Week 13 really came and went with no interruptions to normal life! I felt good this week, my eating was fairly normal, and I even stayed up till 9:30 or 10pm most nights!
How I’m Feeling
Like I mentioned above, great! My energy is pretty normal, although I do get VERY hungry if I wait too long to eat.
Workouts
Although I do have more normal energy levels, I definitely can’t work out as long or as often as I could before getting pregnant. A walk/run combined with some strength training doesn’t leave me much energy for anything else active. When I was doing the LiveFit trainer, the lifting workouts would take probably 40-60 minutes, and then cardio was supposed to be added on top of that! If I’m doing any sort of “combination” workout (lifting and some cardio), I really can’t do anything more than 45 minutes.
I can WALK for a long time, but still, around that 45 minute mark, I’m ready to be finished.
Other News
I think I may have felt the baby move! It felt like a teeny tiny cell phone vibrating really low in my abdominal cavity (lol). Actually, there were a few times that I thought my cell phone was vibrating, only to find out that I didn’t have a call or any messages. It doesn’t really happen very often, but, it is a feeling that I’ve never felt before, so I’ll call it baby!
Well, time has flown by and I’m nearly out of the first trimester of our pregnancy! Different sources say that the first trimester ends at 13 weeks (today) and some say it ends at 14 weeks! I wanted to go ahead and get this post up because I’ve been writing it FOREVER! I’m going to “theme” each week and then give a quick rundown of any “noteworthy” symptoms/thoughts of that week. Sound good?
I’m also doing a “good food/bad food” list as a way to recap the foods that I did and didn’t care for that particular week! Just wanted to throw in a disclaimer that I don’t think that the “Bad” foods are Bad! They just happened to make my stomach churn on those particular weeks!
Week 6: We’re Pregnant?!
Baby is the size of a Pea!
This is the week we found out we were pregnant! Click over to this post to read about how we found out that we were expecting our little one!
Good Foods: Eggs, Chicken, Cottage Cheese Pureed veggies (veggie soups) Tea Potatoes, dry cereal, gluten free bread Greek Salads (probably the only “whole” veggies I ate all week)
“Bad” Foods: Peanut Butter Coffee Vegetables (most) Fruit
How I’m Feeling Nauseous if I don’t eat every 1.5-2 hrs. Eating is the last thing that I wanted to do when I felt really bad, but it was really the ONLY thing that would help when I was feeling so icky. My chest is really tender this week (taking off a shirt hurts). Hoping this mellows out soon!
Workouts I attempted a strength workout the day before we found out we were pregnant and it just wasn’t going well. I went on a couple of runs/walks this week, but that nausea was pretty humbling.
Week 7: Week of Nausea, part 2.
Baby is the size of a Blueberry!
It’s so weird having a little secret that only a few people know! I’ve wanted to tell so many people that we’re expecting, but I’ll bite my tongue for a little while longer! We went to our first prenatal appointment this week!
Good Foods: Veggies incorporated into other meals, V8 juice Carbs (potatoes, gluten free bread, cereal) Homemade Veggie Sushi
“Bad” Foods: Peanut Butter Coffee Garlic
How I’m Feeling Aside from the existing food aversions, I’m feeling good! I took 3 naps this past week, but I haven’t been SUPER tired yet!
Workouts I got in a really good incline-walk on the treadmill at the gym! It was 30 minutes, 4mph, and inclines varying from 4-11 (I don’t know if that’s like level 4 or if it’s a 4% incline, who knows). I also did a 45 min workout video from Netflix: Crunch: Total Resculpt. Not too difficult, but I just wanted to mooooove!
Week 8: We See Baby!
Baby is the size of a Raspberry!
We got an ultrasound this week (on Valentine’s Day!) I had originally guesstimated that we were at 6 weeks, but the ultrasound on V-day had little baby at 7 weeks and 4 days It was actually great to know that I was a little further along, I’m hoping that means I have a shorter amount of time that I’ll be feeling icky! My cousin, Donna works at the office where I see my doctor (Hi Donna!) We also told our families this week that there was a little one on the way!
