Tuesday, August 31, 2010

12 Week Appointment

Had my second "real" appointment today. I was excited because my sonogram (ultrasound? I still don't know the difference) was done with the belly thing instead of the wand! That was cool.

Ustoff has a head, 2 arms, 2 legs, 2 hands, and at least 1 foot, but Dr. P said he (she?) was just laying on the other one. She said the baby looks perfect!

Apparently in the bloodwork they ran last month, the checked my vaccines. My vaccine for German Measles has run out. I can't get re-vaccinated until after the baby is born, but she said I need to stay away from sick children. Jeff was like "She teaches children." Dr. P started laughing and was like "I guess that makes it difficult." I will go in to talk to the school nurse tomorrow and tell her I need to know ASAP if anyone has anything that could possibly be german measles. (I think she also said it's called ruebella? We had one of those cases last year at my school.) If someone does have it, I can't be in the school building for at least a week after the kid. Lovely.

My iron is also low, but since I am so backed up and feeling pretty crappy, she wanted me to hold off on taking the supplements. They just make you more backed up and crappy feeling.

Thank God. I am 3 days from hitting 13 weeks, and I find that so comforting. This really is real!

Friday, August 27, 2010

12 Weeks

How far along? 12 Weeks

Total Weight Gain? 3 lbs. Lost one somewhere in all the walking I did this week.

Symptoms? Nausea. Anytime there isn't food in my stomach.

Stretch Marks? Still just the two.

Sleep? Getting up to go to the bathroom almost every night, and waking up every time I have to turn over.

Best Moment Last Week? Getting to tell one of the parents I had last year. She's the one who bought me the baby toy, and I was so excited to be able to tell her I had a use for it!

Movement? No, but I can't wait.

Food Cravings? No. No food. Food bad. Except last night. All I wanted was some BK french fries. So, that's all I ate for supper.

What I miss? My appetite. I still don't want to eat anything.

What I am looking forward to? I get to see my baby in 4 days!

Milestones? Made it through the first week of school!

How is Daddy? :) He emailed me today so excited because he realized that he can teach Ustoff how to fish. How do you think he is?

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

I Haz Made A Discovery!

As my title says, I haz made a discovery! What is it, you ask?

If I eat constantly, at least a bite or two every five minutes, I don't get nauseous!! Yay!!

Of course, explaining to 21 fourth graders why I am eating constantly was fun, as was explaining the gallon of water I drink and the 5 or 6 bathroom breaks I take.

I was so scared to tell a bunch of 10 year olds I am pregnant. Maybe just cause pregnant is not a word you hear in fourth grade very often. They were all very excited though, and knowledgeably told me that I was hungry because the baby was hungry. Today they were very concerned that I might get stung by the wasp that was in the classroom, because it might sting the baby.

I have sweet students.

I do have one little girl, M, who is an only child. She was walking next to me today talking, and she told me that her mom wants another baby, but that it costs "2 or 3 thousand dollars" so she could go to the doctor.

That just breaks my heart. I so wish I could bring it up with the mom, but I certainly don't want to be like "so, M tells me you have infertility issues..." It's not really something that comes up at parent-teacher conferences.

I'm so glad the first day of school is out of the way. It is my least favorite day of the year. Today was better, and tomorrow will just improve!

I'm sorry I suck so much lately at commenting. I promise I'm reading, but I seem to fall asleep in the middle of my comments. Definitely sending everyone good thoughts though!!

Friday, August 20, 2010

11 Weeks

How far along? 11 Weeks

Total Weight Gain? 4 lbs. I think a week of being forced to eat something other than cereal did me in!

Symptoms? Still tired, and this week I learned that I will get incredibly nauseous if I don't eat the second I realize I'm hungry. And I eat constantly. For instance, right now it's 3:30 and I'm eating a peanut butter sandwich, but I guarantee that as soon as Meet the Teacher is over at 5, I'll need to eat again, if I can wait that long.

