18 Weeks

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I really need to get better about writing these weekly posts. I swear the biggest hurdle is updating the letterboard and then putting on the yoga pants and t-shirt to take the weekly photo. I’ve reached peak laziness and just those two things is just. Too. Much.

So this week I just scrapped the letterboard. Mostly because there were all sorts of differing opinions on what size 3BB is this week.

What to Expect said cucumber, but The Bump said artichoke. Cucumber seems too long, unless it is like one of those mini-cucumbers.

One newsletter I subscribe to said a baked potato.

What to Expect also gives other options besides fruits/veggies and this week it was a disposable camera (which isn’t a disposable camera smaller than last week’s pop tart?) or the movie prop this week was from Office Space:

So I’ll stick with a baked potato. Since she’s only about 5 inches long and I feel like the Swingline is longer than that. Plus I can’t eat potatoes so I’m going to go with dreaming about a baked potato slathered in butter.

Speaking of food and the diabeetus, the reason I delayed this post this week was because I met with the diabetes nurse yesterday.

I was dreading it. I just had a really bad feeling it was going to go horribly. I envisioned walking out of there in tears and feeling like a giant, glucose-filled failure.

I am happy to report that was NOT the case. I didn’t even cry once. I was like five minutes late because the parking garage attached to this office was a giant clusterfuck. So then I was worried I’d get yelled at for that too. None of that happened. When I apologized for being a few minutes late, she was like “oh never apologize for that. In fact, I’ll call you if you’re more than 10 minutes late just to make sure you are OK!”

Right then and there I knew it was going to be just fine.

She told me that my epic failure (my words, not hers) of the 3-hour glucose test were an indication that I was already having issues with glucose. She pointed out that my fasting number at the test was high and that because it was so high, she knew right then it was going to be hard to get my fasting number controlled with diet alone.

We looked at all my numbers over the past two weeks. She was totally fine with all my post-meal numbers, but pointed out the still-high fasting numbers, so she said it was time for insulin. 

I expected this because I have tried so many things, different foods, more protein, more carbs, marching in place for exercise, and I’ve only have one fasting number in the normal range. I am very thankful that this appointment was two weeks out from my diagnosis and that I had all this time to process it.

She explained that high fasting numbers means I can’t control the glucose levels with the insulin I have, so the baby (little baked potato baby!) is giving me her insulin to keep my numbers in check. And she’s a little potato, she shouldn’t be doing that! It’s MY job to keep her safe and healthy. Her only job is to grown and fatten up. She shouldn’t be doing any extra work.

Once she told me that, I was sold. I’ll do whatever I have to. I’m 3BB’s momma and I need to protect her at all costs. 

So I’m on 12 units of insulin at night. I’m stopping the metformin (side note, I mentioned to the nurse about my PCP and she was like “I saw that. You poor thing. She should NOT have said that and I’m sorry she stressed you out.”). She told me I’ll almost 100% have to increase the amount of insulin as the pregnancy goes on and may have to split it up throughout the day, so she wanted to prepare me. It gets harder and harder to regulate blood sugar as you get further along. 

Thankfully I’m well-versed in needles and injecting myself. Insulin is an EASY one, comes in a pen and the needle is TINY. After the PIO needle, anything else is a piece of cake. 

Other than that, I’m very aware of my expanding uterus these days. It doesn’t look like it’s grown that much in the photo, but I can definitely feel that it is expanding upwards and squishing things. I grunt every time I get out of the recliner. And trying to cut my toenails the other night was not as easy as it used to be.

The nurse did say I can stay with my midwife for the 20-week appointment and then I’ll have to move to an OB. I can either choose one in the practice across the hall from my midwife’s office, or an OB in the Maternal Fetal Medicine practice. I’m going to ask my midwife for her opinion, since I’m really looking for the least judgey doctor. And since they are all group practices, I have to see all the doctors anyway, so I’m not sure it matters much. I am very thankful that I’ll get halfway with my midwife.

Until next week.

#3BBOnBoard

17 Weeks

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This week I went away from the fruits and vegetables because an onion isn’t that exciting, but this week 3BB is the size of a Pop Tart!

