Pregnancy Ups & Downs

This week...

Pregnancy Ups:

- I have a baby bump! It's so crazy to me, but I just love it. When I wear maternity pants it's so much more noticeable.

- We got our BOB stroller and car seat from REI! We haven't set it up yet, but we're super excited to have it. I can't wait to use it.

- I bought some more baby things. I got a little onesie and an activity stuffed toy. It's still so weird buying things for the baby, like I'm playing pretend.


Pregnancy Downs:

- I have a slight cold this week. Which makes me even MORE stuffed up than ever. Will I ever know what it's like to be able to breath normally again?

- I continually have this muscle pain in the middle of my butt and this week it's just been bad again. I do the stretch my chiropractor recommended to me twice a day, but still nothing. Luckily, I go to the chiropractor next week.

- Hello baby? Can you please move? Kick and punch me?? I'm getting antsy again not really feeling anything.
Ok, nevermind! After some "decaf" coffee from DunkinDonuts and a good laugh fest with the girls at work, I'm feeling some flutters in my tummy and some kicks down below. Yay!
P.S. Don't order decaf coffee...with how busy these places are, you can't trust them. With the way I've been feeling today, I doubt I got decaf: /

20 weeks

I'm half way there!!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend. Ours was very nice. We went to Arizona to visit my family! I was so great seeing everyone, meeting my new niece, seeing my sister's new house, celebrating my nephew's 18th birthday and just spending time talking with my parents.

On Thursday night, while sitting in my parent's living room digesting turkey and pumpkin pie...I'm pretty sure I felt the baby move! It was a bubbly feeling in the center of my belly and it didn't feel like the typical digesting grumbles. It happened twice that night! I haven't felt it again since, but it's also one of those things that you have to be paying attention at the right moment and running around all weekend, I didn't get much chances to pay attention.

It wasn't until the end of this week did I really notice how pregnant I looked. Certainly the type of clothes I wear affect that. I just get so giddy seeing myself in the mirror. I constantly tell Rob, "Look!! Look at this belly!"

We weren't going to do any Black Friday shopping since we were out of town, but we actually ended up scoring a few deals. Thursday Rob got an REI Black Friday email for a free infant car seat when you buy a BOB stroller. We were going to wait until the end of Dec. to see if REI had any BOB strollers on sale at their garage sale, but this deal was too good to pass up. So we got a plum BOB stroller, the infant seat stroller attachment and a free infant car seat! Our first big baby purchase. Then I bought some more maternity clothes, some at Kohls and some at Motherhood, both were having great deals. That Motherhood store, not as crazy expensive as I thought it would be and super cute clothes.

Pregnancy Ups & Downs

This week...

Pregnancy Ups:

- I still continue to feel amazing! In fact, sometimes I feel better than when I did before I was pregnant. A good amount of energy, never feeling I need coffee, decent appetite and all around good mood.

- My family finally gets to see me pregnant! I know they are all so excited to see me. It's a lot of fun when you can share your joy with others.

- While I may not look it, my belly is really growing down there. I love laying in bed with my hand on my belly, thinking good happy thoughts to our little sprout.

Pregnancy Downs:

- Ok, this is silly, but I really wish I was showing more! I thought that at this point you'd really be able to tell. But like my mom said, it just looked like I gained weight, which is true.

- Sleeping is still an ongoing issue. Whether it's getting up to pee, waking up and have my mind racing or having the cat insist on sleeping next to me ALL night even when I'm tossing and turning.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!


It's always a wonderful time of year, reflecting what you are thankful for with friends and family. I have so much to be thankful for!

I am thankful that we are finally pregnant! It seemed like this day was never going to come, but here we are.  I'm grateful that IVF worked for us on the first try. That everything is going along so well and our baby is growing big and strong. Nothing makes you more excited about life than growing life inside you.

I am thankful to my husband, Rob, who makes me happy like no other. He's always so patient and supportive of me. He listens to me, even when it's nonsense. He always lets me know how beautiful am I, even when I feel the opposite. He works so hard, yet will find the time to help me out. He is my best friend and we always have the greatest time with each other.

I am thankful for our families. Being pregnant now makes me more aware of how special and wonderful our families are, especially our parents. They love us so much and continue to take care of us even when we are adults ourselves.

