16 Weeks

Some of you are receiving our Christmas Card this week and visiting my blog for the first time -- WELCOME!  We are so happy to share this news and we hope you find the blog useful to find out what's been going on with our new "pickle" (nickname my brother-in-law Andy came up with this past weekend).  We certainly have a lot to be thankful for this year!


I feel like I am really starting to "pop", what do you think?!  I'm starting to notice I don't bend quite like I used to.

15 Week Checkup

Everything went swimmingly at my 15 week checkup.  I got the hear the heartbeat for the first time, which was really neat!  Heartbeat was 150 bpm!

My doctor said she thought I was measuring 2 weeks early.  We'll see if that means anything!

I have been feeling really good.  It's nice that work now knows and I don't have to worry about what I wear.  I have been a lot more interested in food.  I haven't had any cravings, but have been more interested in "comfort foods" (think mac & cheese, grilled cheese, pb&j).

I have only gained 6 pounds so far, which I think is really good.  Working out has for sure helped.  The strangest thing is really feeling my belly stretch.  The baby is so small but I feel like he/she is doing bear stretches in there!

I thought I was doing really well on my weekly picture taking, but it seems weeks 11-14 skipped by with no pictures... opps :)

15 Weeks and the Cat's Out of the Bag!

We have made the announcement to immediate friends, family and work!  I am now 15 weeks along and feeling much better.  Obviously some days are better than others.  I'm still finding it hard to get in the recommended servings of fruits, vegetables and water!  Who wants to eat that stuff?!?  Not when you could have french fries or potato chips :)

Everyone was very excited for us.  We actually got a lot of "I knew it!" so I guess it's about time we have a baby!  I have my next appointment this week and I'm excited to see how things are progressing.  I have started to wear some maternity dress pants since they are oh so comfy!  At this point, it's really hard to tell if I've just gained weight around my midsection or if I'm pregnant.

5 more weeks until we find out if we're having a boy or a girl!!  Can you tell I'm really excited?!?

12 Week Checkup

I had my 11/12 week checkup at the OB on Thursday, November 13.  Man was I nervous!  When the doctor saw me she said I had great growth in my belly.  Which was nice because it felt like all bloat to me at this point!  She wanted to find the heartbeat using the belly doppler, which was exciting since I have yet to hear it!  She tried to find it for a few seconds and was unable to (it felt like an eternity!) and instead of making me freak out, she took me to another room to look on the ultrasound.  She quickly found the baby and saw the heart beating just fine!  It was amazing to see how much the baby had grown.  The first ultrasound was a little spec, and now I could actually see a head and make out a body!  In all of the commotion, I forgot to ask for a picture or take on on my phone!  Luckily, my 12 week ultrasound at Washington Radiology was on Monday!

That weekend we headed down to Roanoke to tell some exciting news!  We were also celebrating my birthday, and after presents I told everyone we had 1 more souvenir from Jordan we wanted to give them.  I had the old ultrasound in picture frames, and gave one to Sandy, Sarah and Tyler's Dad Claude.  They opened them at the same time, but Sarah finished first and immediately screamed!  Sandy knew something good was coming and once everyone had it open they were so excited!  Hugs came and we discussed how far along I was, baby names, etc.  Sandy said she had a feeling this week that we were coming to tell us some good news!  And Sarah said she was wondering when we would be making this announcement since she knew we had been trying for some time.

It was a short weekend, but it was nice to just relax for a bit.  And since they all knew, I was able to be extra comfy in maternity shirts :)

Monday morning we had the 12 week ultrasound.  Again, I was quite antsy and really had to pee since they make you come with a full bladder!  Everything went well with the ultrasound.  They had some trouble with the baby's position (he/she was resting on my hip), but were able to get the shots and measurements they needed.  The doctor reviewed the scans and everything looked good.  The baby's heartbeat was 167.  Both Tyler and I were amazed at the little bean flipping about, and kicking her/his arms and legs!  It reminded me of Finding Nemo where the sea turtles are riding the Great Barrier Reef!  I think it got really real for both of us, and we were excited that everything seemed to be progressing just fine.

My next OB appointment will be in 3 more weeks and I scheduled my 20 week ultrasound for January 12, 2015.  I can't wait to find out if we're having a boy or a girl!

The Next Few Weeks

I went to the OB on Monday, October 6, for more bloodwork.  Results were good!  My HCG levels are now 50,259 ("normal" range for 6 weeks is 158-31,795).  Then Tyler and I got to get our first ultrasound on Wednesday, October 8.  There is a really, really, really tiny baby in there!!  She dated me to 6 weeks, 2 days, which goes right with my calculations of my ovulation date.  My next appointment will be in another 5 weeks, and I scheduled my 12 week ultrasound as well.  The next 5 weeks will be an eternity!!

