So, week 8. Not much to report. Still feeling nasea but less today. Yesterday I did throw up for the first time but it wasn't much. I keep reading about much exercise and nutrition are important. For the baby's health, for a safe delivery, for my health. I've been keeping track of what I eat every day. I see tangibly how I consume empty calories. I seem to be consume less fat than is recommended (by some website so take it for what it's worth). I know not to take that as a free pass to desserts but its still hard. I decided to eat healthy fats - grapes, (maybe some cheese to get calcium), and peanuts! But I think to get back up to where I should be on the fat level, they suggest probably about half the peanut butter I consumed today with my saltines and banana. Moderation....always a lessen.
My energy level has been good. I think the only time I was really tired was that first weekend I found out I was pregnant - remember, Mom, the weekend you guys were here visiting and I barely made it through the spy museum? Martin and I plan to do a 28 mile hilly bike ride on Saturday (his birthday fun day). We'll see how that goes. Maybe that will excuse me from the Sunday afternoon tennis.
Basically, I'm just really looking forward to telling people. I feel like I've being fake. Plus, I want to talk about it. I want it to be real. 9 more days....
Although I'm dreading telling my boss. He just gave me a promotion and went through a bunch of trouble to do so. Now I'm going to be like see ya, I'm going on maturity leave for 3 months (starting when you usually take your big vacation) and then I'm only coming back to work half time or not at all. Still haven't decided that yet. But at least most of my maturnity leave will be over the holidays.
Thursday, March 30, 2006
My Awesome Husband
Martin is so cute. He's really into my nutrition at this stage in the pregnancy. He just called me from the grocery store to ask me if catfish and tilapia were okay for me to eat. (Yes, he cooks and does the grocery shopping most of the time.) He also wanted to check out the new scale that we got to make sure it was okay for pregnant women to use - its one that does the body fat percentage and thus shoots electrode through your body. I had already checked that out though - yes, it's okay to use. Martin's really looking out for me and the baby. What a good husband and father!
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Chirping Birds and Counting Crows
Okay, this is just funny/ironic. I just got annoyed with the birds chirping birds outside my window with the awesome view so I decided to listen to a CD while working. My choice of bands....counting crows! I exchange one set of birds for another. I'll let you debate which is better.
I will leaving my office with a door and a window with an awesome view of the White House, Treasury, Washington Monument, Reagan National Airport, and the Jefferson Memorial for a shared office with a window that looks out on the the alley between the WH and Treasury sometime next month. My only consolation is that that birds probably won't follow.
I will leaving my office with a door and a window with an awesome view of the White House, Treasury, Washington Monument, Reagan National Airport, and the Jefferson Memorial for a shared office with a window that looks out on the the alley between the WH and Treasury sometime next month. My only consolation is that that birds probably won't follow.
Friday, March 24, 2006
Update - Week 7
Sorry for not updating earlier....
I started feeling a little nausea last week. Usually about the time I'm ready to eat. Eating usually helps. I haven't thrown up yet and only dry heaved once when I smelled something in the fridge that had gone bad. My sense of smell is really heighted these days. I haven't gained any weight (yea!) yet. I'm hoping to only gain 25 lbs. since I'm 15 lbs. overweight to begin with.
This week was our first doctor's appointment. Saw Dr. Fisk. He confirmed the pregnancy and did a pap test (with Martin in the room - what a shocker for him!). I also got a perscription for prenatal vitamins.
Can't tell by looking at me...thank goodness since we're not telling anyone for 2 more weeks and I'm hoping not to tell my boss until May. Hopefully I can hide it until then. A very tall and skinny women who used to work in my office hid her pregnancy until she had the baby. Don't think that or work for me.
I'm starting to have some discomfort in my ususal sitting (i.e., slouching with feet up) position at work. That stinks. Otherwise, things are going pretty well.