Good Foods Salty, Carby things (potatoes with salt, hashbrowns, toast with butter) Normal foods (veggies, cheese, fruits”“
“Bad” Foods Peanut butter (unless it is in puppy chow) Coffee The smell of eggs (at night)
How I’m Feeling Mornings are great! No more nausea (knock on wood) during the daytime! Evenings have been a bit rougher. My stomach feels upset and bloated and just icky in general. I’m also pretty tired. 8:30 bedtimes are what my body wants (in addition to an afternoon nap), but, that’s not really an option due to work, so I guess I’ll just keep trucking along.
Workouts Let’s think-I took a couple of walks with the dog, and I’ve been trying to walk to/from class (50mins). Other than that, not much. I really do want to incorporate more strength training, but my energy levels are so low in the evening that I just crash.
Week 9: Week of Sickness
Baby is the size of a Grape!
Well, week 9 started off on a pretty pitiful note. I came down with a 24 hour flu (fever and bad body aches) and stayed in bed almost all day. I felt better on Friday, but I started getting a cough on Saturday and laryngitis set in on Sunday and Monday. I woke up 6 times on Sunday night coughing. I wasn’t planning on waking up 6 times during the night until the baby was actually here… but my body had other plans.
Good Food: Barbara’s All Natural Cheese Puffs (basically, more natural Cheetos. But way more delicious) Cheese and tomato sandwiches (We went to Great Bagel on Sunday after church, and I had an amazing “Cheese Toast” sandwich on a gluten-free onion bagel (cheese, mustard, tomato slices and bacon.) I made the sandwich 4 times this week) Bacon (nitrate-free, I ate almost the entire package!)
What I’m Not Eating Coffee Peanut butter Garlic
How I’m Feeling Evenings continue to be rough, and I’ve been sick most of this week. I had some 24 hour flu thing (fever, body aches), and although the flu like symptoms were gone, my energy was LOW. Then I got some laryngitis thing, I’m just now talking normally 6 days later! I am thankful for Tylenol and Nyquil (my doc said it was ok!)
Workouts I did a 15 min strength training routine at home that hit all of the major body parts! I did each of the 15 exercises for a minute each (after a good warmup, of course). My legs HURT on Monday! I’ve had a couple of walks, but that sickness stuff really knocked me out!
Week 10: Feeling Good!
Baby is the size of a Kumquat!
Things really started to turn around this week! I didn’t feel as sleepy during the daytime, and my bedtime was 9 or 9:30 instead of 8:30! I totally forgot to write down facts about this week as it passed, but it was pretty uneventful! We visited some family in Columbus this weekend, and I was SO thankful to not have to really worry about nausea ruining a trip!
We totally forgot about taking a picture this week!
Crazy Pregnancy Hormones
I was calling for Silas to come back inside one night (it was probably raining) and he wasn’t coming. Now, I usually call for him a few times and he’ll come sprinting I got so frustrated that I almost stared crying. Daniel came out and used his “man voice” to call Silas back inside so I held back the tears. I’ve never been a HUGE crier, but I definitely find myself getting frustrated and angry more often than I used to.
Week 11: Peanut Butter, how I have missed Thee
Baby is the size of a Lime!
This week, I also reintroduced PEANUT BUTTER and COFFEE (half-caffeinated or decaf) into my diet! I’m still feeling like my NORMAL self!!! My energy levels are definitely picking back up, and most of my food aversions are gone!!
This was also our Spring Break, and it was SO nice to have a break from class (although I still had to work). We also got to catch up with friends this week, and we both realized that we need much more social time built into our schedules!
