I feel like there is so much to be said and it’s hard to know where to start. Perhaps this’ll end up being a trilogy.
Week 8: I was 7 weeks pregnant before I even realised anything shady was going on. So the notion that I actually was was a little mind-blowing. (If the truth be known, it still freaks me out a little.) It’s all rather unexpected but yet planned. I had been tired since January anyway, so I didn’t think anything of it. And I didn’t have any other ‘symptoms’ – well, other than being a whopping 49 days late, but I brushed it off with definite valid reasoning.
I had my first appointment with my doctor this week. Turns out I’m not 12 weeks pregnant as my LMP would have us believe. Funny thing is, my due date would have been my birthday (6th Dec) and I had commented to Bryan some months previous that I would like to have another child before I turned 32. The irony was too much. Basing estimates on embryonic measurements, it turns out I am eight weeks pregnant, had skipped a month of ‘visitors’ and then got pregnant.
Even though it had only been a week-and-a-half since I’d realised I was ‘with child’ and was still trying to get used to the idea (I still am), I was so relieved to see the heartbeat. I don’t think I breathed until I spotted it on the tiny screen. At this point, the nausea has kicked in too and I’ve never had the pleasure before. It’s kind of like being on a really awful ferry ride. All I can really do was sit down and move my eyeballs and nothing else.
Total weight gain – zero. Fabulous. Loving this pregnancy already.
Week 12: The nausea has been gone for two weeks now – what a relief. Just like the previous pregnancy, I haven’t experienced any vomiting episodes and have no aversions to food at all. Don’t hate me. I have IBS and acid reflux disease and they really only come back when I’m pregnant. Cheers. Thanks for that. Never felt IBS pains? Imagine a screwdriver being turned in your guts or, it feels a lot like contractions too. Such a reassuring feeling when you’re PREGNANT!
I’m actually feeling great and starting to get excited about being pregnant now. I’ve had far too much stress worrying about Bryan’s job and our financial situation to really enjoy it up until this point. It’s so scary knowing you’re pregnant and wanting and needing to take care of yourself, but having the fear of losing your insurance coverage lurking in the back of your mind. But now that I’ve hit the ‘safer’ area of pregnancy, I feel more relaxed. I’ve been experiencing some headaches and ear ache on the left side thanks to the increase in hormones.
I still don’t really feel pregnant and have to keep reminding myself every-so-often. I’m enjoying that I can keep it quiet with my neighbours and not having to tell them because I’m starting to show – because I’m not. Such a change from the previous pregnancy. I swear I was showing at the point of conception with Ian.
During my ultrasound, my doctor told me he wasn’t “seeing what he’d expect to see for a boy…” but told us not to hold on to that and we’d know for sure next time.
Total weight gain: +2 lbs. Under average. Still loving this pregnancy.
Week 16: Still keeping it all quiet. Still not really showing and getting away with it. This is awesome. What’s not awesome is suddenly having the sensation that my pelvis has been smashed to pieces with an ice pick and still having to walk in spite of it.
Having an ultrasound every time I go to the doctor is so amazing. It’s incredible how much the baby has grown in just 4 weeks. Of course, I had to search for that heartbeat again because I’m innately paranoid. I also saw the stomach, thigh bone and fingers clearly. Great, now I won’t have the bother of counting them when he’s born, I’ve already done it.
The doctor attempted to reveal the sex to us for what seemed like forever. I’m sure the baby would have co-operated, but the cord was in the way. It took a lot of prodding to find out.
Finally he moved and…it’s another boy!
It’s probably a good thing to be honest, I couldn’t come up with any girl names anyway. Ian commented that baby was ‘jumping’. He was!
Total weight gain: +5 lbs. Woohoo!
Week 20: I started feeling baby move around 17 weeks. So cool. It’s amazing how reassuring the little feeling is. Thankfully it starts out as a romantic ‘butterfly flutter’ feeling . It’s comforting and beautiful – for now. No swift kicks as yet. Amazingly my energy level has increased too, this is a definite plus. My desire for carbs has increased too, and all I seem to want to eat is spicy stuff. There goes the minimal weight gain!
Baby is doing great and definitely a boy! The doctor said his lips (no hair lip) and heart look great and we saw his face and fingers too. He also mentioned he’s right on schedule for his height/growth too.
This was my last time seeing my doctor in Utah. I just couldn’t bring myself to tell him – even as he stood up and told me, “schedule an appointment for your Targeted Ultrasound around 24 weeks, and I’ll see you back here at 28 weeks for your glucose test.” I knew I wouldn’t be there and it broke my heart. I admire and respect him so much, and to be honest it was the biggest catalyst for my tears over these past few weeks. It’s one of the main things I haven’t been able to come to terms with. I know I’ll find someone else, but knowing I’ll have just 12 weeks to get to know someone new – a practical stranger – and have enough trust in him to know I’ll be fine throughout delivery is all rather daunting. I’ve also had to let go of the notion that the hospital I will deliver at is a mere 5 years old and looks spiffy (like with Ian). That sucks.