Oh, the doctor usually delivers at Fair Oaks. That's okay. They have a new facility and I heard it's nice. We're really close to Fairfax though. But we can go there for some of the classes. I'm still trying to find out what our insurance covers. I'm hoping they cover a session with a lactation consultant but I doubt it.
Most of my research/time thinking now is on eating right. Catherine G. said in a blog of hers recently that she got info from babyfit.com. I was there two seconds later. I've tracked my food on there ever since. They also have lots of good exercises. Trying to figure out what to eat and what not to is a big job. Lots of controversy out there too. When we were at Mrs. Kennedy's memorial service reception on Wednesday, I accidentaly picked up a roast beef sandwich that was too bloody for me to eat. I had to switch sandwiches with Martin. He got to share in some of my sacrifice for the baby...:)
I started feeling a little nausea last week. Usually about the time I'm ready to eat. Eating usually helps. I haven't thrown up yet and only dry heaved once when I smelled something in the fridge that had gone bad. My sense of smell is really heighted these days. I haven't gained any weight (yea!) yet. I'm hoping to only gain 25 lbs. since I'm 15 lbs. overweight to begin with.
This week was our first doctor's appointment. Saw Dr. Fisk. He confirmed the pregnancy and did a pap test (with Martin in the room - what a shocker for him!). I also got a perscription for prenatal vitamins.
Can't tell by looking at me...thank goodness since we're not telling anyone for 2 more weeks and I'm hoping not to tell my boss until May. Hopefully I can hide it until then. A very tall and skinny women who used to work in my office hid her pregnancy until she had the baby. Don't think that or work for me.
I'm starting to have some discomfort in my ususal sitting (i.e., slouching with feet up) position at work. That stinks. Otherwise, things are going pretty well.
Oh, the doctor usually delivers at Fair Oaks. That's okay. They have a new facility and I heard it's nice. We're really close to Fairfax though. But we can go there for some of the classes. I'm still trying to find out what our insurance covers. I'm hoping they cover a session with a lactation consultant but I doubt it.
Most of my research/time thinking now is on eating right. Catherine G. said in a blog of hers recently that she got info from babyfit.com. I was there two seconds later. I've tracked my food on there ever since. They also have lots of good exercises. Trying to figure out what to eat and what not to is a big job. Lots of controversy out there too. When we were at Mrs. Kennedy's memorial service reception on Wednesday, I accidentaly picked up a roast beef sandwich that was too bloody for me to eat. I had to switch sandwiches with Martin. He got to share in some of my sacrifice for the baby...:)
Only in DC....
I was just thinking that our child will Lord willing turn 18 right around the presidential election of 2024. So having him/her a few days early could turn out to be a big deal. I found out that Election Day 2024 is November 5. So he/she would have to be born (on or?) before November 5th of this year to vote in the 2024 presidential election. I wonder who will be running in 2024....
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Update - Week 5
So today I'm five weeks pregnant. It's still hard to believe although I find it also hard to believe that some women don't ever realize they are pregnant. I haven't had any morning sickness yet but I have had some weird feelings that I've never had before in my belly.
Emotionally, I'm doing okay. Not crying anymore. Martin helped with that. Just seeing his excitement and talking about the fun things. We often would stay stuff like "look at all the stuff in our back seat, what are we going to do when we have kids." Now it's "what are we going to do when the baby arrives?!"
This week though, I think my attitude has been well, I can still do all that stuff I wanted to do. My current thinking is that I'll go back to work part-time if my boss is okay with that. So then do that for 2 years until #2 comes along and then not work, at least not downtown. Then I was trying to figure out how I can do a century (100-mile bike trip) before I get "too" pregnant. Doesn't look like the dates are going to work out for the easy one, so I may to a harder metric century in May. Or not. I'm probably be totally unrealistic.
