Picture day~

Yep here i am... not much happening really. Lets see boobs still hurt, but i wear a sports bra to bed now. That helps, unless i try to sleep on my stomach... OOOUCH! I've been pooping lately! Maybe it's all the fruit i'm Obsessed with eating! It just taste so good in my mouth... nomm nomm nomm. I have energy again! weird b/c i'm not in my 2nd tri yet but HEY i'll take it!

Here's the only thing that's bothering me

Can you see it? hard to see in a photo... but it's the rash that WAS on my legs a few weeks ago. It's on BOTH arms now... sometimes on my face and trying to make an appearance on my legs again. One doctor here (NIH) thinks it could MAYBE be Parvovirus or "Fifth disease". But we won't know until I get my blood done on Monday. IF I have it there's less then a 5% chance that it will effect me or the baby... Effects can be anemia or miscarriage. There is no treatment it just has to run it course, but my doctor might monitor me and the baby more IF it is that. We'll see. I'm not stressing. I mean why should I there's nothing that can be done anyway. So I just have to trust God. Other thoughts are my Mom thinks i'm allergic to pregnancy and Chris thinks i have the swine flu. hmm should i take votes?

8 weeks!

Wow so yesterday i had ... wait for it... wait for it... ENERGY! I know CRAZY cool! I was busy all day at work and went home and did i sit down and throw my feet up... NO, not RIGHT away! I cooked! I cooked a meal that Chris LOVED. Ya know made up a casserole (ham, rice, cream of mushroom, french cut green beans, water chestnuts, CHEESE, bell pepper, onion) , it was great, i'm going to eat it for lunch too. Oh and know what else... slept pretty good. I mean i work up and peed like 4 times but still i slept! And this morning, felt PRETTY darn good too! I think Buddy is taking pitty on me b/c Chris is feeling so bad b/c of his allergies, so we can't have 2 parents down for the count.

So where are we this week? We're 8 weeks!!! Whoo Hooo! Chris even surprised me on Sunday by using some fancy pregnancy lingo "we're almost done with the first trimester" . Oh yeah baby, talk sexy to me! So our little blueberry is now a Raspberry! (i like those more anyway)~Buddy has webbed fingers and toes that are poking out from his hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone, (shoo good, i was getting worried! lol). In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. Buddy is also constantly moving and shifting, though I still can't feel it.

How far along? 8 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss: +1

Maternity Clothes? All my pants, tried on a low cut pair of jeans, still didn't work... i think it's b/c i have a short torso. Not Shirts really yet, though i might wear one or two every now and then.

Stretch Marks? nothing yet

Sleep? Last night was good, got some energy back!

Best moment this week: Chris talking "pregnancy" to me

Movement? waay to early for any of that

Food Cravings: LOVE red meat, burgers, hot dogs, steak. You name it. Also pasta!!

Gender: Still going with a boy

Labor Signs: I hope not!

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Fitting into my clothes without looking fat (couldn't you just go from normal to pregnant??)

What I am looking forward to: Our first ultrasound on Monday!!

Weekly Wisdom: Don't milk your pregnancy too early... people will get tired of you... wait until it's close to the end so you can get pampered before everyone ignores you to see the baby.
Milestones: Felt GREAT yesterday and today feels like it could be a repeat!

Ahh what a great weekend!

So Sunday Chris and i had a very nice day. Woke up, went to church, left before Sunday School because i was pretty certain i might puke or fall asleep in class if we didn't leave. We went and bought Stella a new bed, ate lunch (yummm cheese steak!), went to walmart and got my spring flowers, hit up the g-store (YES watermelon FINALLY!), and headed on home where i had a Fantastic poop and promptly took a nice little nap. Once i woke up we cleaned up our huge (.2 acres) yard and i planted my flowers. Then we decided to cap off our perfect day we would grill out steaks and drink Pina Coladas. Oh wait, I'm pregnant... no Rum in mine please. I'll take a virgin. Then it hit me and i couldn't stop giggling... Chris, being used to the fact that I'm my best friend and like to humor myself, kept quite. So i asked him if he wanted to hear something ironic. He said sure, knowing i was going to tell him anyway.

