15 Weeks

For the first time ever, I bought maternity clothes. My pants are getting tighter and I have definitely needed my Bella band. So I decided to check out the maternity clothes. And are the pants so comfortable! They look funny because of the stretchy band, but with a long shirt, it's just a pair of jeans. These maternity clothes were reasonably priced. I can't believe they have designer jeans and are they expensive! I plan not to wear them again once the pregnancy is over and refuse to buy a pair of designer jeans. Though I saw used maternity 7's at a resale store and would buy them there. I say that I'll treat myself to a pair of designer jeans if I can get back to my pre-pregnancy size! Anyways, I bought jeans and two shirts. That's a good start.


How Far Along: 15 weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss: Up 5 lbs, maybe 6 lbs.??? Don't have a scale handy.

Maternity Clothes: Bought my first pair of jeans and 2 shirts!

Sleep: So-so. Didn't sleep that well last night, woke up 2 times. I did take my first nap ever 2 days ago because I was so tired.
Best Moment of the Week: Scheduling our 19 week ultrasound to find out the gender on January 22nd!!
Movement: Not yet, just pain from my growing uterus or just gas.
Food Craving: Nothing specific, though I really want a Blizzard from Dairy Queen!
Food Aversions: Anything too greasy.
Morning Sickness: Getting less and less. My appetite is growing and get queasy only if I go too long without food...like now. I just ate an hour ago and feel like I need to eat again.
Gender: Too early to tell....still think it's a boy! Though those Chinese gender prediction charts say I'm having a girl.
Labor Signs: Fortunately no!
Belly Button: Still an innie :) Though my belly is getting rounder.
What I Miss: Deli meats, unpasteurized soft cheeses and red wine.

What I'm Looking Forward To: The new year!
Weekly Wisdom: You can eat soft cheeses if they are pasteurized.....and/or cooked.
Milestones: Finally getting rid of morning sickness and end of the 1st week of the 2nd trimester.

Week 14 Pictures

I'm getting bigger...eeeek! I'm getting pains once in awhile which I'm attributing to my uterus stretching.

Second Trimester

I am now starting the 2nd trimester! My morning sickness is getting better. I still get a little queasy, but it's much better and can now finish 3/4 of my food before I start to feel it. I find eating smaller, but frequent meals throughout the day is helping me control the nausea. I've been doing 3 meals a day with 2-4 snacks. My meals are still my normal-sized ones. I thought I'd be able to eat more in one sitting being pregnant and all, but I still find myself stuffed halfway through a restaurant-sized meal. That'll probably change once the baby starts growing more. Anyways, I'll be posting a 2nd trimester picture soon (my camera battery is charging).

How Far Along: 14 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Up 5 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: Nope, but my pants are getting a bit more uncomfortable and have to wear my Bella band with the buttoned pants. I find my stretchy pants the most comfortable!

Sleep: Improving! Been sleeping through the nights now, waking up to a very full bladder.

Best Moment of the Week: Feeling less nauseous.

Movement: Not yet...I think. Probably round ligament pains or gas.

Food Craving: Nothing really, but I really like fruit...pomelos, bananas. I've been craving sushi...I've eaten unagi, kappa maki, and shrimp rolls....all cooked!

Food Aversions: Mexican food.

Morning Sickness: Yay, getting much better! Though feel sick if I eat too much.

Gender: Too early to tell....still think it's a boy!

Labor Signs: No!

Belly Button: Still an innie :) Though my belly is protruding more and more.

What I Miss: Sleeping through the night. My normal eating habits. And not feeling queasy!

What I'm Looking Forward To: Start work after the new year. I'm getting bored at home.

Weekly Wisdom: Try to eat healthy, but it's okay to have sweets too.

Milestones: End of the 1st trimester!

A Surprise Package

I'm a posting machine today! This what happens when you have a lot of free time on your hands.

Anyways, the FedEx deliverer came knocking on my door and I was surprised to see a big package next to him. I knew my parents were mailing the baby's gifts, but didn't think they'd arrive so soon.

It's the baby crib! Because we're not nearly ready to start setting up for the baby, especially in our very cozy one bedroom apartment, we packed it back up in its box. We just wanted to make sure there was no damage to the crib on its travel. My parents and I were so surprised the crib arrived so quickly (they ordered it on Saturday) since the website said it could take up awhile. But considering the crib came from California, it didn't take long at all.

It's espresso, but lighter than I expected. Still, I love it. Here is a picture of the crib put together from the website:

It is a 3-in-1 convertible crib, converting into a toddler and a daybed:

I am so excited to start shopping for bedding and putting everything together. Alas, it's way too soon!

Thanks Mom and Dad!!!!

The Last Week of the First Trimester!

