Relief and Excitement

Sunday morning I awoke with a sad surprise. I was having very bad cramps and some other pregnancy symptoms that really scared me. So, I did what any freaking out, hormonally-challenged pregnant woman would do and called the emergency line at my doctor's office. The doctor said to calm down and that all of this worry was likely for nothing. She did say to call again first thing Monday morning and get myself in for an ultrasound. So, no worries, but if I needed an immediate ultrasound, that still left room for worry in my mind. In addition to baby problems, I also had a terrible ear ache. Sunday was a rough day!

Today I did not go to work. With my ear and with knowing that I would have to call the doctor, I just decided that I was supposed to stay at home. So, I called my doctor at 8:30 am this morning, as soon as the office opened. Around 9:30, my doctor's nurse called me back and made me talk through all of my symptoms again. She said that she couldn't get me in to see my doctor, but she could send me to Riverside's Maternal Fetal Medicine. They specialize in high-risk pregnancies there and they could get me in today for an ultrasound.

My appointment was at 3:00 pm this afternoon. I was very nervous, especially since everyone kept reassuring me that everything was probably ok. I think all of the "probably ok's" made me worry more because what if I wasn't one of the lucky ones. As it turned out, however, I had nothing to worry about. :) Phew!



This is a picture of our baby! The head is on the left and the body on the right. You can even make out a bit of an arm bud! The heart bead was 183 beats per minute, which is great! All of this worrying seemed to be for naught. We were even lucky enough to see our little baby move around. Clearly he/she is taking after his/her mother's side of the family and feels the need to show off already! :)

The other exciting news is that the baby is bigger than estimates have previously stated. The baby is the size of a baby that is 9 weeks and 2 days. This means that my due date is now August 30, 2008! Yes, that is very likely as school is starting! Whatever happens, is going to happen and Adam and I are just so excited that everything is ok. Yeah!

One more picture just to show off!



Hope you enjoy these as much as Adam and I are! :)

Fish, Fun, and Breakfast Dreams

My desire for food has now crept into both my waking and sleeping conscious states!

First, I should tell you about last night. I really, really wanted Stuffed Tilapia from McCormick and Schmick's. I don't know how many of you have been fortunate enough to dine at McCormick and Schmick's, but it is delicious seafood. It is not cheap, but it is good. So, Adam, Mom, and Dad and I headed to McCormick and Schmick's. It was delicious, as always. Then we went and saw "27 Dresses." This was a wonderful movie and I highly recommend it to any of you. Adam went into it thinking it would be your typical "chick-flick" and he actually ended up thinking more highly of it than that. It really was good!

So, I went to sleep when we got home last night, clearly having had a great evening. Round about 3 o'clock this morning when Josey, our eldest cat, started his nightly ritual of scratching our bedroom door, I had to get up and use the restroom. The frequent bathroom trips are getting old very quickly, particularly in the middle of the night. However, when I woke up at 3, I was also very hungry in addition to my bathroom needs. I decided, though, that I was too tired and too cold to drag myself downstairs and actually get some food. So, I snuggled back into bed and went to sleep. I woke up again at 5 am needing yet another bathroom break and was even more hungry. I continued to ignore my stomach and went back to sleep.

At 7:30 am I woke up again. This time my stomach was growling and I had a very vivid memory of the dream I had been having. I had been dreaming of breakfast. I had imagined myself at Waffle House eating cheese 'n' eggs (a childhood favorite), hashbrowns, raisin toast, and grits. Knowing that my growling stomach was getting ever angrier at me, I made Adam get up and drive me to Waffle House. I completely indulged myself in all of the foods from my dream and didn't even have the desire to eat again until 3 pm this afternoon! It was fantastic!

Now, I can only imagine what I might dream about tonight... where will Adam have to take me next? Stay tuned!

Pizza Saves the Day

Ok, so all day I have felt like poop! I carried around my bathroom trash can with me from about 8 pm last night until I left for school at 6:30 this morning. Even then, I brought the trash can in the car with me because I wasn't sure I'd make it to school. I still haven't actually gotten sick, just kept wishing I would.

Strangely, the only food I really felt like I wanted was pizza. I have no idea why this sounded appealing, since pizza is usually not a food that settles one's stomach. However, since I couldn't stop thinking about it, I decided to give it a try. I stopped on my way home and got some pizza. Ever since eating the pizza I have felt absolutely terrific. I have no idea why pizza turned into such a magic food for me today, but if eating pizza is what is takes to feel well, I guess I'll be a regular customer.

Well, hate to keep it short, but I've got water aerobics to get to and both mommy and baby can use some exercise! Take care everyone!

Blah and Yeah!!

Well, the symptoms continue to come. :) I've had funny cramps and have been making many trips to the bathroom. My tummy doesn't seem to like it when I eat anything besides saltines. And, while I love saltines, I don't think I will be able to survive the next several weeks with just eating them!

Because of the funny cramps, I called the doctor. She wanted me to come in and have some blood drawn so that they could potentially determine what may be happening. They've pretty much determined that all funny cramping is pregnancy related and that the baby is actually doing quite well. When you are pregnant, they measure the amount of HcG in your blood. This is basically a hormone that (approximately) doubles every three days. This is no exact science, but the number can help to date the pregnancy. My number is 30, 763 which is higher than the doctor would necessarily expect at this point and she assured me this is a very good sign.

So, I will continue to visit my porcelain friend with the knowledge that at least all of these trips will eventually lead to a happy, healthy baby! I'll try to update again soon! Take care everyone!

The Big Announcement

Well, the time has finally come for the Smith household to join the new century and start a blog. This seems most appropriate at the time because...I am pregnant!

I haven't had any horrible symptoms yet - some queasiness, but I haven't actually gotten sick. :)

We've had the big "family" reveals now, so I figured I could reveal it to anyone else who may be interested. :)

The likely due date is early September, but we won't actually see the doctor until February 6. She may give us a more specific guess at the date at that point. We also have an ultrasound on that day, so we'll get our first peek at our growing baby! I'll definitely be posting some pictures on that day!

Well, not too much else to add for right now. I'll keep posting as things get more interesting! Stay tuned!