Week 12

Okay, so I’ve been really bad lately about updating my blog, I’m sorry. On Tuesday, December 21^st, we went to my OB/GYN appointment to hear the baby’s heartbeat.  I was so nervous before the appointment, for some reason I was convinced that they would not be able to find the heartbeat and that I would leave the doctors devastated, not knowing if the baby was okay.  I jinxed myself at the beginning of the appointment by asking the doctor if they can generally hear the heartbeat at 11 weeks.  She quickly responded that they always get the heartbeat right-way at 11 weeks and that I had nothing to worry about.  Well…she looked….and looked….and looked…it took between 7-10 minutes before we finally heard this very faint, rapid heartbeat.  Before the appointment I thought that I was going to have a hormonal meltdown when I heard the heartbeat, but by the time we heard it I was just so relieved that she finally found it that all I could do was smile.  It was so amazing to hear the heartbeat, to be reassured that there really is a little one growing inside of me. 

Christmas was wonderful; I love spending so much time with our families.  I took extra anti-nausea medication Christmas Eve and Christmas Day so that I could get through each day without throwing up.  The medication doesn’t take the sickness completely away, it just helps control the vomiting, so I still felt lousy most of the day. One of the side effects of the med. is drowsiness, that mixed with not getting much sleep over the holidays, caused me to take naps at everyone’s houses on Christmas Day. I probably wasn’t much fun, but I had a nice day.   

In 4 days, Jan. 3^rd, we are going up to Mercy Hospital to get our 1^st ultrasound of the baby and I am so excited to see what our baby looks like!  I am even more nervous about seeing the baby than I was about hearing the heartbeat.  I so desperately want to know that our baby is growing okay and that they are healthy.  I’ve lost so much weight over the last 2 months and I haven’t been able to keep much of anything down including healthy food or my prenatal vitamins.

Mommy Update: Since Christmas I have been pretty sick, I think that I over did it a little.  I didn’t get to bed until midnight three nights in a row, which really negatively effects me. To have a good day I generally need to have gotten at least 10-12 hours of sleep the night before. I spent all of Sunday afternoon and all day Monday in bed, and haven been blessed to be able to leave work early every other day this week to allow me to be in bed by 3pm.  Sleeping is my favorite activity right now because it’s the only time that I get a break from the nausea. However, lying down is becoming more and more difficult because of the heartburn and acid-reflux, my giant bottle of Tums sit next to the bed.

Baby Update: The baby is now between 2-1/2”-3” long right now, all of the books compare the baby to the size of a lime, and weights about 1oz. The biggest development this week is the baby’s reflexes. The baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, their toes will curl, eye muscles will clench, and their mouth will make sucking movements.   

December 15, 2010

Well, I guess I have fallen off the planet again.  The morning-afternoon-night sickness got better for a few days after I got out of the hospital, but unfortunately it has returned with a vengeance.  The only reason that I am semi functioning right now is due to the anti-nausea medication, I am only taking it in the mornings so that I can get through my 9-hour workdays.  However, by 3:00 p.m. I am pretty sick again and all I want is to be in bed curled in the fetal position. Most days that I get home from work walk in the door and have to run to the bathroom to once again toss whatever little is in my stomach.  We are really hoping that we get though most of the ‘sick stage’ soon.  We are 10 weeks along right now so according to my doctor I should be out of the woods around 12 weeks, just in time for new years. I have to admit that pregnancy is nothing like I thought it was going to be, being sick 24/7 got old a month ago.  When you are sick all of the time it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, I am really struggling with trying to stay positive.

On a lighter side…..Keith has been the most amazing husband a woman could ever ask for, he has taken full control of every aspect of our life.  Because I am in bed as soon as we get home every night, he now does all of the cleaning, dishes, laundry, puppy duties, and snow removal.  He has been so wonderful and sweet, never making me feel guilty because I can’t do my share of keeping up the house. I know that it is wearing him thin; he’s functioning on a few hours of sleep every night because he stay up late trying to get everything done before he comes to bed.  It’s been weeks since we were able to go to bed at the same time, most nights I have been asleep for hours before he comes to bed.  