Today marks week 13 and the last week until the 2nd trimester!

Since I am a long way from my family and my parents will finally be getting a computer (and internet!) soon, this blog is a great way for them to see how the pregnancy is progressing. I am a bit sad that we decided to move to San Diego and then get pregnant because my parents would of been so happy to see me pregnant. It's their first grandchild so this is a very big event in their lives right now. But I'll be going home to Seattle for 2 weeks March 2nd and will be 6 months pregnant, so they'll definitely see me more pregnant than now! I have been making more of an effort, though, to call them more frequently than normal as well as have them check Jennifer's or my aunt's Facebook for the latest ultrasound picture!

This blog is also a great way for me to record my memories. It'll be a good way to look back and reference when I'm ready to scrapbook about my pregnancy...which I should probably do now as I progress through it! Until then, I hope you don't mind the weekly, bi-weekly or even daily blogging I may do on here.

How Far Along: 13 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Up 4 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: Nope, but I have to use my Bella band with some of my tighter pants...can't button them and be reasonably comfortable.

Sleep: I never nap and that hasn't changed. Slept only 5 hours last night because I had an early morning orientation for a new job. Woke up after the first snooze because I was hungry and needed to eat before anything else happened.

Best Moment of the Week: Seeing the baby on the ultrasound for the 2nd time and seeing it move its arms and legs. Movement: Not yet!

Food Craving: For the past couple of days, I've been craving milk which I usually don't like.

Food Aversions: Until yesterday, pretty much couldn't stomach anything except fruit. I have been forcing myself to eat. Oatmeal made me really nauseous after a few bites, but managed to eat it all.

Morning Sickness: Getting better. I really have to make sure I eat every one-two hours or I get nauseous...like now! Nauseous and hungry....bad combination! I feel like I'm eating ALL THE TIME!

Gender: Too early to tell....but I think it's a boy!

Labor Signs: Thank god, no.

Belly Button: Still an innie :)

What I Miss: Sleeping through the night. My normal eating habits. And not feeling queasy!

What I'm Looking Forward To: The 2nd trimester when everyone tells me I'll feel better....they better be right!! Spending my first Christmas in El Paso with the Rust family (though will be missing the Deluao family!).

Weekly Wisdom: Don't over-research on the internet....too much information as well as conflicting.

Milestones: 2nd trimester...here I come!!

This is mainly for my benefit as I find time speeding along faster than I'm writing it down.

Since this blog is my only written record of this pregnancy, I'm working backwards a bit

How Far Along? 11 weeks

Total Weight Gained/Loss? +5lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nope, still in the regular clothes, but nothing tight around the belly and no cute form fitting tshirts anymore. Not showing at all unless I'm naked. But my breasts...oh my they are looking mighty fine. My friends don't rub my belly, they feel me up.

Sleep? I love sleep!!! Sometimes I sleep for 10 hours. I always crash in the afternoon by 4pm. No nap is not an option.

Best Moment of the Week? Realizing after swimming that I'd forgotten to put my acupressure wristbands back on...and that I didn't need them anymore!

The NT scan which revealed that everything is A-OK with the wee ones!

Movement: Do my monster, mammoth, truck driver burps counts cuz they move by themselves?

Food Craving: No cravings, but food in general is all starting to taste good again

Food aversions: No real aversions this week. The worst of that seems to be over. Water must still be ice cold

Morning sickness? Nope, but I have to eat every 2-3 hours to keep feeling good

Gender: If I'm pregnant I must be a woman

Labor Signs: No, thank God

Belly Button: Present and hanging out on my belly

What I miss: The ability to know what I'm hungry for. Energy.

What I'm looking forward to: Telling Chicken's family the big news this weekend

Weekly Wisdom: Swimming and exercise is fabulous! Get moving!

Milestones: Almost out of this dreaded 1st trimester

This is mainly for my benefit as I find time speeding along faster than I'm writing it down.

Since this blog is my only written record of this pregnancy, I'm working backwards a bit.

How Far Along? 11 weeks

Total Weight Gained/Loss? +5lbs

Maternity Clothes: Nope, still in the regular clothes, but nothing tight around the belly and no cute form fitting tshirts anymore. Not showing at all unless I'm naked. But my breasts...oh my they are looking mighty fine. My friends don't rub my belly, they feel me up.

Sleep? I love sleep!!! Sometimes I sleep for 10 hours. I always crash in the afternoon by 4pm. No nap is not an option.

Best Moment of the Week? Realizing after swimming that I'd forgotten to put my acupressure wristbands back on...and that I didn't need them anymore!

The NT scan which revealed that everything is A-OK with the wee ones!

Movement: Do my monster, mammoth, truck driver burps counts cuz they move by themselves?

