Wednesday, May 29, 2013

12 Weeks

I've heard from a lot of moms that each child after the first doesn't get as much attention, at least when it comes to prenatal matters.  I really want to avoid that but sometimes I just feel like "been there, done that".  The first pregnancy is so new and exciting and you have your head in baby books from day 1, but you kind-of know what to expect with the second.  Anyway... I'll try to do better about posting weekly updates :).  I think I'll be doing a different format going forward (stealing it from my friend Amy at http://bumpandbabyblog.blogspot.ie/).  So, here we go!

Time Management
I've been struggling with this, especially since my first MBA class started 2 weeks ago.  Pretty much every night has been consumed by reading and homework.  It's only an 8 week class, so I'm already 1/4 of the way through it, but it's killing me, Smalls! (I hope someone gets that reference...).  I'm doing a little better at spreading my time out and I'm trying to help with more things around the house.  I know Jason has been feeling a little overwhelmed with doing everything himself.

Expanding
I can feel my uterus growing and I like it :).  At this stage, it's so hard to know if things are ok so it's nice to know that the baby is growing and that my body is responding the way it's supposed to.  Buttoning my jeans is getting pretty uncomfortable at this point... I'm thinking about trying the belly band.  Anyone recommend?

Weight
I lost 4 lbs between 9 and 11 weeks.  While I still have some nausea, my appetite seems to have returned with a vengeance.  I still can't eat much for each meal but it feels like when I finally do get hungry, I need to eat NOW.  If I don't, I feel like my stomach will eat itself.  I'm trying to make smart choices, though.  I feel like there's a miniature sized doctor on my shoulder warning me about eating too many carbs/sweets/fruit... even though fruit seems to be one of the only things I can eat that doesn't make me nauseous.

Baby
Baby is now the size of a lime and is developing reflexes.  I absolutely love reading about the baby's development.  I look forward to the notifications on my phone each week.  It is now about 2" long and weighs half an ounce.  Tiny little peanut!

Friday, May 3, 2013

Baby #2

So by now, just about everyone knows our big news :).  Snookie baby #2 is on the way!  Even though we were planning on having more kids, this came as a surprise to both of us... me especially.  I was so oblivious to all the signs that I actually gave blood last week!  When I didn't bounce back after a couple of days, my suspicions grew.  I felt extremely nauseous, tired, and weak so I decided to buy some cheap Target brand pregnancy tests.  Not wanting to waste them (or get a false negative), I decided to wait until first thing in the morning on Sunday, April 28th.  I had just rolled out of bed so I was pretty groggy, but wanted to make sure either way.  Whenever I think about it, I laugh because I was so 'out of it'... I hadn't even finished putting the cap on the test and setting it down before the line showed up.  Then, I sat there in a sleepy stupor trying to make sure that's where the line was supposed to be... "is that the right line?"  I remember when I took the test to find out about Logan, I was ecstatic.  I cried and practically jumped up and down because I had wanted it for so long.  This time, I was pretty much in shock... I was happy but very surprised (and still sleepy). 

So there you have it.  I'm pregnant :).  I know it's for real, but it still seems surreal.  I'm looking forward to the stage where I start feeling pregnant (uterus expanding, baby moving, etc.) instead of just having the fatigue and nausea.  And of course there's the early pregnancy doubt and worrying because it's so hard to know that everything is ok.  I just pray that everything will be fine :).  On that note, God gave me a bit of a wake-up call the other day.  I was praying for this baby, that it will be healthy and have a perfect heart, lungs, kidneys, etc. and was thinking about everything that we went through with Logan.  Immediately, the first part of Ecclesiastes 3:11 popped into my head.  It says "He has made everything beautiful in its time."  I nearly broke down in tears (yes, I'm emotional... thanks, hormones).  I will never think that God didn't make Logan perfectly and beautifully but this was a very blunt reminder :).  Needless to say, that message has changed the way I pray for this baby just a little bit.  I still pray for a healthy baby, but I know that God does perfect and beautiful work and I will trust Him in all of it.

The next step is for me to go to an obstetrician and hopefully get an early ultrasound to see the little bean.  Ever since Logan was born I have wanted my future babies to be born naturally (vaginally) but had to find a doctor that would be supportive of a vbac (vaginal birth after caesarean).  I searched for hours yesterday and called multiple offices... most said they didn't do them at all (?!?!) but I finally found a practice that is known for doing vbacs.  I made an appointment for next Tuesday at 2:30 and am very excited to meet the doctor/s and midwives.  I'm especially excited because they deliver at the Northside Hospital in Forsyth County, which is maybe 10 minutes from our house.  They have a fairly new Women's Center there and the rooms are so nice.

Please join with me in praying for this pregnancy to go smoothly and have no complications.  We're so happy and can't wait to get to know our little Christmas present :).