Although I do feel like that is a bit evil since I can no longer eat Pop Tarts, as evidenced by the poor, sad, unopened box of Toaster Treats. Until next year, pop tarts.

Speaking of things I can’t eat, because all I can talk about these days is my diabetes, things are going OK. I had my call with the dietician yesterday and it was very informative and helpful. Before talking to her, I joined a Facebook group for gestational diabetes and that group has been amazing! It gave me some direction to go on before I talked to the dietician.

This week I meal planned and ate like I did pre-pregnancy – lots of healthy carbs and veggies and no treats (goodbye Pop Tarts and ice cream). I wanted to see if I could control my numbers by switching things up a bit before meeting with the dietician so I had the right questions to ask. 

The one thing I’m thankful for is my years and years of tracking food in My Fitness Pal. I put in so many recipes that it is now easy to see which ones work for the carb levels I’m allowed each meal. That has been super helpful and made it so I didn’t feel like I had to measure every single thing. So many of the things I saw was people measuring out salad and dressing and look, if I want to eat a whole bag of salad, I’m going to.

Protein is still oddly hard. Chicken grosses me out. I bought the pre-cooked chicken to put in salads or wraps and just typing this out made me gag. I’m fine eating it if someone else cooks it, but I can’t even look at it. 

My post-meal numbers are generally fine. I’m having a really hard time getting my fasting numbers low enough. My dietician gave me some tips, eating not just protein right before bed. She said the snack should be a good mix of good carbs, fat and protein. The unfortunate part of all this is the fasting number is the one they are most concerned with. I’m hoping they give me some time to get them under control before putting me on insulin, but I’ll find out more when I see the nurse next week.

But I’m already tired of pricking my fingers four times a day. It’s going to be a long 20-plus weeks.

Other than that, I am very thankful that my nausea has subsided and most of my food aversions have gone with it. I do not know how I would be able to do this with how I felt several weeks ago. I imagine it would have been a lot of puking.

Now the most annoying symptom is congestion. I always have a stuffy nose and am sneezing and have the worst post-nasal drip. It’s a good thing no one lives with me because the constant throat clearing is even starting to annoy me.

Clothes are starting to be a little snug. I really need it too cool off here so I can just wear stretchy pants all the live long day. But it’s supposed to be almost 90 here tomorrow, so no end in sight.

I haven’t noticed any movement from 3BB just yet. Supposedly I should start to feel something soon. I’ve *maybe* felt something, but it is hard to tell if it was just gas or something else. I’m excited to feel it when it’s undeniable what it is. 

In a few weeks I have my big 20-week ultrasound. I hope they haven’t put me on insulin by then, since I can’t see my midwife anymore if that happens, and I would like to have this big appointment with her if possible. I can’t wait to get a good look at 3BB!

#3BBOnBoard

16 Weeks

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This week 3BB is the size of an avocado! 

Mmmmmm, guacamole.

I had a doctor’s appointment this week and to say it wasn’t the greatest is an understatement.

I have an elevated A1C level and have for a few years. Back in mid-2020, the fertility doctor put me on Metformin to help keep it down and to hopefully decrease my chances of getting gestational diabetes. I’m not in the diabetic range, but I’m getting close to the pre-diabetic range. Plus with my age, I’m at an increased risk for gestational diabetes. 

Because of this, my midwife decided to have me do the glucose test at 16 weeks. Because if my sugars were elevated, they wanted to control it as soon as possible. And we didn’t even bother with the one-hour test, we jumped right to the three-hour test.

I had that test Wednesday morning. I was really dreading it, for so many reasons. One, everyone says how awful the glucose drink is (spoiler alert: it’s not bad at all) and two, I was worried about taking in all that sugar and not being able to eat and then passing out. That did not happen either. And then I was super worried about actually being diagnosed with gestational diabetes because I have been living on carbs the last 15 weeks, what the hell am I going to eat?

This wasn’t helped by the fact that last Friday I had my physical with my primary doctor. The only reason I had to go see her was because I get a discount on my health insurance at work if we do certain things throughout the year, one of them being an annual physical.

