From Misses to Maternity

I think one of the first things that all women think about when they first realize that they are pregnant is "When am I going to have to wear maternity clothes?" I'm sure that some women are more excited for that shopping experience than others, I was definitely not one of them. I have been procrastinating as long as possible to make the dreaded shopping trip. Now, after 15 weeks of pregnancy, I had to cave. Not that the pants are absolutely necessary at this point, but I am sure uncomfortable wearing my regular jeans. I knew that getting a pair of maternity jeans would relieve my stress on the belly as well as the stress on baby.

The only jeans that I could picture in my head, were the "full panel" jeans. Those lovely jeans that have the giant elastic band that goes clear up to the chest. I couldn't imagine how small bellied mommies could possibly wear these jeans. I told myself I would suck it up and manage, anything would be better than the pressure and indentation that my current jeans leave daily. Luckily, I was naive in the world of maternity as there are a plethora of "band types" to choose from.

Thank goodness, I didn't have to buy the jeans that I was absolutely dreading. I'm not sure if I will regret it later down the road or not but I decided to go with the demi panel. These sit nicely below the belly and have plenty of room for baby growth. Although those with the full and extended panel leave much room for growth, I can't be sure how big I will be or how uncomfortable I may need  to buy them. Being pregnant during the summer is going to be absolutely terrible. The horrible heat that Colorado gets will be extremely uncomfortable for a pregnant woman. That means that I will then have to go shopping for shorts and tanks that I will only be able to wear for 3 months! 

I think that I will wait before doing anymore maternity shopping as the price tags are not cheap. Hopefully I will be able to go a little bit longer without having to worry about buying shirts. I would definitely much rather spend money on the baby than myself. I would have liked to wait at least another 5 weeks or so before buying jeans but it just wasn't worth it anymore! With our next appointment this week, we should be able to see how measurements are coming and how baby is growing. It might give me an idea of when I will have to make this glorious shopping trip again.

Feeling Uncomfortable

I cannot help but search for pictures online and look through baby books and magazines to give me an idea of when I should be showing the pregnancy and how I may look. It seems to be a curiosity for never experiencing it before. I use the books that tell me "Your baby is the size of a lime," to help me in estimating where it may be sitting and how big before I will feel it. Unfortunately, I feel nothing but uncomfortable. I have began to feel pressure in my lower abdomen and it is the worst. My jeans are too tight and maternity pants are too big! I see a small difference in my lower stomach and that is it! There is no sign of an actual shaped 'baby bump' so at this point I try to keep myself comfortable without worrying what I look like from another perspective. I understand that each woman is completely different with each pregnancy but I am hoping that within the next few weeks I can begin to have a small bump. Maybe this will eliminate some of the discomfort and give me a little bit of confidence in what I am wearing. I am certain that the discomfort will arise again later in pregnancy, but at that time, I should be in those clothes that are made for expecting mommies. For right now, I feel it may still be a little too early to be shopping in the maternity section.

I talk to many different women and I hear so many different things about pregnancy. At times, I wish there was some consistency in having a baby so I can really understand it. At this point, I have no clue what is going on, what to expect or what is going to happen and it absolutely drives me crazy! Living with a man doesn't help either cause they don't know squat about anything. I guess I have to take each day with a grain of salt, try and educate myself as much as possible and pray that my mommy intuition will eventually kick in--and not steer me wrong. 

Baby Looks Like A Baby!

February 1, 2011

About 9 weeks through the pregnancy I and I finally began to start feeling normal again. I regained my appetite and was not feeling quite so nauseous anymore. I was starting to have a better outlook on pregnancy. However, I woke up one morning and thought that my pregnancy was all over. With the thoughts of miscarriage running through my head since I found out about the baby, I couldn't help but have overwhelming emotion that morning. I called the doctor just to be safe, explained my symptoms and was told I needed to be seen. I took it easy that day trying to prepare myself for what the future of the pregnancy may look like.

When I arrived to the doctor, the only thing I kept thinking was that I wanted to see my baby and hear the heartbeat. Of course, they anxiously make you wait until the last few minutes of the appointment. I was finally admitted to ultrasound and was graciously relieved that I could see my baby fluttering and heard the strong heartbeat (around 200bpm!) I was given the news that everything was fine with baby and that I had a small blood clot, or a chorionic hemorrhage,  around the area where the baby was growing. I was assured that everything should be fine but to make sure to take it easy, no heavy lifting or moving, and hope that my body absorbs the clot. (Luckily, I have a wonderful husband to take care of all the dirty work for me.) Although I was relieved, the 'mommy' side of me couldn't help but continuing to worry until I really knew that everything was okay.

Our follow up visit was great! There was no sign of the hemorrhage still and the baby was growing great and still had a strong heartbeat. My mind was definitely put at ease to know that this clot may have just been a small bump in the road. We went in on the 1st, 11 weeks, for our infamous Down Syndrome and Trisomy testing. As I find out that we have to wait 4 weeks in between testing and then wait an additional 4 more weeks before finding our results, made feel feel a little uneasy again. I'm sure its common between all first time mommies but I am still not sure how I should react to everything. However, our ultrasound tests went amazing! Everything measured just how it should be and we were so excited because baby finally looked like a baby! There was certainly a noticeable head and little body and it was no longer just a white peanut, there really is a baby in there.

At that point,  I realized that it doesn't matter how testing comes back but that we have an amazing miracle joining us is the greatest gift I could get. I could not feel the baby and I didn't look as though I was having a baby but I knew that one day, when it did happen, it would be indescribable.