Playing Catch-Up

I'm almost 11 weeks now and though most people say that the first trimester seems to last forever, it's flying by for us. We can hardly believe it's been 2 months since we first found out we were pregnant. We are going to tell all of our family and friends and my job in the next few weeks and then I think it's really going to sink in.

So I'm going to play catch-up with this post and try to bring this blog up-to-date. After we found out we were pregnant we had our first office visit that following Tuesday. We were so early that the standard urine test in the Dr's office didn't pick-up that we were pregnant, so the Dr. ordered blood work. I had blood drawn on Tuesday and then again on Thursday. The first blood test checks the level of HcG in your system - anything over 25 and you are considered pregnant. Our initial came back at 40. The second test checks to see that your levels are doubling within 48-36 hours which indicates that the pregnancy is progressing as it should be. Our second set came back at 101 - a doubling time of 36 hours! We were really excited and relieved!

Our second appointment was on Thursday, July 31, at 1:00 p.m. Pat took us straight back to the Ultrasound room. My Mom was here visiting so she was able to come in for the ultrasound. Dr. McNamara actually performed the ultrasound, but Pat assisted. Almost instantly, the Dr. found our baby and it's tiny heartbeat. It flickered on the screen so fast and furious. He zoomed in on the heartbeat and tracked the beats. 143 BPM! Mike and I were in tears, my Mom was in tears - even Pat shed a few tears. It's just the most amazing feeling to see that tiny heartbeat and to know that everything is o.k. The baby measured exactly 7 weeks to the day! The Dr. gave us our official due date of March 19, 2009 and a picture of our baby to take home. Everything went perfect - we couldn't have asked for a better appointment.

That night we went to dinner to celebrate. Mike's parents drove into town that afternoon - they were on their way to Florida and decided to visit with us for a few days - so it worked out great that we were all together. We decided to go to our favorite italian restaurant in Greensboro - Positano's. Mike and I have celebrated several big moments in our lives over dinner at Positano's. Our first two Valentine's days, new jobs, friend's birthdays - it just seemed fitting to celebrate another milestone there. What we didn't know is that I would be introduced to true food aversions there as well. I actually had one other mild experience with food aversion earlier in the week. I made eggs for breakfast one morning, took one bite and fed the rest to Annie. But that was the end of the experience. At Positano's that night, it started when they brought the gentlemen to my right his dinner - a plate overflowing with all kinds of seafood - something I usually love. The smell made me nauseous almost immediately. By the time that they brought my food I was only able to force down a few bites, before I gave up. The rest of the evening I was pretty sick. My stomach was extremely un-happy and even though I was hungry I couldn't eat or bare the thought of eating anything else!

Since then I've had my fair share of nausea and total lack of appetite. I've never actually thrown up - although at times I've wanted to! For the most part I've been exhausted - completely exhausted. Tired just doesn't begin to describe it. In the those early weeks it wasn't uncommon for me to be in bed by 8:00 p.m. or 8:30 p.m at the latest. So if you called me during those weeks - it's highly unlikely that I returned your call! You'll have to forgive me now that you know what was going on. Poor Mike has been doing everything around the house when he is home. And when he is travelling I do well to take care of Annie and feed myself before I pour myself into bed. It has been frustrating at times to feel this way - but all for a good cause. I also have developed pregnancy related heart palpitations - very normal according to our Dr. - my body is producing and pumping more blood which can cause palpitations from time to time. Other than those few symptoms - I'm doing great.

As for food cravings - I'm definitely pregnant with Mike's child. I can hardly stomach vegetables - which I normally love. These days I'm lucky to get a few bites down before I have to throw them out. I like pretty much anything basic and bland. There have been times that I survived off of crackers and peanut butter, but I'm still managing to eat really healthy for the most part. Lots of fruits and healthy snacks instead of big meals. I crave milk like it's going out of style. It's my new wine. Although the vintage system works a bit differently. I go through a gallon every 2-3 days. My guilty pleasure so far has been cheeseburgers - which is so weired for me. I crave them at least once a week. Most of the time I make a turkey burger instead of the real thing and it satisfies my craving. So far I've gained 2 lbs. which the Dr. says is all baby at this point. So we are doing really well!

The next big milestone is to tell all of you our good news. We have already decided how to do it. First though I'm going to California this week to visit Mike for a few days, but when I get back I'll get started on this project. I can't wait to hear all of your reactions!