Baby #3- The First Trimester

On Wednesday, August 22nd....after a long weekend of work....I decided that after putting the girls to bed that night...I would sit down and enjoy a nice glass of wine (or two).  However...I thought I might ought to take a pregnancy test 'just in case.'  And I really didn't think a thing of it other than I just wanted to make sure.... but also knew that I was not.

So I took the test.  Negative.

Or so I thought.

Later that evening I glanced back at the test....and to my surprise- there was an ever so faint line.  Very faint.  But faint still.

So I forewent my wine....took another test the next morning...and there it was...a definite positive.

Geoff was still at work.  And knowing this will probably be our last...I wanted to tell him in a special way.  I was going to even wait a few days until I could come up with something fun and creative.  But as the hours passed I couldn't help myself and knew I had to tell him that day.

So I left the test on the bathroom counter for him to find on his own after getting home from work.  He did...and of course....came out of our room asking for clarification on what exactly the 2 lines meant.  Haha.

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Weeks 4 and 5 of this pregnancy were great.  I felt great.  I felt normal.  I was still a bit leery....not letting myself get too excited after what happened last time with the miscarriage.

At 6 weeks the nausea started.  I am one of the fortunate that never actually threw up....but there were surely days that I thought it might have made me feel better!  With Parker I was not really nauseous at all...maybe a little for 2 weeks and that was it.  With Grace I was nauseous.....but I don't remember being this nauseous.  With her- the only time I would not be nauseous was while I was actually eating.  Needless to say...I gained 12 pounds in the first trimester with her!

And I found myself very tired.  10 hours of sleep was not enough.  A lot of days were spent with me on the couch 'resting my eyes' while the girls played around me or watch a movie.  It was survival mode for sure.  I chewed a lot of mint gum...especially at work....it seemed to mask the nausea a bit.  When my jaw started getting tired from the gum, I tried mints.  I think I got the wrong mints...they weren't strong enough.... and I quickly foresaw that if I continued the sugary mints there would be cavities in my near future.

Out of all of my pregnancies, I feel like this first trimester has been the hardest for me.  This is the sickest I have felt.....and definitely the most tired.  With that being said- this is also the first pregnancy that I have worked full time (the NIGHT shift at that) in addition to taking care of the 2 kids we already have.

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At 7 weeks we had our first sono.  Again- I was excited, but leery.  I was also nauseous....so in a weird way this comforted me because it made me think that it was, in fact, the pregnancy...the baby...that was making me that way.

But it was the sweetest site and the sweetest sound!  Our OB office just got a new sono machine and at just 7 weeks we HEARD the sweet heartbeat coming in at 156 beats per minute!  (how many times can I say sweet in 2 sentences?)  Due date: 5-5-2013.

Like I said- everything looked great at 7 weeks...but my doctor wanted me to come back in 2 more weeks for another sono.  Fine with me!  Seeing the little babe never gets old!

So at 9 weeks we had our second sono....and this might be my favorite sono picture yet.  Just such a great shot where it actually resembles a baby.  Heartbeat 166.

At 10 weeks the nausea really let up.  Sweet relief!!  I still had to watch what I ate or I'd feel really sick.  Fried foods were the worst!   So I tried to stay away from chicken fingers, french fries, and Mexican food.  I'd still eat them from time to time....and I paid for it each time!  Salads tasted really good to me for a while....but not with ranch dressing (my usual favorite).  I switched to Kraft's Light French Dressing....and it tasted really good to me.  But after a while I did kinda start burning myself out on the salads.

I also did not want Dr. Pepper at all.  I know- it's unheard of!  And water was also something I had to make myself drink.  The last thing you want when you are nauseous is a belly full of water.  So I drank a lot of the Honest Kids' juices....they are half the sugar of other kids' juices and gave just enough flavor that helped me get it down.

At 12 weeks I went in for a regular check up and the doctor tried to hear the heartbeat with the doppler but couldn't so we headed to the sono room.  I was a little nervous but I tried not to let my mind race too far.  And there it was...moving all around.  It was hard to get a good pic because it was moving so much.  But it had grown and heartbeat was going strong at 156....

Each week after 10 weeks seemed to get better and better....and I would say that my first nausea free week was not until 15 weeks.  I just turned 16 weeks yesterday and so this past week has been the best.  I even feel like I am getting most of my energy back.  I do notice that I try not to push myself as hard as I normally would....like I do not force myself to stay up to work on something when I am exhausted...instead...I go to bed like one should.  ;)

I didn't gain any weight during the first trimester....but I think I'm playing catch up now because I have gained 3 pounds in the past 2 weeks.  ;)

Thankful to have made it to this point in the pregnancy.  I have a doctor's appointment today and we are supposed to have a sono and find out the sex of the baby tomorrow.  We'll see!!  Any guesses?

BOY or GIRL???

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