I’ve always liked this doctor. She’s been my PCP since like 2006. But after this last appointment, I think I’m in the market for a new PCP. She was just snippy with me the whole appointment. She said I should NOT be taking metformin while I was pregnant and that I was doing serious harm to my unborn child since it is not a proven drug in pregnancy (this is not true). I told her that I had already discussed it with my midwife and she discussed it with a doctor and told me to keep taking it. She would not let up. I finally was like “look, I will express your concerns to my other medical team, but it was discussed and I was told to keep taking it. Many pregnant people take it.” She didn’t believe that. 

Now I understand that as a PCP you have to be knowledgeable about lots of things. But I don’t know that you are up to date with every recent study regarding medicines. I trust that the FERTILITY doctor who prescribed it knew what she was doing, and that my midwife and the maternal fetal medicine doctors were also well-versed in the research when they told me NOT to stop taking it.

After that, I thought the appointment would be OK. But then she got to diet and exercise and then shamed me because I was eating so many carbs. Look lady, I don’t know if you’ve ever had nausea in pregnancy, but if all you can stomach is carbs, then eat the carbs. It’s better than not eating or just eating and puking. 

Anyway, the appointment left a really sour taste in my mouth and I think next year I will be seeing another doctor in the practice.

Fast forward to this week and the glucose test. First off, the drink is no big deal. It tastes like flat pop or like extra sugary Gatorade. I had the lemon-lime flavor and downed it just fine. As one of the nurses commented as I was finishing it “I’ve had lots of alcohol that’s tasted worse!” #truth

I felt fine. The worst is sitting around for the blood tests every hour. Thankfully my doctor could fit me in for my 16-week appointment while I was waiting to kill two birds with one stone.

My appointment was with my midwife that I used to see (the one who has been doing my annual exams for the last 15 years), since my current midwife was out of the office this week. The appointment was fine. 3BB was shy and we couldn’t find her on the doppler, which scared me at first, but then we got out the ultrasound and there she was, just chillin. She was waving her little hand at the camera and moving around! I was really happy we couldn’t find her heartbeat because I got to see her! It had been like a month since my last ultrasound. Her heart was beating away and she was, yet again, showing off for the camera (probably from all the glucose!). So she’s doing just fine and healthy as an avocado.

Later that afternoon I got the results of my glucose test. They were not good. My levels on 3 of the 4 blood draws were super elevated, which meant I had gestational diabetes. I was going to be referred to a dietician and a nurse practitioner in the maternal fetal medicine department that deals with diabetes. 

I am not lying when I say I sobbed uncontrollably for a few hours. I felt like I let 3BB down and can’t even provide her a safe home for 9 months. I was scared about what I would be able to eat because vegetables are still not my favorite thing to eat, nor is any kind of meat/protein really. The idea of measuring and tracking food was really upsetting because one thing pregnancy had given me is a handle on intuitive eating. I eat when I’m hungry and that has been working since I’ve only gained a couple pounds. I can feel myself undoing 25-plus years of disordered eating. And I really don’t want to throw all that out the window.

I know how to eat for this “diet” because I’ve done low-carb/Paleo diets before. Deep down, I know these are the best diets for me because I do feel my best when I’m limiting carbs, especially refined and processed carbs. But I was really hoping this was going to be one time in my life that I wasn’t going to have to worry and track and measure my food. 

The nurse reached out and I have an appointment with the dietician next week. And then a follow up with the nurse the week after. I am the proud owner of a new, trusty glucose monitor and will have to prick my finger 4 times a day.

I’m praying I can control this with diet (and I think I can), because the next thing would be insulin shots every day and I really, really don’t want to do that. And I know in the grand scheme of things, this is small and just a blip. Many pregnant women get gestational diabetes and it is unrelated to their weight and/or diet. But still, it’s going to be a long 24 weeks.

But as my sister pointed out, 3BB just wants to remind me she’s there and keep things interesting. Who wants to read a blog post every week about how easy a pregnancy is?

I’m starting to feel bigger and feel like this photo is starting to show a bump. But this was also after I ate Chipotle, so it’s probably just bloating from the burrito bowl.