Last, but not least, I am thankful for me. I am so grateful for how strong I have been these past few years. I've learned turn around my way of thinking and become more positive and patient. I've learned to love who I am and know that I am continually growing everyday.


Being thankful is something we should all practice everyday. I list what I am grateful for each day and it just helps puts me in a better mood.

19 weeks

It's finally happened. I truly feel pregnant now. I notice it with my body, my clothes, how I feel and just the sense that it's really happening and there's a baby in there! I think seeing the latest ultrasound really resonated with me.

I've also noticed a big difference with my old clothes...I have like 2 pants I can wear without having the zipper all the way down. And I've got a belly showing with all my shirts. It's all quite funny and crazy. That's not me feeling fat, that's like "Hey we're growing a baby here!" I look back at the previous week by week photos and sometimes I just can't see a difference. Like this week I'm just a bit more rounded out. It's going to be interesting to see these upcoming weeks compared to the old photos.

I can start playing music for the baby. A couple times now I put a headphone on my belly where I know its head is and played some classical music. I'm curious to see if I consistently play the same classical songs that when the baby is born it'll recognized and be relaxed by it. Rob was telling me about these birds who sing a specific song to their eggs and when it hatches, the baby birds will sing that song and that's how the parents know it's theirs.

I also want to start our registry soon since Christmas is coming up and such. I just really want to plan all that we're going to need and want. I'm the type of person who likes to make lists and plan ahead. I want to know what we'll need way in advanced and have time to think about it and not choose stuff that looks cool or think we might need. I learned that from our wedding, like margarita glasses are fun, but you only use them once a year maybe. I want to be smart with the baby just because there's so much crap out there and I don't want a lot of crap. I just want essentials.

Have a good one!

Pregnancy Ups & Downs

This week...

Pregnancy Ups:

- The ultrasound was the biggest up this week. It was such a joy and relief to see our baby so big and healthy!

-  I overcame my body issues with getting bigger and I am totally loving and am comfortable with my body now. Hearing the doctor tell me that my weight gain is great and say "What ever you are doing, just keep doing it."

- I've been proud of what I've been eating this week. I'm making an effort to eat foods that I've been kind of lacking like vitamin C and calcium. Fortified Orange Juice and Total cereal are awesome for that. Sometimes it's hard to eat the daily requirements of everything, but even small efforts help.

Pregnancy Downs:

- I got a call from the OB office, looks like I have an urinary tract infection and that it's the Strep kind. I don't know too much about it, but right now I need antibiotics and then when I'm in labor, I'll be given something so the baby doesn't get the bacterial infection. My doctor will talk about it next appointment. Nothing serious, but I am a bit bummed out that I'm sick. Although that probably explains the slight pain and cramps I feel if I really need to go.

- My sinuses have been really stuffed up. I just get this pressure in my forehead and it's annoying. We finally got the humidifier up and running again, so I'm hoping it'll help.

- My anxiety has been on high this week triggered from my fainting spell. It usually takes a few days for me to feel normal again and not paranoid that I'll faint again. Thankfully I have little sprout to inspire me to not given into my anxiety and to strive to be healthy.

Sprout's 18 week Ultrasound

Well! This was certainly an eventful ultrasound!

After weeks of waiting, it was finally the day for the big ultrasound! This is the ultrasound where parents can find out the sex of their baby, Rob and I are going to waiting until delivery day. I have to admit, I built up this day a little too much. I had been pretty anxious to start feeling the baby move these past couple of weeks. I just needed confirmation that everything is going good. It's kind of hard not to feel like that when appointments are just once a month. And to top it off, I slept poorly that night and woke up feeling just groggy, which carried out through the day.

We finally got to the doctors office and we didn't have to wait at all (I know right?) The tech girl was very nice and got straight to business. And there it was, our little sprout looking better than ever and so much more like a real baby now. RELIEF! Man, the profile on that kid...it's just amazing, look at its little nose and lips. Everything measured great on the ultrasound. She said it was a good healthy baby and still measuring bigger than the given due date.