Stretch Marks? Same ones as last week, thank goodness!

Sleep? I have gotten up at least once almost every night this week to go to the bathroom. I had a really vivid dream about a baby this week, but for once I didn't wake up sad because I dreamed about a baby. I was excited instead! :)

Best Moment Last Week? Still pregnant!

Movement? Still to early!

Food Cravings? Yes. Sushi. Which is really weird, since I really am not that big of a sushi fan. I like it, but I couldn't make a meal out of it. I'm thinking of finding someplace that will make me a veggie roll.

What I miss? My appetite. I still don't want to eat anything.

What I am looking forward to? Hitting 3 months next week, and our appointment in a week and a half!

Milestones? Not throwing up on my coworkers. Does that count?

How is Daddy? Still crazy excited, and a bit worried about my anger issues. You should read his most recent blog post. Sadly enough, he's not too far off.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Really? It's only Wednesday?

Ladies and Gentlemen(man?):

This week has been about 10 years long. Seriously.

I told myself I wasn't going to go to bed until 9 today. Trying to get somewhat on a school sleeping schedule. So I just wasted the last hour+ on this website. Hilarious and disgusting. Thanks Bon, for posting it!

I also was looking at baby names on babywizard. I like this site because it tells you when the name was most popular. So I looked up both the names we like for a girl and for a boy. (Not telling what they are. If you don't already know, tough.) I noticed a trend. Both the boy names were popular decades ago (1940's and 60's to be specific) and one of the girl names was most popular in 1910. But the other girl name we have chosen as a middle name is currently one of the most popular names in the world. I'm not sure I like that. I'm not one of those people who wants to name their child something crazy (like Fancy Cherry, Zip Adedoo Daub, or Abcde: pronounced Ab-se-dee) but I don't want them to have a name that 6 other kids in their class has. BTW: Those are all real names. I went to school with Zip.

What kind of crazy names have you seen? I have a couple from students that I would like to share, but don't think I should here.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Nobody said it was easy...

No one ever said it would be so hard.

*This post is probably waaaaaay too much TMI for almost everyone, so I fully understand if you check out the bump picture and ignore the rest. It's cool.

My mom took this on her cell phone while we were out shopping for some maternity clothes that would last me the duration of my pregnancy at school, since nothing I own fits anymore. I'm about 9.5 weeks in the pic.


I had this awesome idea when Jeff and I started TTC that when I got pregnant, I would be the same, only pregnant. Maybe a little more nauseous, of course with a bigger belly, but still the same.

No one ever told me that I would feel completely unlike myself. No one told me that I would completely lose Julie in the face of Pregnant Julie. No one told me that I would feel like something else has completely taken over my body, and shoved me down into the tip of my left pinky finger. I'm beginning to think that's all that's left of me.

No one ever told me that I would have sudden, intense, inexplicable rages toward random people. Like the lady walking down the center of the parking lot aisle on Saturday. While it's annoying, I shouldn't want to kill her, or at least hit her hard with my car. That's excessive, right?

No one ever told me that I would have such crazy mood swings. And, unfortunately, none of them seem to swing me toward the happy end of the spectrum. Usually it's either depressed or really really angry (see above).

No one ever told me that it is possible to be simultaneously starving and yet have no desire to put ANYTHING in your mouth.

No one ever told me that I would be constipated beyond belief, that every *poo* would be cause for a freaking party, and that nothing so far would help relieve this.

This is off topic, and probably TMI, so I apologize. Mom and Effa, you probably want to skip this. Kerri, Michelle, and Stella: you too.
The few times I have managed to *ahem* reach the Big O since I have been pregnant, I have had nightmares of miscarriage right after. This terrifies me of course, and makes me completely not interested in you know what. I don't like that, and I know Jeff doesn't either.

Thanks for listening to me rant. I know I've been saying I'm feeling pretty good, and overall I am. Just not normal good, I guess.

Friday, August 13, 2010

10 Weeks

How far along: 10 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 1 lbs.

