The big news this week is we had our first appointment with Cecily, one of the midwives we'll be working with. We liked her a lot and will meet Jane, the other midwife, at our next appointment. They split their call 50/50 so one of them will be there with us in labor. We'll also meet a doctor from the practice at one of our next visits, but assuming our pregnancy remains uncomplicated and there are no problems in labor, that's the only time we'll see a doctor.
My measurements were right where they should be for 15 weeks in, and the baby's heart rate was 134 beats, which is apparently good for this stage of pregnancy. We have our next appointment at 18 weeks with Jane, then at 20 weeks we'll do a sonogram and see if we are to be the proud parents of a little boy or girl. Call it hunch or 50/50 guess, but my prediction is boy. We want one of each, and have no preference on order, so we'll be excited to welcome whatever God decides to give us this time. The last time we had a sonogram was at 8 weeks, when Gunior looked like a little peanut, it will be interesting to see how s/he has changed in 12 weeks.
My appetite has certainly shifted into overdrive now. It seems like I'm hungry every hour or so, and no matter how much or often I eat it doesn't seem to fill me up for long. Sometimes I wonder if I've got a baby inside me or a tapeworm!
Last night after dinner though, I managed to not only be full, but miserably full for hours. We made a delicious dinner with lemon butter scallops, sauteed bok choy, and roasted endive and radichio salad with pears, Stilton cheese, and walnuts. I filled my plate with 80% veggies and 4 scallops. You wouldn't think that would fill you up, but it did that and then some. As I went to bed, still stuffed, I remembered the infamous Spago dinner on our honeymoon, when we both managed to get miserably stuffed and couldn't drink much of the complimentary bottle of champagne our hotel had left us. I ordered a scallop and bok choy dish and felt ripped off when it arrived-$40 for 5 scallops and a plate full of cabbage? But I've never been so stuffed in my life as after that dinner. Funny then that after a week of constantly feeling hungry, I would get the idea to cook scallops and bok choy...I guess my subconscious wanted me to get "Spago full" again!
I figured with all the eating, sooner or later I'd start gaining weight, and last week for the first time, I did, adding about 1.5-2 pounds to my pre-pregnancy weight. Ideally I'll put on about that much weight every week for awhile...a little scary to contemplate.
In anticipation of that, today I went to the Gap to get a pair of "in between jeans" to wear once my regular ones get too snug but before I need maternity jeans. I ruled out the skinny-leg styles right away, because if I couldn't pull those off pre-baby now certainly isn't the time to try. And low-rise works best on me anyway since I'm short-waisted, and with the belly growing it seemed like a good plan to stick to that. So I tried on two cuts, the "curvy" style and the baggier "boyfriend" style. The curvy jeans were more flattering but wouldn't let me grow much in the hips and booty, just the waist. The boyfriend jeans gave me a lot more room to grow but had a saggy butt. So I had to choose, go with the cuter jeans or hedge my bet and go for the bigger ones? In the end I chose the curvy cut because even buying pregnancy jeans, rule #1 applies: go for the ones that make your booty look good!
So, how was the first week of the second trimester? All in all, pretty good. Except for a few brief moments, the queasiness seems to have passed, which I'm quite happy about. I felt pretty good all week. However, it seems What To Expect gave me false hope about decreased frequency of nocturnal bathroom visits...no change on that front so far :(. Guess baby and I are well hydrated, if nothing else.
One of the reasons I've been feeling good this week is that I've been able to exercise more. Last week we set my bike up on a trainer in our upstairs living area. Now I can get in a quick ride any time, day or night, whatever the weather and however big the belly (eventually). This week I rode 37 miles over 5 rides...a distance that could easily be covered in one ride outside, but it let me get in 5 easy cardio workouts without leaving the house. I just turn on the tv and pedal away for 30-45 minutes. Can't say it's as fun as riding outside, but I feel great after each ride. Baby and I are getting our endorphin rush while catching up with the 90210 gang on tv.
Welcome aboard, new readers! Kevin and I started this blog a few weeks ago to track the highs and lows of pregnancy and, someday, the joys and challenges of parenting. We'll post about once a week for awhile, then probably more frequently as we get further along.
Why are you calling your kid "Gunior"? Is that his/her name?
Wondering why we're calling the bun in the oven "Gunior?" It comes from the children's book "Flap Your Wings" by P.D. Eastman, one of my favorites when I was little. Not to ruin the suspense for anyone who was planning to read it, but it's about two birds that find a stray egg on the ground and decide to take it up to their nest and raise the little hatchling as their own. Alas, it hatches to reveal not a baby bird but a baby alligator. Unfazed, Mr. and Mrs. Bird decide to raise "Junior" anyway, but eventually he grows too big for the nest so they try to teach him to fly, saying "flap your wings!" He jumps, but being an alligator, he falls...into the pond below, which he decides is a perfect new home. It seems I had trouble pronouncing my j's (and l's, I was "Ay-en" for awhile) so I would pronounce Junior as "Gunior." As we were discussing prenatal baby nicknames, Kevin suggested either Gunior or "the alien." Gunior won.
Here's the namesake:
Where will Gunior be born?
This past week was interesting as we toured the last two options we wanted to consider for where to have our little one. The easy choice would be to go with an OB at a practice 5 minutes from home with delivery privileges at Las Colinas Medical Center, just a contraction away. But we both feel strongly about having a natural birth experience with no epidural, induction, or any other intervention that isn't medically necessary and our research led us to consider other options. So, we visited 3 midwife-staffed birthing centers and Baylor Medical Center in Dallas, known as the most natural-birth friendly in the Metroplex.