We decided to tell my parents that weekend.  They were both very excited!  I had started a 6 week bootcamp workout class with my Mom on October 11, and I didn't feel like I could keep it from her much longer!

My next thyroid appointment was on Thursday, October 23.  More bloodwork, and the results actually came back within the normal range.  So I am sticking to the dosage, and will continue to get monitored throughout my pregnancy.  Next appointment date in another 5 weeks.

That weekend we went to visit my sister and family in Indiana, outside of Chicago.  We had a great weekend of eating unhealthy (when in Chicago...) and doing lots of fall things!  We were able to squeeze in Maddie's Fall party at Preschool, a visit to the pumpkin patch/apple orchard, Blaine's 2nd haircut, Trick-or-Treating at the South Bend Zoo, a walk along the beach of Lake Michigan in New Buffalo, MI.  Not to mention eating ice cream twice!!  Maddie made sure to take me to her spot in town, Valpo Velvet, and then we ate at Oinks in New Buffalo.  And we fit all that in 3 days!  We told Madeline while I was there that I was pregnant (to make sure she didn't accidentally jump on me or kick me) and her reaction was priceless.  She got so excited, ran up to me and said "There's a baby in there?!? How do you know?  Can you feel it?"  I told her when she comes to visit next for Thanksgiving and Christmas she'll start to be able to see my belly grow.  She could hardly wait!

I have been very tired and nauseous these past few weeks.  My clothes are still fitting fine, but I can tell a little belly starting to poke out (either that or bloating, hard to tell!).  No food cravings yet, but certainly food aversions.

My Mom had my younger sister, Marianne, and her husband, Andy (or as we like to call them MariAndy), over for a birthday celebration on the evening of November 2.  I told them the good news, and they were really excited!  It was nice that the whole family now knew!

My next appointment is 1 week and 2 days away from today.  I am a nervous wreck.  I am thinking she may do an ultrasound since it has been awhile since I've seen her.  We wanted to wait for this next appointment before we tell Tyler's family just in case something were to happen.  I'm praying for the best, but there is always that chance.  We will go down to Roanoke that weekend of November 15 and break the news.  There will be some excited family members!

New Updates

Well, it's been quite awhile since I've posted anything.  And I think the saying "No News, is GOOD News"... that's right, folks... I'm pregnant!!! (start your happy dance now)

Two days before we left on our trip to Jordan, I got my latest round of bloodwork back from the OB.  Turns out I have a thyroid issue, as well as they said I am Vitamin D deficient!  I scheduled an appointment with a thyroid doctor right when we got back from Jordan for their earliest appointment available, which was during the week of October 1.

I took a positive pregnancy test the afternoon of Friday, September 19.  I had intended to wait until my missed period to test, which would have been that Monday, but my sister talked me into taking the test early!  I got home right before 5 pm, took the test, waited and waited and waited, and then -- boom.  Positive!  Tyler was not home yet so I left the test on top of the toilet, knowing he would see it as soon as he went to the bathroom.  I was actually outside turning off the garden hose (right under the open bathroom window) and Tyler's head popped out and he said "did you see this?!?"  Surprise! 

I immediately called my sister with the good news.  We were both pretty shocked.  I tried to call my doctor to set up an appointment, but they were already closed.  So I would have to wait until Monday morning!

That weekend we actually went to visit my Godparents in Blacksburg.  It was so hard to not say anything.  We had a wonderful weekend visiting and ate a lot of good food!

On Monday I called both my OB and the thyroid doctor to see if they could see me any sooner since I had the positive pregnancy test.  They were both able to squeeze me in on Wednesday, September 24.  My appointment went fine with the OB - and the urine and bloodwork confirmed I was in fact pregnant!  My HCG level was 957 (over 10 is pregnant).  I then went to see the thyroid doctor, where they also took more bloodwork and got me started on the medicine while waiting for the results.  There is no risk to the baby whatsoever with the medicine, however there could be harm if I went untreated.  So, next round of appointments with the OB in 2 weeks and the thyroid doctor in 4 weeks.

Nothing New

It's been just over a month since my miscarriage, and not much has changed since then.  I did go see an OBGYN, and everything looks "normal".  I have another appointment scheduled in 3 weeks where she will do bloodwork to check for thyroid, vitamin deficiencies, etc., to make sure I'm in tip top shape for when we try again!  The only news I have is we've booked our trip to Jordan (with a stopover in Dubai) which will be happening in 4 weeks!  We will be gone for 15 days (including travel) and are quite excited (and maybe nervous)!  And we also found a deal on a flight to Chicago that we could just not pass up, so we will be going out to see my sister and her family right before my birthday in October.  Happy 28th Birthday to me!  These next few weeks will be busy as we prepare for our trip: getting travel insurance, making travel plans, and packing.  It will be an incredible experience and I cannot wait!