Monday, May 30, 2011

Long Weekend Update

We have (or, I should say Mr. B has) been busy this long weekend! Saturday he dug up the remaining river rock from our three big beds in the backyard and hauled it to the dumpster, then he dug some trenches in the beds and dumped in some of the rock to help with drainage and grading. Yesterday we bought and he planted the annuals for our window boxes and loads of perennials for the backyard (including my personal favorite: seven peony bushes!). This morning we (again, Mr. B) went out in the rain and put down landscaping fabric over all of the beds, then I spread mulch on them. They're just gorgeous - I'm so pleased with the progress!

There's one project left: we had a long rock bed extending almost the length of our yard, which we dug up and plan to turn into lawn (after all, Baby B will need some space to toddle around in a few years!). First, we need to extend our sprinkler system to water that portion of the yard, then get grass or sod down. The space is prepped and ready now, so that project can happen any time.

This may all seem unrelated to the baby (and hence, the purpose of this blog), but our nursery will be in the back corner of the house, facing all of this new landscaping. I'm super excited to be able to open the windows back there next summer and see & smell those glorious flowers. :) The truth is, most of what we do now is in preparation for life with baby next year. What a happy and exciting thought!

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Ten Weeks!

Time's flying now! I can't believe we're already in the home stretch of the first trimester. Sometimes it doesn't even seem like I'm pregnant, and other times it hits me like a ton of bricks. I don't think I've ever been happier.

Let's see, what sorts of events do I have to tell you about this week?

  1. Sickest week yet - several rounds of sickness this week, including an unfortunate miss in a public restroom and the end of my love affair with coffee. The details of the first one are too gross to share, but I'll explain the second. I had a pretty bad headache this week and have found the only thing that helps is caffeine (which I've been completely off of for almost 6 months now). Last time it was a Coke that helped but we didn't have any this week and I had to get to work, so Mr. B made me a latte. I set the glass down after tossing back the little drink and immediately said, "Ooh. I don't feel well." Seconds later I had my head in the toilet... not the best way to start the day AND I didn't even get the benefit of the caffeine for my headache! Anyway, yes, I definitely have full-blown morning sickness now.
  2. Farewell skinny jeans - well, not really, but some of my pants that are tighter in the waist are getting snug (honestly, I think it's because I've been so bloated). I have almost no perceptible bump, so this just feels like an insult. Soon people will start thinking I'm getting fat, I just know it.
  3. Another year behind us - Mr. B and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary yesterday. Hard to believe it's been so long, but life just keeps getting better. I wouldn't change a thing about our journey and I love him more than ever. Crazy that next year we'll have a 5-month old when we celebrate our 7th anniversary. :)
  4. Swinging a hammer - again, not really, but we are digging in to some of our projects around the house. We ordered a dumpster and plan to spend the long weekend filling it with the last of the basement demo and the river rock from what used to be our planting beds (and will soon be lawn). We've got a sprinkler guy coming to add another run to our system for the new section of our lawn, then we'll be planting grass and exponentially increasing the size of our back yard - exciting! After doing a little planting this weekend and tidying up the rest of the landscaping, we'll officially be good outside the house and ready to start tackling the basement!
  5. The big reveal - I'm working on a cute way of sharing our big news with the rest of our family and friends... more to come, but I think it'll be super special!
Okay - on to the tracker!

Week: 10
Weight: +3 (total)
Baby is the Size of a(n): Prune!
Symptoms: swollen & sore breasts, still super tired, usually hungry but less famished, full-blown morning sickness, and moodiness (cranky and short or crying for little reason... truly flabbergasting)
Current Obsession: mac & cheese, hot dogs(!), chocolate-covered ice cream bars, grapefruit, oranges, blueberries, cherries, pancakes, salad with tangy vinaigrette, grape tomatoes, and sour candy (Lemon candy, but I'm desperate to find actual Lemon Heads somewhere)
Current Aversion: beef, eggs, seafood, and anything greasy (this hasn't changed) and now coffee
Thinking About: our next ultrasound (June 10), whether we're having a boy or girl, our big reveal surprise, picking nursery furniture, starting a registry and dreaming up names

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Nine Weeks!

Well, we reached a few milestones this week:
  1. Nine weeks! Only 4 to go until we can start telling people!
  2. Farewell embryonic stage, hello fetus-hood! That's right - our little nugget is a certified fetus now. We're so proud. ;)
  3. First OB appointment - this was one of the longer doctor's appointments I've had in quite awhile, but was rather uneventful. Here's the rundown: filled out some paperwork, gave a urine sample (I suspect that will be my favorite point of every OB appointment, given how frequently I need to go these days!), checked weight and blood pressure (good and great), then waited for the C.N.P. When she arrived, we talked through my very long list of questions, I received a book of information to read, and had a pap/pelvic/breast exam. She also tried to use the doppler to listen for the heartbeat, but it was too early (she made me promise not to freak out if we didn't hear it, because normally it can't be picked up until 10-12 weeks). Finally, they took about a liter of my blood (exaggeration), and I was on my way. My next appointment is June 14!
  4. Opted in for a nuchal translucency test. We had several choices as to what sort of testing we wanted to do, but as this was the option that came with an ultrasound (the only other one we'll get until the anatomy scan at 18-22 weeks), that's what we chose. Expecting that test between 11 and 13 weeks - another look at our baby soon!
  5. Morning sickness has arrived! I've been pretty darn nauseous for a few weeks now. This week, I finally threw up (and tossed in a few rounds of serious dry heaves just for kicks). Feeling sick is the pits, but it's reassuring to know all's well with the little one. Mr. B and I read that babies born to moms who suffered from morning sickness scored higher in cognitive and IQ tests, so he keeps comforting me by saying, "Just think 'Smart Baby'!" :)
  6. First hint at the baby's sex: a "science-based quiz" that suggests we're slightly more likely to have a girl! 
  7. Created a registry... of children's books! Mr. B and I both love books and can't wait to read to and with the baby, so I built an Amazon registry with almost 100 books to add to our little one's library. So exciting! 
  8. We're starting our weekly baby bump photos series! We've expanded our photo studio set up to include lighting equipment and back drop paper, and will aim for taking weekly profile shots of my bump on Saturdays. I'll post them here for posterity's sake - stay tuned!
That's it for this week. Here's the tracker:

