April 26, 2010

12 Weeks

I'm officially 12 weeks tomorrow, but I'm working so I figured I'd post today instead. I've been feeling much better except now I'm hungry ALL THE TIME!!! I can only eat about half a meal and I'm stuffed and an hour later I'm starving again. It's certainly better than puking and feeling nauseous though. No new cravings, except food in general. I need to start craving pickles since we have about 12 jars canned from last season still...hmmm...maybe I will have just one...

Someone told me to take pictures in a doorway so it's easier to see how much the belly is growing so here's my first picture in the doorway to Spike's room. Bonus: you can all see all the baby stuff in the pack-n-play behind me, which hopefully will be transformed into a better nursery over the next few months. I actually lost about 10lbs when I was feeling sick and haven't gained much back so no baby bump yet. You can tell my abs are less muscular than the first picture though...hmmm.

I ran yesterday for the first time since before I was sick and it felt GREAT! I am hoping to run two 10Ks this summer that I'm already signed up for so I need to get back into shape. Rob has been running a lot so he's going to be in charge of pushing the stroller when Spike arrives! Maybe then I can keep up with him. Speaking of strollers, the Hickey's gave us their Chariot as a thank you for 3405265320 hours of babysitting (approximately). They have a double Chariot now. This stroller is the best ever. It's a jogger that can completely encase the baby in an air lock so they are not exposed to the elements (which are quite elemental here in Maine winters when Spike is expected to arrive). It also has an attachment to be pulled behind a bike or cross country skis (we don't have cross country skis so we'll have to pull him downhill). I think it also is equipped for deep sea diving, baby-sized oxygen tanks sold separately. I've included a picture (after 10 minutes of me trying to figure out how to set it up...don't worry, the second time only took 2 minutes, I'm getting faster). Thanks Hickeys-can't wait to take the trio out next winter!



We also just found out that Jessie Pappenfus (my roommate from Gordon) is 12 weeks preggo too! Apparently we are still cycling together even after living on opposite sides of the country for 4 years. I stole this picture from her Facebook page because it was so cute. PS: Jessie, you need a Chariot.
That's all the news for now. So glad the weather is getting nicer, can't wait to use those maternity clothes this summer!


April 17, 2010

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

That's the sound of Spike, you know.
We had our 10.5 week prenatal appointment on Friday and got to hear Spike's heartbeat! It was beating at about 170 beats per minute which is normal for a munchkin of that age. My reaction was "wow, there really is something in there!". We both thought it was pretty cool.
Spike is currently the size of a fig-quick, anyone know how big is a fig? Well, it's about 2 inches and weighs half an ounce. S/he is moving around with tiny muscles and has developed tooth buds and a diaphragm. Way to go Spike!

April 14, 2010

Spike's First Gift

Spike got a package in the mail yesterday from the Van Beeks and it was all I could do to wait until Rob got home to open it! The CUTEST Red Sox outfit! A bit small for Rob so he promised to let Spike wear it. Can't wait to take the little guy (or girl) to Fenway! Thanks Doug, Brenda, and little Rob!


April 11, 2010

From the bleachers:

At the current moment in time, I feel obligated to make a PSA about baby showers. (This really has not much to do with Spike except that there will certainly be a baby shower (or showers) at some point. Keep your eyes on this spot for a registry in the future, and remember, it's never to early to start saving up...)

So, here are Rob's "Official Rules for Baby Showers:"

1) NO MEN!!! I cannot stress this enough. NO MEN!!! NONE!! NADA!! ZIP!!! Men, even the father of the child, do not want to attend the shower, and I am pretty sure there is even a prohibition against men at baby showers in Leviticus somewhere. If you make men come to the baby shower, they will say the right things, pretend to be excited about the tiny little "booties" that were just unwrapped, but they will all really wish that they were somewhere drinking beer, eating pretzels, and watching a "guy movie," preferably one directed by Michael Bay. (Additionally, I believe the ladies would attest to preferring the all-women showers as well. Ladies? Can I get an "Amen" on that?)

2) HOLD IT SOMEWHERE PRIVATE. True Story: I just got back from going to Borders to grab a coffee with a friend, and there was a baby shower going on in the cafe area. So, whilst we were trying to discuss life and faith issues, there was constant shrieking at the next "cute," "adorable," "precious," or "nipple cream" item was unwrapped. You could see the glares from the rest of the cafe pointed in their general direction since it IS, after all, a bookstore. People might just be, oh I don't know, READING!

3) NO MEN! (And yes, there were men at the Border's book store shin dig, so I felt the need to reiterate this point on their behalf.)

So, just follow these 3 simple rules, and you should be well on your way to Baby Shower success.

And that's the view from the bleachers...

April 5, 2010

Easter

We had Dad, Pris, and Steph up for Easter dinner on a beautiful Maine day! It was 84 degrees on April 4-a record for sure. We used the opportunity to share our good news via some scrabble tiles hidden in Easter Eggs. It took Steph about 4.2 seconds to figure out our message...


We spent the rest of the afternoon on a walk by the ocean at Fort Williams Park, a popular place on such a nice day.We ate our succulent turkey, bacon-jalapeƱo stuffing, salad, and asparagus outside in the sun. Everyone else got wine, but not me and Spike. Oh how I miss a good glass of red! I couldn't eat as much as I did at Thanksgiving but that might be because it was one of the first real meals I've had since I was sick...or maybe Spike is taking up more than his fair share of my abdomen. I was pretty hungry later and Spike wanted nachos...




April 2, 2010

First Prenatal Appointment and First Real Sickness

On a rainy Tuesday, Rob and I showed up at Back Cove Midwives to have our first Prenatal appointment. We met with Martha, one of the MAs there, and answered a billion questions about medical history, my ability to distinguish between Tylenol and Ibuprofen, and Spike's distaste for soft cheeses.
I've been feeling a bit sick to my stomach lately and Martha reassured me that this was normal and would go away by 14 weeks (that's still 6 weeks away!). She said to continue eating crackers and ginger ale to appease my stomach...right before she launched into the importance of getting 96oz of fluid, 60grams of protein, 30mg iron, 1200mg calcium, 800mcgs Folic Acid, and 1000mg of fish oil per day. Last I checked, crackers and ginger ale didn't contain ANY of those ingredients. Maybe they make preggo-crackers laced with folic acid...
I spent the next day at work carefully counting my protein and calcium intake and then promptly threw it all up on Wednesday night. I had the most awful stomach bug that I can ever remember, complete with Fever, diarrhea, chills, dizziness, and sleeping on the bathroom floor. This was NOT morning sickness (although it did strike at exactly 12:01AM). I kept asking Rob if I was dying...being a good husband, he assured me that I was fine. I did call Martha back on Thursday when I had a fever of 101 scared that I would harm Spike. She said to take Tylenol to keep the fever down and drink plenty of fluids (pretty sure I didn't get my 96oz that day). So much for the protein and iron requirements during pregnancy. I did, however, sleep for 21/24 hours, that has to count for something.
I am feeling MUCH better today (Friday) and was able to stomach most of a normal meal. I even ate some protein and calcium! The weather is beautiful and I can't wait for Easter when Dad, Pris, and Steph come up to find out the good news! Don't worry, Reeds, we plan on Skyping you that evening, but you'll already know that by the time you read this.