Finally, thank you all for the love and support on my last post! I know that 3BB is already so loved and cared for. And I will tell her all the time how she is not just my baby, but the internet’s baby.

Oh! I added links to my registries in the side bar to the right. A lot of you have asked so I thought I’d link there. There is no pressure, I just wanted to put it out there. And let’s be honest, I’m doing this by myself, so I’m not going to turn down any gifts. It takes a village, indeed.

#3BBOnBoard

15 Weeks & Reveal!

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This week’s update is super delayed. But I decided to take some vacation days and do a little staycation this week, so I’ve been enjoying that.

I have REALLY been wanting a pool this summer. I’m not sure why, I’m guessing that because I’m always hotter than normal because of pregnancy has something to do with it, or because I don’t have access to any pools makes it like a forbidden fruit, but I finally decided to do something about it.  I found a cheap hotel in the suburbs with an outdoor pool and booked myself a night away. It felt like a luxurious five-star getaway.

I even bought a $5 pool float from Target that was worth every penny!

I realized that I wanted a pool and to be in someplace that wasn’t my house. It really did the trick. I relaxed, got takeout, enjoyed the pool, slept in. It was perfect! And less than $100 for the room!

Since I was in the burbs, my sister met me out to go baby shopping so I could finish my registry. I think it’s all but complete, so I’ll share the links soon, for those of you who have asked.

This week 3BB is the size of a pear. 

Side effects are starting to subside. I don’t need naps every day. The gagging and barfing when I brush my teeth is not nearly as bad. I stil have bouts of nausea, but it isn’t constant or every day. Food aversions and cravings are still ever-present. This week’s very specific craving was rice pilaf. So I searched around for it and got it and it was exactly what I wanted. 

My belly is still just looking bloated. Clothes still fit, although I noticed the other day that my belly is starting to push the zippers down on my shorts. 

I’m really looking forward to slightly cooler weather and some moderate humidity levels. I feel like this oppressively humid air makes it hard for me to breathe. Since I just get winded from taking 10 steps these days. I can’t imagine what it will be like when I’m closer to full term.

If you’ve gotten this far, I know you’re waiting to find out the sex of 3BB. In fact, I’ve known for some time and I can’t believe I haven’t slipped yet!

I bought a mega cupcake from a local bakery here in Chicago, Molly’s. They do filled cupcakes and if you’re ever in Chicago (or NYC, Iowa City or Cincinnati) and want a REALLY good cupcake, I highly suggest Molly’s. They are SO good. 

And finally, without further ado…..

 

So there you have it! And I bought 3BB her first onesies. And I got my first baby gift from my friends Betsey & Matt who gave me a baby blanket with little Minnesotas on it! I can’t believe in 25 weeks I’m going to have a little baby that fits into those tiny onesies!

#3BBOnBoard

14 Weeks

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Orange you glad to see me?

This week 3BB is the size of an orange! And growing like a weed. My uterus is the size of a small melon! And I’m officially in the second trimester and FOURTH month!

Although you still can’t really tell on my person.

Which is fine, only because I really don’t want to have to buy a lot of maternity clothes. I’m hoping since we’re still working from home (and are until at least mid-October at this point) that I can hold off with what I have. My shorts still fit and as it gets cooler here, I move to stretchy pants, which will be very forgiving. And then hopefully we will only back in the office a few days a week and I can rotate between like 3-4 outfits until February. 

I still haven’t shopped for maternity bras. I’m kind of waiting until my current ones are just totally uncomfortable. Because again, I don’t want to have to buy 5 different sizes. Again, since I’m just sitting at home, I don’t need anything all that supportive.

(Oddly, in non-pregnant days, I just wouldn’t even wear a bra. But pregnancy boobs are heavy and sensitive, so I actually find myself wanting to wear a bra for my girls.)

This week 3BB has reminded me HEY, YOU ARE PREGNANT! Just in case I was too cocky about entering the the second trimester and hopefully feeling better. I have not at all. Here are the things that have occurred this week, just to remind me I am indeed pregnant (as if I could forget, 3BB!)