Symptoms: Still doing pretty good on the symptoms front. I have no desire to eat anything though.

Stretch Marks: Ugh, yes! Found one little one on each of my hips, and my upper thighs have new ones, which I find weird.

Sleep: I could sure use more! The nightmares aren't quite as bad as they were, but the dreams are still really vivid. I have to get up at least once a night to pee, which is really unusual for me.

Best Moment Last Week: Seeing a bump! I guess most women would not be happy about seeing a bump at 10 weeks, but I'm thrilled.

Movement: Nopers.

Food Cravings: Please don't talk to me about food. Don't make me look at it, don't make me think about it. Don't want it.

What I Miss: Energy.

What am I looking forward to: Our next appointment in three weeks.

Milestones:
Double-Digits! 10 Weeks!

How is Daddy? Still crazy excited. He is determined to conquer the world of baby strollers. I'm not sure why. Maybe because they have wheels?

Monday, August 9, 2010

Food, infections, and Questions

Doesn't that title sound yummy? Nothing like a good infectious food, right? Ha.

I've pretty much decided that there are two foods I can eat. Not that anything else makes me ill, I just don't want to eat them and wind up stopping after only 2 or 3 bites. But, Tot.inos pizzas (you know, the cheap ones) and a certain cinnamon roll shaped cereal are just about the only things I can finish off. Is it possible for a person to survive off pizza, cereal, and milk? It's certainly looking that way. I went to the grocery store today and bought 5 pizzas, 2 boxes of cereal, and 2 gallons of milk. The cashier looked at me like I was crazy. I probably am.

Poor Jeff has an ear infection. He's had a miserable past few days. I think two days of antibiotics are helping a bit, but he's still in a lot of pain. And our smallest dog, Winky is sick too. I'm thinking her's is not so much an ear infection, but a stomach virus. (Can dogs get those? And can I feed her Pep.to like I can cats?) She is not pleasant to be around right now.

I'm coming up on the 10 week mark (wow!) and therefore I am coming up on the time frame for the early screening tests. (I don't know what they're called at the moment. I missed my 2 hour nap today and am a little fuzzy!) I really don't know if I should get the screenings done or not. I mean, I wouldn't end this pregnancy for anything, no matter what the results, and our donor was already screened for all the major issues, like Downs. So why should I mess with the screening? I'm a chicken. If something's wrong, I'd rather not know. But maybe that's my ignorance speaking, having never been pregnant before. So I'm asking those of you who have been pregnant for advice. What do you think?

Friday, August 6, 2010

9 Weeks

How far along: 9 Weeks!

Total Weight Gain: 1 lbs.

Symptoms: I'm so tired! Sooooo tired! Other than that and a bit of heartburn, I'm good. And my boobs have grown a whole cup size. I almost have cleavage! :)

Stretch Marks: Not yet.

Sleep: Ugh. I am having the worst nightmares! And if they're not nightmares, the dreams are just really really weird. I'm always really confused when I wake up because the dreams are so realistic.

Best Moment Last Week: Getting to hear the heartbeat again and see Ustoff!

Movement: Dr. P said she saw him dancing!

Food Cravings: Milk. Lots of milk. I have no desire to actually eat anything though.

What I Miss: Sodas! I miss my half-dozen daily Diet Dr Peppers.

What am I looking forward to: Our next appointment in four weeks. I can't wait to see our baby again!

Milestones:
I'm still pregnant!!

How is Daddy? So excited. He's still telling every complete stranger we meet. He goes through every different way of saying pregnant that he can think of. The one that usually gets people is Watermelon under the Hood.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Urg!

I went up to the school to work on my classroom for a few hours today. I forgot that all the furniture would be messed up and stacked and crazy hard to move. Luckily, a couple fellow teachers and one former student came in and did the heavy lifting for me. I was there for all of two hours, just kind of puttering around, putting stuff back in it's place. And I was SO TIRED. I left, came home and ate lunch, and wound up sleeping for 3 hours.

