Hormone Havoc

Like I said, nothing new and interesting to report except for my lust for food. Oh, and that I almost quit my job yesterday. Do pregnancy hormones make you want to chop everybody's head off? Some woman say they get weepy, but I'm getting bitchy! And when you work with a bunch of loud, obnoxious nurses crammed into a large cell, you begin to feel very ugly inside. Why is it that women in the work setting think the world cares about every detail of their personal life? I DON'T!!! Trust the ones you love, not the ones gossiping about you! And have you ever known somebody who treats you like you have an extra head attatched to your shoulders? That's my boss. She hates me, or so I'm convinced. A boss should not use any opportunity to make you feel 2 feet tall.

I tried staying in my own bubble yesterday, but it turns out I didn't play nice with the other kids. So that ruins that. "Fake it till you feel it," or "Kill them with kindness." Maybe. Or take a pitch fork into work and yell, "Stay away!!!" at the top of your lungs. I'm crazy- hahahahhaha!

So, I'm off to statisfy my 3am craving for an egg sandwich for breakfast and then head to work for a light load and afterwards, a New Years Eve poker party with the people I really care about, my friends!

Burger, hold the fries.

So I got that burger fix I've been waiting for and washed it down with a glass of chocolate milk. I imagine in the future I'll have more interesting things to say about this pregnancy, but for now that's all I've got.

Yesterday marks the first time the hubs had something to say about my new breast size. Sad to say, I was encouraged by that. After a while, you begin to wonder if the pregnancy is all up in your head. The aches and pains, the stomach woes and lack of energy are the only comforting signs of impending life down there. The mile marker is ahead and it's an ultrasound. I'm so looking forward to hearing its little heart pitter-patter and confirm this dream come true!

Its 5:41am and I better get in the shower to gear up for the 12-hr work day ahead- YUK!

Where's the Beef?

I succombed and got MacDondalds last night :( I know, not such bad thing, except all I keep craving is red meat. I devoured the quarter pounder, pickles, ketchup, onions and all! French fries? Ate a few then threw the rest away. Good. At least my fingers won't swell up like sausages from those potato-ey, salty stems.

All in all, I find my cravings and food aversions to be in my favor. I no longer crave sweets, a typical non-prego craving. And this skinny little body of mine could use the protein and iron from a good 'ol filet 'o beef. I don't crave salty snacks either. Just protein. Unfortunately, yogurt and cottage cheese, once old reliables to me taste gross. Milk is all good, though. The tub of Jiff in the pantry is the one solitary thing I go to everytime I get a hunger pang.

I notice my tummy gets more sore and crampy in the evening after gas and fluids build up. Gas really upsets things! There's just not enough room, and I'm not even showing yet!

I think I blogged about grocery shopping yesterday. I can definitely tell I'm sharing my precious blood supply with an alien down there. Supposedly it's heart is now circulating blood and pumping at an average rate of 100bpm. Oh yeah, it slows you down a bit! I also read it's about the size of a blueberry this week. Awww! Can't wait to see on ultrasound!

So, so far things are going smoothly. No spotting, cramps subsiding, no nausea as long as my blood sugar doesn't get low, and I'm getting regular naps so I'm resting up.

Let's get this party started!

It's been a quiet weekend. Waiting for this ultrasound has me wondering, "Am I really pregnant?" Some days my symptoms are obvious and other days not so obvious. But what doesn't seem to go away is this penny-sucking metal flavor in my mouth. I read it's the taste buds changing from hormones, of course.

To be quite honest, I'm bored and ready to talk to my doctor already! Let's get this show on the road! Is it's heart beating? How big is it? How far along am I? Do we have a due date? Does everything look alright in there??? I'm pregnant, right?!

A light workout during the day makes a big difference. Followed by a bubble bath is the ticket to a great afternoon nap! I'm going to the grocery store today for the first time since learning I am pregnant. I'm familiar with only one thing that sounds good anytime of the day- crackers and peanut butter. I think I'll try Ritz over the graham this time. Besides that, I'm stewing over recipes for beef. Red meat is probably the number one thing I need right now after a year of vegetarianism.

Also on the list- a prenatal vitamin.

Blood Results "Perfect"!

Merry Christmas!!

So obviously we got what we had hoped for, thank God! So far, a healthy pregnancy. Yesterday, my nurse practioner called me with results of my second HCG test (you know, the pregnancy hormone) and it's 3,000!! She said that's perfect and I'm way pregnant. Oh YES!
Planning on first ultrasound the first week of January.

Symptoms:
tired, queezy, not hungry except meat sounds good, metallic tast in my mouth, still not sleeping well, feeling things stretching and shifting down there, occasional headaches, irritable, smells magnified and bothersome (hate the smell of the pet's food), and boobs are really starting to tingle and hurt (wearing bras sucks!).

The Good News

Like any pivitol moment in our lives, it's so helpful to document the unfolding of things as they happen. At least this is how I feel. Reflection allows me to take hold of what's going on, especially something as ground breaking as your first pregnancy!

And so this is how it all started:

Nov28
Progesterone level drawn post ovulation, day 22 of course. I was desparately hoping my body was on track with Dr. Wager's orders. Fortunately, it wasn't. Progesterone level too low.

A week later...

Dec 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th
...My body was attempting to ovulate again. And that is when I am most confident it happened. It's almost like I had a peace about this time, like I was throwing up my last stitch effort and asking God for a miracle this time.

Dec.14
At the doc's office for a routine checkup. 7 days late on my period so she asked me to do a prego test. Negative. I cried the whole way home and went into my little shell.

Dec.18
It's day 42, cramps, still no aunt flow. Each day I have a handfull of pads, advil and the essentials in my purse all ready to go but to no avail. I call my OB cause now I'm concerned about the cramps and no period. "Is something wrong?" I get a blood test immediately to check once more for pregnancy with a contingency ready to go. She calls me back and immediately I detect the inflection in her voice. "Sue, well..." I was prepared for the worst so my reaction after she told me it was positive was, "So that's a good thing, right?" Duh!! I call Jason right away.

Dec.23
That's today. So far I can tell you my symptoms are mild but obvious. The "girls" are fuller and yes, a little sore. Sleeping sucks- my back hurts and I still get waves of period-like cramps, and if my stomach is empty, I get queezy and have to grab a cracker. I get a metal taste in my mouth occasionally. I actually bought lifesavers for this, but can't get lemon drops off my mind. My relationship with food is kind of a peculiar thing right now- it just doesn't sound good. Except for a recent 24 hr fixation with a burger and cold glass of chocolate milk! Emotional? Yeah! Moodiness is one thing, but the overwhelming need to cry is another. So far, my triggers are thoughts or visuals of babies. Sounds about right, but before being pregnant, babies were of no particular interest of mine.

I pray alot. Especially when I wake up in the middle of the night from discomfort, I just pray for the little "spec" and ask God to make him stick.