  • I had a horrible migraine Sunday that literally had me in bed all day. I woke up to eat, so I wouldn’t be nauseous on top of it, and then took a Unisom and went back to sleep until evening. It was miserable. And because I am pregnant (SEE, 3BB, I TOLD YOU I COULDN’T FORGET) I can only take Tylenol. Which works about as much as tic tacs.
  • Nausea has come back in full force. While I kind of appreciate it because it tells me 3BB is still in there and growing and alive, I also don’t need the nausea to be WORSE. I was used to the evening nausea, we don’t need to add back in the all-day nausea, 3BB. 
  • Because of the nausea, I haven’t been able to eat much. I have days where my appetite is out of control and I want to eat anything, and then I have days like yesterday where I could only stomach English muffins with butter.
  • To go along with the nausea, the gagging has gotten worse. I keep barfing after I brush my teeth and now I have moments where I’ll just be sitting down watching TV, and the thought of something will make me gag. It’s as pleasant as it sounds.
  • Food cravings. We all know the exaggerated depiction of pregnant ladies and their cravings. I always thought they were exaggerated. I’m here to tell you THEY ARE NOT. On Friday I wanted Taco Bell crunchy tacos. Not soft. Not homemade crunchy tacos, they had to be Taco Bell’s. So I drove my ass through the drive through and ordered myself a party pack of crunchy tacos. It was 10,000% worth it.

Thankfully my energy is back to pre-pregnancy levels, so that is helpful to actually be able to get things done (when migraines and nausea aren’t killing me slowly). But to go with that, I now have insomnia. I haven’t been to bed before 2 AM at all this week. I try to go to bed earlier, and then just toss and turn, so I’ve just decided to stay up and then read until I get really, really tired. Just preparing me, aren’t you 3BB?

Other than that, it’s been a pretty uneventful week. HA!

Stay tuned because next week we’ll have a sex reveal post, since I’ll have the results of my fetal DNA test and know the sex of 3BB!

And here, just because, is just a photo of Sammi sleeping in a carboard box.

#3BBOnBoard

13 Weeks

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I feel like these are about to get super boring and I may have to combine weeks more often. There’s just not as much going on and I can only complain so much about nausea and gagging when I’m brushing my teeth.

This week 3BB is the size of a lemon! 3BB is like 3 inches long and weighs one whole ounce! Those are like real, conceivable numbers! Although anyone who has ever been on a diet and had to weigh out 1 ounce of cheese will know that it really is still teeny, tiny.

I had another appointment with my doctor this week and this week was a big one. I GOT TO HEAR THE HEARTBEAT! I was so, so freaking awesome! I teared up. It was so amazing to hear 3BB just hanging out inside me. The heartbeat was high 150s, so my doctor was really happy. 

No ultrasound, though, so no more pictures of 3BB. I think I won’t have one until the 20 week ultrasound, but as long as 3BB keeps growing in there, I think I’ll be OK.

My appointment was super quick, probably because I was just there two weeks ago. But I never feel rushed and my doctor sits down and answers any and every question I have. We talked about the symptoms waning, (I mentioned that it is a noticeable difference in my energy level) and that I hoped the nausea would go away soon. She said usually by 16 weeks women start to feel a lot better.

I did say that I was happy for that because I’m really excited to get rid of this excess saliva/weird taste in my mouth symptom. And she said “oh you have that? Yeah, that’s not going away until you give birth.” GAHHHHHHH! 

Although she also said some women have so much excess saliva they have to carry a cup around with them to spit into, so at least I don’t have it THAT bad.

Other than that, I feel fine overall. My clothes still are fitting, which is nice. It was REALLY hot here this week, so I didn’t go outside much because the humidity was oppressive. Thankfully it has cooled down so hopefully the worst of summer is past us. I’m fine with 80s, the 90s with a heat index of 110 is no bueno.

My back is back to killing me. Which sucks on so many levels. One, because I can’t take the gabapentin to help with the nerve pain and two, there is literally nothing I can do about it until I give birth. I am trying to get back to doing the stretches I learned in physical therapy every day. I’m trying to strengthen my core as much as possible. But I’m dealing with it as much as I can. It just sucks because I’d like to start talking walks and I can only go about a half a block before I need to sit down. 