Total weight gain – +8 lbs. I think I leapt off the scales when I saw it! I commented, “I’m liking this baby already!”
Week 21: I got permission to see the nurse 3 weeks early for my Targeted Ultrasound. Bryan is leaving on a plane later this afternoon for Missoula and wanted to be here for it. Plus, I don’t know if this type of technology will be available to me in Montana. (None of my friends had it available to them in Utah.)
She checked the brain and all 4 chambers of the heart, the liver function and head circumference. She measured the abdominal region and his thigh bone. She checked everything. She even checked the fluid rate of the amniotic fluid through the umbilical cord. I even got some snap shots of the little guy. It’s so cool to see his little face. He kinda looks like Ian across the eyes.
Not really having any cravings.
Just barely started wearing maternity clothes and feel tiny in them. This is awesome. I was the side of a house with Ian. I feel great, just tired and winded. I’ve started feeling Braxton Hicks contractions.
Week 24: No scheduled appointment, had the previous one early.
Week 27: Found a new doctor in Missoula which is a good 45-minute drive from our new home. He has a website and I sat for a few hours reading and re-reading everything he’d written on his pages. He specialises in everything my previous doctor did and even performs an ultrasound at every visit like Dave did too. I can’t say I’m excited to meet him. I’m really apprehensive, and I know I’ll be looking for things to compare him with.
He seems really nice, quite laid back, but professional. He doesn’t wear scrubs and a doctor’s coat like Dave did. He was wearing khakis with no socks, slip on shoes and a pale yellow shirt. He also had a five o’clock shadow. By the way, he has a silver stud in his left ear too.
Baby is approximately 2.9 lbs and doing great. He had his hand over his face and wouldn’t move it for anything.
Still not feeling big yet and I’m really enjoying it. I had expected to have swollen feet like I did with Ian, but nothing yet. Well, at least nothing that doesn’t disappear by the next morning. I can still get my wedding ring on too. I had to stop wearing it with Ian around Week 20. I thought the pregnancy with Ian was fairly easy, but this one is a breeze.
I had the glucose test today at the hospital. We ended up being in Missoula for hours. The doctor was stuck at the hospital and missed a lot of his morning appointments and I had to come back in after another 45 minutes. Turned out to be a blessing anyway, I hadn’t had breakfast earlier and was starting to get the pangs. We got back to the clinic and had to wait a little while longer. I am glad I still got to see him though.
Appointments are every three weeks after this one now.
Total weight gain – we won’t talk about that anymore. It’s all baby. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Week 30: Baby still doing great and still putting his hand over his face. Still not experiencing fluid retention in my legs or ankles and I think this has been a major help in the pregnancy. The pelvic pain is still around and some days are definitely easier to maneouver than others, but I can usually spend about 10-15 minutes in the tub and switch the jets on and it all feels better after that. The back pain is dull and aching and unrelenting at times. I’m also getting up 3-4 times during the night too. Some nights have been harder than others to fall asleep or to just find a comfy spot.
7th Nov: I have a feeling the baby turned today. I could barely move and had to shuffle and drag my feet everywhere I went and tried to have minimal impact with the terra firma as much as possible. I haven’t complained much during this pregnancy, and really haven’t had any reason to. I still couldn’t bring myself to really complain about the pain, even though it was nasty. I did manage to be ultra sarcastic though.
I’ve also noticed these past few weeks that the baby’s kicks are lighter than Ian’s were. In fact, when he has hiccups, I can barely even tell, compared with getting woken at 7 a.m. with them carrying Ian. I am hoping this is a sign that he won’t be as ‘busy’ (or active as they say in the UK) as Ian as he gets older.
I feel the nesting starting to really kick in. I still feel able to do a lot of things, and I am grateful I have a lot of mobility left in me. I know I couldn’t say this carrying Ian. With Ian, I used to have to cook dinner perched on a bar stool and dry my hair sitting on a folding chair. The pains from my swollen feet were too unbearable to do otherwise. I couldn’t even be bothered shopping, all I wanted to do was get in and get out. Bryan loved it. I had absolutely no desire to browse. There were a few times I was almost brought to tears from the pain from the swelling and just wanted to curl up and die. It also didn’t help any that I was being asked, “do you know what you’re having?” knowing full well they were expecting me to respond, “twins.” My self-esteem took quite the battering.
11 Nov: The ladies from Bryan’s section at work threw me a baby shower. It was really unexpected, but very sweet. We weren’t expecting any ‘showers’, especially since this is our second child and more specifically, another boy. It’s so nice to look at tiny baby things again.
Thursday, 16 Nov: Bryan had today off and spent a few hours putting the crib together and fixing the baby’s room. It’s nice to know it’s all set up now and ready for the little one.
Saturday, 18 Nov: I got a phone call today from a lady at Church, they want to throw me and another girl (who’s due about 9 days after me) a shower. Another one? At this rate I’ll have nothing to buy. That spoils all the fun!
Today – 7 weeks left, and counting.
Next appointment: 21st Nov @ 15:30.
a Brit different 