11 Weeks

I am on 1/2 cc of PIO through Wednesday and then I will go and get my progesterone levels retested to make sure I can go completely off of those darn shots!! Mr. Explorer Bud is an excellent shot giver and can find the non lumpy spots which is a big relief at this point when there isn't a lot of non knotted areas to choose from. The nausea is subsiding I think but my sleep schedule is all out of control! I wake up around 1-3 am and then can't fall back asleep until 6 am when I have to get up for work. I have tried taking Unisom and Benadryl which usually knock me out cold but I still wake up regardless!! So I am a bit sleepy but otherwise feeling decent.

Introducing- Sprout!

I'm back from "rest", and it's been great.

First,  being told to take a week and a half off from work would be a typical person's dream come true.  For a teacher at the end of the school year, it's not what you want to hear.  I did it, though- and I didn't complain.  I enjoyed my time at home (though I soon realized there is NOTHING on television during the day) and spent most of it on the couch.

I returned to work last week for the last few days of school.  It was nice being back, and my students were glad to see me (most of them).  They were a tremendous help with packing up my room, and I grateful that I was able to say goodbye to each of them on our last day together.

I'm officially on V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N ( in the summertime). :)

I had my first OB visit today.  It was nice not having to wake up at the crack of dawn to drive an hour to see my doctor.  It was also nice not having to take my pants off for an ultrasound!

I arrived right on time (after chugging my 32 oz of water), and they called my name immediately.  I held my breath as Sprout popped up on the screen.  I found myself searching for the heartbeat, and asked the tech to point it out.  It wasn't as noticeable as when she/he was smaller.  It was a normal 160 bpm!  Whew.

Given the date of my FET transfer, I should be 10 weeks 4 days today.  Sprout was measuring at 11 weeks!  My OB did a pap smear since I hadn't had one in so long.  I asked if it might cause spotting later and she said yes.  I'm really glad I asked, or I probably would have freaked out.  They sent me for labs and then home with a ton of literature to read.

I return on July 10th for another visit. 

Bossy Bud

Almost there...

I am starting to finally gain a little confidence about this pregnancy. Finally. Of course, it's been tough, after my early loss last year. Anyone who has ever experienced that knows what I mean. It's terrifying, and honestly I will feel SO much better when I'm out of this dreaded 1st Trimester.

Tomorrow, I will officially be 12 weeks! Some sources see this as the end of the 1st part of pregnancy, but some don't acknowledge it until about 13 - 14 weeks. Either way, I have my next ultrasound this week (on Wednesday to be exact) and will be THRILLED if everything is the way it should be.

I have already told my bosses, at the Opera and at my Teaching job, the wonderful news, and also told the costume department at the opera. Since we are mid-production, we had to make sure the costumes were still fitting correctly, and check for any changes we may have to make. Nothing too major, but it's becoming more and more obvious that I'm packing a little extra on my waist line. It was definitely time to say something. And, to tell you the truth, the news was so well received, that I am glad I finally spilled the beans :)

After we see our LO at our next US, we are going to officially let the cat out of the bag... I am going to make a few calls, and then we're going to tell the world, aka Facebook. That should be interesting :)

Anyway, in the meantime, I still have a few persistent symptoms, which I am happy to have. I have been a bit dizzy, which is new. Had a mild case of vertigo yesterday that all of a sudden, leaving me feeling as if the whole world was spinning (which, of course, it is, but you catch my drift). My boobies and nipples are still tender, and I have had some swelling on my ankles. I think I may be catching a cold that my vitamins are trying to keep at bay, but other than that, I feel fine. Still exhausted, though.

Anyway, hopefully I will have some great news and a wonderful update after my next US... Keep praying for us :)




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

11 weeks...

Ok so not much to report. I've listened to Skittle's heart beat a few more times since my last past. Happily it's been staying 168-172. It just makes my heart sing everytime I hear it and makes me all the more anxious to meet this little person.

The constipation has improved greatly. I've begun taking my magnesium, stool softeners and prenatal vitamin in the morning with breakfast so taking them on a daily basis has helped. I'm not eating the prunes like I should because I think they get nastier every time I have to eat them. Yuck!

I stepped on the scale this morning and I up a total of 5 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight. A shame compared to Lucky's 20lbs at 20 weeks. =o/ Oh well. I'm not going crazy with my eating but am eating more frequently. Still mostly carbs, which I'm sure is where the weight gain has come from but I don't do well with heavy foods so I stick to things like Cheeze-Its, Goldfish, crackers, etc.