But I found some prenatal yoga classes on Daily Burn that I’m going to try doing. Hopefully that will help. 

Meanwhile, 3BB and I are just plugging away. Only 27 weeks to go!

#3BBOnBoard

Weeks 11 & 12

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Well I didn’t mean to leave you all hanging with no weekly updates. Everything is good, nothing to be worried about, I was just suffering the lovely side effects of pregnancy and wasn’t feeling like posting.

But I want to have this digital weekly pregnancy journal for 3BB, so we’re going to combine weeks 11 and 12 into one post. (We won’t talk about the fact I’m writing this when I’m already 13 weeks.)

Week 11 was a tough one. I was feeling really depressed and lonely. I didn’t feel like doing anything and just felt really blah. It felt very reminiscent to the early pandemic when everything was shut down and I only had the four walls of my house to look at.

I think a lot of it was that it was REALLY hot here in Chicago and I didn’t leave the house for a few days because of it. I really overheat quickly, even this early in pregnancy, so I thought staying in was the best plan. Well, it’s really not. Because when I left the house later that week, I felt 1,000 times better. So now I know, even if it is 100 degrees, I need to leave the house, even to take a drive around. Because my car has really cold AC.

And then on top of that, I started spotting. Not red blood, but brown, old blood, but it was still more than I was comfortable with and was super worried. I reached out to my doctor and she said it was normal and as long as it wasn’t red, there isn’t anything to worry about. Unfortunately I went down the Google rabbit hole, though, and saw that brown, chunky discharge is a sign of miscarriage. Thankfully I love this doctor’s office and they said “if you want to come in for some reassurance, we can fit you in.” At first I didn’t want to be THAT pregnant lady, so I declined. But then I was like “this is what they are there for! Take the appointment!” 

So I did and 3BB was looking good and the heartbeat was strong. My doctor said it can be from so many things, because the cervix is so sensitive right now and it has tons of little capillaries that can burst at any time, including from pooping, so it really is nothing to worry about. But the reassurance was worth one million dollars and I’m glad I went.

Little 3BB is now officially a fetus in these weeks! No longer an embryo! And growing like a weed!

There is some differences in the size of 3BB at 11 weeks. The What to Expect app says 11 weeks is a large strawberry. The Bump app says a lime at 11 weeks. Which those things are about the same size.

At 12 weeks, What to Expect says we’re at a lime and The Bump says a plum (two things that are also about the same size). Thankfully, it appears these apps are back on the same page at week 13.

I have to say Week 12 was way better than 11. I can tell I’m getting closer to the second trimester because I am starting to feel better. I have more energy! I don’t need naps every day! And the nausea is getting a bit better. It still is a nuisance in the evenings, which really makes delivering food a challenge, but it isn’t as bad as it was just a few weeks ago.

The new development this week is that I throw up when I brush my teeth. It literally has happened every. Single. Time. It’s as unpleasant as it sounds. 

Those of you have followed along with my life in my old blog know that my mouth and teeth are the most expensive thing I own and that I’m no stranger to the dentist. So obviously, since I’ve spent so much money there and don’t want to anymore, I take my dental hygiene very seriously. So the fact that I can’t sufficiently brush and floss my teeth is really annoying. But I will take that over puking. I was really hoping to not unlock that pregnancy achievement.

So, sorry back teeth, I’m only brushing you every couple of days.

I’m still looking just chubby and bloated, but I feel like I’m bigger. I feel wider, like my hips have expanded. I also feel like my belly is bigger, but my clothes are still fitting. A little tighter, but not too bad yet. I think most of the full/bigger feeling is just bloat. The uterus has expanded over the pubic bone and is taking up more space, so everything above that is going to get a lot tighter with less space.

I also need to go bra shopping. I’m outgrowing mine (ALREADY!) and the cups are overflowing. I’m scared to see what size these jugs will be in 6 more months. I better not have milk supply issues at this point! (I’m kidding, please don’t send me a message about this.)

