17 Weeks

Ooops, missed a week!

Week 16 was an avocado. Baby has also developed the beginnings of eardrums, so can now hear us!

I think you could say I've "popped" this week... although I still think it's mostly the holiday eating that has put me over the edge.

We saw lots of family and got to share our news, which was exciting. Was great to visit with all the extended family in Florida, and then have some time in Charlotte, but boy I'm glad to have some time at home coming up. Also ready to get back on a regular eating/exercising/sleeping schedule!

Appointment #3

Had our first visit with the midwives today (3rd appointment overall). It was mostly an introductory appointment where they answered a lot of questions and just got to know us (Scott was invited and attended as well). I'd already had my general physical checkup done at the previous (~12 week) OB visit, so they didn't need to do anything extra. We got to hear the sweet little heartbeat, too! Apparently the little one was squirmy because he kept evading the doppler wand where the midwife was aiming it. Eventually she got him to sit still and we heard a nice strong beat at 155bpm! Again, couldn't stop grinning. :)

We've decided we're going to be less careful now about people finding out. We still aren't making a huge announcement but won't deny it if someone dares to ask! I also told Scott it was fine to bring up in conversation if it made for a good comedic moment. ;)

It's probably a good thing we aren't trying to hide... because there's not going to be a way to hide this bump for much longer!!

Another sneaky work bathroom selfie.

Also - I must sing the praises of BELLA BANDS!!! And don't bother with the off-brand or basic version... just get the real deal. It is SO worth it. They smooth and cover awkwardly unzipped/unbuttoned pants and hold them in place with the nice silicone gripper around the bottom. I got mine in the mail on Monday night and cannot stop raving about them. No more uncomfortably buttoned pants! I'm freeeeeeeeee. :D

15 weeks (a day late)

So technically today is 15 + 1, but I was busy yesterday and didn't get a chance to do a photo or update.

I took a sneaky (blurry) work bathroom pic today:

By the way, my pants are completely unbuttoned/unzipped today. Just did not even attempt it. My bella bands are supposed to arrive tomorrow - halleluia!!!!!

Slowly but surely, more of the world is finding out the news. We told some more people at work last week, and I found out that one of my good friends is expecting about 2 months after I am!!! We had discussed over the summer that we were both about ready to start trying for kids, and talked about how awesome it would be if we had them close together. SO EXCITED!

I have been feeling pretty good as far as energy goes, except I guess too many late nights caught up to me yesterday and instead of going for a run like I'd planned, I zonked out on the couch for 2 hours. I did get to ride 32 miles on the bike with Scott on Saturday, which was a great accomplishment! It was definitely sloowwwww (~12.5 mph average) but it's the longest distance since the metric back in October (at 6 weeks) so I'm counting it as a positive achievement.

I'm really anxious/excited for my appointment on Wednesday. It's the first one with the midwives, and Scott gets to attend with me. I'm very very eager to hear the little heartbeat again! If all goes well, I plan to stop trying to hide the blump/bump and will just let people gradually find out. We've been signing our Christmas cards to distant friends as "Beth, Scott, and Baby Trenor (est. arrival June 2015)" - we figure it's a cute, subtle way to let people know! :)

I'm just SO ready to stop hiding it already. I am ready to rock this little bump!

14 Weeks - 2nd Trimester!

So the past 2 weeks have been a transition, but as of now I am officially and totally in Trimester #2 - huge milestone!! I cannot believe it's already a third over with - time is flying by and we'll have a little babe before we know it.

I ran 9.5 miles today and BOY it was slow. We're talking 10:30-11:00/mi kind of pace. Wowza I haven't run that slow since EVER! I guess I should just be thankful for whatever running I CAN do, and the fact that I don't feel like crud. Hooray!

We decorated the house for Christmas this weekend - very happy with how the lights and everything turned out. I got crafty and made a very "us" wreath out of an old bicycle wheel that Scott had in the basement, and I did plenty of baking!