I think I felt like literally my life (i.e. all the good and purposeful things that I do now) will end when the baby arrives. No work, no tutoring, no fun outdoors, etc. I guess I had just heard from a lot of parents lately, "oh, yeah, we used to do that before...." But my do-it-all attitude is not just going to go away. I need to be realistic and know that I can't do everything as I am doing now but maybe it's just different, but equally active and meaningful, things. I am inspired by my friends who have kids and still have a life - Ted and Krista and Tor and Linda (who even breastfed her children for a long time)! I can't wait to talk to them about this.
But I need to remember too that what can be more good and purposeful than raising a child?! I am gaining so much by that. God is calling me (obviously) to be a mother. Uh, mom. I think I like that word better. Mother conveys much more wisdom than I have. Plus, there are a lot of things that will remain or even be enhanced in my life - my marriage, my friends, my relationship with God, my gifts that I can use to serve, my financial education volunteering. I'll be able to read more.
Speaking of lack of wisdom, I feel so much less unprepared for this than marriage. Where's the pre-natal classes Butch? Why don't we have those? Not like there isn't enough books and websites and resources out there on pregnancy and child rearing. It's just going to be a lot of research on my own over the next 8 months. Plus, I feel like I'm one of the first. I'm actually in the middle. All my HS friends have kids. Only one of college friends has kids. Most of the older and some younger camp friends have kids. All my married grad school friends have kids. Two of my Harvest friends have kids. Plus, my sister is pregnant. So I'm clearly not the first. And we just found out yesterday that one of Martin's college friends is having a kid. He and his wife just got married in July. But none of his other close friends from college or high school have kids. Not sure what the point of saying all this is. Maybe I'm afraid that people will think it's so soon. But we'll be married 2 years when the baby arrives. I wouldn't say that's rushing it. But I think I wanted to be known as a couple who really took advantage of the DINK years and milked them for a while. I wouldn't say we're in that category either. Not sure why another 9 months (my plan) would have meant we were.
Emotionally, I'm doing okay. Not crying anymore. Martin helped with that. Just seeing his excitement and talking about the fun things. We often would stay stuff like "look at all the stuff in our back seat, what are we going to do when we have kids." Now it's "what are we going to do when the baby arrives?!"
This week though, I think my attitude has been well, I can still do all that stuff I wanted to do. My current thinking is that I'll go back to work part-time if my boss is okay with that. So then do that for 2 years until #2 comes along and then not work, at least not downtown. Then I was trying to figure out how I can do a century (100-mile bike trip) before I get "too" pregnant. Doesn't look like the dates are going to work out for the easy one, so I may to a harder metric century in May. Or not. I'm probably be totally unrealistic.
I think I felt like literally my life (i.e. all the good and purposeful things that I do now) will end when the baby arrives. No work, no tutoring, no fun outdoors, etc. I guess I had just heard from a lot of parents lately, "oh, yeah, we used to do that before...." But my do-it-all attitude is not just going to go away. I need to be realistic and know that I can't do everything as I am doing now but maybe it's just different, but equally active and meaningful, things. I am inspired by my friends who have kids and still have a life - Ted and Krista and Tor and Linda (who even breastfed her children for a long time)! I can't wait to talk to them about this.
But I need to remember too that what can be more good and purposeful than raising a child?! I am gaining so much by that. God is calling me (obviously) to be a mother. Uh, mom. I think I like that word better. Mother conveys much more wisdom than I have. Plus, there are a lot of things that will remain or even be enhanced in my life - my marriage, my friends, my relationship with God, my gifts that I can use to serve, my financial education volunteering. I'll be able to read more.
