17 weeks, 1 day

Two big updates this week.

1)      Completely survived a weekend with the inlaws!

It was just as terrible as I expected it to be.  (Thank goodness I’m still running so I could get away for an hour on Saturday) My pre-pregnancy gripes have doubled since becoming pregnant.  J’s parents are definitely the most inconsiderate people I’ve ever met which majorly affects me (and Muppet) now. 

First, there are 2 bathrooms in the house.  BUT the two of them can’t share a bathroom, even when guests are over.  Which means, when this pregnant lady has to go to the bathroom in the morning, I either have to hold it for an hour, or go outside in the bushes because both bathrooms are in use. 

Those of you used to eating nonstop because there is something growing inside of you?  Don’t visit my inlaws.  Father-in-law shops every day, but only for enough food for dinner that night.  That means there’s nothing to eat in their house.  Those grapes on the counter?  DON’T TOUCH THEM!  THEY’RE FOR THE SALAD!  I kid you not, at one point I was eating a lemon – not because of a craving, but because my Mother-in-law had some extra from the pie she was baking and I NEEDED FOOD!

The worst part of the trip, was telling them we wouldn’t be up for Christmas.  Every year we take time off work, drive 6-8 hours up to them, only to be ignored for the entire time.  (This year they asked J why he was staying so long.)  Anything Christmas related is planned by us, because otherwise we spend the entire time sitting in silence in the house contemplating our belly buttons.  (Father in law doesn’t like noise because he “likes to think.”)  J was nervous they’d be upset we’re not coming up.  They weren’t.  He told them we wouldn’t be making the trip with a 2 month old, but were hoping that maybe they’d come down and spend Christmas with us.  My mother-in-law didn’t seem thrilled with the idea.  “We’ll see” she told him.  Then I overheard her complaining about it to someone at the Easter potluck we went to.  So what’s the hold up?  J is blaming the fact that his parents are old and the trip will be difficult for them.  I’m not buying it because they’re going to Hawaii with friends in September – which is a much longer trip than the hour plane trip to see us.  Maybe it’s because they want to spend it with their other grandkids (who live next door)? Nope, can’t be that either.  J’s brother is ecstatic at the idea of coming down to spend Christmas with us because then he doesn’t have to worry about hosting anything.  Well, it must be the time off work, then, right?  Nope – father in law doesn’t work and mother in law already took the week off.  So basically it would seem that they just don’t really want to spend Christmas with us.  Poor J – but yay for me!

2)      My 17 week appointment!

I know.  I have a weird appointment schedule.  It has to do with having my first appointment at 9 weeks, so everything is based on 4/8 weeks after that.  I still get really nervous before appointments.  I don’t spend too much time worrying between them, but for some reason the day before, I start getting nervous that this is the appointment there’ll be something wrong.  But this one was perfect.  Perfect (note the capital P).  My weight and blood pressure were exactly spot on.  Muppet’s heartbeat is strong and healthy in the high 150s/low 160s.  I got the okay to run a half marathon in January.  I had a feeling it would be okay, but just wanted to make sure I wasn’t completely unrealistic in my goals.

Maybe the best part of the appointment was checking Muppet’s heartbeat.  I don’t feel movement incredibly often.  I’ve had two definite “Woah, did I swallow a fish?” moments, but other times I’m just not positive if that tickle is Muppet or my clothes brushing against me.  But whatever it is, all but once the feeling has been on my left side.  Which is, coincidently also where I feel the most pressure when I feel pressure.   That’s a long backstory, but there’s a point.  When the NP went to place the Doppler on my abdomen, she placed it smack dab in the middle, and …….nothing.  J started getting nervous.  I said to her “I know it sounds silly, but I think the baby hangs out on my left side.” She moved the Doppler a couple inches to my left, and…voila, that familiar whoosh whoosh sound.  Which was even better than just hearing the heart because it made me feel like I really am feeling something AND that maybe I’m a little more connected with Muppet than I feel.

Total weight gain/loss: +2

Next Appointment: Monday, May 9
Maternity clothes? I got a maternity dress for Easter since we’d be out of town and I didn’t know what would fit me, but it wasn’t really necessary.  Still wearing my regular stuff every day.
Stretch marks: nada.
Sleep: More bad than good.  Have had 2 good nights of sleep this week.  For those of you doing the math, that make 5 nights of tossing, turning, and waking up unable to fall back asleep.
Best moment this week: An amazing appointment.  What could have gone better?
Movement: Definitely.  Just not often or consistently. 
Food cravings: Nothing

Food aversions: Nothing
Gender: Tell you in October!
Belly Button in or out: in
What I miss: Sleep!!!

What I am looking forward to: More movement, and I think I’ll breathe a pretty heavy sigh of relief after the anatomy scan in 2 weeks.