Lights on the house!

Bicycle wheel wreath

Chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes

Gingerbread running men

We made an announcement at our holiday party with close work friends on Friday night. Everyone was really excited! It's nice to be able to talk to friends about it now. I think we'll let the rest of the "world" know gradually after our next appointment on the 17th.

After all of the holiday treat consumption this week, my belly is showing more than ever (though I still think it's mostly food!). I've had to resort to the elastic-around-the-pants-button trick for most of my pants at this point. I found this post on Instagram that really captures the "food baby" concept really well!

Pants adjustments - elastic around the button!

13 Weeks

Lucky 13!

Fingerprints, teeth, and vocal chords - incredible!

Over the past week we've let the news spread a little bit more freely (still keeping it away from work for now). I told Matthew on Wednesday evening, and I was really happy that he seemed genuinely excited. I told him he's going to be an uncle, and he goes, "OH THAT'S EXCITING!" We told a few of Scott's friends and family as well. I'm planning to tell the "girls' group" from work on Friday at our annual holiday baking night, and I've been playing phone tag with Amanda for the past 24 hours to try to tell her the good news as well. Honestly I really wish I could get one more listen to the heartbeat before telling the news widely, but I just keep telling myself that I have no reason to believe that everything isn't hunky-dory, so I will just keep on with that assumption until shown differently!

I think I'm finally seeing an actual little bump there, although it still really depends on what clothing I'm wearing. This dress I wore to church made things fairly obvious, so I wore a nice long fluffy scarf with it. ;) Over Thanksgiving my mom said she thought I was starting to show, though I argued that it was likely more the turkey & potatoes than baby.

I also got my thyroid numbers back last week, which were a bit over the appropriate range (3.08 vs. suggested max. of ~2.8) so Dr. White increased my dose to 112 mcg/day - pink pills instead of purple! I don't feel any different though, so I'll get my numbers checked in 4 weeks and hopefully it will have improved.

Other than that, nothing really going on - still feeling good (hungry all the time) and energy levels seem to be coming back. I was able to run a good pace at the Turkey Trot with Scott (8:40/mi) and we biked 2 loops at Pleasant Ridge yesterday afternoon.

Here's to the final week of the 1st Trimester!!!! :D

12 Weeks

I'm a couple of days late on this update... busy weekend!

Once again I feel like I've rounded another corner. 12 weeks is the beginning of transition from 1st into 2nd trimester. Woohoo! Still feeling good, and I have a bit more energy than I have in past weeks.

Not much to really report this week - excited to share the news with Matthew on Thursday! At least I can blame my slowly-expanding waistline on the turkey...

Appointment #2

200 days! Wow!

This week has held lots of exciting things so far (ok, two...):

I went for my second appointment today and they were able to pick up the heartbeat with the doppler - so cool to hear it again! They reviewed my blood test results and said everything looks good and normal. My hemoglobin is above average (which is good!) and I am blood type O+ (universally compatible! woot!). Not much else... just talked through family history, options for genetic testing (we're not going to do any), and other "what to expect" kinds of things. I was reallyreallyreally excited to hear the heartbeat again, and a little surprised since the Dr. (I saw Dr. Thurston today --- LOVE her!) said there's only about a 50/50 chance the doppler would pick it up this early.

Last night, Scott and I went to the Greenville Midwifery for their "Meet the Midwives" open house/Q&A session. It was really interesting and I'm strongly considering transferring my care to them (they are affiliated with the Greenville Hospital System, so they'll work with OBs in case medical issues arise). I just like their philosophy of viewing pregnancy as a normal, natural process that in most cases requires no medical intervention. Keep those needles and knives away, thanks! Still have some time to consider options and make plans, but we both got a really good feeling about their practice.