Well i just thought it was funny how the PREGNANT chick is drinking the VIRGIN drink. cruel joke???

Most Amazing day!

Yesterday was SUCH a great day i must say! It was take your child to work day. Now while i take mine every day HA! okay anyway, i got to take my two nieces!! (no Seph didn't have kids on the sly, it's the girls from my wedding or are one of my very good friend's girls and her husband grew up with Chris so they call me Aunt Erin) It was a blast! NIH REALLY goes all out for the kids. Every institute puts on different activities that they can participate in. Moon bounces are brought in, Cold Stone Creamery came and gave away free ice cream! Even Elmo and Winnie the Pooh made an appearance! It was so neat to spend such a special day with these great girls! And they made their mom and dad proud b/c they behaved so well for me and everyone else and had the BEST manners! It was a day that made me reflect on what kind of parent i'll be and helped me to really look forward to it! Having a connection with those girls where all i have to do is look at them and they burst out in giggles just warms my heart and makes me so excited to meet Buddy!

The girls were also a hoot about Buddy, they hope it's a girl, of course. Plus i told them Buddy likes to eat certain things and not others. So EVERY time i ate something they would say "You are eating that b/c the baby likes it, right?" lol Oh yes i ate the spaghetti, salad, cookies, pizza, and ice cream JUST for Baby, not me AT ALL! It's a tough job but someone has to keep the little booger happy! ~

7 weeks 3 days

7 wks! And no i don't want to take a picture

Honestly there's nothing new to show except my bloat! I just FEEL fat today and i don't feel like making myself feel worse by taking a picture of it! I haven't gained any weight... but i feel like i've gained 10lbs... glad i haven't but STILL!

So here's where the little man is today!



He's the size of a blueberry! Baby's brain -- both hemispheres! -- is growing fast, generating about 100 new cells every minute. Arms and legs are emerging as joints start to form, and a permanent set of kidneys (baby's third!) is now in place. If you could see inside my womb, you'd spot eyelid folds partially covering his peepers, which already have some color, as well as the tip of his nose and tiny veins beneath parchment-thin skin. Aww grow baby grow! And give me a bump so i stop just looking plump!

How far along? 7Weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 0

Maternity Clothes? i swear only like ONE pair of pants fit comfortably!!! Tops are getting tight thanks to my knockers and bloat... so i just feel plump!

Stretch Marks? nothing yet

Sleep? Well it comes and goes from not good to okay. Last night was okay... doesn't matter though, i'm still TIRED!

Best moment this week: Telling everyone at Church and getting on the pregnant prayer list.

Movement? waay to early for any of that

Food Cravings: Not so much CRAVINGS but adversions... i can't eat shrimp right now and i don't like chicken unless it's from chick f la or a chicken nugget. So baked chicken, etc is OUT

Gender: Still going with a boy

Labor Signs: I hope not!

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: A margarita! I needed one yesterday after the day i had!

What I am looking forward to: Just making it another week... taking a nap~

Weekly Wisdom: You may feel fat and ugly but if you tell people you're pregnant they'll just keep telling how you're glowing! lol
Milestones: We're getting the hang of nausea!

Warning I'm going to talk about boobs

So if you're a guy, family member that doesn't want to hear it stop reading now.

I'm serious

Okay if you're still reading you must be wondering what's the deal. The deal are these two sides of beef that have landed on my Chest! I mean i've never been a member of the itty bitty titty club (pulled up to a DD quite a while ago) but COME ON! They are i'm sure bigger (even though i REFUSE to buy new bras until they are close to done growing) now, they HURT ALL the time, and THEY ARE HEAVY!

