11 Weeks and Counting: Pregnancy So Far

I'm excited to be starting this pregnancy blog because I have wanted to start one and haven't really given it the time or energy it requires until right now.

Here is the story of how I found out, and the beginning phase of my pregnancy:

So, I found out I was preggo about 6.5 weeks ago, when I was around 5 weeks pregnant. It was a HUGE shocker. This is what happened. I was EXHAUSTED the weekend of November 12-13, and I slept most of both days away. We were doing a marathon of the show Friends, watching seasons 1-10, and I kept falling asleep! First of all, I normally don't even have the desire to stay at home on the couch all day, wasting the day away watching tv. Secondly, I normally don't fall asleep in the middle of the day for hours on end... and the sleep felt different. Like my eyelids and my entire head in general were being weighed down by the strongest pull. I knew something was off.

I begged my husband, Phil, to let me buy a pregnancy test. Now, in the past there have been many times where I thought I was pregnant (maybe I was a few days late, or just had an urge to take a test), but I had always been wrong. Every time I had taken a pregnancy test it was 1) negative, 2) a waste of money, 3) a little bit of a relief, and 4) a little bit of a letdown. I knew I wanted to get pregnant eventually, but I wasn't quite at the point of dyyyying to have a baby. After being married for 3.5 years and never using contraception, I was beginning to think that something was inevitably wrong with one of us. I just figured we'd have to get tested when the time was right. But that is all besides the point.... the point is that Phil put up a fight about purchasing a test, but he lost. We bought a cheap $4 Kroger brand test, and this was the result:



See how the horizontal line is extremely faint? That lead us to believe that maybe the test was faulty, and that I needed to take another one. Phil's "genius" suggestion was to wait a full week and then go to the doctor for a test. Really? A full WEEK?!?! There is absolutely no way I could wait that long. So the next day, I went to the Pregnancy Resource Center in the next town over. I actually used to volunteer there, so I know some of the women there. They do free testing, and it's very accurate. They let me drop two little drops onto the test, and IMMEDIATELY these two bright purple lines showed up, signifying that I was indeed pregnant:




My mind whirled and my heart LEPT with giddiness and joy!! But then I remembered something... I had a trip planned to Africa to trek Mount Kilimanjaro with a group of women from around the world! The climb is an effort to raise funds and awareness in order to combat human Trafficking, and it has been a huge investment of my time, energy, and mostly my heart. I knew I needed to get myself to a doctor and find out if I could still go. I had some hope that I could do a partial climb, and just not summit. So I scheduled a doctor's appointment and waited.

In the meantime, I told some important people about the pregnancy... first, I told my best friend Kim. She actually knew before Phil even knew. I was texting her the whole time while I took the first pregnancy test, and we were both simultaneously flipping out via text. Then I told one friend at work... just because I NEEDED to talk about it with SOMEONE at work!!! Then we skyped with my mom and told her... and then we went to Phil's parent's house and told them. Both my mom and Phil's squealed with excitement, like they'd just won the million dollar jackpot. Why is it so much more exciting for the grandparents? I had wanted to tell everyone on Thanksgiving... you know, the classic, "I'm thankful this year because.... WE'RE PREGNANT!!!!" But alas, I couldn't wait that long, and plus... I was already super nauseous and needed to vent to my mom for comfort.

Thanksgiving day was actually not that bad, but when I look back at it I'm afraid I will always see it as a nightmare. The entire morning, while trying to prepare food (we were hosting for the first time ever), I was periodically throwing up and gagging. Every smell, and even the sight of food was nauseating. I couldn't believe just how BAD everything smelled to me. I love Thanksgiving food. I actually did manage to eat a plate of food, but then as the leftovers sat in the fridge, I knew I wouldn't be touching them.... and I didn't. We let lots of food go to waste, which I hate. Even looking at the Thanksgiving photos we took makes me feel queasy.