A lot of my girls say that I'm showing already and although my scrub pants are getting uncomfortable I can't really tell an obvious difference. My belly looks bigger and "rounder" so to speak but just not like the other bumps I've seen. I plan on getting a couple pairs of bigger scrubs in the very near future though and maybe some tops. My jeans are fine (I've been using a hairbow to keep them fastened; the belly band doesn't work well for me).

The nausea has calmed down quite a bit even since my last post. The headaches still get me down sometimes though. And my energy level has lagged dramatically. I mean cleaning the house? Puh-leaze! Thank goodness for a kind and supportive husband who has been a HUGE helped with laundry, dishes, cleaning the bathrooms, etc. Thanks Mr. CB! =o) I've also discovered that my new bedtime according to my body is around 8:30-9pm. Too bad I can't listen to it. Mr. CB works 3rd shift and I wake him up and get him ready for work. Plus that's an extra 15-20 minutes a day that I can spend with him (we only get to see each other for about an hour everyday due to work schedules).

Okie dokie, looking at the computer is bothering my head so I'm going to sign off for now.

Week 11

Today marks the beginning of my 11th week of pregnancy. Not much has changed in the last week. The biggest news is that today I heard from my nurse and I can stop taking my meds!!!! I am so happy! I will take another blood test in five days, and if everything is fine, then I will be out of the care of the fertility clinic, and just overseen by my midwives. I am still nauseous a lot, but trying to stay optimistic that I will feel better soon.

We are starting to get past our fears of miscarriage since our doctor told us we could feel better about it after our 9 week ultrasound, so we have told our families. We have also not been too careful about waiting, and have told a few friends, but plan on waiting a couple more weeks before letting everyone know.

This week our baby is the size of a small lime, or a fig. 

Confession time: I'm still angry

I don't know why, but this whole pregnancy I have been watching my "baby is the size of what fruit" ticker like a hawk, just waiting to get to lime.

For some reason, I have always watched other people's tickers get to lime and it has seemed unreal.  This safe haven of fruit size. 

I think anytime you have trouble trying to conceive, you start to expect things to go wrong.  I have had no spotting this entire time *knock on wood*, yet I still have been both terrified and sure something would go wrong.  Even knowing the odds, hearing the heartbeat and knowing the risk is only 4%, I still expected it to be me.  And why not?  Month after month we had perfect timing, odds are it should have worked.  But it didn't.  It took 2 cycles of femara to get here, which is far less than a lot of women I know.  Which I think is also part of the problem.  When it takes a while, you start seeking out others having trouble, blogs, message boards, you find each other for support, but you also see all that can go wrong, and you think, "if it can happen to them, it can happen to me."

I've heard a lot of women say, and I fully agree that T-TTC takes the innocence away from TTC and pregnancy.  You're never just happy, you're also cautious and terrified.  We learn to be that way when TTC, when every month we say "maybe it will work, but probably not."  And you hold you breath every day of the 2ww waiting for a temp drop, or a BFN, or that first spot. 

I always thought that reaching lime would be this magic bullet.  This time when I could stop being afraid, and angry about how this has all gone down.  But I'm not.  A friend whose wife is 23 weeks was joking yesterday about how when they conceived their baby, they sent their other kids to the grandparents for the weekend and announced to the world that they were going to make a baby that weekend.  And guess what, they did.  You'd think I wouldn't care anymore.  That I would have stopped being jealous of him and everyone else who just decides to have a baby, and then does just like that.  But I'm not, I'm still angry. 

I am pregnant, and I am happy, and I love this baby, but I still don't quite believe that it will all end well.  And I'm still jealous of those for whom becoming parents comes easy.  I don't want to be.  I hate being this bitter.  I want to be happy for my friend even when he makes stupid insensitive comments.  I thought I would be "over this" by now, but I'm not.  I just wish I knew how to let it go and just be happy. 

It's ALIVE!

I'm very happy to tell you all that todays ultrasound went well. Not only was there a heartbeat (cue my exhaling for the first time in weeks), but Baby Cactus Bud was wiggling all around too. It doesn't show in the picture very well, but at different points during the scan I could see all four limbs, the spine, even a hand that seemed to be going to the face. It was really surreal to see the image on the screen. I seriously could've watched it all day.

This is the third different doctor I've been to for this pregnancy, not counting the ER trip. Thankfully from now on (hopefully) I'll be going to the same building with the same 'team'. I'd like to try and get the same doctor if I can as I liked her, but I'd like to meet them all since I don't know who'll be delivering when the time comes. With the change in doctor came a change in my due date. Again. I'm now back to October 15th, the date that comes up if you go by my last menstrual period. October 15th is also exactly what the baby was measuring, 11w5d.