So here's the thing... i'm going to have to start sleeping in a bra i believe because these suckers (hee hee now that i think about it they will become suckers later, lol) wake me up hurting!! If i sleep wrong on them they hurt. I've been using my snoogle to seperate them! One lays under the snoogle... one on top! And i'm telling you even though they haven't changed actual size by a huge amount... these things are heavier! It's not all in my mind! These things are HEAVY! They feel like they will be down to my waist in no time. Remember the song "Do your ears hang low?" Well here's my tribute to it...

Do your BOOBS hang low? Do they waddle to and fro? Can you Tie them in a knot can you tie them in a bow? Can you throw them over your shoulder like a continental solider? Do your BOOBS hang low?

Morning Sickness figured out!

Well it turns out that this little booger doesn't like to wake up early! See this weekend i got to sleep in until I wanted to get up not when I HAD to get up (well I could have slept longer on Sunday but it wasn't too bad). And for the most part i felt GREAT! I mean tired but not queasy! This morning BAM it's back! And that's when it hit me! Buddy likes to sleep in too! I mean he already SUCKS the life right out of me all day because i'm not taking naps... but now he's punishing me for getting up too early! So what do you think, this is as good as an excuse as any to quit my job? Yes? No? Maybe? Ah oh well... he's just going to have to get over it, like i have. Sorry Buddy, life sucks!

We did have a really cool weekend though getting to tell the rest of our friend at church. I was waiting until Chris could be there with me to tell everyone so it was fun! In our Sunday School class we have this running list of people who are pregnant (either in the class, in our families, or at our church in general) and one of the first things Chris said to me when i told him we were pregnant was "You get to be one the list now!" and i grinned like a lunatic! So yesterday... we GOT ON THE LIST! Yea! lol, i know i'm currently seeking help! ANYWAY, it was just fun to finish telling everyone and know that they will be praying for Buddy and i (oh and Chris and his patience, b/c he's OVER me being too tired to clean the house, oh well).

6 weeks and 6 days~

Two words: Cheese Steak!

Oh yea ladies that are eating your oh so yummy salads for lunch, i had Cheese Steak in all it's bready, cheesey, mayoy goodness! And it WAS GOOD! I mean i WALKED to get it (like a 20-30 minute walk each way, not too shabby) so i TOTALLY deserved it right? Well Buddy thought so and rewarded me with the most embarrassing GAS EVER! Oh it wasn't just a little rumble excuse me i think i might need to run to the restroom... It was a COMPLETE sneak attack! One minute i standing there just trying to catch up on emails, etc... the next minute I SWEAR the earth shook and i had to check my pants (don't worry we were clean). It was like an unstoppable force! Eh what can you do... But here's the real kicker... So we have ALL read that pregnancy equals gas right... So if we have ALL this gas then WHY CAN'T I FREAKIN POOP ALREADY???!!!?! I mean i get i smell like a gutted dear that's been left in the woods to die for a week in the summer (chris's description, not mine) b/c of the back up but COME ON! If i'm going to risk embarrassing myself, or my job... at least give me the relief of poo!

Okay that's all i have to say about that... for today

But i did want to mention this "pregnancy glow" that everyone talks about (but only tell you that you have it once they KNOW you're pregnant). Yeah this is what i think it all means: Picture this, you have two friends talking about you behind your back (i know GASP!)

Friend A: I mean have you seen her lately, not ONLY is she falling out all around those pants with the worst Muffin Top EVER but her face looks like an adolescents boy who just got off soccer practice and ate a burger, GROSS
Friend B: I KNOW i mean you would think she would bathe with all those zits! And if you're going to get fat, COVER it better
(and i walk up)
Me: Hi guys! How are ya'll?
Friends: Oh we're so good, you're looking amazing! (insert eye rolls here)
Me: (**grinning like i just robed a chocolate factory**) Well THANKS! You see i'm PREGNANT
Friends: OH YEA!!! Congratulations! We were just talking about how you have that GLOW!

Yeah i really believe that b/c my chin looks like a pizza hit it and my eyes have circles (darker then before!) and i often have this stoner look about me where my eyes are halfway closed trying to get me to sleep. Ahh what a "glow"!