Workouts
Workouts are definitely something to mention this week! On Tuesday, I met up with one of my friends, Lela who is EXACTLY 2 weeks ahead of me in her pregnancy! We met at the Arboretum and walked and talked about all things baby On Wednesday, I took a short walk before work with the pup around the ‘hood. Friday’s weather was kind of icky, so I opted to stay in and do a Gabrielle Reese- The Complete Fit & Healthy Pregnancy Workout Video. Each 15-minute session coincides with your month of pregnancy, so with the warm-up and Months 1 and 2, it was a nice 45 minute workout! HOWEVER- I wouldn’t suggest purchasing this video. There is a trainer working with Gabrielle and he hands her all of the equipment she needs (without giving you much time to get it). I like videos that say “You’ll need: an exercise ball, light dumbbells, heavier dumbbells and a resistance band.” I was scrambling to get each item. It was a good workout, but I just didn’t like how they didn’t give you a whole lot of information.
Week 12:
Baby is the size of a Plum!
We made our first baby-purchase today!
Daniel and I went out to Babies R Us to look at cribs, swings, strollers, etc. (aka things we’ve never had to think about before). We stopped in at a consignment store (Once Upon a Child) and browsed their selection of all things baby. We purchased a Baby Bjorn carrier for $25!!! (We saw that at Babies R Us, it was going for $80!). Daniel actually spotted the one that we purchased- it is made of a mesh material, so hopefully that will keep baby (and mom or dad) cool on our family walks next spring! When we got home, we decided we needed to test out the carrier with a little added weight, so we plopped Mowgli (the cat) inside. He really didn’t seem to mind!
Workouts
On Saturday, I headed out to the Arboretum to take advantage of the BEAUTIFUL spring day we were having! I did a walk/run for 4 miles. I warmed up with 5 minutes of walking and then would run for ~1 minute. I would walk until I felt like I wanted to run again (probably 2-3 minutes) and then I would run again. It felt great to get sweaty, and my mood was SO much better from getting some fresh air and MOVEMENT!
Growing Belly
Pounds Gained: -4 (still down a few pounds from my ‘pre-pregnancy’ weight)
Clothes that Fit: Everything except for 1 bra and 1 pair of pants that were snug to begin with
Body Changes: Well, one bra doesn’t fit anymore… and my lower abdomen has definitely started to round a bit. After a big meal (or just at the end of the day), my belly definitely sticks out. Still going to the bathroom 3x per night.
I’m planning on doing weekly posts from here on out, is there anything that you all want to see?
Cooking actual meals hasn’t been a regular activity in our house in quite some time. I’ve had quite the range of aversions during this pregnancy. Saturday was the first time in nearly 2 months when I ate peanut butter and had some coffee (decaf). For a few weeks, I lived off of potatoes, dry cereal and cottage cheese. Vegetables and fruits were MIA for a while, and the smell of garlic made me cringe. When the aversions were at their peak, preparing the “raw” ingredients to cook a meal was completely unappealing. While the end product sounded good, I had absolutely NO desire to actually make the meal. I ate almost an entire pack of (nitrate free) bacon one week, and I made the same sandwich (cheese, tomato, bacon, mustard) 4 times in that week. As the weeks have passed, the aversions have lessened, and my appetite has returned to a more “normal” place.
In honor of a returning appetite and a desire to feed this growing baby well, I have made a return to cooking!!! And, in honor of spring break, Daniel is actually able to help me eat some of the meals! (Usually, he eats lunch and dinner on campus because he gets free meals for working ON campus.)
I subbed ground turkey for the ground beef, and only put cheese on half (I didn’t really think the cheese added too much in terms of flavor). We made the entire recipe (10 servings) and froze half! I’m glad to have a nutritionally balanced meal waiting for me in the freezer if I’m ever short on time!
I made a few subs in this recipe as well: I used canned pumpkin in place of the mashed banana (about 1/4c.), I used 1% milk instead of almond milk, I used 2TB of sugar in place of the maple syrup, and I didn’t add vanilla bean or blueberries. These pancakes were DELICIOUS! Daniel thought they had that “gluten free taste”, but he agreed that the texture was pretty good! No more hockey-puck pancakes, yay!!
The only substitutions I’m making in this recipe are: omitting the flour (I’ll see how thick it is, I may do a cornstarch thickener at the very end if it needs a little bit of oomph), and I’m using baby Portabella mushrooms (sauteed with the onion) in place of Shiitake (they were $2 cheaper at the grocery store).
