We're having a baby!

With friends and family scattered across the country I have decided to start documenting my pregnancy so that everyone can feel included. 

The first trimester:

The excitement began on March 23^rd.  We went out for dinner with Dan’s friends in DC. After dinner we relocated to a popular Georgetown bar with a vibrant scene complete with live piano music.  Normally I’d sit back and enjoy the people watching and the music but instead I just felt miserable.  I sat by myself, being completely unsocial and just thought about how tired I was and how I just wanted to go home.  Dan pulled me aside, sensing I wasn’t myself, and asked what was wrong.  I just started to cry, right there in the bar, tears and all, and whined that I just wanted to go home.  He was annoyed to have to leave his group of friends so early in the evening but obliged and home we went.  He immediately got into bed, still annoyed with my 2 year old like behavior, while I dug out a pregnancy test…and sure enough, I was pregnant, just 5 weeks at this point!  I marched into the bedroom with the positive test and told him to stop being mad at me because pregnant women are supposed to be moody.  It took him a minute to realize what I had just said; he just stared at me blankly.  Then I got an “are you serious??!!!!” followed by a giant hug, happy tears on my end, and lots of excitement.

I had talked to two different doctors previously about conceiving and they both had doubts that I’d be able to without the help of prescriptions or fertility treatments so we were beyond excited that it had happened naturally but we were also incredibly nervous.  We made the decision to wait until we knew everything was real and okay before we told anyone our news.  The doctor saw me at 6.5 weeks, verified that we were indeed expecting, and sent us to our first ultrasound.  We were able to hear the heartbeat for the first time; I can’t even explain how amazing this felt.  However the tech then pointed out some bleeding and told me that she would call my doctor’s office and they’d want to speak to me.  She sent me over to a singular phone at the end of a hallway where my doctor told me I as on “pelvic rest.”  Meaning I had to take it easy until they verified that the bleeding had healed.  For those of you who know me, life without working out was difficult; exercise is a huge part of my daily routine.

We finally got another ultrasound at 13 weeks and everything was fabulous.  Since we hadn’t told anyone about the pregnancy yet and we were worried about the news from the first ultrasound, I hadn’t really accepted being pregnant.  But the 13 week ultrasound showed a baby!  The fingers and toes were already developed and he or she was moving around like crazy, sucking its thumb and rubbing its eyes.  It was the best experience of my life thus far although I know I’ll be saying this with every new milestone I experience during the pregnancy. 

Now that we felt more connected to the baby and more confident about the pregnancy, we were ready to start spreading the news!  We travelled up to Massachusetts for Memorial Day weekend.  The drive was extra fun since we had to stop every hour so I could pee.  We went out to dinner with both sets of parents and all of our siblings.  While we were waiting for our table we gave each of our moms a belated mother’s day gift.  My mom looked at Dan’s mom and said “Oh, another picture of the grand-pups!”  Weren’t they surprised to unwrap “baby to be” frames with the 13 week ultrasound picture!  They expressions on their faces were priceless and it was such a wonderful moment. 

I hadn’t thought to document each week of the first trimester like I will be sure to do for the remainder of the time so here’s a brief summary:

How far along? 1 – 13 week summary

Total weight gain/loss: lost 8 lbs, gained 3 back.

Maternity clothes? Bought a belly band (you wear it over your unbuttoned pants!) but haven’t needed it wear it yet.

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Wake up every 3 hours to pee :-( 

Best moment this week:  Best moment of the trimester was the 13 week ultrasound.  It was truly amazing.

Have you told family and friends: Not till the very last week!

Miss Anything? Exercising!!!

Movement: none yet.

Food cravings: change daily.  Some of the weirdest were Elio’s pizza, frozen chicken nuggets (bought dinosaur shaped ones!), and French fries.  I NEVER would have eaten chicken nuggets or French fries previous to the pregnancy.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Almost anything with a scent. L  All of my favorite foods are now in this category to include sweet potatoes, bacon, bananas, hummus, and Thai food.

Have you started to show yet: Nope.

Gender prediction: Hubby thinks it’s a boy and I did too at the very beginning although now I don’t know.

Belly Button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: MOODY. Sorry Hubby.

Looking forward to: Being allowed to work out and not feeling sick anymore!