Buddy is 6 weeks and 3 days... and i love every minute (*wink wink*)!~

I MADE DINNER!!

I didn't eat all of my dinner but i made it! And it was something besides soup, hot dogs, or pizza!! I think Chris was quite shocked! We had chicken that i marinated, mac and cheese (i'm seriously addicted to this right now), and this yummy cucumber, tomato, mozzarella salad i created! It was all good but it was hard for me to get the chicken down... so i settled for the salad and mac and cheese! Yumm! AND then i went to bed! lol~ Hey at least i cooked!

I love my baby i love my baby i love my baby

No i REALLY do love my baby but GEZZZ! Honestly in the back of my oh so mislead mind i really thought that i wouldn't get morning sickness, you know b/c my mom didn't. HA BOY was i wrong! OKay it's not as bad as some other people might have it BUT GUESS WHAT... i don't care about those other people i care about MYSELF right now! YEah you heard me! I only care about ME. Me and the fact that i constantly feel like i have food stuck in the top of the throat that JUST might projectile vomit at an unsuspecting individual. Now if i could time this right to hit Chris after he's told me to jokingly toughen up (luckily he hasn't done that lately) or how about that annoying person in my lab that is always coming at me with the most ridiculous request! But no, IF it happens it will most likely be one of my dearest and understanding friends, so if you think i like you... give me room, you might be cursed!

So on Monday the super smell sense kicked in... Joy. I was looking forward to this, you know one of the many super powers you get while pregnant, but it's not as great as they make it out to be... b/c you smell EVERYTHING.... REALLY WELL! You smell the shrimp that you no longer like, you smell the weird foreign food that all these foreigners insist on bringing to work for lunch (will someone PLEASE tell them they are in America and to bring freakin Pizza or PB&J!!), you smell feet, BO, and anything thing else within a mile radius! But what did i get the pleasure of smelling on Tuesday?? Doggie Doodoo. Yep, thought I was going.to.die! Sadie LOVES getting into EVERYTHING and afterwards her stomach doesn't love her. This became apparent Monday night/Tuesday morning each time i took her outside. UH! But i figure she's just getting it out of her system... WRONG. She was saving it up so that she could spray my whole upstairs, with what Chris has taken to affectionately calling her "butt juice". Yeah hit me like a 2x4 between the eyes when i walked in the house. Now i was SERIOUSLY thinking about just turning right back around and sitting in my car and waiting for Chris to come and clean it up BUT i REALLY wanted to eat some mac and cheese, which i would have to be IN the house to make soo..... UH! Strap on the rubber gloves and away i go. I thought i was going to add to the mess but i was able to keep it down, grudgingly, and clean it up as best i could. Chris finished when he got home. Sadie's fine now... I'm still sick!

6wks 1 Day!

Well i submitted two photos this week b/c in the first one you can see my bump a bit (OKAY BLOAT). In the second one my butt looks cute! And considering the state of my hair and tired face i deserve a cute butt shot!

How far along? 6 weeks 1 day

Total weight gain/loss: + ~ 1 lb

Maternity Clothes? I wear some pants unbuttoned and Maternity Pants... the bloat is bad!

Stretch Marks? nothing yet

Sleep? eh, not so great anymore. Plus now i'm tired ALL the time! poor Chris!

Best moment this week: Seeing my parents and brother as a pregnant person!

Movement? waay to early for any of that

Food Cravings: Still LOVE pineapple... that's about it.

Gender: I think boy and Chris will only let me say it's a boy!

Labor Signs: I hope not!

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: having energy

What I am looking forward to: Finding Maternity pants that are long enough!

Weekly Wisdom: Everyday is a blessing from God, even the sick ones!
Milestones: we're growing ear canals now!!

Not dead, pregnant

Sorry... i have some updates but i'm too tired to post and i'm BLAH to make anything else so... updates when i make it to the second tri! Promise!