Week: 9
Weight: +3 (total)
Baby is the Size of a(n): Green Olive
Symptoms: swollen & sore breasts, even more tired (if that's possible), hungry but less famished, actual morning sickness, and moody (considering giving Ryan permission to call me "Pregzilla" when I get really crazy)
Current Obsession: mac & cheese, chocolate-covered ice cream bars, grapefruit, pineapple, oranges, pancakes, salad with tangy vinaigrette, and sour candy (Sour Patch Kids, Sour Skittles, and Lemon Heads)
Current Aversion: beef, eggs, seafood, and anything greasy (this hasn't changed)
Thinking About: how exciting it will be to tell people, picking nursery furniture, starting a registry and dreaming up names!

Monday, May 16, 2011

Pictures of our Little Nugget


Eight Weeks!

In some ways, it feels like time is flying by - I mean here we are at EIGHT WEEKS already! On most days, though, it feels like the days just crawl by - how can it ONLY be eight weeks?! I'm so eager for the first trimester to be over so we can tell people - people at work, our friends, and most of all, our extended families. This joy, the excitement, the sheer amazing and unbelievable miracle of it all feels like this shiny, glowing ball of sunlight inside of me that I have to let out before I start leaking beams of happiness every time I open my mouth to speak! 4 weeks to go...

In other news, the weather has finally turned to spring here. It is glorious, but it means I'm currently struggling with serious allergies: itchy eyes, sore throat, sneezing all the time. I see the C.N.P. tomorrow and can't wait to ask about what I can take to deal with this misery! I've also been having more frequent headaches lately and the Tylenol's not really cutting it - hopefully there's a remedy for that, too. Most importantly, I'm craving another view of my little peanut and am hoping they'll give me an idea tomorrow of when I can schedule my next ultrasound.

Mr. B and I are trying to decide where to plan our babymoon. We're currently leaning toward the Seattle area sometime this summer - it's exciting to think about a vacation when I'm feeling more energetic, healthy, and will hopefully have a cute little bump to carry around. :) More on the babymoon when we come up with a plan... for now it's just fun to dream!

I could go on and on, but let's get to the tracker:

Week: 8
Weight: +2 (total)
Baby is the Size of a(n): Raspberry
Symptoms: swollen & sore breasts, ridiculously tired (I fall asleep before 7 p.m. most evenings!), still hungry ALL the time (like teenage boy hungry), night sweats (eww!), more frequent nausea (I threw up for the first time this morning), and moody (grumpier than usual - don't cross the hormonal pregnant lady!)
Current Obsession: chicken fajitas, mac & cheese with grape tomatoes, chocolate-covered ice cream bars, grapefruit, pineapple, oranges, pancakes, salad with tangy vinaigrette, and I can't stop thinking about these tea sandwiches that I had last week - they were off the hook (crustless white bread with cream cheese and cucumber)
Current Aversion: beef, eggs, seafood, and anything greasy (this hasn't changed)
Thinking About: first OB appointment tomorrow, how desperately I want to tell people, nursery decorations and NAMES!!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Seven Weeks!

I seem to have completely missed the Week 6 check-in. Oops! It was a really busy week, so the quick update: I spent most of Week 6 in Orlando for a big work meeting. It wasn't a very taxing trip (a mix of meetings, great speakers, meals, down time, and pampering), but I missed Mr. B and the furbabies while I was gone. I got home last night and was so relieved. Symptoms have been pretty mild, and I've been lucky to not have any major morning sickness so far! My taco craving is still going strong, and I'd add those Magnum ice cream bars, fruit of any kind, and mac & cheese with broccoli to the line-ups as well. Foods that gross me out keep varying by the day, but still can't stomach eggs or fried foods, and most seafood sounds just disgusting to me.

Today we marked two big milestones in one: we hit Week Seven and had our first ultrasound! We've been on pins and needles, as we were desperately hoping for one healthy, growing little baby in there. Luckily, we spotted it right away, and the doctor said everything looks perfect! We were so relieved to see our little blueberry of a baby with its flickering, fluttering little heart beating away at 143 bpm - right on track. Crown to rump measurements was 9.5 mm (just right for 7 weeks). Our due date was bumped around a bit and according to the doctor it's 12/24 - could be a Christmas baby!

Here's the tracker:

Week: 7
Weight: No Change
Baby is the Size of a(n): Blueberry
Symptoms: swollen & sore breasts, still tired, still hungry ALL the time, still struggling to sleep, mild nausea (especially when I get hungry), and still riding an emotional roller coaster (the waterworks are never far away)
Current Obsession: asparagus, tacos, Velveeta Shells & Cheese with broccoli, chocolate-covered ice cream bars, fruit
Current Aversion: beef, eggs, and anything greasy (this hasn't changed)
Thinking About: scheduling our first OB appointment, planning the nursery, and telling our families!