Towards the end of the ultrasound, I started not to feel so good. I thought it was because of the yogurt I had, all them nerves and just her pressing down on my belly in an awkward was. She had me lay on my side and we took a little break. Well, I guess I decided to go a bit further than a break and just completely faint right then and there! Yup, I fainted laying down during my ultrasound! Once again, my pesky low blood pressure was the culprit and the fact she was pressing down on a main artery. That's the same artery that later in your pregnancy can become squished when laying on your back and cut off oxygen if you stay like that for too long. It's funny because that was actually a question of mine for the OB and I found out first hand about it. But everything is all good and no one seemed too concerned afterwards. I stayed strong and laughed about it saying how I really needed that little nap, ha ha. Rob was also awesome and remembered exactly what he needed to do if I ever fainted again (I am prone to fainting with my blood pressure, but it rarely happens)

After all the hoopla, we got to see the doctor for my exam. Again he confirmed that the baby looked great and everything was normal. Also, only the tech knows what we're having, she has to check to see if there's normal genitals. She was really fast, meaning she saw what she needed easily. Hmm. He also mentioned that my placenta is in the front of the belly and because of that, it may take a little longer to feel the baby move. I'm totally ok with that, because now know what to expect and not get anxious. I also got weighed and I've gained around 10 lbs all ready. It's funny since it's been 10 years since I last saw those numbers, but I feel so awesome about my body right now.

alien baby is looking at you!!

Overall, I am so happy! I feel good about everything now and my mind is eased from all the worry that it's been dealing with. Again, I am so grateful for how lucky I have been with this pregnancy and that our baby is big and healthy.

18 weeks

This past week was all about me trying and hoping to feel sprout move. I know it's a little early, but I wish I could be that mom who feels their baby already. Then again, I've probably felt it move and just didn't realize it. I still do think that thing I felt last week was the baby, of course it didn't happen again. Have patience Suzy!

I've finally gotten into the grove of how feel about my body. I don't feel dumpy, bloated or fat anymore. I just feel like I'm getting bigger and I keep wanting to get more bigger. I just want my belly to be like, "Bam! Now you totally look pregnant!" Eating healthy and wearing maternity clothes really do help.

Speaking of eating. I'm not really as hungry as I have been during the later part of the first trimester. My appetite is like how it was before I got pregnant. I realized yesterday that that means I'm not eating the extra that I should be. If that's the case, I'll have to start eating more calorie rich snacks like nuts and such. My stomach is still sensitive like last week, so I can't really eat more at my main meals if my stomach's going to act like that. I'm not too concerned, it's just my body getting leveled out from the craziness of the first trimester.

I had my first true craving! I was on Babble.com and they had a recipe for oatmeal with chocolate chips and I was like, "Woah! I must have that!" All day I could not stop thinking about it. I went to the store that evening and bought chocolate chips and plain oatmeal. Next morning's breakfast was amazing! I still could not stop thinking about it and I probably would've made it for all my meals. I'm totally having it for breakfast all week. And while it sounds kind of unhealthy, it's actually not. It's just plain organic 5 grain oatmeal, wheat germ, some baking chocolate chips and a bit of soy milk. No extra sugar or anything. Mmmm, delicious.

Later this afternoon I have my monthly OB appointment AND!! an ultrasound! It's the big ultrasound where most people find out if they are having a girl or boy, but we are keeping it a surprise. I am just so excited to be able to see sprout again! It'll calm my nerves from the past few weeks of me obsessing about feeling it move. Sprout's going to be so big and looking more like a baby, it's going to be crazy!

This is when the fun really starts! Feeling it move soon. Knowing it can hear you. I'm excited about playing music to the belly and reading out loud. My belly will really start showing. I can really start planning and buying things. This is the part I've been waiting so long for!

Pregnancy Ups & Downs

I can't believe it's Friday already. I'm a little worried that November is going to go by too quickly!

Pregnancy Ups:

- I'm finally getting chances to tell our neighbors that we're expecting. We have some pretty cool neighbors on our street, but with the weather getting cold and Rob being busy with work, we just never really got the chance to see and tell them. But I got to tell a couple of them this past week and it was pretty sweet.

- I've had this annoying back/butt muscle pain for a couple months now and last week it was pretty bad, but ever since we got back from New York, it's so much better! Such a relief. I had my monthly chiropractor appointment and he showed me an awesome stretch to get it feeling even better. The longer I can keep up with getting my back feeling good the better.

- Once again I'd like to mention my love for the Pregger Leggings. The fact that I survived sitting in a car for 11 hours twice and not be sore or anything is just amazing. I normally don't fall for gimmick like  products, but I got these knowing that runners and athletes wear compression garments to help them and it worked!