The bulk of the appointment was going over my history. I'm happy to say that not only did the doctor have a clue about my history, but the nurse that weighed me in did too. I was totally expecting to have to tell them about the miscarriage, it was nice to only have to add on how far along I was at the time.

After the history was done, they tried to do an annual exam. I had one at my civilian doctors in January...but they don't have access to the records. Whatever. The ultrasound was going to be vaginal anyways, so I knew I was already going to spot. If you *need* to do a pap, knock yourself out. I warned them that I think I have a sensitive cervix and that I was pretty sure it would bleed with that...but they wanted to try. Lets just say that the doctors reaction to how sensitive my cervix is involved the word "Wow". She ended up throwing in the towel on the pap smear (so much blood it would come back inconclusive from the lab) and gave me paperwork for my medical records to be sent to them. Ha! Told ya! I've now been officially diagnosed as having a 'very sensitive cervix'. As much as it sucks to know I'll be spotting pretty bad in the next day or so, I'm pretty happy that they came to the same conclusion I did about the spotting and that its nothing that will threaten the pregnancy. Unfortunately, she says I'm stuck with it for the duration of the pregnancy. Kind of a bummer, but I'll take it in a heartbeat if it means a baby in the end.

I asked the doctor how my heart-shaped uterus will play into things moving forward. She said that with anatomy like mine, the trick is usually getting pregnant. This surprised me as I seem to get pregnant pretty easily (50% of the months we tried), its staying pregnant that is more challenging for me. From what she said it didn't sound like she anticipates my having higher chances for early delivery or a c-section. Very good news.

She said all my bloodwork came back normal (at the first appointment they took A LOT of blood and a urine sample). I was sent for another blood draw today, this one to go with the NT scan which is next week.

I ended up having a job interview this afternoon, so my shopping spree for clothes that actually fit had to be put off till tomorrow. Looking forward to it more than I thought I would. I'll also likely be pulling the trigger on a home doppler soon too. I figure it will ease my worries in the month between doctor visits and will come in handy at the end of the pregnancy when the kid can't move much.

My next appointment is April 7th for the NT scan. The next regular appointment I have is May 9th. That will just be a doppler check and Q&A time.

Houston, We Have A Fetus!

11 Weeks!

Most places seem to agree that the fetal stage begins right about now, so I guess that means we have a fetus in there. From here on out things are being fine-tuned and growing like crazy. The bambino should be about the size of a lime this week. Crazy to think I'm clear up to lime already when sweet pea seemed unattainable before.

I'm starting to get really nervous and excited about my ultrasound that is FINALLY due to happen on Thursday. I'll let you know how it goes. I'm hopeful that I might actually get to see a heartbeat and a wiggling baby in there. I'm preparing myself for bad news though. Maybe that sounds strange to some, but its easier for me to be pleasantly surprised than heartbroken again. If anyone has some spare good thoughts to send my way on Thursday, I'd appreciate them. I'll be going to the appt on my own since Mr Cactus Bud can't get off from work.

If it goes well, there will be a shopping spree to follow. I've been itching to get a home doppler and need to get maternity pants. Haven't been able to pull the trigger and do either yet. I'm figuring it will be my reward for a good appt this week.

(Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/5uccd5v )

How far along: 11 weeks

Total weight change: +3

Maternity clothes: No, but most days I really need the pants. Getting some will be my reward for having a good appt on Thursday.

Stretch Marks: No

Movement: Too early

Sleep: My back has been giving me issues in the past week (I'm prone to back issues even when not pregnant). I've had to resort to Tylenol to help as my lack of sleep was interfering with my functioning like a human being.

Best Moment This Past Week: Getting to the baby to the fetus stage and being in the home stretch to the elusive ultrasound. Also a good moment was realizing I'd made it 10 days+ without spotting (Probably because I put myself on pelvic rest and have been faithful to Mr. Metamucil. I needed a break from the bleeding or I'd be BSC with the ultrasound looming right now. Sucks to be on rest, but I think it clearly tells us whats the cause of the spotting.)

Most Difficult Moment This Past Week: Having the ultrasound looming out there. I"m alternately excited and terrified of it.

Belly Button In or Out: Definitely still in

Cravings/Aversions: I was able to eat scrambled eggs this week! Been downing milk and cheese like there is no tomorrow.

Symptoms: What symptoms? Seriously, the only symptoms I've been having with regularity are sore boobs and a slowed down digestive system (and all the joy that comes with that). Nausea is all but gone (occasional wave in the evenings, that's it). Food aversions are lessening (mostly I want to eat everything in sight). Oh, I guess ninja hunger would be a symptom. I call it ninja hunger cuz it sneaks up on me.

