Symptoms and what not

I'm not sure I ever posted about the symptoms I had/have, so I figured I would.

Weeks 4-10:
- Nausea
- Frequent Urination
- Exhaustion
- Eat everything follow by eating nothing
- Sore boobs --> needing a bigger bra
- Excess saliva
- Bloating
- Gassy

Weeks 11-current (12):
- Nausea
- Frequent Urination
- VERY selective eating
- (tmi) Constipation- not that bad though
- Gassy
- Visible Veins
- Faintness/ Dizziness

Thursday 8/14 I had my appointment at Mission Hospital for my Sequential Screening. For those that don't know what it is, it's a test performed in the 1st trimester to determine my risk factor during this pregnancy (high risk or low risk). It won't tell me if my baby has Down's Syndrome or anything like that but it lets the mommy know how high the chances are of the baby having it. Luckily for me, the younger you are (and also depending on your family history if it's all good) the less likely you are for a high risk pregnancy. The Screening is a combination of blood drawn and an ultrasound. The blood is used to test for measuring hCG levels and PAPP-A (another hormone). The ultrasound is used to measure a thin layer or fluid that accumulates in the back of the baby's neck (NT). If there's more fluid, it could indicate an increased risk. The two tests combined with age provide a risk assessment for Down Syndrome and Trisomy 18. If everything comes back normal I will have a follow up test later on to make sure my risk is still low.
Now that you have the idea of what it is, I'll fill you on the appointment. Let's start with the fact that the only time I've been to Mission Hospital was when I was taken to the ER so I had no idea where to go or anything... and we got lost looking for the correct building and had to be re-directed lol. Once there the impatient waiting began. Soon enough I was called in to get my blood drawn (something I absolutely HATE!). I was then sent back out to the waiting room and asked to wait for the U/S tech to finish up. In the time I was waiting til I was called in for the U/S, I managed to realize how badly I had to pee... and they made me hold it. Laying on the table and looking at the monitor I finally got to see our baby. I looked at my husband and he had a HUGE smile on his face (he said hearing the heartbeat didn't make it real- an u/s would). The tech had no idea it was our first u/s until I told her so she took some awesome pics for us (below). She took three measurements of the NT and all measurements were normal (yay!). She then asked if she could get a good view, if we wanted to know the sex of our baby (at 12 weeks??). Well our baby was very open about its goodies and had no problem spreading its legs. She told us that there was a 75% chance it's a boy... although the umbilical cord COULD have been wrapped through its legs which is common... so we'll see in a few more weeks.
Overall, everything went really well and we were thrilled to finally see our Munchkin. Oh and I finally got to go to the bathroom too! lol.
3 1/2 more weeks until the next appointment when we get to see Munchkin again! Woo Hoo!

And here are the U/S pics:

Munchkin with its arm covering its face:


Our child showing his/her goodies:



And the 12 Weeks belly pics for good measure:


11 week appointment

I had my 11 week appt. on Thursday (8/7). It was no big deal; the reason for the appt was just to see if we could hear Munchkin's hearbeat.
Took all of 2 seconds after getting in the office for me to run to the bathroom- I downed quite a bit of water and hadn't gone to the bathroom for 2 hours prior to make certain I had to go- and I did.
Weight was taken, I "gained" 2 pounds (we ate some lunch at the mall literally RIGHT before my appointment). Blood pressure was perfect- 107 over 69! yay!
Then my doc came. She went over the blood work I had done last time. Everything came out perfect, nothing to worry about! I now know my blood type and that I'm also rH Positive which is good news. 2 Minutes later she had the doppler out and we got to hear our beautiful child's heartbeat. It was the most amazing thing ever and made this whole pregnancy finally seem so real. I was giddy for the rest of the day because of that =)
A future appointment was then made for 5 weeks later (I'll be 16 weeks then). I was told that I needed to gain 5 pounds by then, not something I'll be able to do easily but I don't have a choice. The upcoming appointment is were I'll have my second portion of the Sequential Screening- the big U/S. The appt I have this upcoming Thursday is just for the blood work-- boring. I'm hoping that we might be lucky enough to find out the sex of Munchkin at my 16 week appt, I know it's possible; let's hope we have a baby that likes to flaunt his/her stuff!
Well that's all for now I guess, my energy is back up the way I like it and I'm starting to get my appetite back. Good news!