I’m planning on making a grilled Miso-Talapia recipe with grilled asparagus, and if anything is photo worthy, I’ll post it! We’re happy to be eating more normal meals, I pray that my appetite stays normal and that my aversions continue to subside!
Hi friends! If we’re friends on Facebook (or in real life), you’ve probably already heard the news that Daniel and I are expecting our first baby!!!
We are very thankful that God is blessing our family with a baby, and we’re looking forward to the day when we get to meet our little Mini-Cooper!
Due Date: September 28th, 2012
How far along? 10.7 weeks (I’ll be 11 weeks on Friday!)
Was it planned? Well, GOD certainly had a plan, and let’s just say His plan is a little different from our plan (isn’t it always!) So no, we weren’t planning on growing our family for another few years, but we’re excited that God went ahead and said “Now is the time!”
How have you been feeling? Pretty good! I wrote recaps of each week after we knew we were pregnant, but I think I’ll just consolidate them into one big “First Trimester” post. I do plan on posting weekly updates though when we get into the second (and third) trimesters! I had about 2 weeks of all day nausea (morning sickness does NOT explain what it really feels like). Thankfully, the nausea (and accompanying food aversions) has greatly subsided! Our dear friends Ashley and David welcomed their little baby girl into the world in December, and Ashley was sick the entire pregnancy, so I feel very thankful that I’ve just had a little bit of that feeling! I’ve had a bit of fatigue from weeks 8-now, but a quick 20 min nap usually helps, and my new bedtime is somewhere between 8:30-9pm. (I went to bed at 8:15 the other night- GLORIOUS SLEEP!) I’m also getting up 2-3 times per night to use the bathroom (my kidneys are supposed to be functioning at a very high level- I believe it!) I feel like this past week, I’ve finally felt more like myself! Let’s hope this trend continues for a little while!
Boy or Girl? It’s too early to tell, but I’m kind of thinking BOY (because of all of the salty foods that sound good- sweet things (like fruit) just don’t sound good!) I really don’t know how people can “feel” that they’re having a certain gender- seems like a bunch of baloney to me!
How did you tell Daniel that he was going to be a Dad? The Pregnancy Test Story
On Feb 3rd I noticed that my chest really hurting. I was feeling nauseous for the third or fourth day in a row. I managed to eat breakfast before class, but my stomach was growling about an hour later. I decided to go get a pregnancy test after class (at Family Dollar- gotta save $$). I also bought a bag of Valentine’s Hearts (just to ease the shock for Daniel if it was positive, and because chocolate is delicious).
I came home, took the test. A very faint + sign appeared.
I had about 30 minutes before Daniel got home from school. I wasn’t convinced that the faint “+” was a real positive, so I took Silas to Rite Aid and bought a 2 pack of tests (and got some Rite Aid bucks!) I chose a test that had no line if it was negative and one line if it was positive (didn’t want any confusion).
I took the test.
Positive.
Really, positive?
Seriously?
Then I began to nervously await Daniel’s arrival. I put the positive pregnancy tests on counter where they’re not SUPER conspicuous and started to think about how I was going to tell him. Daniel comes in, drops his stuff off, and immediately sees the tests.
I burst into tears and kept saying “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Daniel assured me that it wasn’t my fault and that I shouldn’t be sorry.
We sit together in shock for a while, I cried for a while longer. We prayed together and then tried to go about the rest of our day! We actually went over to visit our friends Ashley and David after I got off of work that night. David and Ashley gave us such encouraging words, and it was SO nice to be able to talk to another couple who just went through the same phase of life that we’re starting!
We’re excited to be on this journey, and I’m extremely thankful to have a place to document everything!
It was actually great to know that I was a little further along, I’m hoping that means I have a shorter amount of time that I’ll be feeling icky! My cousin, Donna works at the office where I see my doctor (Hi Donna!) We also told our families this week that there was a little one on the way!