The other nice thing is that they only have 5 midwives, and you get to know all of them (longer appointments where they just sit and talk to you, and they're present throughout labor and delivery). The Greenville OB/GYN has nine doctors, you see all 9, and you never know who you will end up with actually delivering your baby. It's just very impersonal.

I am seriously considering doing a water birth... not sure if at the Birthing Center or at the hospital, but I like the idea of sitting in a warm tub of water during the painful parts! Just the idea of being able to move around freely and not have to be strapped in a hospital bed with IVs and needles and crap all over me.

Hooray for a good appointment! Now I have to decide whether to switch to the Midwifery or stick with the OB. Choices!!

11 Weeks

One step closer to the second trimester! I've felt a little more tired this week than usual, and have had some stomach issues - not sure what it's related to, but it's not fun and needs to stop. Right meow.

I told my boss this week about my 'status' and she's very happy and excited for me. She's very mother-like and I can tell will be a great source of support.

Still no official bump showing, but it's getting there! We went to see The Book of Mormon with some friends tonight and so I got all nice and fancied up:

Maybe a little bit of a bump there? Or just all the fried chicken... hard to tell.

I did have a total emotional breakdown this morning... just started bawling for no good reason. Ohhh boy hormones! I'm looking forward to our appointments this week... Tuesday we have a "Meet the Midwives" session at the Greenville Midwifery, and then Wednesday is my next OB appointment. Unfortunately Scott won't be able to join for that one, but hopefully they'll give me lots of info to take home so I can keep him updated and involved with everything that's going on!

Here's to another happy and healthy week!

10 Weeks

All this week I've been eagerly anticipating reaching that coveted double-digit mark!

I got my thyroid test results this week and they look ok... 2.67 - technically the range for First Trimester should be 0.26-2.66, but I'm not THAT far off. I'm a little nervous that I'm in the very top of the range, so perhaps Dr. White will call and have me up my dose a bit. I'm just happy that I'm not off the charts!

My other issue this week has been PANTS. UGH. I am counting down the number of pairs of pants that I can comfortably wear. One day, I sat around with them unbuttoned for the first part of the day until I had to go to a meeting! Going to invest in a Belly Band sometime soon so I don't have to worry about buttoning pants.

Also, I'm hungry all. damn. day.

As of today though, I feel that I've reached a big milestone now that I'm into the double-digits! I've felt more like myself this past week than other weeks (which is relative because I've really felt excellent this whole time). I think it was a result of actually exercising each day and eating well - didn't feel as bloated and gross. Hooray!

I actually ran 10 miles today to celebrate reaching 10 weeks. Scott was away on an all-day mountain biking excursion with a friend, so I had plenty of time to get it done. It was a slowwwww trot but I got it done and felt great! I wasn't sure how I would feel considering I haven't run more than 6 or 7 miles in a few months (with the exception of the 9-mile trail run with Robin a few weeks ago). It turned out to be a beautiful day and I'm so glad I got to get this run in!

Still no bump, but I've certainly gained weight. I went to Old Navy and TJ Maxx to try to find some nice loose, flowy tops that I could wear until I really need maternity clothes, but everything just looked like a bag on me. Ugh! So frustrating.

We told David (Scott's brother) on Friday with a phone call... he's excited for Oliver to get a cousin! We also sent a copy of the sonogram in Scott's parents' anniversary card, but they hadn't gotten it as of yesterday... so probably today!

9 weeks!

This week was definitely exciting with the first appointment and ultrasound! Plus, now we've rounded a corner and the little gummy bear is no longer an embryo & is now a fetus (Scott has named it Cletus the Fetus). Can't believe that he/she already has fingers and ears and facial features. Crazy how fast this all happens!

This weekend we were in Charlotte overnight on Saturday and we made the announcement to my parents (while at the Pizza Peel for dinner, of course). They were both beyond excited! I'm really happy to be "out" to them now, and I'm hoping & praying that everything continues to go well. I have no reason to expect anything different, but I'm still cautious. You just never know!!