Monday, we toured Baylor's labor and delivery and postpartum recovery wings. We liked the set-up and they do seem very open to natural birth, with options for laboring/delivering in a tub and a bed that can sit up into a chair position and has a spot for a support bar to lean on. And, should complications arise, it's an excellent hospital with a Level 3 NICU just 7 floors up. The postpartum suites were nice enough too, but we were disappointed to learn the standard post-delivery stay is 2 nights. That was the only real issue we found with Baylor.
Friday, we toured the Gentle Beginnings Birth Center in Hurst. The midwife we met with there was probably my favorite of all we've met but there were a few things with the birth center itself we weren't as fond of. Number one, our insurance provider apparently doesn't cover it because the midwives are certified professional midwives rather than certified nurse midwives. Two, the room layouts left a bit to be desired. Three, while there is a hospital close by, the closest Level 3 NICU is further away.
After considering all our options we've decided to go with a midwife practice with delivery privileges at Baylor. I had hoped for a birth center, but the midwife at Baylor option seems to be the best fit for us this time. So, now it's time to call and set up an appointment!
Next up: selecting a doula.
End of the first trimester: Happy times are here again?
First, I have to again say that I'm grateful that my pregnancy symptoms have been relatively mild. I haven't been throwing up 10 times a day, unable to eat favorite foods, or suffering heartburn. Having said that, the queasy feeling which has been hanging around the past 6 weeks or so has worn out its welcome and I'm ready for it to go away. And who wants to get up 3-4 times every night to go to the bathroom? Not me! The What to Expect book leads me to believe these symptoms ought to be easing up any day now (hear that, Gunior? Simmer down in there!) and I'm hoping that proves true.
With the super-cold temperatures forecasted for Dallas toward the end of the past week, I was wishing we'd get a little precipitation so maybe the office would be closed and I could spend the day home relaxing by the fire. Well, no precip, but I did wind up spending Thursday at home. Woke up that morning with a fierce headache near the base of my head. I took some Tylenol and went back to bed for an hour, hoping that would do the trick. No luck. Tried a heating pad, still no luck. Afraid it could develop into a migraine, I called in sick and went back to bed again and woke up to find it unchanged. Fortunately my chiropractor was able to squeeze me in for an adjustment and the headache finally went away after that. So, I thought I'd eat lunch and head into work for the afternoon. Alas, it seems Gunior didn't want to miss out on the fun so a little morning sickness ensued. I wound up spending the afternoon alternately curled up on the couch with ginger ale and the 90210 gang and napping. Fortunately no trace of the headache or tummy troubles the next day.
Today brought an interesting new experience and a preview of a new symptom that may be joining us for awhile. Kevin and I served as readers and chalice bearers in church this morning and had to wear vestments over our regular clothes. For those unfamiliar with vestments, the stylish get-up looks like this:
Whatever the vestments are made of (polyester? acrylic?) they are great at trapping body heat. Wearing those things feels like sitting in a heating blanket. To put it in perspective, last month the furnace was broken at church and it was probably 65 degrees in the chapel. Cold to everyone else, but I felt perfectly comfortable in light slacks and top under the cassock and surplice. Alas, when it's a more comfortable 75 or so in there to everyone else, it's pretty toasty for those in vestments. (Perhaps Under Armour or Nike could make some from their DriFit material that would wick the body heat away?)
I always get a little warm in those, but today every time we stood up I started feeling a little light-headed. Later after lunch, I was feeling the same way in the car on the way home and had to open the window to get some air, then take a nap. Given that I'm usually the cold one when everyone else is comfortable, I attribute this latest development to the bun in the oven.
Another recent development is some pain in my lower abdomen, like I might feel if I was a little over-exuberant in lower ab workouts. Apparently that would be the muscles and tissues there stretching to accommodate the growing baby and presumably leading me to start showing eventually.
Speaking of the bun in the oven, here's today belly shot. Still no weight gain yet, my weight is right around where I was pre-pregnancy. I get hungry and have to eat every few hours though, which I imagine will show up on my waistline soon enough. According to What to Expect, the kiddo is the size of a clenched fist right now.
By this time next week, we'll be in our second trimester. Hopefully that will mean no more queasiness. Last night Kevin had a hockey game and Gunior apparently was so excited about that that he/she must have been jumping around...did not make for a happy tummy for me. Kevin did score the game-winning goal so Gunior's excitement was justified...just hope next time he/she celebrates in a more restrained way!
We went to the ranch this week for New Years and were thinking that most likely, we'll be a family of three next time we go. Good thing we weren't this time-it was a full house! Not sure where we'd have slept with a crying baby...guess we'll have to figure that out next year.
Tomorrow we are touring Baylor hospital in Dallas' labor and delivery wing. Word is, it's the most natural birth-friendly hospital in the metroplex so we're interested in seeing it. We hope to decide on a provider this week and set up an appointment for next week. Amazing to think that Gunior is now twice as big as she/he was when we had our last sonogram in our 8th week. According to What To Expect, Gunior is the size of a peach now and the big development this week is that the intestines are making their way from the umbilical cord into the baby body.
We took down our Christmas decorations today, which is never as much fun as putting them up. But, it was fun to think that next December when we are putting the decorations back up, Gunior will be here and it will be baby's first Christmas!
Here's the week 13 belly picture. Still not really showing or gaining weight...just looks like I over-indulged a bit during the holidays. By the end of the month it should look less like overeating and more like a bun in the oven.