What I'm Looking Forward To: The ultrasound on Thursday and telling family in a couple weeks.

Take care,

First ob/gyn appointment

Let me start off with these....


Do you notice something in the second picture??? no? maybe? As per my doctor its a boy!!!

Let's rewind.... Today was our first ob/gyn appointment after we were released from the RE's office. I met with a new doctor which is amazing, he is so informative and just sounds caring, I did not feel like I was in a factory and was a dollar sign. He works with high risk pregnancies and I could not be happier with our choice. After we meet I felt so comfortable. We have gone through 4 doctors within the last year and a half and it has not been easy.

He went over my test results from the RE's office and warned me that I am at risk for Preeclampsia. Great. Read all about it here. ugh. I am just going to continue praying and hope that our baby can make it full term and we have no complications. I also was dehydrated and had a little bit of sugar in my urine, which is so odd. I only drink water and a whole lot of it!

On a positive note, at the trans-vaginal u/s we were able to see the little one swimming all around, heard it's heartbeat beating at 170 BPM, saw the umbilical cord pumping pumping blood (which means NO MORE PROGESTERONE SUPPOSITORIES!!!!!) and then the doctor focused on an area and said it might be a boy. I was like what?!?!? we can tell so early on??? He explained sometimes the girls area might be swollen so we might think its a boy, however he zoomed in and got a bottom shot and no way these are swollen!!

We meet again in 2 weeks and I will speak to him in regards to the preeclampsia. Other than that.. I can not wait to go shopping!!!

Bittersweet

I wasn't going to post again until my NT scan, when i'd hopefully have some really good pictures of smudge to share.

But the past few days I've been having a bit of a hard time, and now that i've finally told my husband about it, i feel like telling you guys too.

the past few days i've been really sad about our lost twin.

I don't know why this is coming up now. I never really got sad about the twin before. But as happy as I am now about smudge, is as sad as I am about the baby we lost.

I'm almost 11 weeks pregnant - i don't know why these feelings are just coming up now.

When will this ride end?

I don't believe that I'm actually able to post today. I only hope I can make it on at least once a week and not let you down. So here is what has been going on...

We finally sold our home, moved out December 28th, lived with friends until January 15th until our apartment was ready. We are now in our apartment and on the hunt for our "forever home!" We haven't gotten the internet set up at home, so checking the internet has become a pain, hence the longer-than-expected absence from Bloomin Babies.

Image Source

I finished my first class of graduate school with an "A"!!! I was so proud of myself. Currently taking class #2.Now for an update on Baby BrainyBud...

Week 9
Bleeding stopped for about 6 days and then started back. Baby went on a weekend getaway with me and my mom and it was my secret!

Week 10
Celebrated 4th wedding anniversary and thanksgiving. I was able to take a lot of leave from Thanksgiving-Christmas because I had so much leave time built up.

Week 11
Bleeding began to get worse and started to scare me that I was losing the baby. I was so exhausted for the last 3 weeks, that my body would start shutting down around 8pm.

Week 12
Still bleeding but stopped taking Progestrone. Baby took a trip with mom and dad to the University and mom's frequently traveled to work place. Began having some tummy aches that would last for a few more weeks. Found out that my college friend is due 2 days prior to me and a friend from church is due 2 days after me. Had my 3rd OB/GYN visit. Baby is perfectly healthy with NO reason for the bleeding. Baby was moving arms and legs so fast, I thought it was the heartbeat to begin with.

Week 13
Came down with a MAJOR ear infection! The doctor said that I was beating my little one to it. He said it was like a 2-year-old's ear infection. YUK. I felt terrible! The baby even went with us to the Nutcracker Ballet. The bleeding finally stopped sometime during this week.

Week 14
We finally announced our pregnancy at Christmas, everyone was so excited and surprised! It was the most scarest thing we've ever had to say to family. We moved the day after Christmas and no one let me do anything! Even though I had been packing for weeks prior.

Week 15
Still announcing to people and still exhausted. New Years was interesting.

Week 16
Baby's first snow and won't be able to see it. Mr. BrainyBud went sledding on the day that was supposed to be our 4th U/S but was rescheduled due to the snow and ice. Went to the dentist and he gave me a set of "Baby's First Toothbrushes" for our impending little one.

Week 17
I began to worry because I have NOT gained ANY weight. I wondered if something was wrong all week. Had our 4th U/S that lasted 15 minutes but only took the tech 2 seconds to announce...

Image Source

That's my update for now...Faith, Love and Baby Flutters,

Mrs. BrainyBud

Oh Baby!