I'm not officially "showing" yet, but man I think I have packed on a few pounds and that is definitely showing (to me, at least). I put on a dress that I was considering wearing to my best friend's baby's baptism (the reason we were in Charlotte) and decided immediately NOPE, that dress would not work. It was rather form-fitting, so I guess that's to be expected. I'm just afraid I'll be in that awkward stage of "oh dear, she's really let herself go" for a LONG time. I asked my mom when she had to buy maternity clothes, and she said it wasn't until almost 7 months!!

I go for my thyroid check test tomorrow, so hopefully my numbers are still good. My actual appointment with Dr. White isn't until December so this is just to get another data point.

Anyway... here's to another happy & healthy week, and looking forward to double-digits! :)

First Appointment & Ultrasound

Yesterday was the first OB appointment and ultrasound - I really started to get nervous & excited this week about this visit. I was SO convinced that there would be nothing in there, or it wouldn't have a heartbeat, or it would just be some tiny blob that wasn't anything... all sorts of horrible scenarios.

So, we get to the appointment and I fill out paperwork as usual. Then I get to pee in the cup so they can confirm that, yes, I am indeed pregnant and not just making things up. I think they'll also test for glucose and other things. After that, they bring Scott back so he can join for the ultrasound part. They lube my tummy up and I take a deep breath... here goes nothing! It's not long before we see on the screen...

There's a baby in there!!!!! :D

I was so excited, and I could see Scott just grinning ear-to-ear. The tech said he's (he = gender neutral... not making any predictions here!) in a perfect position, lying on his back just like he should be. I said, "Oh good, we have a well-behaved child already!" He's measuring exactly 8 weeks and 4 days, so our official due date is June 7th, 2015.

The tech switched to 3-D mode and we got another image of our little gummy bear...

The little blob next to him is the yolk sac... also just as it should be. :)

And then was the part that absolutely took my breath away...

...we heard & saw the heartbeat!! (I'm tearing up as I write this... it was just so incredible). We could see the tiny little heart flickering away on the screen, and the tech said it was a super-strong 184 bpm. Scott commented, "Hey that's almost as high as yours when you run!" I could have sat there and watched/listened to that for days.

It's just so REAL now! I had held off getting excited up until this point, and now I can just barely contain myself. We're planning to tell my folks when we see them this weekend, and then we'll mail a copy of the ultrasound pics in a card to Scott's parents for their anniversary at the end of next week. Still going to keep it from the general public for a while (at least Thanksgiving) but it is going to be SO HARD.

8 Weeks!

I've been looking forward to this as kind of my first milestone... something about 8 weeks feels good!

 Can't believe that our little raspberry already has fingers and toes! I'm SO looking forward to the appointment on Thursday. That will really solidify things for me. I'm nervous that we might find out something bad, but at the same time I'm so excited for us to see our little berry!

Symptoms this week - really still next to nothing! The hives subsided (thank GOODNESS) after a few days on Benadryl. Other than that, I've experienced a few waves of nausea, usually in the morning or late evening and it's combined with some hunger, so it might just be having an empty stomach doesn't sit well. So very thankful for the minimal symptoms, even if it does make me a little bit nervous that something isn't right. All I can do is wait and see, so I'm thinking positive and staying as relaxed as possible!

My energy is pretty good... still running and biking like usual, though maybe at a slightly slower pace. I get winded easily when first starting out, but after I get in the groove I feel pretty good. Really happy that I've been able to stay active so far.

I'm traveling for work this week, so I've been frantically researching the airport scanners and whether they're safe. The conclusion is that nobody really knows, but there is no evidence to suggest that the aren't safe. Only concerning thing is that long-term studies have yet to be done since they are still a relatively new technology. Still, I think as infrequently as I travel, I'm not too worried and will go through the scanner tomorrow.

Still no bump yet!

Also... happy 1st anniversary to me and Scott! First year has flown by!