Week 8...Woo-Hoo to Boo-Hoo In Less Than a Second

Wow, pregnancy hormones can be powerful. All I wanted at lunch today was some macaroni and cheese at KFC. It's too bad that the one thing I was craving out of my 3 piece chicken strip meal was the one thing they screwed up!  And who knew that something like a fast food order screw up would start the water works flowing so strongly?  I'm just glad I decided to open my containter a couple blocks down the street from KFC and not get all the way back to my office before I saw the "slaw" so very wrongly positioned where my mac and cheese should have been. Who knows what kind of carnage would have been left in my wake if I wasn't able to turn my car around, march my butt back into the store and, through tears streaming down my face, demand they fix my order.  It was, looking back, kind of surreal. Dont mess with me, KFC. Dont mess with me.  (Incidentally, I wont be showing my face back in that KFC for a while.)

Looking back over the events of my emotional lunch hour, I can laugh about it now. But I sure couldn't, and didn't, then. What the hell?  Seriously?  I'm going to have emotional outburst of uncontrolable tears and rage at seemingly silly situations?  Really?   Do they make pop drops for that?  In addition to Preggie Pop Drops, how about Preggie Tear Drop Preventers?  Speaking of Preggie Pop Drops, they aren't bad little distracters, but i'm not sure how much they are actually helping my nausea. I think they make them so sour that you can't really focus on anything else, including how icky you feel. Whatever works I guess, right?

WEEK 8  "Woohoo! You've got one whole inch of baby inside of you! Your little embryo has finally reached the one-inch mark (30mm). And if it were possible to take a peek, you could actually see your tiny baby without a telescope! What’s more, your baby is finally starting to take on some very distinct human features. For starters, their little tail (really just the spinal cord) has disappeared completely. It’s nice to know your baby can no longer be mistaken for a sea creature! Additionally, both their toes and fingers are prominent with very little, if any, webbing. Upper and lower limbs all show recognizable joints (elbows and knees) and the lower limb bones are starting to ossify. But don’t expect your baby to resemble either parent quite yet. Right now, your baby’s head is disproportionately larger than the rest of their body--making up almost half of your little one’s height and weight!"

Week 7...Second Ultrasound and a Heart Beat

What an awesome day November 16th was!  Swooshy swooshy swooshy swooshy is what we heard at the doctors visit during the ultrasound. His little heartbeat was 138!  Brian said he could tell it was a heartbeat, but for some reason I guess I expected to make out the actual beats a lot clearer and I didn't really pick up on it until after the swooshy swooshy was over and the doctor said that that was it.  I keep calling it a him because I just have a feeling it's going to be a boy.  I'm also hoping it's going to be a boy, although I'm just praying for a healthy happy baby.

We had our dr. appt early this week and I'm now writing late this week. I meant to write sooner, but it's not been a good week. Lots of nausea, tiredness, and just plain old yucky feeling 24/7.  The doctor gave me a prescription for my nausea, but only 12 pills in a 30 day period, so I'm being very choosy when I take them.  Since rolling up in a ball under my desk at work really isn't an option, I have to save them for during the week. Otherwise ginger snaps, animal crackers, and cranberry juice have become the air I breathe. I eat them constantly. Unfortunately I got sick of Saltines very early and can no longer stomach them.

I'm not having any weird cravings, but there are definitely things I cant eat. I cant even LOOK at potato chips without uncomfortable thoughts of vomiting. And Sonic tater tots, one of my all time favorites, has now become my gag reflex's worst enemy.  Oh the horror!!!!

On a non-pregnancy note, we went to see the move New Moon on friday night. Yes, opening night. Luckily we were joining some friends and they were the ones who got there early to stand in line, not for tickets, but for entrance into the theater.  Seats were good and we even got 6 together, which we weren't expecting after seeing the hoards of teeny-boppers who were there much earlier than we were. A WONDERFUL second installment of the Twilight saga with a great cliff hanger at the end. Just a beautiful depiction of teen love, innocent lust, hot vampires, and sexy werewolves. A great story!