Whew! That was quite the update. This is more reason to do these every week! 

Next week I have another doctor’s appointment, so hopefully we will have a new ultrasound photo of 3BB to share. And this appointment I should get to HEAR the heartbeat. I cannot wait!

#3BBOnBoard

10 Weeks

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Double digits! I’m a quarter of the way through this pregnancy! Ten down, 30 more to go!

At my doctor’s appointment last week, my doctor said because of my age, she won’t allow me to go past 40 weeks. So 3BB will be there in 30 weeks or less. (Please let it be closer to 30 more weeks. Stay in there cooking for as long as you can, 3BB!)

This week, 3BB is the size of a prune. I don’t really understand that, since I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a prune.

But the What to Expect app also said 3BB is the size of the top of a Tootsie Pop sucker. THAT I can picture!

I will say it is kind of fitting that this week is a prune, since this week the pregnancy constipation reared its ugly head (hence the prune juice). Oh the joys! Thankfully I asked about all the things I can do to help when I was at the doctor last week, so I’m prepared. 

BUT! I am eating vegetables again! Well, salads mostly. But still! Vegetables! The salad is covered in dressing with half a bag of croutons thrown in, but SALAD! Baby steps!

Still no bump, but this week I had some cramping. It felt like my period was coming, so I was panicking. But I messaged my doctor and she said it is normal, since the uterus is expanding. As long as there is no blood (which there was none), there isn’t anything to be concerned about.

I had cramping early on, so much so I was convinced I wasn’t pregnant, so I had gotten used to it. But it had gone away and this was more of a shock to me than the early cramping. I also think I overdid it because I did some house cleaning and vacuuming and I think it was just too much. I need to remember to take it slow. Or just not clean. FINE BY ME!

No ultrasound this week, which makes me sad. Although my fridge is running out of space, so it’s probably good to give it a break for a few weeks. 

(Yes, that is Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and Rahm Emanuel on my fridge as well.)

Other than that, everything is about the same this week. I’m still exhausted and take at least one nap a day. The nausea is still kicking, but mostly just comes in the evenings, so it isn’t too bad. I just usually pop a half of a Unisom and some B6 and then relax and go to bed. I still struggle with brushing my teeth.  

But only a few more weeks until the second trimester, and I can cross my fingers all these symptoms subside and we can collectively breathe a small sign of relief.

#3BBOnBoard

Nine Weeks

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I entered my third month of pregnancy this week. Which is so weird seeing as I’ve really only known I’ve been pregnant for about five weeks. 

This week 3BB is the size of a green olive. Like the ones you have in a dirty martini. Something I would really like to be drinking right now. It would taste much better than water.

This week I officially graduated from my fertility clinic and they turned me over to my OB. I had my first OB appointment on Wednesday and it went really well.

I chose the midwife practice because I have been seeing a midwife for almost 15 years for all my lady-part needs. My midwife couldn’t take me until 11.5 weeks, so I decided to see another midwife in the practice. She’s great and I really liked her right from the start. The appointment was good, we discussed history, what to expect and she answered all my crazy questions. I trust this doctor’s office, since I’ve been going there so long, so it was nice to walk away from a doctor’s appointment feeling at ease and happy. I am very glad to be rid of that fertility clinic and the stress it gave me.

(Side note, I had a dream about said fertility clinic last night, and I was there for an ultrasound and it was AWFUL. Everything was wrong and they had all the wrong info, so that makes me even more happy to not be going there anymore.)

I also got an ultrasound at my OB appointment and 3BB is doing great, measuring right on time! 3BB was super active on the ultrasound, even surprising my midwife, because it was flickering its little arm numbs and turning over and putting on a little performance for us. I think that the nurse at my embryo transfer was right – my baby really likes the camera! 

I showed the photos to Lulu, and told her all about her future sibling. Lulu is going to be a great big sister.

I don’t go back for an appointment until 13.5 weeks. It’s going to be weird not to go for weekly ultrasounds, but I’m confident that 3BB will be good in there and growing as it should be.