Food Craving: No cravings, but food in general is all starting to taste good again

Food aversions: No real aversions this week. The worst of that seems to be over. Water must still be ice cold

Morning sickness? Nope, but I have to eat every 2-3 hours to keep feeling good

Gender: If I'm pregnant I must be a woman

Labor Signs: No, thank God

Belly Button: Present and hanging out on my belly

What I miss: The ability to know what I'm hungry for. Energy.

What I'm looking forward to: Telling Chicken's family the big news this weekend

Weekly Wisdom: Swimming and exercise is fabulous! Get moving!

Milestones: Almost out of this dreaded 1st trimester

Work Update

I haven't been working for well over a month now as it's been slow at Career Staff. Thus, I began looking for other jobs. Because of the impending birth of our first child and my hesitancy to continue working full-time after the baby's birth, I have been considering taking multiple jobs on a per diem basis or combining a part-time position with a couple per diem positions. The goal is to be able to work full-time as long as I'm able until our child is born, take 2-3 months of leave and then return to work part-time. One reason I love being a physical therapist is that it does allow such flexibility.

I have been offered a per diem position at Palomar Pomerado Health where their need is primarily on the weekends. I would be doing both hospital and skilled nursing facility rehab, depending where there need is. I am excited to return to inpatient rehab as it has always been an interest to work in this setting and will be a nice change from nursing homes. It is considered a level 1 trauma center, so I should see some pretty interesting cases. Their skilled nursing facility seems to be more like the TCU than a regular SNF, which I'm excited about because I miss that type of setting. I have orientation on Monday and should start by the new year.

I have also been offered a per diem position at both La Mesa Convalescent Hospital and Jacob Health Care Center. I would work at either one, depending on the need, and will cover either weekdays or weekends. I just went to my orientation today and will turn in my acceptance letter tomorrow. I will also start working there after the new year.

I will continue to have a working relationship with Career Staff, but will be limited as I will get more hours from the other places. I already let them know that I have been looking for work elsewhere as they haven't been able to fulfill my work needs.

It is good to know that I will finally be working again. It's been quite a bore at home and the extra income will be very nice. I just hope that my body holds up, especially when I get rounder and handling patients becomes more troublesome. I have had SI joint problems just from long walks, so I can't imagine how I'll feel after being on my feet for 8 hours and manually handling patients. I'll just have to sit as frequent as I can while treating patients so I give myself a break!

12 Weeks

Yesterday, we had our 2nd appointment with the ob-gyn. We had the option for another ultrasound and blood work to check for the risk of chromosomal abnormalities, primarily Down Syndrome. The ultrasound, measuring the nuchal translucency, was normal. We'll have to wait 7-10 days for the lab results as both combined assesses the risk for any chromosomal abnormalities.

The baby's heart rate was 154 bpm, within the normal range. On our next appointment we'll be able to hear the heat beating. I guess they don't do it on the ultrasound as it emits a lot of heat and be damaging to the baby.

I think we ultrasound the baby when it was wide awake as it was moving so much! We saw it kick its legs and punch its fist, doing somersaults in the uterus. It was really amazing to see how much they move so early on. However, I haven't been able to feel the baby move yet. I guess in another week or two, I'll be able to feel it's limbs kick my uterus around.

It's so reassuring that the baby is growing normally and doing well. As for me, I have gained about 5 pounds. It's amazing that I have gained weight since I feel like I haven't been eating more calories. Being nauseous and not having an appetite has put a damper on eating. The doctor said my symptoms are normal. It's been hard to eat. I've been forcing myself to eat and everything that I eat has no flavor....not fun at all. At least, I've been trying to eat foods with nutritional value. And hopefully this will past as I start the 2nd trimester.

Changing Body

Every week, we have been taking pictures of my growing belly. The changes have been subtle, but I am getting a belly bump as the weeks progress.

Week 6 - Not much of a belly bump going on.

Week 11 - I'm growing a baby bump! My pants are a bit more snug, but I can still fit in them. I bought a Bella band once I have to unbutton my pants, but haven't yet to do that.

I'm hoping the second trimester goes smoother than the first. I've been plagued with all-day morning sickness, lack of sleep, a stuffy nose, bad complexion, and now an annoying cough. I think I got another cold on my way back to Seattle. The lack of sleep has been mostly from making trips to the bathroom, though now I have been getting hunger pangs and have had to satiate my stomach. Unfortunately, food hasn't been sounding or tasting appetizing and have been forcing myself to eat frequently throughout the day. Luckily, I haven't been losing weight. Anyways, it's been bearable so I shouldn't be complaining much!

Next week will be the end of the first trimester. It will also be the week to see my doctor again as well as another ultrasound. I'm excited!!