WEEK 7  "Your baby is really beginning to develop more physical definition this week – their oversized head isn’t just large and oblong anymore, it’s actually a little bit pointy. The tiny receding tail bud is now starting to be overshadowed by the growth of their legs, which are now complete with knees and the beginnings of toes. Their eyes and ears are the most visible features on their head and their miniature bones are starting to harden throughout their body. You also have some variation on a boy or a girl at this point, although their genitals won’t be visible enough to determine which color cigars you’re going to buy until around the 16th week."

Week 6...Lots Of Rest and Nausea

This week was spent doing a lot of praying and napping. The last time I miscarried, the symptoms started around the middle of week 5, so with each passing day i've been getting more and more excited that this pregnancy is going to stick. I've been tired all on my own anyway, so although Brian has been the best husband in the world by not letting me lift a finger and over do it, it's not been too difficult of me to agree. We really need to make sure this baby is implanted good before I do anything strenuous.

This week I also made it to another milestone, morning sickness!!  I was really wanting to experience morning sickness and a friend told me I'd eat those words soon. She was right. Morning sickness sucks. However, the good thing is that the morning sickness means that i'm really pumping the hormones and the baby is growing strong. Which is good and means my chances of miscarrying have decreased significantly. Totally awesome!

We tried several things this year to get pregnant, including fertility drugs and 1 round of Intrauterine Insemination. All of which failed. This pregnancy was unassisted and such a blessing. I definitely attribute lots of prayer and living right to this gift God has blessed us with.

Things are going great this week and I cant wait until next week when we go for our second ultrasound and get to see the heartbeat.  Until then......

WEEK 6  "This is going to be a busy week for your amazing little embryo. Their brain is still growing remarkably fast; miniature hand plates are starting to develop and the early formations of what will be their fingers are already visible. Also, the lower limbs do not develop quite as fast, so they’re pretty much still flippers. Up until this point, your baby has been very curled up with the head and tail in close proximity, but this week their trunk and neck are beginning to grow and straighten as their tail recedes into its resting position in the back. Even though your little miracle is only 6 weeks old, they’re already capable of demonstrating reflex responses to touch!"

Week 5...First Ultrasound

Today was awesome! I was nervous and prepared for almost anything that we might see on the ultrasound, but I was hoping for the best. And we got it. Our doctor said that the placenta, gestational sac, and fetal pole are exactly as they should be. They are all the right size and in the right place. WOO-HOO! I cannot be happier than we are today. God it great!

My twin sister is so cool! She decided to surprise me and show up at my doctors appointment. She's just as excited about this baby as we are and cannot wait to be an aunt. Yes, she is the silly photographer and will probably be at most of my appointments documenting the good news as we go along!

WEEK 5   "The changes to your growing embryo are not quite as drastic this week as they've been in the last few weeks. Growth is now largely focused on their little head, which is starting to develop much more rapidly than the rest of their tiny body. This is because their amazing brain is undergoing some very crucial and rapid development in order to effectively regulate their heart rate, blood circulation, and other vital functions. As for the rest of their miniature body, what were simple limb buds last week are limb flippers this week and the tail is more expressed. Amazingly, within a mere five weeks your little miracle is already developing the rudimentary forms of their liver, pancreas, lungs, stomach and nasal pits while their little heart is already increasing its circulation. Your baby is now a whopping 4-6mm in length."

I'm Pregnant!.....Episode 3

I'm starting this post on 10-27-2009. I'm four days late starting my cycle and I figured it was because of our vacation last week and how active I was. I don't know why I decided to take a pregnancy test this morning, but I did. Positive!!! I can hardly believe it!

We are so excited....cautious, because of the 2 miscarriages I had earlier this year, but hopeful and excited! I'm going to the doctor tomorrow to have my blood drawn and hormone levels checked and to see if there is anything we can do to ensure this pregnancy is a successful one.

