12 Week Appointment

I have been looking forward to this appointment for three weeks. Clearing twelve weeks always feels like such a milestone. I knew that I would only get a doppler today but I was fine with that. Hearing the heartbeat is just as reassuring as seeing the baby. The nurse got right to work and scanned and scanned. After about a minute she gave up and said, "You just want an ultrasound, don't you?" I think she was talking to the baby, but I'm not sure. She quickly grabbed the machine while I sat alone in the room reassuring myself that everything would be fine. As she got the gel ready, she joked that this baby just wanted to show off on an ultrasound and thought it was funny to make mommy nervous. Ha yeah, great joke. Thankfully, as soon as she placed the probe on my abdomen baby popped up and before I could see the heartbeat, I saw him/her waving arms and legs around. Sweet relief! We measured baby's heartbeat at 150 but s/he kept moving so it was hard to get a really good read on it. But really, who cares? I am just so relieved, thrilled, and grateful to be here! This might sound silly, but sometimes I forget that I'm pregnant. I see other pregnant women and feel the pangs of envy and wonder when it will finally be me. It's a mindset I was in for so long that it has just become a (bad) habit. But then I remember, holy crap! I am pregnant! Not having seen doctors and taken boatloads of meds to get here, it's easy to forget. 

Thank you universe. Thank you God. I will never take a second of this for granted.

I didn't get to tell Noah tonight as hoped. Turns out Brian has conferences tonight, and I obviously want him to be part of the big news! We can't tell him tomorrow either, because we're leaving Noah at preschool late for a special Parents' Night Out for Valentine's Day. We made dinner reservations and probably won't pick up Noah until 8:00 which is too late to break such big news. So Saturday it is. I can't wait!! We will be sharing on FaceBook tomorrow though. Here's the announcement with the best picture from today's ultrasound:

Coming August 2014!

View the entire collection of cards.

I hope you all have a great Valentine's Day filled with love!

12 Weeks

Twelve weeks ago, I never would have believed I would be writing this post. It's amazing and wonderful how life can take you by surprise sometimes.

So here I am, twelve weeks pregnant, with no medical assistance to get here. It blows my mind every. single. day. One of these days I want to write a post about how I found out I was pregnant and my mom's reaction to it, but it'll have to wait for now.

I'm afraid to even write about how this pregnancy is going. I used to hate reading blog posts from women who miscarried and then went on to have uneventful healthy pregnancies, yet all they did was worry. I used to feel so annoyed with them, like get over it and enjoy this! You don't know how lucky you are. But now I really do understand the fear. The fear of having it all taken away again. But it's silly to think that simply writing about how things are going can cause me to lose this baby. So, here goes. This is how this pregnancy is going at 12 weeks.

How Far Along: 12 weeks exactly

How Big Is Baby: About the size of a small lime (around 2 inches)

Sex: I really have no gut feeling this time. Let’s say I’m leaning 50.1% boy, 49.9% girl. I’ve looked up the skull, nub, and Ramzi theories, and so far the only one I can apply is the Ramzi method, which suggests girl. And it accurately predicted Noah to be a boy. Who knows!

Symptoms: Fatigue in the afternoon and evening, sore/swollen chest, hypersensitive gag reflex, nightly food baby

Food Cravings/Aversions: I still get grossed out over the thought of smoothies with any sort of leafy greens in them. Sometimes bananas sound gross too. I have no cravings that come to mind.

Belly Button: It has definitely become more shallow already, and when I’m extra bloated or full, the top part seems to want to pop out a little. (Already?!)

Sleep: I wake up to pee around 4:30am every night. Otherwise I sleep well, with vivid dreams.

Stretch Marks: No, nothing new. However, I have noticed the shimmery lines from the few I got last time more than I did before I was pregnant.

Weight Gain: I’m guessing about 3 pounds?

Maternity Clothes: I wore a few maternity shirts this week, but only because I was in desperate need of clean tops and I covered them with cardigans. I definitely do not need maternity wear yet!

Movement: Nine out of ten times, I am certain I only feel gas and digestion. Then I’ll experience the one out of ten sensation where I think, is that possibly the baby? Probably not.

What I Miss: Absolutely nothing!

What I’m Looking Forward To: Clearing my 12 week appointment later this week. If all is still well, then Thursday night we are going to tell Noah that he’s going to be a big brother. I have been looking forward to this moment for almost 2 years now. Brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it!

Best Moment This Week: Snuggling with Noah on the couch this morning as we watched The Fox and The Hound.

Milestones: Every day of this pregnancy is a milestone to me!

And now for the bump. If it weren't for the bump, I would assume all is well. But since everyone says that you show earlier with the second baby, it makes me a little nervous that I'm still so little for 12 weeks! (Side note, for whatever reason I look especially small today. I looked bigger yesterday. Early bumps are so sneaky!)

For reference, this is 11 weeks with Noah.

And this is 13 weeks with Noah.