Pregnancy Downs:

- My stomach has really been touchy lately, like digestion wise. Always gurgling and makes all sorts of noises. I've had to take Tums a couple times, but I don't want to take it too much. I've always dealt with a sensitive stomach, but it's been so good since I got pregnant. Last Saturday I had calamari, which I love, and I could barely eat my dinner because I got so crampy. I had to lay down for about an hour for my stomach to settle. I've also noticed I'm not as hungry either and sometimes I make myself eat more than I want to because I know that I need to eat more.

- Everyday I keep waiting to feel sprout move because I know any day now it will happen. It's so nerve wracking because I want to feel it move so I know that it's all still good down there. Thankfully I have my OB appointment on Monday and I'll be able to see sprout again.

- Our mead got ruined!! With the big temperature drops and us not using heat until last week the container of mead started pulling bleach water in from the other bucket instead of putting air bubbles and other waste into the bucket as intended. We'll have to start over unfortunately, and I'll tell you, 15 lbs of honey is not cheap at all.

17 weeks

I just love seeing these weeks get higher and higher!

Reason for the post delay? We were in New York!
Last winter Rob signed up to run the New York City Marathon on Nov. 3rd. We had planned this to be a fun trip, see the city, hang out at a cool apartment, eat noodle bowls. Well, as you can guess what happened...none of that worked out due to the big storm that hit last week.

By the time we left on Thursday, the marathon was still on, so we still headed to New York with back up plans ready. Rob's parents live in New York, so we went there first to drop off the dogs and see what we'd do. Thankfully, they suffered barely any damage from the storm. But I'll tell you, watching the local news was so sad. We decided that Rob will go down to the city and I'll stay with the in-laws and we'd meet him at the finish. But on Friday evening they had canceled the race all together. Which was a very good decision, but a little too late. We ended up having a nice weekend anyways, spending time with Rob's parents, seeing Wreck it Ralph and eating way too much. We even went to church in the church we got married in, so nice.

I was a little anxious about being in the car for  11 hours. My doctor told me I should get out every hour and walk around for at least 5 minutes. I wasn't too keen on that since you just want to go and get there.  I bought a pair of Pregger Maternity Leggings and I have to say, they were awesome!! My legs felt so great sitting in the car for so long. In fact, we stopped about every 2 hours and I still felt good. Once it was 3 hours, that pushed it and I felt crappy.

I also tried eating as best as I could on the trip. Going there I brought a mini veggie tray, fruit, some jerky and trail mix. I didn't do so good after that. I didn't drink a lot of water, ate some candy and it was like that all weekend too. But, that just fuels me to eat better now that I'm home again.

One of the best moments this weekend was taking this picture at a H&M fitting room.

You can really see my baby bump in it! It just makes me so incredibly happy to see myself growing.

...

This week's weekly update is being postponed until Wednesday.
In the meantime, enjoy...

Pregnancy Ups & Downs

Pregnancy Ups:

- I chose the nickname Sprout for our little baby so I wouldn't have to call it "our baby" or "it" all the time. But apparently everyone else is liking that name too! Mail and emails will ask how Sprout is doing, or be addressed to Sprout. Even my brother says that when the baby is born, it's going to be called Sprout. I just love it!

- I love maternity pants! They are so comfortable and don't squeeze anything or are tight fitting.

- We're going to be seeing a lot of friends and family throughout the month and I'm just so excited about it! I can't wait for people to see how much I've grown and to share ultrasound pictures and such.

Pregnancy Downs:

-  It's a crazy thing having your body change so much each week. While most of the time I feel awesome and proud of it, I still have my "ugh! nothings fits!!" moments. I feel like that's all I complain about, but truthfully...I have nothing else TO complain about since everything is awesome. I'm in this awkward in between stage still, that's all.

- I've been pretty tired this week. I think the cold and cloudy weather just add to it. It's ok, because I don't mind napping under a big blanket after work.

- I noticed my vision has been changing and my contacts aren't has sharp as they normally are (which vision change is common due to extra fluid hanging around everywhere). I even tried a fresh pair, and still no change. My glasses don't seem to give me any problems. I think I might stick with glasses for the time being. Going to try to get a new pair of glasses before insurance resets in Jan, some cute funky ones.