Movement?? Or Gas?

I'm thinking movement, because I've never felt gas feel like that. Just Thursday, I thought I felt something (I was almost 13 weeks then). It felt like someone lightly flicking my uterus. Although I got excited, I can't help but think I'm too early to be feeling anything. I brought it up on the Bump, and the ladies there said it most likely wasn't movement, especially since this is my first. Honestly, I kinda agree with them, because like I said, I thought I was too early.

However. I swear I just felt something. And I'm thinking it's not gas. It felt like little bubbles, or flutters. I felt it 3 times in a row, close together. It felt like a light swoosh..swoosh.....swoosh across my uterus. Kind of like a feather was being dragged inside my uterus, low in my pelvis. After concentrating really hard for another minute following the third "movement", I didn't feel anything else. Who knows. Maybe it's movement. Maybe it's spasms. Maybe it's gas. Or maybe I'm being too hopeful. I know soon enough I will feel movement without a doubt.

:::I can't wait to feel you move, my little Peach:::

Ahhh! 13 Weeks!

Hello 2nd trimester! I'm so excited to be out of the 1st trimester, even though my morning sickness hasn't gotten the message yet. Hopefully soon, it will, and I won't need the Zofran anymore. But until then, my midwife called in another refill for me.

Right now, baby is the size of a peach! And I love my little peach! Nothing new or too exciting has been going on this week. I just can't wait until our next OB appointment, which is on March 4th. And oh my! That is next week! I didn't even realize it was next Friday! Geeze, the time flies by!

:::Keep Growing, My Little Peach!:::

NT Scan Was Monday!

And it went great! The heartbeat was 160bpm, and baby was jumping around and kicking so much! The nuchal thickness measured 1.32 mm, which I believe is normal. They also took blood to send away for testing as well, so we'll get the complete results in about 7 days from now. But I'm confident everything is ok. I asked the tech if she could use the 3D probe so I can have a picture of the whole baby, and she said yes! I was so excited. We also got a pretty good guess as to the gender. She was thinking BOY, and I'm pretty convinced - even though I'm still really early. HOWEVER, there was a pretty obvious prominence "down there", so I'm convinced. We'll know for sure (hopefully) at our 18 week ultrasound in the beginning of April. I'm so excited for that scan! Here are all of the pictures that we got on Monday :).

:::Keep kicking! I love you so much!:::

12 Weeks!

I can't believe that I am 12 weeks today! Only 1 more week before I enter my 2nd trimester. It's totally unreal. And we have less than 2 days before we go for our Nuchal Translucency ultrasound, which is on Monday at 10am. I'll be 12 weeks 2 days. I'm so excited, and I hope that everything looks alright. I'm assuming that I'll also have my blood drawn for the 2nd part of that screening, and won't be getting my results until March 4th - which is our 2nd office visit with the midwife. Geeze, there are a lot of 2's and 2nd's in this post! I was silly for initially thinking I would get my results right after my scan. I should know better than that! We'll at least know during the scan how the baby looks, and know the measurement of the Nuchal thickness.

So I don't have much of a belly yet, which I guess is expected. But when you compare my 5 week baseline photo, you can definitely see a difference. Maybe for my 13 week "belly" shot next Saturday, I'll put both the 5 week and 13 week pictures in. I talked to my mom yesterday, and she said she never had the morning sickness I had. Maybe some nausea, but not to the extent as I did. She also said she believes she didn't start showing (with me - her 1st) until maybe 12 weeks. But she said she couldn't remember, and she was skinnier than me - she weighed 105 lbs. So I guess he belly started to protrude a little, which would have been noticeable. I have a feeling I'll have something to show for this pregnancy maybe (hopefully) around 15 weeks. I'm not as skinny as I was when I was working out (I gained some weight back), but I'm not overweight either. Plus, add in the fact that I'm only 5'1" tall, with a somewhat short torso, so baby has nowhere to go but out. It can't go up yet, because there isn't much torso to work with. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

In other news, on the same day that I'm having my ultrasound, my mom is also having a CT guided biopsy done. On her face. She has battled thyroid cancer, and is still going through that battle. She had her thyroid removed about 4 years ago, had the radiation therapy for it, and is know going through another scare. Basically, her "cancer levels" are elevated again, meaning that there is a good possibility that cancer is developing elsewhere. The problem, though, is that it's most likely on a microscopic level, and not developed into a noticeable mass yet, so they can't do anything about it but keep watching her. Now, she found this lump on her face, kind of deep, right under her cheekbone. She's had CT scans for it, and they don't know what it is. So they have to do a CT guided biopsy on Monday. She won't get her results until March 2nd. I'm just hoping it's something benign, and not some weird cancerous mass. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

:::Keep growing, Sweet Pea. We'll see you on Monday!:::

Taxes=Disappointment

So our plan was to redo a part of our apartment (add a living room that's right outside our apartment door, and with that comes another bathroom). Some background information: Our apartment is in a part of the downstairs of Matt's parents' house. So therefore, they have a "common room" right outside our apartment door. Once we take down the apartment door and put up a wall to block the entry-way from the rest of the house to our new living room, we will gain a whole lot of living space - which is a new living room and bathroom. With that, we will have 2 bedrooms (one of which would be a nursery), 2 bathrooms, a kitchen and a living room (with a closet now!).

