends who have recently formed a "New Mommies Club" because they are all pregnant. Exercising together is just one of their activities. They invited me just as a friend...little did they know that I have officially joined their group too. :)

Finally, I found out today that another friend of ours suffered a miscarriage this week. The doctors are waiting until Tuesday to determine if it absolutely happened but, they're pretty sure about it. She was about 8 weeks along and not too many people knew about it. The interesting twist is that she ran a 1/2 marathon last Sunday and started the bleeding right after it. Although it's supposed to be safe to exercise while pregnant, running 13 miles in a race is still VERY stenuous. It's just hard to completely rule it out as a factor in the miscarriage...

Still sinking in...

So, Friday night turned out to be a BLAST! Not only was I relieved to finally find out that I am, indeed, pregnant but we had so much fun at our friends house. The food was great and we played the most hilarious games of Catch Phrase ever!!!

Saturday, J and I hung around the house. I tried to do productive things like clean the kitchen and do laundry. It just seems like I've got to get into a better habit of keeping up with my chores if I'm going to be a mommy. My mom always kept our house in order when I was growing up so, I guess I kind of look at it as part of the mommy role. Saturday night, we went to dinner at Chili's and talked about how we're going to start telling people about the pregnancy. Originally, we were thinking that we would keep it to ourselves until after our first doctor's appointment and then start by telling our parents, sisters, and grandparents. But, when I told J that it may be a few weeks before I get an appointment, he decided that we should tell those people during this week. We are just so excited!...and yet this totally doesn't even seem real yet. I called the doctor yesterday and got an appointment for 3:30 next Monday, January 24. That's a bit sooner than I had anticipated so, we're thinking we can wait until next week to tell our families. By my calculations, I'll be 6 weeks on Monday.

Today was my first day at work this week (gotta love those government holidays like MLK day!). I have been relieved of much nausea over the past few days. I don't like that because the nausea reminds me that I am pregnant. I am experiencing some soreness in my breast, an increased appetite, and a whole lotta gas!!! I still get cramps every now and then too. And, of course, I'm holding on to any pregnancy symptom as confirmation. I can't wait to go to the doctor...just to make sure that things are normal so far.

One more thing...I made J take some pictures of me on Sunday so that we can start to monitor my growth in pictures! I want to take them every 2 weeks or so...

We did it!!

We're pregnant! I can't believe it! Who knew that it could happen so quickly for us!??! We are so excited and thankful and happy about this awesome news.

I left work a few minutes early (4:15ish) and headed straight to Target to buy the HPT. On the way home, I swung by KFC because I have been craving fried chicken constantly for the past two weeks. I ate part of my chicken on the 0.75-mile trip home! Oprah was still on when I got home so, I watched the end of it and finished up my snack. Then I pulled out the directions for the First Response HPT and read through them. I then forced myself to sleep on the couch until my husband got home from work.

He came home around 5:45 and immediately told me to go test. Apparently, it was on his mind! As soon as the urine hit the stick, I saw the two lines! (Maybe because I waited about 20 dpo to test!!) But, I still did everything like I was supposed to and even waited the three minutes before we looked at the test together...sure enough - two bright pink lines!! YAY!!!

So, I think we're trying to let this all sink it. I really felt like this would be the outcome but, it's still unreal when you first see it in pink-and-white. We immediately prayed for mine and the baby's health over the course of this pregnancy and of course, thanked God for this awesome, awesome blessing.

The plan now is for me to call the doctor on Monday morning (I'm off work for MLK, Jr. day) and see when I can schedule an appointment. After I have seen the doctor and have a due date (I guess it'll be mid-September some time), we will tell our parents, sisters, and grandparents. I guess after then, it'll be free reign to tell the world!

Right now, we're on the way to our friends' house. They are one of our best couple friends. He is running in the Houston Marathon on Sunday and is having a pasta party tonight. She is about 5.5 months pregnant and I don't know how in the world we'll keep this quiet, considering all she and I ever do is talk about baby stuff! How exciting...thank you sweet Jesus...