Contractions: Nope.  Talked to the NP about those last ones and she’s fairly certain it was related to something I ate and not baby at all.
Milestones:
- Movement

16 weeks, 1 day

Well we are almost officially completely out.  All of my friends know I’m pregnant.  For some odd reason, J still hasn’t told any of his friends, except his two closest.  He was much more eager to tell his coworkers.  So they all know.  And of course, now everyone has advice for him.  Including the fact that they all want to know the sex.  Seems to be a recurrent trend.  We’re going to have a lot of disappointed friends.  As for me, I’m still keeping it quiet at work.  Yesterday one of my coworkers came in to tell me he was leaving.  We talked about how it might increase my caseload and I confided in him that I think they’re hesitant to send me new cases at this point because I’m pregnant.  He was shocked.  But supportive.  Later yesterday I told the receptionist when we had a similar conversation.  It’s weird now that some people know and some don’t.  Part of me thinks that probably everyone knows now, and is just waiting till I tell them.  My office is fairly gossipy like that.

I also “came out” online – via my blog and the internet message boards I post on.  Nothing to flashy and showy, it’s not my style.  The whole “announcing” thing is just very awkward in general for me.

So that’s what’s going on outside, let’s move to what’s going on inside:

1)      I may have started feeling movement.  I can’t really tell.  The first feeling was in the middle of the night.  J had got up to go to the bathroom, and I felt like a kickflip inside of me.  I wasn’t sure if it was real, or if I was even awake.  That was the most drastic.  Since then, there have been little fish like tickling if I lie very still…sometimes.  If I concentrate on them, they go away. Once when I was standing and talking to J I told him it’s hard to realize there’s something growing inside me since I don’t see or feel any different.  I told Muppet it would be helpful if there was some movement, and I started getting the flutters again!  Maybe.  It’s hard to tell if it’s internal or not, it’s so faint it’s like a breeze blowing across my stomach.

2)      Now that Muppet has working ears, J and I have started reading to the belly each night.  We’re currently reading “Cricket in Times Square” because J had never read it as a child.  We take turns with the different chapters.  We’re almost done though, so now I need to figure out if we read the next book in the series or move on to something completely different.

3)      I definitely started showing.  And it’s not the same place as my bloat, although it’s higher than my uterus.  I’m thinking it’s probably the organs all moving up and out, but still.  I went from nothing (well – never nothing.  I think there may have been one day in 1995 my stomach was completely flat) to a round belly literally over the span of a day.  I stood up from my desk after work one day, and there it was.  Which makes things interesting at work since I’m trying to keep it quiet.  I find myself carrying things in front of my belly like characters on tv trying to hide their pregnancy.  Personally, I still find myself feeling “fat looking” and not “pregnant.”  J has been fantastic at telling me (without prompting) that I don’t look fat at all – definitely pregnant, no mistake. Which makes me feel better, even if I’m not convinced. 

Total weight gain/loss: +2

Next Appointment: Tuesday, April 26
Maternity clothes? Not yet.  Sticking it out with the bella band.
Stretch marks: nada.
Sleep: Good nights and bad nights.  Last night I slept all the way through, but the night before I didn’t sleep at all.
Best moment this week: Telling Muppet to move around, and then maybe feeling movement?
Movement: Maybe? 
Food cravings: Nothing

Food aversions: Nothing
Gender: Tell you in October!
Belly Button in or out: in
What I miss: My Friday night glasses of wine.  Being able to run a 10 minute mile without huffing and puffing.

What I am looking forward to: Real honest to goodness movement.

Contractions: Maybe?  But WAY too high, so maybe not.  I was walking and got really tight across my upper abdomen.  This was back when the only pregnant part of me was right above my pubic bone, about 6 inches lower.  I have no idea if this was a BH or not because the location was all off.
Milestones:
- Being out in the open – almost

- starting to show

14 weeks, 2 days

This is another one of those in betweener weeks.  Not much new to share unfortunately.  I swear this pregnancy is one of those “hurry and wait” situations.  There is so much time when there is nothing going on.  No appointments, no symptoms, no movement, no sleep!  And apparently no sleep makes me more of a cranky bitch than I already am.  It’s hard to believe but J has literally said to me he hopes I start getting some good sleep.  And the crankiness isn’t even aimed at him!

I told a couple of my closest friends last weekend.  Which was good, and awkward.  I really hate telling people – I mean, I love them knowing, but I just don’t know what to say after I tell them I’m pregnant and there’s that beat where they’re processing it.  Or how to work it into a conversation.  I also told my boss and the senior associate at work.  There’s something interesting about the shock that comes after the statement.  No one seems to have guessed.  Part of me loves that, the fact that no one had a clue.  Part of me feels like that makes the whole thing surreal.  I mean, I get it, I don’t necessarily “look pregnant.”  I’m not really showing. And aside from the fact I’m the sober sister at dinner not much has changed.  But I have this fear that now that people know things are going to go wrong.  And most days I don’t really “feel pregnant” so having people be so surprised sometimes makes me second guess myself. 

