Pregnant Pondering at Nine Weeks ...

Today is the nine-week mark in this glorious, beautiful journey that is pregnancy ... and quite honestly I find myself puzzled, wondering when the cute, glowing, beaming, motherly sweetness part of it all is going to start. To be fair, I still have yet to take a real belly pic, see/hear our baby on an ultrasound, and tell a majority of our friends and family about the pregnancy. I suppose these special milestones will help bring up those romanticized, stereotypical feelings ... right? Don't get me wrong - I am completely thrilled to be a mama - but I have spent my entire adult life being stoked for the actual pregnancy part of motherhood. After nine weeks, I am less than impressed. While I try not to focus on the negative, I feel it is important to document this journey in a truthful, genuine way ... so, here goes.

Observation #1: I am in a constant state of digestive discomfort. Let me put it this way ... 99% of the time, I am feeling 1 of 2 ways - ravenously hungry (I don't mean casually hungry, I mean hungry like I just did my cleanse diet for a week hungry.) OR bloated/gassy/in pain/hating myself for eating whatever I just ate because I was so ravenously hungry. And please don't suggest eating healthier ... I have been eating extremely healthy, and it doesn't make a difference. My stomach hates everything I give it, even the things it specifically tells me to eat. I like that I haven't put on any weight so far, but I am not ashamed to admit that I am excited for the stage of pregnancy when I just want to eat everything in site. I miss being able to enjoy food! Note - I still had some of my Isagenix shake mix left over from doing it back in June, so this past week I tried making one a day, in addition to regular food. I still maintain that these shakes are tasty, chock full o' nutrients, and they're one of the few things I can consume right now and still feel GREAT. Definitely going to be relying on these over the next seven months!

Observation #2: I like to yell at Steve ... right after I cry for no reason ... and right before I smooch him and tell him how much I adore him. Yeah, my moods are ALL over the place, and I feel bad for the poor guy who has to live with me right now. Not only does he have to eat weird dinners (Turkey kielbasa, Kraft mac and cheese, and avocado egg rolls from California Pizza Kitchen=what we had for dinner this past Tuesday) but he has to weather the storm that is my fluctuating mood. Still more proof that I am for sure marrying the right man. He is so patient, understanding, and calm. Love you, Honey!

Observation #3: I hate the way everything smells. The two Scentsy warmers I was so excited to have recently acquired? They remain off. The fruity, exotic-smelling body wash I picked out mere weeks ago? Unusable. Everything pretty much needs to be unscented right now. If you douse yourself in perfume/cologne and try to have a conversation with me, I will kindly excuse myself ... and I won't come back. Don't be offended - it's the baby's fault!

Observation #4: You don't know whatcha got till it's gone ... never has that old cliche rung truer than during pregnancy. It applies to things like being able to relax with an icy cold beer at the end of a long day, going out for a nice sushi lunch, and feeling like you're in control of your body in general. My stomach issues really know no bounds at this point, I am no longer a heavy sleeper, and no matter how great I am about taking care of my skin, it breaks out. But it's all worth it, right?

Well, those are my main quirks that I am currently dealing with. On a positive note - inspired by a baby blog I've been following called Little Baby Garvin - I am in the process of creating my very own chalkboard! Hers is so darn cute that I couldn't help myself. I figured it would be a fun, creative way to document the pregnancy, and it can also be our to-do list/shopping list/reminder board. Already did a primer coat and two coats of chalkboard paint today ... just have to paint the edge tomorrow, then wait a few days before I can use chalk on it. So pumped! Once the board is hanging and ready to go, I will post my first official belly pic.

Well, Hubby just got home from work (at 10:24 p.m.) so I should probably go spend some time with him. He is willingly watching Sex and the City in the living room without me ... I think he feels bad that he was at work all day and night. :) Night!

Surprise!!

Welcome to my very first attempt at blogging!

I have never truly blogged before, so I am just now trying to teach myself all the ins and outs ... I am hoping that this online journal will evolve over time into something I can look back on and treasure for years to come. I am such a writer at heart, but rarely allow myself the time to just let the words flow. Couldn't be more excited about this new little project!

Now that the intro is out of the way, time to get down to the good stuff. This is (or, at least, is starting out as) a baby blog. Yep, you read that last sentence correctly. I'm pregnant! Surprise!

July 27, 2012 - It was a hot & sunny Friday afternoon in Glendale, AZ that I was spending with one of my "besties" (she loves that word), Kristie. We were having a girls' day ... heading over to the movie theater at Westgate to finally see Magic Mike (if you haven't yet, don't bother ... yikes.) and doin' some shopping. While browsing around at Target, I reminded myself that my period was exactly a week late at that point. Since our plans for that weekend included going out and getting considerably intoxicated, I figured the responsible, adult thing to do was to rule out any possible pregnancies before getting ridiculous. I realized since she was shopping with me AND I was spending the next couple of night with her, I would have to tell her about the test. I told her I needed to stop in the lady aisle and grab a First Reponse ... very casually, in the same tone I would use to tell someone I needed to pick up more Q-tips or some Mr. Clean Magic Erasers. Naturally, she started to freak out (like any good friend) and demanded that I NOT be pregnant. I reassured her that I probably wasn't, and that this would just be to ease my mind. "You'd better not be pregnant," she reiterated. "This is probably your last weekend of non-married drinking. You NEED one more weekend, Alicia!!" I understood her concern, but really didn't think it was warranted. I was sure the test would be negative.

July 28, 2012 - The next morning, I woke up early and went into Kristie's bathroom to get the verdict. After actually performing the test, I took it into the spare room I was sleeping in, closed the door, and called Steve. We had already discussed the fact that I was late, and had agreed to test once I reached the one week point.

I took a deep breath, and decided to walk across the room to look at the results. I looked down and saw the little digital word YES with a + next to it, and decided at that point that I couldn't talk, breathe, or stand up any longer. I collapsed back down on the futon bed, and desperately tried to get those two little words out ... but all I could muster up was, "I read the test." The rest of the conversation went something like this:

Steve: "What? You read the past? I can't understand you."
Me: "No ... I read the test."
Steve: "Yeah? Well?"
Me: (long pause)
Steve: "What does it say, Honey?"
Me: "It says YES, plus sign." (This is where I start to weep.)
Steve: "I love you so much."

So that was it! Our whole lives changed in that little moment. I took another test when I got back to WA, just to be sure (and because there were two tests in the box I bought) and sure enough - another YES+! I am currently 6 weeks, 6 days along, and feeling great. Not too many symptoms reeling their ugly heads yet ... the worst so far are the headaches - I've had five in the last week that were bad enough that I had to take low dose Tylenol - sore chest, feel like I'm almost up one cup size already (seriously - it's ridiculous), a few more trips to the bathroom than normal, and a few food aversions and cravings. Aside from feeling a tad bit queasy once or twice, no real nausea or "morning sickness" to speak of yet. Little Baby Nielson is currently the size of a lentil bean, so that's been our nickname for him/her - our little lentil. :) Steve and I, although shocked at first, couldn't be more thrilled to be on this journey together for the first time. I am so excited to share that journey with others through this blog, too! Thanks for reading and for caring. Love love!