Speaking of lack of wisdom, I feel so much less unprepared for this than marriage. Where's the pre-natal classes Butch? Why don't we have those? Not like there isn't enough books and websites and resources out there on pregnancy and child rearing. It's just going to be a lot of research on my own over the next 8 months. Plus, I feel like I'm one of the first. I'm actually in the middle. All my HS friends have kids. Only one of college friends has kids. Most of the older and some younger camp friends have kids. All my married grad school friends have kids. Two of my Harvest friends have kids. Plus, my sister is pregnant. So I'm clearly not the first. And we just found out yesterday that one of Martin's college friends is having a kid. He and his wife just got married in July. But none of his other close friends from college or high school have kids. Not sure what the point of saying all this is. Maybe I'm afraid that people will think it's so soon. But we'll be married 2 years when the baby arrives. I wouldn't say that's rushing it. But I think I wanted to be known as a couple who really took advantage of the DINK years and milked them for a while. I wouldn't say we're in that category either. Not sure why another 9 months (my plan) would have meant we were.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Need to Learn Many Lessens in Unselfishness and Faithfulness
This morning after I took the pregnancy test and we celebrated a little, I went back into bed and was just thinking of all the consequences on my life that this pregnancy will bring. Martin, always wise and on track, suggested we pray. DUH! but it was the farthest thing from my mind at the moment. Probably THE biggest moment in our life and I'm not thinking about praying or anyone but myself. We will need to do much praying over the next, well for the rest of our lives for this child. I'm definitely not thinking much about him/her at the moment or about my dear husband. That needs to change. Part of it is that it hasn't hit me yet - there is a child developing in me - a new human being that I need to care for! Lord, help me!
New Reasons for a Sweet November
This morning Martin and I found out we have a new reason to say that November is sweet. Our first child will most likely be born in November. Yes, I found out I was pregnant this morning, although I pretty much knew yesterday and had wonderings all week. According to the baby experts on the Internet, my due date is either November 8th, 9th, or 10th. So just a few days after our anniversary.
While I kinda knew getting pregnant was a possibility and I had been thinking about it this week, it is still a HUGE shock. Almost as much as the shock of failing my PhD comps. Martin and I had literately just decided to start trying in the fall, like October or November of this year for a variety of reasons. Embolden by the factoid that I read a few weeks ago that a 30-year old woman has only a 22 percent chance of conceiving in any one month and seeing friends struggle with infertility and because we had waited until three days after my basel temperature rose (even though there was another sign that I was still fertile), we "cheated" on our Natural Family Planning. It's important to me that others know this because I didn't get pregnant due to a failure of the method of birth control that I so like. (Although, I guess one of the downsides of the method is that it is so easy to cheat.) But this is just evidence of fallen pride for me though. I was out to prove that I was right about NFP and that I wouldn't get pregnant and prove the skeptics and those who were delighted that we were doing this because you thought it meant we'd be pregnant soon wrong. This is one of the many lessens God is teaching me through all this.
So I think most people wonder about the new soon-to-be parents reaction, especially about a unplanned pregnancy. To be completely honest, mine was not a good one. Sure I wanted children but I thought I wasn't ready. (Not sure how I thought waiting until the fall would make much difference.) Mostly because I had just convinced myself that the fall would be the best time to get pregnant because of work, money, housing, due date, stuff I wanted to do before getting pregnant, committments with STEP, etc. (Y'all know how I am with my incessant "planning"! - i.e. wanting to have everything together and make the best possible decisions) That all on top of the general fear of becoming a parent, the frustration of not having been on prenatal vitamins and obstaining from alcohol, and the-oh-my-God,-I- thought-I-just-graduated-high-school (look I'm still wearing the same clothes even)-am-I-really-old-enough-to-have-my-own-children thoughts! But mostly it's the planning stuff. I came up with these expectations that aren't going to be realized and thus I became disappointed when I should be joyful and excited. Granted, it's day one and even already the joy and excitement are pushing the disappointment away, especially seeing Martin's excitement. Just this week at Bible Study we looked at how God works things out for our good and how we have a hard time with that. I've known for a long time (comp failure prime example) that God's way is the better way. I mean it only makes sense. He has perfect knowledge of the future and perfect logistical power. I can see already how God has orchestrated this for a while now. The beauty of an unplanned pregnancy is that you know it's God's will and that you had nothing to do with the timing, well, you know, in a sense. I need to focus on that and realize that that blessing is better than the things that I hoped would happen and to trust that there are future reasons that will far outweigh my minor disappointments now. And God will work out those other details. So the week has been hard but good. And it hasn't hit me fully yet. When it does, I know I'll be more gitty about having a baby because I already see glimpses of that today. Can't wait to tell y'all!
