Some do's and don'ts

So far in pregnancy I've had a few instances of being hurt (even if only slightly) by some of the following. Okay, so not all of them hurt but they still make for good blogging. ;)

Don't react to a pregnant woman showing you how much her belly has "popped out" by asking her if she ate too much over the weekend.

Do say, "Wow, there's a baby in there!"

Don't comment on a pregnant woman's belly size with such remarks as "wow, are you having twins?" or "are you sure you're only ___ weeks along?"

Do tell a pregnant lady she looks pregnant (not fat), and that she's "glowing".

Don't call a pregnant woman "Pregosaurus Rex".

Do offer to pick things up for her when she drops or can't reach them (because of her disproportionately short arms, hahaha).

Don't look at a pregnant woman's pile of buffalo wing bones in wide-eyed amazement and comment that you can't believe she ate all of that.

Do look at a pregnant woman's buffalo wings and say that some wings sound great and that's what you should have had for lunch.

Don't call a pregnant lady a weirdo for stealing sweet pickles from your fridge.

Do tell her to go ahead and help herself to whatever she can find that sounds edible in your kitchen.

Don't look at a pregnant lady in shock if her weight gain is a little... ahead of schedule. Chances are she'll even out in the end, at least that's what her Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy tells her.

Do reassure her when she's concerned about her weight that breast-feeding will help take it right off.

Don't mention to non-females the fact that Pregosaurus has a special bowl to use for inopportune nausea moments. Those moments might be embarrassing and inappropriate for mixed company. ;)

Do be sympathetic if Pregosaurus tells you a horribly embarrassing story and offer a bowl if needed.

Don't ask a pregnant lady if she's tried ____________ (saltine crackers, ginger ale, 7up, graham crackers, etc) for her nausea. Believe me, she has.

Do lend your pregnant friend a hair tie if she mentions she has forgotten hers. If she mentions it, it's because she needs it and is kicking herself for neglecting her right jeans pocket that morning.

Don't tell your pregnant wife that you're going to be sad if she cries if she's wrong about the gender of your kiddo.

Do tell your pregnant wife it's okay to be disappointed, especially while you are extra-emotional, tired, and sick while pregnant.

and a last thought for the day...

Don't reply to a pregnant lady's comment of, "it's okay, I'm not as big as a house, YET," with "Yet being the operative word."

Do offer to plug in your own peripheral equipment on your computer, or do any other job that requires the pregnant lady to crawl around on all four.

Those are just a few of the little funny isms I've run into during these past couple months. Hope you've enjoyed them. Oh, and I also hope you know I'm not taking myself too seriously with any of these. Although, I am really insecure about my weight and have always been - so I am not looking forward to the gain or the long road ahead of me with taking it off.

In fact, on a serious note, I really am trying to take good care of myself as far as eating. I have not had the time or energy to exercise. And eating has been a challenge with being sick and having so many aversions to various foods.

I have a busy several days ahead of me. Tonight dessert with a friend, tomorrow evening I'll be spending some time with another friend who I feel like I haven't seen in ages, Thursday we're going to see Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me in Pasadena with Joe for his birthday gift, Saturday we have a party to attend in the evening, then Monday I'm going to see Imogen Heap with Joe and Francine for MY birthday gift. Whew! Who needs sleep, anyway?

MORE pics...

So it took me a while but I finally scanned the ultrasound pictures from that 2nd ultrasound I had during the week of 10/18.

These are from the Nuchal Translucency (NT) ultrasound on October 22nd. It was really cool to see the little one squirmin' around in there. In one of these pics (s)he's even waving! :)

Enjoy.

Cautiously optimistic

Well, it's 4:22pm and I have yet to take my anti-nausea medication today.

I'm not feeling perfect, but Kevin said I looked more like myself today and I haven't felt ill enough to really give much thought to taking it.

Oh, I hope the nausea part is over. I really really really really really hope so.

In other news, I have better ultrasound pics to put up but have not found the gumption to scan them and upload them yet. Perhaps tonight. We have a quiet Friday night ahead of us, thankfully.

Dreaming

First things first, the answer you're all dying to know, yes, I'm still sick.

I keep hoping that I'm going to hit that magical day when the nausea disappears. I'm 13 weeks today, so I'm not gonna lie, I was hoping that might be today. Not so much.

But, at least thanks to the miracle of modern medicine, I am not puking. I definitely prefer feeling sick and not puking to feeling sick and puking.

Moving on...

In every dream I have had about this baby, SHE has turned out to be a girl. I had another such dream last night, even though I have specifically prayed for some shift in that gut feeling that it's a girl if I'm wrong. Even if just to be somewhat uncertain, instead of having this nagging "feeling" that this baby is a girl.

Last week, on Tuesday or Wednesday night, both of my sisters-in-law had dreams that our baby was a boy. Like, they both had a dream that our baby was a boy on the same night.

Which made me feel a little bit of doubt over my own intuition. Do I just want a girl that badly? Before we got pregnant I never really thought I had a preference. I actually do want at least one of each. And Aaron and I have always thought that if we did ever get pregnant, it would be a boy because of some really cool ways that prayers have been answered while we were unsure of whether or not we'd ever even be in this boat.

But I've had 3 dreams about our baby during these past couple months, and in all of them, our baby has been a girl. Last night her name was Emily - which I was hoping was going to have some great meaning or significance, but was kinda disappointed to learn it means "rival." During the month we got pregnant, while I was actually pregnant (but before I realized it), I for the first time got really attached to a specific girl's name (Vivian Grace).

So, is it a boy or is it a girl?

I can't wait to find out. I honestly believe I will be happy either way, but my hormonal pregnant self might be a bit disappointed if it turns out I'm "wrong" and it's a boy and not a girl.

Yes, you may call me crazy now.

Pictures!

First things first, I updated about my belly yesterday... edit... replaced with a much more flattering picture. ;)

From Baby Caloca

And, this is from today's ultrasound!

So exciting!

From Baby Caloca

I haven't thrown up since Wednesday (thanks, Zofran generic equivalent!). I am hoping that the morning sickness is on its way out, but that medication was a lifesaver while I was working at Crossroads over the weekend.

I have an NT ultrasound on Thursday, so I get to see the baby AGAIN. Woo hoo! My mom's coming with me to that one, I think she's pretty excited.

By the way, NT ultrasound is part of prenatal screening for genetic defects. I'm sure everything will be fine, but if there were to be something going on I think I would rather know ahead of time.

Ok, I am so wiped out. Time for bed!

Rockin' the baby bump

Sometime between Thursday and today, my belly did a ridiculous amount of "popping".

Will post pics once I don't look like I got hit by a train... I am so tired from spending the weekend at Crossroads. :P

So Glamorous

Well, sorry for the lack of updates.

The thing is, I feel like if I keep writing about puking, those of you who don't have kids yet may be scared off. ;)

Basically, I feel sick right now. I feel sick in the afternoon, I feel sick in the evening. Not constantly, it usually comes in waves, and when the wave lasts too long, that's when I decide to go attempt to barf. Because for maybe 10 minutes after I do, sometimes longer, I feel better.

I can't wait until the "fun" stuff sets in - like feeling the baby kick! And I keep hoping that when my 2nd trimester hits I'll be some kind of super woman.

Other than that, I'm just counting down the days until my next doc appointment on the 19th. Hopefully I will get to actually hear the heartbeat at that one. :)