However, and a BIG however, this was going to be done with the help of our tax return. And we were expecting a pretty decent return. Otherwise, it would be done with the help of a loan, which I really didn't want to take out. Especially since we don't own the house or apartment, and any work and improvements we do to the apartment will only increase the value of Matt's parents' house. So I wanted to avoid paying a loan on something we wouldn't get anything out of in the long run.

Well, much to our dismay and disappointment, we learned on Tuesday when we got our taxes done, that we would only be getting $20 back. Yes, you read correctly. Twenty-dollars. I don't even think that would buy the paint we would need to paint the bedroom (nursery). So needless to say, I was very upset and hysterical. Matt did his best to console me, and came up with ideas.

The original plan was to have Matt do most of the work on Sundays- which was putting up a wall/sheet rock, replacing the 2 exterior doors, ripping up the old carpet, and laying hardwood down. I didn't think it would be that hard, but since Matt works long days, Monday through Saturday, he would only be able to do the work on Sundays. So in our discussion last night with each other, Matt brought up the idea of having a contractor come in, give us an estimate, and then do the work. He is assuming that we would get a lower price, because Matt knows the contractor. I got really upset about this, because hiring a contractor to do the work would mean we would need to spend more money; money we don't have right now. His solution? Take out a personal loan to pay for the work. And we're right back to where I didn't want to be. But after thinking about it, having a contractor do the work would mean we would be done quickly (or quicker than what Matt would do), and it would be done correctly (not that Matt would do a poor job). But Matt said a contractor would do a better job than him. He makes valid points.

HOWEVER (there are a lot of them in this post), a fear of mine is that by having a contractor come in, it could open up Pandora's Box. Meaning, we would come across problems with mold, rotting floor, etc. Any number of problems that would cost a whole lot more money in repairs than I want to spend. And I have a valid fear of this, because the people who built the house we're in cut corners. They did the cheapest work, the quickest way, and therefore, we may run into problems that need to be fixed. Not to mention that nothing in the house is finished. No molding, electrical wiring exposed, plumbing exposed, etc. You get the drift. Now my stress has moved from "we don't have the money to remodel", to "remodeling may turn into a problem, and then we really won't have the money". I guess we'll figure it all out. All I know is that we need the extra living space because we don't have any more room for anything. Not even a crib.

Oi veh. We will figure this out, I guess. The contractor should be stopping by within the next week or so to give us an estimate. It will all work out.

:::I love you so much, baby:::

11 Weeks! Woo-Hoo!!

I am 11 weeks today, and am so excited! The weeks seem to be flying by! Baby is now the size of a lime! I don't think there's any big change in my belly. Maybe a little, tiny bulge more than previous, but nothing too exciting. That's ok. I know soon enough, my uterus will be coming up out of my pelvis, and I'll start showing.

I had a "relapse" last night with the Zofran I'm on. I had French fries around lunch time, because I had 2 breakfasts, one of which was around 10am, so I wasn't too hungry come lunch time. I took the Zofran like I have been, and continued to feel fine throughout the day, other than being tired. I came home from work, and laid down on the couch to watch some TV. Around 5:30, I started feeling nauseous, but thought it was because I was tired. Matt came home, and I was feeling worse, and threw up mid-sentence when I was telling him how I felt sick again. Considering I hadn't eaten since noon, I was surprised at how much I threw up. I'm glad I had a plastic bag on the floor next to me, or I would have had a mess to clean up. I took a Zofran and had some toast, and have felt fine since after I threw up. It's weird, that's for sure. I just hope relapses like that are few and far between, until my morning sickness goes away for good.

:::Mommy and Daddy love their little Lime:::

Are You Sure You Took Enough Blood??

I knew when I went for my prenatal blood work that they would take maybe 5-6 vials. But 7? Yes, they took 7 vials of blood. The phlebotomists was awesome though, and it didn't hurt at all. She used a special butterfly needle with a catheter attached so that the needle in my arm didn't wiggle around everytime she changed vials. It was pretty pain-free and simple, if I do say so myself. I also had to pee in a cup. From what I got, they're checking my thyroid, glucose, cultures (urine), HIV screening (had to consent to that), and doing a prenatal panel (which includes Hep B, surface antigens, blood typing, etc). A whole work up. That's good though, I was more than willing to give up all my blood for my baby. It's a small price to pay. I'll have to go for more blood work in a week and a half when we go for our first trimester screen. That one I'm a little more nervous about, but not too anxious. I *know* everything will be ok with this baby.

I'm on day 3 of taking Zofran, and that means I've been puke-free and nausea-free for 3 whole days! I have my appetite back, and am actually craving food. I keep saying I'm going to gain 10 pounds back this week. I need to start eating better, but when you haven't eaten real food for 4 weeks, you want to ingest everything and anything that sounds good. Even whole boxes of Velveeta Mac&Cheese :).