6 weeks

Yep we have a sweet pea! Buddy is the size of one of Chris and my favorite veggies! So what did Buddy accomplish this week? Growing like crazy, buddy is working on looking good! He's starting to sprout eyes, ears, nose, cheeks and chin. Those little hands and feet- still webbed like paddles- might wiggle by week’s end, the heart is beating (almost twice as fast as mine!), and blood is starting to circulate. WHOO HOO! Grow Buddy Grow!!!

Here we are, 5 wks 1 day

This is me! (at my work~) at 5 weeks and One day (don't you like my bloat?). I have now known for a full week that i'm pregnant! It seems like it's been longer though! hmmm

Last night i was sick and still am a little today, but not because of pregnancy... it's aches and slight fever. The aches are like flue aches and were BAD but getting better with a little Tylenol. I just keep talking to Buddy to keep growing and to be good.

I told my Boss on Monday, she said she already had a feel, hmmm~ She didn't seems EXCITED but she also didn't seem mad~ We'll see... i just hope i get my raise!

Well have a great day!

thought this would be fun to start!

How far along? 5 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: + ~ 1 lb

Maternity Clothes? my be band (like the bella band, but from Target), and some maternity pants from Mel.

Stretch Marks? nothing yet

Sleep? getting much better now that i have a snoogle and i've been getting more energy through the day... but i'm ready for bed by 8pm!

Best moment this week: Tell friend and family!

Movement? waay to early for any of that

Food Cravings: Nope although i am liking cold pineapple!

Gender: I think boy and Chris will only let me say it's a boy!

Labor Signs: nothing

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Wine or REAL coffee!

What I am looking forward to: Getting to SEE my family this weekend!

Weekly Wisdom: Focus on the miracle and the "symptoms" will seem like a blessing!
Milestones: Got on our first Wait List for daycare!

5wks!

5wks~

Well yesterday i had my first freak out moment. I had a little bit of brown discharge in the morning )only once. But i stayed calm, called my doctor and they said "brown is good, we like brown b/c brown is old" As long as it's not red and i don't have sever cramping everything is normal! YEA!

So onto the good stuff! First off Buddy is on his first wait list! We put him on a list for a daycare in town that has A LOT of recommendations! We'll visit it when Chris's schedule calms down a bit! But at least we're on the list! They said since i'm inquiring so early we have a good shot of having a spot, so we'll see~

This week Buddy is now the size of an ORANGE SEED! No not the orange, we're not that big yet! lol!

Buddy now resembles a teeny tadpole as his heart starts to form; we may even be able to see it beating on an early ultrasound, but we aren't getting that until May 4th~. The circulatory system is the first to be operational and the neural tube, which will eventually become Buddy's brain and spinal cord, is under construction as well. So we're building right along!

What do we have to look forward to this week (as we build through week 6)? Lets just say things are going to start "looking" good!

Can i just say...

I LOVE this Pack in Play??? I'm thinking of all kinds of different uses for it! I'm thinking it should be downstairs so that we have a changing table down there and a nap station.... but where to put it? B/c did i mention i want this swing isn't that sooo cute?? Oh and it's So Soft too! Where is all this stuff going to fit??

I really believe God blessed the person who...

Invented the Snoogle!!! What is a Snoogle you might ask? No it's not a designer dog... it's the most amazing pregnancy pillow EVER and it makes sleep possible!

That's MY SNOOGLE!!! It's quite amazing! I slept sooo good in its snuggly goodness! The only thing i would change is the sandpaper cover... i might have to wrap one of my own pillow cases around the top least i wake up with carpet burn on my face... i've really been spoiled with UBER soft sheets! I can't explain WHY this pillow helps so much in my early stage, all i can say it does! It helps my back to feel better, my hip joints and plus i LOVE to snuggle! I couldn't believe how rested i felt this morning~

On to other things... I'm in maternity pants! Yeah weird I KNOW! But the bloat is KILLING me in regular pants and the bella band is just not quite working out like i hoped... i will still try to use it on work pants... BUT my good friend Melody has supplied me with 3 pairs of Jeans, a pair of Cords, a pair of cargo Khakis, and a pair of black pants and it's WONDERFUL! Buddy (that's what i've taken to calling little bean after the movie Elf where the main character is Buddy the Elf) was just not happy being smooshed so i gave in and i'm giving him (b/c according to Chris we ARE having a boy) more room~

So here's what's going on in Buddy's world... He's the size of a  poppy seed!

