The First Few Weeks...

When we found out that we would be expecting a new addition to our family, I was just around 4 and 1/2 weeks pregnant.  Like I mentioned in my previous posts, my doctor wouldn't see me for three more weeks, so that meant three more weeks of waiting... Waiting for that "formal" confirmation that I was pregnant-as if two positive pregnancy tests weren't enough... Waiting to have a medical professional give me their medical opinion on what changes I needed to make to provide the healthiest and safest environment for our Little Nugget... Waiting to see our baby and hear its tiny heartbeat for the very first time.  I don't think time has ever moved as slow as it did during those three weeks.  But because being impatient is one of my most adorable traits (wink, wink), I decided to do my own research and get a head-start on my new-momma-health kick.  I bought "What to Expect When You're Expecting", read what seemed like hundreds of blogs, and vowed to be the healthiest momma I could be!

First (and hardest, I might add) change to be made:  cutting the caffeine.  For some people, this may not seem too daunting of a task.  But for the girl that lived off of Starbucks and Diet Mountain Dew, and might as well have been hooked up to an IV of caffeine during her 10+ hour shifts at the pharmacy, this was guaranteed to be a batttle.  I knew that all of that caffeine wouldn't be good for our Little Nugget, so I cut it out cold turkey.  What followed was not pretty.  I had the WORST headache of my life for three days straight, I had a terrible time focusing at work, and talk about tired! I felt like a zombie for the first 4 hours after waking up everyday.  The only thing that got me through it, was knowing all of the pain and tiredness that I was dealing with was for the benefit of our Little Nugget. 

Other changes that I needed to make weren't quite as hard to manage...

-Eating a healthier diet... Although this became a bit of a struggle once the nausea kicked in. 

-Exercising at least 30 minutes a day... Still working on this one.  Spending 10+ hours on my feet at work does not motivate me to come home and work out; it motivates me to find the nearest bed or couch and collapse.

-Taking a prenatal vitamin with DHA everyday... Easy peasy.

-Cutting out the alcohol... I thought this would be a toughie, because it's no secret that I LOVE a good glass of wine after a long day.  But, thanks to my pregnancy nose, the smell of wine, or beer, or any alcohol for that matter, makes me want to yak (for lack of a better term)!

Aside from waiting for the big appointment, I was also waiting to feel pregnant.  I hadn't had any symptoms (I'm sure this was because I found out so soon, and my body hadn't had time to react to being pregnant yet) and I couldn't help but worry that this was a bad thing.  I just kept thinking, "If I'm not having any symptoms, maybe I'm not really pregnant," when what I should have been thinking was "Thank goodness that I'm not dealing with everything that "What to Expect When You're Expecting" is telling me that I should be expecting!"  And if I had known better, I would have been relishing those few weeks of nausea-free, energy-filled, soreless boobs!!!  Because when my symptoms did arrive, they came full force! But, more on that later.  

FINALLY, after three LONG weeks, the big day had arrived!  But to my mild disappointment, it was pretty uneventful.  I filled out a lot of paperwork, answered a ton of questions, had some blood work done, and then talked with the doctor for about 5 minutes, before he turned the floor over to me for questions.  And of course, I couldn't think of any.  I mean, I had to wait three weeks for this appointment. Any questions that I had were answered by the everlasting array of pregnancy sources I'd been reading to try to pass the time to even get to this appointment!  And then we found out that they wouldn't do the ultrasound that day. Nope, we would have to wait another week... ANOTHER seven days to get to see our Little Nugget!  I'm convinced that this is some cruel mind game that they play with their patients.  They know how anxious and excited women are when they find out that they are pregnant (especially first-timers like me), so they drag this whole process out to see how much we can handle! Okay... Maybe I'm being a little dramatic.  But this is totally what it seems like!

Another week filled with reading, reading, and more reading dragged on, until it was finally Ultrasound Day! Tilton and my mom were both with me, and I was a huge ball of emotions.  I was nervous, excited, anxious, and terrified.  I wasn't sure exactly what to expect (despite my extensive research) but as soon as I saw Little Nugget on that screen, everything just went away.  I was just... calm.  It was, without a doubt, the most amazing thing I have ever seen!  To see that tiny little person and that tiny little heartbeat fluttering, literally took my breath away.  Little Nugget is pretty perfect, don't you think?

Little Nugget's First Photo: 9 weeks

If you had asked me fifteen weeks ago to give up caffeine, eat all the vegetables and fruits I could handle while avoiding cheeseburgers and fries, exercise at least 30 minutes a day most days of the week, start doing yoga, and give up wine nights after work, I would have likely laughed in your face and said "that's impossible".  But, you know, it really is amazing how possible the impossible becomes when you get to look at something like this everyday, and know that every decision you make no longer affects just you.  

Sweet frame that we received from one of my aunts.

Until next time...