Tummy Juice

I call it my "tummy juice" - Orange Juice mixed with Sierra Mist. It seems to be the only thing I can drink lately that doesn't make my tummy protest. I'm hungry a lot, but my sense of smell has been so heightened, that just about everything makes me nauseous. I feel ill all day. Yesterday, my meals consisted of a plain bagel for breakfast, a banana for lunch, and a scoop of mashed potatos for dinner. Oh, and lots of Tummy Juice. At this rate, I'm going to LOSE weight before the first trimester is over!

Pants are tighter!

I seriously don't think it happened this early last time. Here I sit at only 6 weeks pregnant and my pants are tighter. I busted open my maternity clothes out of storage the other day and as we speak, they are headed to the washer to be re-introduced into my wardrobe much sooner than I anticipated. If I remember correctly, I was wearing maternity jeans to work at about 10 weeks or so because I was just too bloated to button my regular jeans comfortably. I am about this close from that point already! Oh boy......

Are you in there, peanut?

My least favorite thing about the first trimester is not being able to have a tangible connection to the pregnancy. You can't feel the baby, there is no belly (besides leftover pooch from Isaiah) to see as a visible confirmation, and there certainly is no kicks or anything. You just have to fly on blind faith that there is indeed a little peanut in there who is safe and sound and growing rapidly. This is definitely the most difficult part for me. Even more so than morning sickness or the discomfort of the third trimester. If you know me at all, you know that I absolutely HATE not knowing something for certain! I will be very glad when we have been to the doctor and heard the heartbeat. I remember crying immediately the first time I heard Isaiah's heartbeat because it in that moment that it really became real. It's almost like I didn't really, fully believe I was pregnant until that moment. In any case, February 10th can't come quick enough!

Here we go again!

I'M PREGNANT!!!

I just love being able to type those words. Finally, after nearly 6 months of trying and one miscarriage under our belts, I can actually say them. I am just so thrilled.

So, how did we get here?

We started trying to conceive our second child in August of '08. The Mirena came out, the prenatals were prescribed, ovulation was predicted and we got to work. Last time, we conceived Isaiah after only 2 months of trying, so I wasn't surprised when it didn't happen right away. By the time October rolled around, my impatience grew. Then, to my delight, I got a positive pregnancy test on December 8th. I was so pumped, but also a little confused. My home pregnancy test was very faint. Here's how it looked: If you look real close, squint, stand on your head and cluck like a chicken, you might be able to see that very faint positive line. To verify this test, I took a digital test and sure enough...."Pregnant." Three days later, I started to bleed. To make a long story short, I had a very early miscarriage on December 11th. This was very hard for me and a did a lot of crying and praying. Eventually, I came to realize that it was a good sign because we had conceived! We were doing something right and I trusted that God would give us that baby that was perfect for us when the time was right.

So, we got right back at it! :-) Despite a goofy cycle due to the miscarriage, Christmas travelling, and starting a new job, we managed to squeak in the neccessary...ummm...activities. I thought for sure there was no way we would conceive, but God had a better plan.

Now, here we are in January and I have three gloriously clear positive pregnancy tests sitting in my bathroom drawer!

I still take them out and look at them almost every time I go into the bathroom just to convince myself that I didn't imagine it.

Our first doctor's appointment is set for February 10th and the estimated due date is September 19th! I am already experiencing symptoms - nausea, fatigue, sore breasts, very sensitive sense of smell. It will be interesting to see how things this time are different from my first pregnancy.

As for the blog, well....I just figured I could type so much faster than I can write, so it makes sense to do it online rather than in a traditional journal, right? Plus, I can add photos. :-) Stay tuned!