I was not expecting that. I've really been feeling pretty good, and thought a couple hours at school would be a cinch. Now, I'm really worried about being able to make it through a school day! I mean, two hours of putting markers away and making copies should not have worn me out like that! I wasn't planning on going back tomorrow, but now I think I should, just to get my body used to it!

Maybe tomorrow, I'll find something I can do while sitting, since I did stand for those 2 hours today.

Also, a few of the women I work with who I haven't seen in a couple weeks saw me today, and they all said I already have a bump! At 9 weeks! I mean, sure, none of my pants will fasten, but I didn't think it was that obvious. Not that I'm complaining! I'm totally excited to be visibly pregnant. It means I'm not imagining things!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Our First OB appointment

Jeff and I headed off to see Dr. P today. She is a local OB that was recommended by both a pregnant co-worker and a neonatal surgeon. We loved her. She didn't have our paperwork from Dr. Wiz's office (big surprise. They suck at sending stuff on time.) and so didn't know we used DS. But, she was very sweet about it when she found out, and only slipped up once when she asked for Jeff's medical history.

Baby looks great. 1.75 cm, 167 bpm. We got to see the little arm buds move. It was truly amazing.

For lack of something better, I think I'll be calling the baby Ustoff on here. It's what Jeff insists on calling the baby whenever he mentions it, and as much as I hate it, it seems to have stuck. And no, that's now what we'll actually give as a name. I think that's considered child abuse in at least 37 states! : )

Monday, August 2, 2010

Hi Y'all!!

How's it going?

Sorry for the long silence. Jeff and I headed off on vacation. We drove from Dallas to New Orleans (1 night) then to St. Augustine, FL (3 nights) to Charleston, SC (3 nights) to somewhere in Alabama for a night, to home.

I have to admit, I really wasn't that impressed with New Orleans. (Or Louisiana. My stomach has been ok so far, but those roads made me nauseous.) Maybe it's cause I wasn't drinking, or because it was soooo hot, but I really didn't like it that well. I was even disappointed in the cemetery I visited, and I love old cemeteries. Oh well.

On the drive to Florida, Jeff and I stopped to see the battleship Alabama. It was cool. (Or hot! depending on how you look at it.)

I liked St. Augustine. The first day Jeff and I took a trolley ride around town and learned all kids of interesting stuff about the town, then bobbed in the ocean for a couple hours. We spent most of the second day waiting on Jeff's friend D who was flying in from Chicago to join us. We did get to bob around in the ocean some more though! Our third day we toured the fort built by the Spanish in the 1600's, the Flagler College (Tiffany windows!) and the Lightner museum. Those were seriously cool. Then we headed up to Charleston, with a detour for dinner in Savannah. I was so excited to find Juliette Lowe's birthplace. If you know who that is off the top of your head, you're as dorky as I am!

The first thing we did when we hit Charleston was to visit Fort Sumter. It was cool, but it paled in comparison to the Spanish fort. Then we met up with a couple of Jeff's old friends who took us out to dinner and then drinking. (Well, they drank. I sipped my water and found money on the ground.) The next day, Jeff and I farted around Market St. and downtown Charleston while we waited on hungover D to get out of bed. The last day there, I drug the guys to a cemetery downtown (oldest headstones I'd ever seen. 2 signers of the Declaration of Independence. So cool!) and a tour of the Old Provost Dungeon. Then we headed home, dropping D off in Atlanta for his flight.

Overall, it was a good trip. D was really high maintenance and whined about everything we did. In fact, I didn't get to do some of the stuff I wanted to do in Charleston because of him. Maybe some other time.

We came home to some lonely dogs and some angry neighbors. Our dog sitter I guess really isn't a dog person, so I think they sat outside and barked most of the time we were gone.

My first OB appointment is tomorrow, so I'll be giving you all an update on the baby as soon as I can!

Oh, and I think I could write an entire post dedicated to the amazing food we ate on this trip. Probably will.