Cravings & Aversions

I thought I'd make this post because it seems to be a question that everyone asks me. What do I crave? Is there any food I liked pre-pregnancy that I now can't stand? This will answer everyone's questions!
I never thought about writing this kind of stuff down because it's just something I remember. However, today I made myself a turkey melt.. something I have always loved (especially the turkey part!) and to my dismay, I hated it.

Cravings:

  • Fruit- apples, peaches, bananas, berries, you name it. If it's fruit or contains fruit, I'll eat it!
  • Vegetarian sandwiches from Subway
  • M&Ms
  • Hamburgers
  • Tuna.... which I can't have as often as I'd like
Aversions (specifically food I used to love):
  • Mashed potatoes
  • Ranch- the mere sight of it makes me nauseous
  • Honey Mustard
  • Teriyaki
  • All Deli meat
  • Steak
  • Chicken

Food I crave that I used to dislike:
  • Top Ramen- any flavor
  • Chocolate Milk
If I (or my husband) can think of anything else, or anything changes, I'll be sure to update this!

10 weeks 2 days

Here are my 10 week belly pictures! (although technically they're 10 weeks 2 days)
Sorry for the not so pretty quality. They were taken with my phone as you can tell.


oh the slacking

Yesterday I hit the 10 Week mark!
Wow I never thought I'd slack THIS much at the very beginning of blogging. Can I use the "I'm pregnant" excuse for this one? No matter the case, things have not been too crazy or hectic at all- I've just been beyond drained and find myself wanting to do nothing but lay my head on the pillows and drift off into my insane dreams.
About that doctors appointment... everything was good! My weight was 126 (it fluctuates between 124-127) and I didn't get to find out what my BP was but I'll definitely be asking at my next appointment so I can keep track in my pregnancy journal. I finally got my PAP for this year which was long overdue and I haven't heard any news about it so I'm guessing everything was fine (?). My OB/GYN said my uterus was measured at 9 weeks (I was 8 weeks 5 days at the time) and was growing right on schedule but it was a little thin; she didn't seem too concerned about that though so no need to worry at this point. I decided the only test of the optional ones I wanted to receive was the Sequential Screening (blood drawn+U/S) because it's the least invasive and doesn't require anything that would totally freak me out. Luckily my husband and I have perfectly healthy families with no histories of any types of illness so there's a VERY slim chance that my pregnancy will be high risk (also because I'm young). Tricare approved the request to have the testing done so I will be going in on Aug 14 to Mission Hospital to have that done- which I'm so excited for! Anyways, back to the appointment, my doctor pulled out the Doppler to see if she could hear Munchkin's heartbeat- no luck though. However, because of this, she wanted me to come back in two weeks (Aug 7) so she could try and hear the heartbeat then! YAY! After all that craziness was over I went to the lab and had about 10 viles of blood drawn. Now if you know me, you know that I cannot stand the sight of blood- especially my own. It seemed like she was taking blood for about 10 minutes! It took forever and a day. I'm just happy I had my hubby right there because that was NOT a fun experience for me; one I unfortunately have to get used to though. All in all it was a good appointment and I'm very happy with the doctor that Tricare picked for me, she's so awesome.
As I mentioned previously, my next appointment is Aug 7 followed a week later by my sequential screening appt.
In other pregnancy related news, the nausea has finally decided to not go full force on me anymore. I still get it from time to time but it's not to the point where it's a daily battle. I do however get more headaches, get lightheaded WAY too easily, and still don't seem to have the energy to ever finish the laundry- let alone any other chore. I still haven't even taken my 10 week belly pictures which is sooo not like me considering how much I love belly pics (but don't we all!).
My goal for this next week is not only to find a job that works for me and my upcoming school schedule but to also find ways to extend my energy so I can get more things done during the day. I like going to bed feeling very accomplished and lately I haven't even had the energy to let myself THINK about the stuff I didn't do. Never in a million years did I think this was so tiring. I'm counting down the weeks until the 2nd trimester when I know things will get better!