My husband is the Best....

Check out what he posted for me after having an emotional night. Yeah one where I cry for no real reason. :^)

Ode to my wife- bikepasa.com
or
Ode to my wife- bustedspoke.com

13 weeks and counting

I am officially moving into my second trimester this week. Things are continuing to be great although I have that stupid lower back pain again. When I had gone to the dr he said if I can press on it and cause pain it is muscle. If not then it may be a pinched nerve. I cant seem to cause pain by pressing on it so I am assuming it is nerve. It hurts particularly when I go from sitting to standing or vice versa. It slowly gets worse as the day goes on. In researching online it says just keep staying active, take Tylenol at least that is the only thing I can take, and heat. I will be starting the regimen of trying to keep all that going as otherwise it could be a long 26 weeks of having pain.

Our weekend in the mountains at our friends wedding was a great time. I was a dancing queen and many of my dirt diva friends were getting a kick out of it. Some even said I had good moves. I think their drunken goggles may have construed things. :^) The massage I got while there was awesome. I never had a massage with hot stones and it was nice. Kona and I ended up hiking up a hill and running down a couple days for exercise.

This weekend I am running in a 5K race. My boss at work had tried to get a group together to run so I said sure. Of course I wont be racing, I figured I would just jump in the back and just run. It is on the greenway that is near my bro's house so I may have a cheering section.

My cousins wife sent me the instructions for the baby quilt she made. (Thanks Val!!) I am going to head to Michael's or AC Moore this weekend to see if there are other quilts that I like but I am leaning towards attempting this one. My mom will be down on the 13th so she can help me pick out fabric. I need to get moving on this stuff as the time will fly by.

I think that is about all we have going on. The baby's status for this week is he is about the size of a large plum, weighing less than 1 ounce and measuring anywhere from 2.6 to 4 inches. Despite the small proportions, he is a fully formed baby. Much more proportional than it was a few weeks ago, his head is now only about a third the size of his body. His tiny, unique fingerprints are already in place. His kidneys and urinary tract are functional, and he's starting to urinate out the amniotic fluid he's been swallowing.

thump thump... thump thump....

We heard the heartbeat yesterday. The heart was beating at 164 beats per minute. That was one of the coolest things ever. It just made it really real. We are looking into maybe renting one of the doppler machines to hear it again and again. If we do then we can record it to share with others. Our next appointment is June 1st when I get an ultrasound which means we may find out the gender of our baby. Then we can confirm if Jacob's assumption is true.. So get your votes in before then, who knows the winner may get a prize.

I also found out I have put on a total of 6 pounds since I got pregnant. A little more than I planned but oh well. They say 2-5 pounts during the first trimester so looks like I was an overachiever. :^)

This weekend we are off to a resort in Western NC to a wedding of our mountain bike friends, Jen & Brian. It is a great place to ride but I am undecided on bring my bike as Kona will be with us so I may just entertain him by hiking the trails. Definitely excited for Jen & Brian. My buddy Melanie is in the wedding as a bridesmaid so I am excited to see everyone all dressed up and not in bike gear. Melanie is one who has a soft heart so I am sure tears of joy will be had by many at the wedding. It should be good times. I also am getting a massage while at the resort complimentary of the bride and groom. Cant wait for that.

Biking at 12 weeks.....

We are now 12 weeks pregnant. I am feeling normal, not really tired, not quite as hungry, but feeling fat. I rode my bike with the Divas last night. We were at the White Water Center. There is a new loop that is open that I hadn’t ridden before. I heard some people as I started up a small climb, I was looking to see if they were behind me when I managed to fall off my bike. I got some bruises/scrapes on my legs, hand and chest. It was one of those stupid falls where it just kinda happens so I don’t feel it was much, if any, risk to the baby. (To ease some concern it really was no worse then tripping up the stairs for those not familiar with biking falls.) Since that all happened at the beginning the ride was much better after that. I am a bit more sketched out while riding so as soon as I feel my bike slide I dab a foot to make sure it doesn’t wash out or do anything out of my control. The White Water Center is one of the more challenging trails in the area so I was definitely dabbing a bit or walking stuff I normally would have ridden. Rides like last night definitely help with the fat feeling. Today I feel great, not sure if it is because I can button my pants and have a comfortable shirt on or maybe I lost some water weight from the ride. Either way I like it.

Yesterday was my first venture wearing my Bella Band. It took me a little bit before I got it figured out. I had searched online because it seemed like every time I moved it shifted. The trick that worked for me is to tuck part of it in my pants then fold the other part over my pants. Worked like magic. It definitely is a great thing to extend wearing normal clothes to keep things comfortable. I don’t need it all the time just some of my pants are getting uncomfortable, especially later in the day.