I stop all my fertility meds tomorrow, which is worrying me a little. But I’ve been reassured by the fertility clinic and my midwife that it’s time. I’ll be 10 weeks and 3BB was measuring on target, so the placenta will take over all the hormone production. It’s scary, but I trust them. Also, I’m really glad to not have to wake up before 9 AM every day to give myself a shot in the butt, and shove giant pills up my vag three times a day. 

I’m planning to sleep in on Sunday until 3 PM!

My symptoms are mostly the same this week. The nausea was letting up a bit, so I was thinking I was out of the woods, until it came back with a vengeance earlier this week. Thankfully it isn’t all day nausea anymore. It just hits in the evenings, which would be fine, except that’s when I need to be out making money delivering food. 

But I’m hoping that in a few short weeks it will be mostly gone and I can go back to eating more than just carbs again. Although thankfully I haven’t really gained any weight yet, which is good. Since I’m “obese” by BMI standards, I’m only supposed to gain 11-20 pounds this whole pregnancy. And I worried my carbo-loading was going to knock that out in the first trimester. I just want to stay as healthy as possible so 3BB takes its time and stays in there as long as possible!

The second trimester is so close, and I can’t wait. The books say that after week 12 is when you can start showing, because that’s when your uterus gets big enough to go over the pubic bone, so I’m hoping these weekly photos will start to show more than bloat soon!

#3BBOnBoard

8 Weeks

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This week’s post is a little late because this week I finally understood what pregnancy fatigue is. And I have been sleeping and just doing a whole lot of nothing. It’s a wonder I even made it through the week this week.

I’m, by nature, a tired person. Ask my mom, she’ll tell you since I was a kid, I was always tired and always wanted to sleep. I love sleep more than most things in life. And I sleep like it is my job. I can regularly sleep 10-12 hours a night, if allowed, and 2 hour naps are the norm for me. So honestly, I wasn’t expecting much of a change once I got pregnant.

And for the first few weeks, it wasn’t much different. I mean I used it as an excuse to nap more, but I didn’t feel that full-body exhaustion like I have this week. This feels like when you get sick or the flu exhaustion. It’s hard to stay awake for even a few hours at a time.

I am again very thankful that I’m working from home this first trimester. I don’t know how people do it having to go into the office. I guess you just deal. Just like you do with all the other lovely pregnancy symptoms.

This week 3BB is the size of a raspberry, or a gummy bear! 

And look at the way they captured 3BB on the ultrasound, it totally does look like a gummy bear!

Or as my sister said, a penguin, because there are no ears.

It’s crazy how in a week 3BB looks so much less like a blob and more like a tiny little baby! I can’t believe how much it is growing week by week!

This was my last ultrasound at my fertility clinic. They officially graduated me to my OB. I have my first OB appointment next week. I have one more zoom call with the nurse at the fertility clinic on Monday, like an exit interview, and then hopefully I never have to see them again, or at least for awhile if I decide 3BB needs a sibling. 

Other than that, most everything is the same. The nausea is still present, although not as bad this week as the weeks prior. It’s the worst in the evening, right around 7 PM. Which is annoying because that’s usually when I want to eat dinner, but then am too nauseous to want to eat anything.

(Also now I want a cupcake.)

I am still mostly consisting on carbs. I eat a lot of cereal, noodles, bagels, etc. It looks like my belly might be a little big bigger than last week’s photo, but I’m blaming on that on all the bloating and gas. And aforementioned carbs.

The other weird thing in addition to all this other lovely stuff is excess saliva. I read about it and was like “how bad can that be?” Well it’s not that it is bad, it’s more that it leaves like a gross taste in my mouth at all times. I don’t know if that is the excess saliva or the nausea or what, but it is just kind of annoying. And it’s not like I can just brush my teeth to make it go away, because brushing my teeth has been a gag-inducing chore. I’ve had to untrain my brain to stop brushing my tongue, lest I want to puke in the sink. But I swear, the minute the toothbrush goes in the mouth, I start gagging. 

Pregnancy is the gift that keeps on giving! But I will take all of it! Because that means I’m pregnant! And 3BB is in there growing and will be joining the world in 32 more weeks!

#3BBOnBoard