Total weight gain/loss: +2

Next Appointment: Tuesday, April 26
Maternity clothes? Not yet.  Sticking it out with the bella band.
Stretch marks: nada.
Sleep: Back to waking up all night throughout the night.  Last week was a tease.
Best moment this week: Having the Senior Associate hug me when she found out.  I was not expecting a positive reaction from her at all.
Movement: Only my own.
Food cravings: Nothing

Food aversions: Nothing
Gender: Tell you in October!
Belly Button in or out: in
What I miss: My Friday night glasses of wine.  Being able to run a 10 minute mile without huffing and puffing.

What I am looking forward to: Telling some of my besties this weekend!

Contractions: Yee gods I hope not!
Milestones:
- Telling my boss and superiors at work.

13 weeks 3 days

Officially the second trimester, no matter how you count it!

So the weekend trip went well.  In terms of shopping, clothing was a bit of a disappointment, though I did manage to pick up a couple of skirts which will fit nicely under my bump whenever it gets high enough so that wearing a skirt below it isn’t obscene. 

AND I got my beloved diaper bag!  Yay!  Or rather, my mom got it for me.  I talked her out of buying clothes for the baby at a boutique, but couldn’t say no when she offered to get something for me.  I’m already a selfish mother.

Monday we went in for my first prenatal visit with my OB/GYN.  I’ve been seeing her for years, so she was so excited for me.  And she got to meet J.  She gave him a look – “How tall are you?”  and then predicted we would be having a very long baby.  I told her I was hoping it wouldn’t be a big baby too, and she said babies tend to take after their mothers.  Under 7lbs, here we come!!!!!  And she also thinks it’s completely possible that muppet could be late and make his/her arrival on October 7.

She warned me that since muppet is still small, it might take her a while to find the heartbeat with the Doppler.  Nope.  That bugger started pounding just as soon as she laid it to my skin.  My muppet is ever so cooperative.  She told me it was fast, strong, and healthy.

Wednesday I had my bloodwork done.  I was not looking forward to this due to my INTENSE FEAR OF NEEDLES.  I told the phlebotomist about my fear and that I would probably cry.  He shouldn’t take it personally.  7 vials of blood later,  (7!!!!!) and I only cried a little bit.  I had my eyes closed the whole time and the phlebotomist coached me on “almost done”  “just one vial left.”

Later that day I had my first “real pregnant girl” experience.  J was driving us home from work, when all of a sudden, I knew I was going to be sick.  I started searching frantically around the car for a bag of some sort.  Thank goodness I had brought cookies into work and had one left in an oversized ziplock.  Sorry solitary cookie, you were sacrificed for the greater good.  It’s the first (and so far only) time I have thrown up during this pregnancy.  In the car, on the freeway, while J was driving.  My mom thinks it probably had more to do with how stressed I was about the scary needles, but I still feel like I have finally joined the club.

Now that we have officially reached the second trimester, I’ve begun telling all my friends.  I freaked out my friend M on Monday.  Yesterday I emailed some other friends, including one who is on the same month board as me.  She was shocked.  Which must mean my incognito skills are incredible.  I should probably apply to be the next Mata Hari.  Tonight I tell one of my best friends, and tomorrow I tell another.  Sunday I’ll call my friend who lives on the other side of the world (or Washington D.C.).

Total weight gain/loss: +2

Next Appointment: Tuesday, April 26
Maternity clothes? Not yet.  Sticking it out with the bella band.
Stretch marks: nada.
Sleep: I had 2 nights of good, uninterrupted sleep this week.  Which is twice as many as I have had since January!
Best moment this week: At our appointment Monday when the doctor found the heartbeat and said “the baby’s still alive!”  She was joking with me because I told her I worry between appointments.
Movement: Only my own.
Food cravings: Nothing

Food aversions: Nothing
Gender: Tell you in October!
Belly Button in or out: in – although J says it’s getting shallower.  Yes, we are those people who stick our fingers in the other person’s belly button.
What I miss: My Friday night glasses of wine.  Being able to run a 10 minute mile without huffing and puffing.

What I am looking forward to: Telling some of my besties this weekend!

Contractions: Yee gods I hope not!
Milestones:
- Hearing the heartbeat again.
- Getting my blood work done and out of the way.

- Telling HR at work.  Now all that’s left is my boss and my coworkers. (Yipes!)

- Throwing up.  Does this one count? It makes me feel pretty official.