The baby that is about the size of a lime. To read more check out babycenter.com. Tomorrow we have a doctor’s appointment with Dr Sweeney. We hope we will be able to hear her (Jacob’s guess on what we will have) heartbeat. One of us will post more details tomorrow. Today seems like it isn’t going to go by fast enough to have tomorrow come. Very excited!!!!

Check back tomorrow to hear about the doctor’s appointment.

Thank you Thank you Thank you!!!

When I got home from work today I had received a package. Hmmmmmm what could it be. And as I have mentioned the waterworks in past posts, oh yeah I got teared up opening the package.... Someone sent me 2 Bella Bands and Burts Bees Mama Bee Belly Butter. I immediately put one on. This is the perfect thing.

It could not have come at a better time. Jacob and I were going to go to the maternity store to get some Bella Bands this weekend. On Wednesday I had to put a rubber band over the button hole of my pants to give me added room. And I was running out of pants that I could last the day in. My belly hasnt popped yet but it is more me just putting on added protection in my waist/sides and hips to protect the baby. At least that is how Jacob sees it. :^) In the morning my clothes feel OK but by mid day they are uncomfortable. I am so excited to have my new Bella Bands to wear all next week to buy me more time. I will definitely get my use out of them since in reading the package they can be used all the way through and post materity as well.

The Belly Butter will certainly come in handy soon enough.

You know who you are... THANK YOU!!!

11th week updates.

I am feeling really good. I am no way near as tired as I had been in the past few weeks. The breathing thing is much better. My back still gets a little sore. I ran my normal loop at Beatty with Kona. It was nice to have it not feeling like a chore and more enjoyable.
Jacob is going to build up his Moorwood Shova for me to ride so I can be on a full suspension bike (front & rear shocks). My bikes are fine with only front suspension but this way I hope to ride as long as I can with a more comfortable ride.

Funny Story… Yesterday I went to the grocery store to get eggs, so maybe a 5 minute errand. When I came out of the store I lost my car. I was pressing the key faub trying to locate my car walking around the parking lot. Then finally when I found it I was the first car in the front row next to the handicap spot. I don’t know how I couldn’t see it when I came out of the store. I guess it is true that you lose 30% of your brain being pregnant.

I definitely have the Cormier waterworks going….. When watching the Home Makeover show I usually don’t cry until the reveal but that is only when I see the show from start to finish. Sunday I cried the entire show when I started watching it in the middle.
Then watching TV over the weekend, they had one of those commercials to raise money for the ASPCA. Oh yeah that hit me too seeing all the puppies and kitties in need. I just can’t get myself to change the channel to break away. I have to sit there watch and cry…

In regards to the baby, she (because that is what Jacob thinks we are having) is measuring 1 1/2 inches long and weighing a quarter of an ounce. To read more check out babycenter.com.

In regards to Jacob, he seems to be doing well. I can’t tell you enough how lucky I am to have him as my partner through this. He seems to be very excited since he couldn’t wait to tell everyone now that the word is spreading.

In regards to Kona, he is still attached to my hip. Unless he is taking over the couch, he is always right there with me. When I was reading on the hammock this weekend he had to lie right under it with the occasional break to work his squirrel duty.

The latest mission we have is exploring the idea of getting rid of my car. This is just in the infant stages but something we may consider because a kid seat and Kona in the back seat never mind the stroller and stuff for the trunk, may not fit very well. Plus trips to MA with the same scenario could be challenging since Kona is the first baby who needs access to his parents. :^)

My mom is helping me explore the idea of making the baby’s quilt and bumpers. My cousin’s wife, Val, made a beautiful quilt for her children so that has inspired me. I do know how to sew just not quilt so it could be an adventure.

All in all I think things are going great. Thursday the 26th we head to the doctors to possibly hear the heart beat.

Work update

I told my manager yesterday that I was 11 weeks pregnant. His response was awesome. He was very happy for me and has offered to work with me as much as he can. He has two girls of his own so he knows what it is like, his are in high school and college bound. He said make sure I take the time I need since when they are little you can get the time back….. I like his thinking and it is nice to have someone like him as my manager. He said not to worry about appointments and we can figure things out with returning to work and maternity leave. He is going to do some research for me to see what my options are. I have heard a woman is not required to return to work full time for up to a year after a new baby at the Bank. All things I don’t know and haven’t been able to find myself yet. Having a baby is something we don’t know what the true impact is going to be so we are exploring all options to find what will work the best.

Jacob is going to talk with his boss to see what kind of options he is going to have for work after the baby. Our goal is to not have the baby in day care and me at home some during the day so I don’t have to feel like a cow hooked up to a milk machine at work all the time.