Martin and I have decided not to tell anyone until we can tell our families in person when we visit PA for my sister's baby shower and FL for Easter in early/mid April. So I thought it would be important to keep this blog up until that time. So the reader, most likely our close friends and family who in April will say "I can't believe you kept it a secret that long!" will know what was going on during the quiet period and so I have an outlet for all the things I want to talk about (besides Martin)!
I think the hardest thing about not telling is that I want to get all the knowledge/advice I can. Which prenatal vitamins are you taking, Carrie? Mom, which veggies should I particularly be eating? Nancy, Amy, and the BS gals, please help me put this all in perspective! Catherine G., what books should I read? Jen K., fitness for pregnancy, okay go. Laura H., what can and can't I eat? Melissa S., what's your secret for smooth deliveries? Jen L. and Reese, (2004, 2005, 2006, do you see a pattern here?) so I've got this weird rash, is this normal? Linda, do I need to worry about alergies now?
While I kinda knew getting pregnant was a possibility and I had been thinking about it this week, it is still a HUGE shock. Almost as much as the shock of failing my PhD comps. Martin and I had literately just decided to start trying in the fall, like October or November of this year for a variety of reasons. Embolden by the factoid that I read a few weeks ago that a 30-year old woman has only a 22 percent chance of conceiving in any one month and seeing friends struggle with infertility and because we had waited until three days after my basel temperature rose (even though there was another sign that I was still fertile), we "cheated" on our Natural Family Planning. It's important to me that others know this because I didn't get pregnant due to a failure of the method of birth control that I so like. (Although, I guess one of the downsides of the method is that it is so easy to cheat.) But this is just evidence of fallen pride for me though. I was out to prove that I was right about NFP and that I wouldn't get pregnant and prove the skeptics and those who were delighted that we were doing this because you thought it meant we'd be pregnant soon wrong. This is one of the many lessens God is teaching me through all this.
So I think most people wonder about the new soon-to-be parents reaction, especially about a unplanned pregnancy. To be completely honest, mine was not a good one. Sure I wanted children but I thought I wasn't ready. (Not sure how I thought waiting until the fall would make much difference.) Mostly because I had just convinced myself that the fall would be the best time to get pregnant because of work, money, housing, due date, stuff I wanted to do before getting pregnant, committments with STEP, etc. (Y'all know how I am with my incessant "planning"! - i.e. wanting to have everything together and make the best possible decisions) That all on top of the general fear of becoming a parent, the frustration of not having been on prenatal vitamins and obstaining from alcohol, and the-oh-my-God,-I- thought-I-just-graduated-high-school (look I'm still wearing the same clothes even)-am-I-really-old-enough-to-have-my-own-children thoughts! But mostly it's the planning stuff. I came up with these expectations that aren't going to be realized and thus I became disappointed when I should be joyful and excited. Granted, it's day one and even already the joy and excitement are pushing the disappointment away, especially seeing Martin's excitement. Just this week at Bible Study we looked at how God works things out for our good and how we have a hard time with that. I've known for a long time (comp failure prime example) that God's way is the better way. I mean it only makes sense. He has perfect knowledge of the future and perfect logistical power. I can see already how God has orchestrated this for a while now. The beauty of an unplanned pregnancy is that you know it's God's will and that you had nothing to do with the timing, well, you know, in a sense. I need to focus on that and realize that that blessing is better than the things that I hoped would happen and to trust that there are future reasons that will far outweigh my minor disappointments now. And God will work out those other details. So the week has been hard but good. And it hasn't hit me fully yet. When it does, I know I'll be more gitty about having a baby because I already see glimpses of that today. Can't wait to tell y'all!
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