So I completely forgot I was going to do an update after my 11wk doctors appointment on December 30th. Somehow I manage to update my personal blog, but forgot to add my update here. So here goes!

Little Daisy Bud's new brother or sister is due July 20th, 2010. For those of you who remember, his due date was July 20th, 2008. It's so crazy that we ended up with the same due date again. I had my first actually appointment with the doctor December 30th. So far everything is looking good. It took forever for the doctor to find the little stinker's heartbeat because it kept hiding. We did in the end hear it. The due date is probably one of the only things that my pregnancy with Little Daisy Bud and with this baby have had in common. With Little Daisy Bud, I was nauseous pretty much in the morning. I threw up every once in a while. With this baby, I am nauseous almost every afternoon and evening but mornings are fine most of the time. I've only thrown up once. With Little Daisy Bud, I couldn't stand the smell of chocolate or pretty much any sweets (Christmas was rough that year). With this baby, I love sweets. With Little Daisy Bud, I craved protein and loved hamburgers (as long as I didn't have to see raw meat.) With this baby all meat grosses me out even when cooked. I can stomach chicken sometimes. Gatorade was my magic trick to make it through the day with my first. This baby seems to think it's far too sweet.

Mr. Daisy Bud and I joked with the doctor about her 4th of July weekend plans (since she was out of town that weekend when Little Daisy Bud came). She said as long as it could avoid the U2 concert on June 27th, she'd be there this time.
We are still up in the air on whether we will attempt a VBAC. That's one of the best things about my clinic, the choice is mine as long as a c/s isn't needed for safety reasons. The plan right now is to wait until much closer to my due date to know exactly what we're dealing with. I just don't want to get it in my head that the birth will go one way, when in fact things could change at the last minute. My tentative thoughts at this point are to set a c/s date at 39 wks. If I go into labor before that and things look good, I would attempt a VBAC. From what I've read so far, the success rates of VBAC lessen after 39 wks and c/s are the safest at that point. It also looks like inductions will never be an option for me. I'm also at a higher risk of having another breech baby since Little Daisy Bud was breech. (I can't find any good statistics on this to know how much more likely this is, but I did read it in a legitimate medical article, so this means it would have to be statistically significant.)

I've been a bad blogger!!!

The last few weeks have been a little rough but we are getting back to normal now. I was very sick with morning sickness 24/7 and throwing up all day long.... Not fun! Then little Faith Bud got sick with what is suspected to have been H1N1. Then of course I got it! I was pretty much sick & in bed for 2 weeks. We also moved into a new house this past weekend so still trying to get settled here. I am still dropping pounds, down 8 now according to our scale, but the bump is definitely growing! I am feeling little flutters so I'm thinking that all is OK. I have my next appointment in a week. I'm excited but nervous for it. I am going alone as Mr Faith Bud has to work. I'm very excited to hear the heartbeat but am nervous that something will be wrong. We are just a short 2 weeks away from being out of the first trimester! I can't believe it! I am so excited to see our little monkey. Here is a picture of the 11 week bump! Enjoy!!!

1st Time Sex

Well you ladies are really going to give me some crap for this one... I haven't admitted it to anyone but Mr. GB (who's been less than pleased).

But yes, it took 11 weeks for the 1st time to have sex while pregnant. Ok that's not entirely true - there were a few times before we found out we were KU where we did the baby dance - however it's been a long 6 week dry spell since we got those 5 positive HPT's.


I'm crazy right? I've read web sites, I've asked friends, and Mr. GB even asked Dr. C at our consultation appointment - all confirmed it's OK to have sex while you are KU!

I don't think my problem was only with the fact that I was nervous. While I wasn't having any morning sickness, I still wasn't feeling myself. I felt bloated and I was tired. I just wasn't in the mood.

Anyway, last night Mr. GB had HAD it... it was go time. So even though I'd already went to bed an hour before him, I was still awake when he came into the room. He put on his best moves and got the deed done. Sorry if that's TMI but it was great! It was like the 1st time all over again and we've been together for almost 9 years.



Now that that's out of the way... on to 2nd trimester sex! I've heard it's fabulous! :-)

Finally! A fruit that I like!

Baby's now the size of a lime!
Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through it. But fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds, and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future.




Wow - 11 weeks!

I don't have much to update but I thought it was funny because finally thebump.com has compared Baby GB to a fruit that I like! I think it's really weird... I've long since traded in my Vodka Tonics with extra Lime and now I crave lime popsicles (yup... still!). Although today... a Key Lime pie sounds really nice. Happy Labor Day everyone!