I can't remember if I stated this in a previous post or not, but we go for our NT ultrasound on Monday the 21st (along with the screening bloodwork). I'm so excited for this scan, yet just a touch anxious. I'm really hoping this little prune inside me is as healthy as an ox, and doesn't have any chromosomal problems. That's our main concern. Seeing baby again is just an added bonus, in our eyes. I also had to reschedule the appointment with the daycare to Tuesday the 22nd. Matt won't be coming to that, but that's ok. He'll be there that Monday for the ultrasound.

Tomorrow I'll be 11 weeks. I can't believe it - just 2 weeks shy of my 2nd trimester. As much as it feels like it's taken forever to get to this point, the time is definitely flying by! I think changing weeks on Saturdays helps the time fly by, because you wish for Saturday to come anyway :)

:::Keep growing, little Prune. Tomorrow you're a Lime!:::

I Get By With A Little Help From...

ZOFRAN! That's right - I finally got prescribed Zofran for my nausea and vomiting. It's not to the point where I'm throwing up multiple times a day, but I am nauseous all day long, and have been throwing up once a day for the last several days, and of course several times in the last few weeks. I took my first dose today after lunch (which, by the way, I threw up, but before I took the Zofran), and I haven't been nauseous since. I actually feel like a human being. I'll take another dose tonight (maybe), or I might just rely on the Unisom to help me sleep through the night, and then take another dose in the morning. I'm not sure yet - it depends on how I feel. I just hope it works as good as I've read it does.

On another note, I've had my Nuchal Translucency ultrasound rescheduled. I had originally called to reschedule it from this Thursday to Monday, Valentine's day because Matt couldn't make it on Thursday. But then the office called back, and said that I was still too early to have it done. The nurse I spoke to (who I LOVE) said she spoke to the ultrasound tech, and she said that they prefer to do the NT ultrasound between 12 and 13 weeks to get better images. Which I totally understand. I originally wanted to go later so that we could see more, but I was fine going at 10 weeks 5 days. Now, I'll be going at 12 weeks 2 days, which I don't mind. I know the wait will go by fast, as the weeks have been flying by. I can't wait to see our little baby (we haven't come up with a nickname yet..).

:::Keep growing and wiggling, Little One:::

10 Weeks Today!

So today I'm 10 weeks pregnant! That sounds so good to say, let me tell you. Our first official OB appointment on Thursday went more than well. It was a wonderful appointment. We got a "goodie bag" filled with a pregnancy planner (which is awesome), book about pregnancy, pamphlets about screening tests, and a prescription for a pre-natal vitamin that apparently every patient loves. The nurse took my weight, I peed in a cup (I was told that I had blood in my urine, but I'm not too excited about that since I think everyone has some blood in their urine), and asked some questions about my miscarriage in September. Then the midwife came in, whom I absolutely love. She answered any questions I had, gave me some information, then poked around my belly to see if she'd be able to hear the heart beat. She said "let's give this a whirl" as she pulled out the Doppler, and I waited. Lo and behold, it only took her less than, I'd say 20 seconds, and she found the little heartbeat! There it was, going nice and strong at 170 bpm. I started to cry, and she held the speaker right up to my ear. Then she asked if we had anything that recorded so that we could record the heartbeat. I was shocked she asked this (I never expected it), and Matt pulled out my phone, and used took a video of my belly as the heartbeat was going. I will post it on here when I get back home (I'm on Long Island right now until Sunday).

She then did a breast exam, PAP smear and pelvic exam. We talked about the screening ultrasound (Nuchal Translucency ultrasound), and she told me we can do it next week, when I'll be 10 weeks 5 days. It's still within the normal time frame to do the ultrasound, but I was hoping it would be a little later, at like 12 weeks, so that we could see more detail in the face, arms and legs. But I'm not going to complain - I'm glad we're getting it done. Then I have another appointment in 4 weeks with the other midwife (I knew I was going to meet the 2 of them eventually) because my midwife E will be in Florida - lucky duck! I'm so excited things are going smoothly this time around. That heartbeat was the most beautiful sound I've ever heard.

:::Keep growing bambino. Mommy loves you so much already:::

Edit: Added video of Doppler heart beat. You can hear mine behind the baby's, but the faster one is the baby's :)

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First Official OB Visit Tomorrow!!

So that day has almost finally come. The day of our first official OB visit! Tomorrow morning is the day, and I'm so excited. We'll get to hear the heart beat, and I'll be poked and prodded. I'll be getting a breast exam (yay! not!!), PAP smear, and pelvic exam. It should be a pretty lengthy appointment. My midwife said last time, when I had my 5w5d ultrasound, that if she couldn't detect the heart beat with the Doppler, then they'll do a quick ultrasound. I really hope that she'll be able to find the heart beat. I'm so excited!

We also have an appointment with the daycare at my job tomorrow after our OB appointment. I'm excited about that too. We'll get a tour of the daycare, and have to fill out paper work. I thought it was too early to call the daycare to reserve a spot, but they said it wasn't too early. And I'm glad that I called when I did, because we were able to get our name on the list. They told me that they opened up a new infant room, so there would definitely be room for the baby come October!

:::I love you, baby:::