The ball of cells that will develop into Buddy has completed its journey from my fallopian tube to my uterus. Once settled in its new home, it will undergo the great divide — splitting into two groups. Half will become Buddy, while the other half forms the placenta, Buddy's lifeline until delivery. The multilayered embryo then begins to grow into specialized parts of his body. The inner layer, known as the endoderm, will develop into his digestive system, liver, and lungs. The middle layer, called the mesoderm, will soon be Buddy's heart, sex organs, bones, kidneys, and muscles. The outer layer, or ectoderm, will eventually form his nervous system, hair, skin, and eyes.

Gotta tell you all this "building" is tiring!

Sadly i don't think this is "baby"

Chris and i forgot to take one last night (we were SOO tired) so my co-worker Tina helped me out today! I'm definitely bloated... normally i could suck in that bloat to look relatively lean but i can't anymore. Part if it is "me" but a good chunk is bloat!

4wks 2 days

Wow, April Fools on me!

So as you know i was SOOO sure i wasn't pregnant... thought i even had spotting that mysteriously went away. So i planned on testing again on Friday if AF (aunt flow) didn't rear her ugly head BUT Chris's mom is coming over on Friday and IF i was pregnant i didn't want her to be around when i told Chris... so i was going to test Today (Thursday) BUT as all of you know i'm not soo good with being patient so i waited for Chris to leave for work and tested.

UM POSITIVE! Wait What Really? okay hold on let me rub my eyes... WOW REALLY? Maybe it's a dud, or my pee got stuck there... hmmmm. Okay that's cool i have a back up test better use that.... doot doot do do... WOW That ones pretty pink too! hmmm... this might be real! HAHA, Wow...hmmm NEED A DIGITAL! CRAP! It's only 6AM! Walmart isn't open until 8!! That's cool i can shower and stuff..

Showered, cried as i prayed to God promising to take care of this little bean, watched some TV... doot doot do do

YES time to go! Go to Walmart, get said test, pick up some bibs too (to tell Daddy and some Grandparents)... go home Pee again (oh yeah having a bladder ALWAYS full a pee since i was born is REALLY coming in handy now! Waiting... watching the flashing hour glass... flashing flashing (COULD IT JUST STOP ALREADY) BAM! Pregnant! HAHAHA Wow... guess this is true!

The lines actually look darker in person, it's just the flash washing them out. So don't worry I AM pregnant.

OKay now i REALLY have to stay home from work b/c i KNOW if i go in I WILL tell someone and then Chris won't be the first! Well super! Now i can get a pedicure and go sit in one of those massage chairs where they can REALLY work on my back poop muscles that are KILLING ME! AHhhh... i'm almost worried i'm going to start moaning it feels so good, but i hold it in least they never let me sit in the magical chair again.

Next to the florist... Why do people think you're weird when you want to buy all the babys breath they can spare? PEOPLE! So i tell her why... CRAP now Chris isn't the first... uhhh!

Decorate the kitchen and WAIT... and WAIT... He calls, he's coming... WAIT.... WAIT... FINALLY! He's Here! and this is what he sees when he walks in:Notice the creativity with the colors of water since we don't know what we're getting yet~ OOH YEA! Chris's reaction "Already, Really? You're sure? WOW? No i AM happy! WOW! I TOLD you it would happen right away"

We then proceeded to call my parents (b/c i couldn't wait the week and a half until i was to see them) and go to his parents house to tell them. We'll have wonderful memories now of shock, surprise, tears, and smiles!

God bless our little Elf and Please keep him safe!

4wks 2 days pregnant