In terms of "morning sickness"... well I don't even really believe in that term. Let's talk about "all day sickness", shall we? I have been sick, vomiting, exhausted, headachy, and to top it all off, I got the typical seasonal cold/cough that just won't seem to go away. So, overall, it has seemed like the flu. And perhaps it was the flu. I was bedridden for several days, and ate only crackers and soup.

When the time came for my first doctor's appointment, I was excited and hopeful. Although I was going to the appointment alone, I'd read online that many women were able to do an ultrasound and even hear the heartbeat by that time (I was 8 weeks along at the time). I was also still hopeful that the doctor would allow me to go on my trip. I was, however, sorely disappointed with how the appointment went. The doctor confirmed that I was pregnant (well, DUH...really?!?!) and then asked if it was a happy thing or a not-so-happy thing. I told her I was indeed happy about being pregnant. She proceeded to lecture me that I wasn't eating enough, despite the fact that I kept arguing that I couldn't keep anything down, and that is why it seemed that I wasn't getting enough food (there were keytones in my urine signifying hunger). She continued to lecture, and I felt belittled in a way, as if I were already a terrible mother. Then I asked about my Africa trip. The doctor looked me square in the eye and told me "that would absolutely be the most foolish thing you could do during pregnancy. Why would you do that to your body?" Again, making me feel absolutely awful about myself. I knew that I was not going to defy her recommendation, especially when she came on so strong, and so I knew right then and there that I'd have to cancel my trip (which was, by the way, my dream come true.. that wouldn't ever really come true). I couldn't help it. My lip started to quiver and there was a large lump forming in my throat. The tears flowed, and rather than comforting me, the doctor had the audacity to look at me and say, "you know... you don't HAVE to have this baby." Ughhhh... complete and utter disgust. And that was the beginning of my search for a new doctor.

After asking around, I came to the conclusion that Southern Crescent would be the best option for me. The reasons are:

1- It's right next to the hospital (Fayette Piedmont), and not very far from our house at all. All deliveries take place at that hospital (meaning a home birth is not an option, but I don't think I want a home birth for my first birth anyway...)
2- They have a group of midwives and OB/GYN's, and you can choose which you'd prefer.
3- They have very good feedback from several of my friends that went there.
4- Insurance wise, it is a good financial decision and will save us money!!

At about 9 weeks, I met with an OB/GYN and she did a physical exam. She was very nice, but told me it seemed my uterus was small, and that I may not be 9 weeks pregnant. Then, she wouldn't use the doppler to hear the heartbeat... and again, I was disappointed!! Mostly, I was just worried that I wasn't as far along as I thought... I was really, REALLY looking forward to being done with the nausea and vomiting that I'd been experiencing EVERY DAY, all day. I scheduled an ultrasound and went home sad.

When the day came for the ultrasound, Phil and I went together. We were SO excited and anxious to see our baby and hear it's heart beating. The ultrasound technician was a crabby old lady, and she was extremely blunt and hurried. I saw her novel set down on table, obviously she wanted to get back to it. The entire ultrasound took about 5 minutes in it's entirety. We did get to see our precious little "turtle baby" (that's what I call it, Phil isn't keen on the nickname). We got to hear it's heart beat, although it was so fast and we wanted to hear it for longer but neither of us said anything. The good news was that I was actually FURTHER along than I thought I was!! I was 10 weeks and 6 days, when I thought I was only 10 weeks. They even moved up my due date (only by two days, but it was still a small victory).

We were given a CD with sonogram photos, and later that day, went home and took a family photo with our first baby, our boxer pup Riley, and our sonogram. I turned it into a Christmas card, and posted it on facebook, officially telling the world our news:





At this point, I am 11 weeks and 3 days along. I am ready for Saturday, the day when my first trimester officially ends, and the glorious second trimester begins. Everyone has been saying the end of the first trimester is light a light being switched off, and all the sickness and fatigue magically disappears, leaving you to be energized and feeling like super woman! I am READY! I am more ready than I have been for anything before.