We are getting very excited about our appointment next week (Dec 21^st) to hear the baby’s heartbeat!  I get emotional every time I think about how amazing it’s going to be to hear our baby; I think everything will become real for me.  Up to this point, most days it still feels like a dream that we are pregnant. I have not gained any weight yet; I am actually still trying to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. To most of the world I don’t look pregnant just very, very exhausted and haggard, but I am just starting to get a tiny little bump. :)

Baby update: Our baby is just over an inch long, they are swallowing fluid, and the baby's limbs can bend now and is kicking up a storm.  Also, tiny nails are forming on their fingers and toes and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

I'm back!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and was able to spend it with family and friends.  I have been a little absent from blogging for the last week or so due to being pretty ill. Here's a recap of our life over the last week.....  The morning sickness had been getting more and more violent over the last 10 days, I was unable to keep food or liquids down since about Saturday afternoon . We had our 1st OB/GYN appointment on Monday Nov, 22 and my doctor assured me that my degree of illness was very typical of first time mothers.  I tried to go to work the following day, Tuesday, but my wonderful father took me home around noon because I  had been lying on the floor in my office from the intense nausea. By Wednesday, I still couldn't keep anything down, I was nauseous 24/7, weak from lack of nourishment, and my hands and feet started to turn purple.  My mom came and picked me up to take me over to their house, just so I could be around someone, but after seeing my condition forced me to go to the doctors. Got to love your mommies!  After a long doctors visit, I was diagnosed with hyperemesis gravidarum  (aka: severe morning sickness)and dehydration, and was sent off to the hospital to get re-hydrated. They pumped me full of vitamins, anti-nausea medication and lots of fluids.  I am now feeling much better, thanks to lots of rest over Thanksgiving and a prescription for anti-nausea medication.  Thank you to all of you that knew what was going on and kept me in your prayers they were very much felt!  We hope that we have a handle on my morning sickness and that the rest of our pregnancy is a breeze....    

Afternoon Blues

Well it’s lunchtime here at the office, and here I sit smelling everyone’s lunches while the “afternoon-sickness” is hitting me hard.  I get nauseous everyday around this time, but I’m not use to it at all!  It might be easier if pregnancy hadn’t heightened my sense of smell, I feel like I have a super-power, I can tell you every ingredient in my fellow co-workers lunches everyday.  The smells have one of two effects…1: their lunch makes me want to hurl anything that is in my stomach or… 2: their lunch makes me starving but I know if I eat I’ll just throw it up in a minute of two. Both effects of my super-nose make my afternoons awful, especially when it’s coupled with that unpleasant wave of exhaustion. Here’s to hoping I can eat lunch again in a few weeks. I am staying positive through the fuzzy-haze of my 1^st trimester with the thought of that special little baby that will be here in a few months, I know it will all be worth it!       

- One very green mommy-to-be

Week 6

 Dear Baby,

You are almost “6 weeks” old, your little heart is beating strong at 100-140 beats per minute. You are almost as big as a lentil; you have more than doubled in size since last week! I am so excited that you are growing arms and legs this week! Mommy is trying to eat well so that your little brain, muscles, and bones continue to grow strong and healthy. I just can’t even tell you how eager we are to meet; you have so much love waiting for you!

Love,

Your Mommy

The telling......

Well baby Richards, we told your Grandma and Grandpa Raber, Grandma and Grandpa Richards, and a handful of your aunts and uncles of your arrival last night!  Everyone is so happy and cannot wait to meet you, your grandma's and aunt's even cried when we told them the news.  We only have about 34 weeks till we get to see you......

The unromantic side of baby growing......

Keith and I have known about our pregnancy for a whole week today and I am still getting those rushing waves of realization, mixed with excitement and fear of the unknown.

 I always thought of pregnancy as romantic, the idea of a small tiny life growing and flourishing inside the safety of your womb seems so beautiful and precious. I still fell that way, although the realities of being pregnancy are really starting to set in.  I pulled 'all-nighters' in college and was not nearly as exhausted as I am just 5 weeks into my pregnancy. Not to mention the intense nausea that is preventing me from keeping my lunch down, running to the bathroom to pee every hour, the light annoying cramping, and heartburn (I will not be eating tomato based meals for the next 8 months).  According to all of the articles that I’ve been devouring over the last week, I get to look forward to all of this for the next 6 weeks. I am really hoping and praying that’s not the case.

 I am still in awe that there is baby growing within me, even if it is only the size of a sesame seed. I was reading online that the baby's microscopic heart is beginning to beat this week and the first organ system up and running! It is just so amazing to be that all of that is already developed after only 5 weeks, God is so amazing! I feel so blessed and warm and fuzzy every time my hand brushes across my belly……

My First Letter, (November 10th, 2010)

My dearest little baby,

Your daddy and I found out about your arrival less than one week ago, you are only the size of a sesame seed right now, at 5 weeks, so the doctors say. Mommy is taking lots of vitamins, eating well, and exercising to help you develop and grow in the coming weeks and months.  We are already so eager to meet you. No one knows about your arrival as of yet, Mommy and Daddy are trying to think of a very clever way to tell the world of your arrival.  I can’t wait to tell your Grandma’s and Grandpa’s, Aunt’s and Uncle’s, and all of mommy and daddy’s friends, they will be so excited that you are on your way! Grow well my sweet baby, in just a few short months I’ll be holding you in my arms……

Lovingly Praying,
                   Mommy