Oh, BABY!

Casey   and I finally decided that now was as good a time as any to spill the news… I am pregnant!

Though the first four weeks of harboring this news (and sharing it with a few very close friends and family) was accompanied by deep breaths and clarifications (as in “I’ve already had four blood tests to check my hormone levels and they are off the charts!” and, “Yes, I’ve already had two ultrasounds and all is so far so good!”), I finally feel as confident about this little zygote at I did when I was pregnant with Kenny nearly  three years ago.

I am close to ten weeks, and I actually have had three ultrasounds already now… one at four weeks (to ensure that it was not ectopic), one at six weeks (to make sure there was a fetal pole and a heartbeat), and one this past Tuesday at nine weeks to make sure he was still kickin’ around in there, the right size for his age, and firmly implanted where he was supposed to be.  

May I just say that my OB is a gift from God?   He is a gruff old guy, so scientifically focused that his jokes are nearly impossible to detect, but one thing’s for sure – he doesn’t gloss things over, or look for the Pollyanna point of view, so this week when he declared me “in no way high risk” I know I can believe it for sure.   In fact, he told me to go for a jog…. it seems I could use a little exercise.   Or maybe less potato chips, which is what my nauseous tummy begs for all day…

So, I’m pregnant!

My due date is July 1st, but the OB has decreed a planned c-section will be sometime the week of June 23rd.   (Kenny was an un-planned one…. after 24 hours of labor with no progression)   I have been nauseous (no throwing up, but I think I’d feel better if I did) from waking to falling asleep again.   The nausea was actually a little better this week with my killer cold, but it came back with a vengeance today.   Food aversions have been bizarre – meat (except ground meat, when I usually won’t touch with a ten foot pole under non-prego circumstances)… I can’t even bring myself to buy meet at the grocery store, it grosses me out so much; vegetables (which I usually love and eat lots of), coffee (though I still have to have a few sips first thing, then I realize it’s icky, and dump it down the drain)  and candy bars.   Cravings?   Chips, oranges, potatoes, bread and baked goods.   Hm.   That would explain the four pounds I’ve already gained, I guess.

I can’t say that I have been completely anxiety-free.   I can’t say that there isn’t a little part of my brain that wants to “be prepared” in-case this one dosn’t make it.   But this one isdifferent.   With the baby we lost in March, I had no morning sickness, no real body changes (other than fatigue) and when we went in for our eight-week ultrasound, the baby only measured 6 weeks and 5 days.   They told me that my dates were off, but later conceded that the baby wasn’t growing properly.   With the baby we lost in July, there was a little nausea, but by seven weeks when the bleeding started, they discovered  two blighted ovums…. we never saw babies or heartbeats, just  the empty gestational sacks.   But this time,  those angels over at my  OB practice had been clocking me from the day I discovered a positive EPT test… checking that hormone levels are rising at the right rates and checking in  on the baby’s progress with the sonogram.

Now that  my OB has declared  this a “normal, healthy pregnancy” I will  go back to a normal, healthy check-up schedule, and won’t have another ultrasound until 20 weeks.   I finally feel like it’s  OK to jump for joy!

I know that it’s still technically “early” to be sharing the news, but given all that’s happened this year, I need to be able to write about it all or I’ll go crazy.

Stay tuned!