10-28-09
They started me on progesterone supplement's, twice daily. My Beta HCG level was 137. She said this was good and strong and normal for this early in the pregnancy. Based on my calendar, I am about 4 weeks along. WOO-HOO!!

11-2-09
I am very happy today because I made it through the weekend without any spotting, like I experienced last time. I feel a little premature by even starting to blog about this pregnancy because it IS so early and I do run the risk of something happening again. But since I've always been a "glass half full" kind of person, I just want to celebrate and let the whole world in on it. I'm going to have my second blood test tomorrow, so we'll know more then.

11-3-09
WOO-HOO!! My Beta HCG level was 2267! That is a most excellent number. The nurse said that it is a very strong number and they want me to come in this Friday for my first ultrasound. I cant express how excited I am! And the best part is, I've not had any spotting or cramping like before. If I can get to the 6 week mark without any issues, I'll feel more confident that this pregnancy is strong enough to stick! Hurry up Friday and get here!!

WEEK 1  "It’s been a momentous past couple of days—even if you don’t know it yet. At some point roughly 1.5 – 3.5 million sperm took aim at your fallopian tubes and one superior little seed hit the target spot on. The now fertilized egg is still inside your fallopian tube and is already merging with the sperm to become a zygote. Cell multiplication is occuring at an astonishingly rapid rate. Your little zygote will spend the next 7-10 days dividing and multiplying as they slowly descend into the uterus, where it will nestle into the already cozy blood-rich uterine wall. The implantation process may result in a little spotting for some, caused by the sloughing off of uterine wall at the implantation site. This is perfectly natural and not a cause for concern. When your little zygote is finally implanted, it is a blastocyst measuring about 0.1 – 0.2 mm. This will be your baby’s spatially-challenged home for the next 38-40 weeks."

WEEK 2  "Your little blastocyst is now separating into two distinct parts: the amniotic cavity (or yolk sac) and the embryo (your baby-to-be). The yolk sac’s main job is to protect and nourish your baby until the placenta is fully formed. Right now, the placenta is just beginning to take shape, but won’t be complete for another 8 weeks or so. The beginnings of the umbilical cord are visible and partly functional, although it is still not fully formed."

WEEK 3  "Although your belly is still the same size and shape as it was pre-pregnancy, a plethora of amazing and dynamic changes are taking place despite this fact. Right now your little zygote is already 1.5 – 2.5mm in size. This is quite a change from the microscopic pack of cells you had just two weeks ago. Your microscopic little one is already composed of three complex “germ” layers: the ectoderm, endoderm and mesoderm. Although you could hardly see them at this point, these layers are the beginnings of your baby's nervous system and brain, stomach and inner organs, and skeleton and connective tissue. Your baby is also starting to take on recognizable physical dimensions somewhat comparable to a very tiny pear. The round part of the pear will eventually become the head and the pointy part will be the spine. Perhaps the best part of this week is that somewhere around the 21st day, your miraculous little pear will have a beating heart, although the heart chambers and valves will not be completely developed for another couple weeks."

WEEK 4  "By the end of this week the round and pointy ends of your little pear-shaped baby will be slightly more exaggerated and their body will look more like that of a miniature manatee. Despite your baby not looking particularly human without any eyes, ears or mouth, the earliest developments of what will become the larynx, internal ear, and eye lens are already forming, although you’d have to be a trained expert to recognize them for what they’re going to be in the future. Likewise, tiny bumps are forming on your little embryo which will eventually be their cute little arms, elbows, fingers, legs, knees and toes. What’s more your little swimmer will have a teeny tiny tail by the end of this week-- but don’t worry, it’s just the end of their developing spinal cord! A microscopic photo would reveal what seems to be their vertebrae filling out the spine and tail. Although they aren’t bones yet, but rather, the “bone seeds” that will give rise to your baby's tiny vertebrae, ribs and sternum."