Dinner with Phuong

Phuong and Cactus came over yesterday to cook dinner for us and my buddy Aminta. So delicious! They made a fantastic stir fry along with some bok choy and egg. Nom nom nom.


After we filled our bellies, we were taught how to play Mah Jong! I mean, I've played Mah Jong the solitaire game online before. This version was more poker, and it takes four people to play. Actually it was a lot like gin or rummy. I enjoyed it! Plus, it taught me all the Chinese number characters. Well, at least one through nine.

Hurray to a great night with friends. Thanks, Phuong!

It's a fetus!

This week, we officially have a fetus! It has all its organs. My modified due date is October 26, and I'm anxious for my next visit on Wednesday to make sure everything's going well.

Andrew and I have adjusted to the idea of being parents. He loves the ultrasound picture and smooches my belly. Which, by the way, I think is starting to grow! Or maybe that's just me...

I lost 5 pounds during the first weeks of the pregnancy, and now it appears that I've gained 4 of them back. That's a lot of gain! I think I read that you're only supposed to gain 3-5 during the first trimester. Ooops. I've definitely gotten my appetite back. At work, I go to lunch at 12pm. Around 10:30am, though, I start getting the worst hunger pains that turn to nausea. As soon as I eat, they disappear. Which makes me want to eat every time I feel hungry... but I'm thinking maybe smaller servings!

It also doesn't help that I'm so exhausted all the time. Actually, things have improved this week some. I can stay awake at work now, for one thing. But I take a lot of naps at home and find it nearly impossible to get up in the morning. I've tried to work out a bit and go for long walks when I don't feel too tired, but as soon as I do, it drains me, and I come home and sleep.

But, yes, my belly is feeling a bit tighter. When I bend over, I feel a weird pressure, so I'm trying not to bend over too much. I've stopped wearing my regular jeans in favor of maternity jeans to keep the pressure off my tummy. They're unusually comfortable. It's going to suck going back from all these comfy clothes to normal clothes again one day.

Meanwhile, when I'm not working or sleeping, Andrew and I are house hunting. Let me tell you, it is not easy! Still, I'm confident we'll find something soon...

My 1st Baby Ultrasound

I went to the OB-GYN on Monday! Really, I had no idea how long the first appointment was going to take. It took quite a while! They had me pee in a cup, they drew four viles of blood, and asked me a bazillion questions on family history. I was given books and pamphlets and sample packs and ultrasound albums. Crazy!

I browsed through the pamplets while waiting for my turn to go in and meet the doctor (Heidi Oster) to have my ultrasound. I looked mostly at pictures of the fetus at 10 weeks, because that's how far along I thought I was after my visit to my regular doctor. I read a little about the embryo before that stage, and peeked at pictures of the undefined blob that was starting to form the shape of a head.

When it came time for the ultrasound, it took the doctor only a few moments to let me know that I was not 10 weeks along... I was only 7! And, sure enough, there was my blob on the ultrasound screen. She pointed to a flickering on the screen, in the middle of the blob, and told me it was the heart beat.

I was sent home with a picture of the ultrasound as well as bags of goodies, including books, information on breast feeding, coupons, and other important info. I'm still quite nervous, but looking forward to my next visit on April 1, when I'll have another ultrasound to make sure the baby's growing normally.

And the doctor says...

...I was 7 to 8 weeks along for my appointment on February 26. I added 32.5 weeks from then and came up with an approximate due date of October 12.

This means in a week or two, I can call an OB-Gyn to set an appointment and have my first ultrasound! From there, they'll be able to give me a more specific due date.
Andrew's being a strong resource for me. He doesn't seem nervous at all and frequently offers to help me with anything and everything. I came home yesterday to some hot dinner and clean dishes. Honestly, I think he's worried about the possibility of having a girl, though. I don't think he knows what to do with a girl!
While I can't control my due date, I feel terrible that it seems to be about a week from when my sister wants to have her wedding. I don't want to miss it, but I can't see myself travelling when I'm so close to delivery. She's going to be such a beautiful bride and deserves to have her sister there for her big day. I told her, as long as it's physically possible for me to go and the doctor says it's OK, I'll be there.

In other baby news, my cousin Amanda is also expecting! She's due at the end of August. I can't wait, and I'm already thinking about how fun it will be that she'll have a kid the same age as mine. Julie and I always got so excited to see Tara and Amanda when we were growing up (of course, we still do! But I don't think our enthusiasm can match when we were little). I'm excited to pass that fun on!

Doctor's Appointment Today!

I have my first doctor's appointment for the pending baby today at 3pm. I'm so excited and nervous for it. Andrew's getting off work early to meet me there; we're hoping that everything we hear is positive (nothing scary!).

My appetite has been next to nothing this week. I keep forcing myself to eat because I know I need to, but that's about it. Food will sound good, but as soon as I sit down to eat anything, I don't want it anymore. I've lost 2 pounds this week, and I know that's bad news. My doctor will probably tell me I shouldn't lose any weight while pregnant... I'll have to try to finish my meals.

Right now I'm trying to at least eat a grapefruit. It tastes good, but I don't seem to want anymore :( I've only eaten half of one. Is this complete loss of appetite normal?

Feeling like Crap

Oh, man. So, in addition to the whole pregnancy thing, I've caught the world's worst cold from Andrew. My ears are plugged, my eyes are watery, and I have a deep, hacking cough that hurts my back. My head hurts non stop, and I feel positively miserable.

Last night, I kept waking up every couple of hours to blow my nose and get a drink of water. My throat is so dry and scratchy.

Every time I rolled over, I felt my tummy take extra time to settle. I think that's so weird. Should I be feeling that so early on? I feel like I have a big ball of gas in me that I feel every time I lay down.

Today, I call the doctor to see if I can come in on Thursday for an appointment. I'm pretty nervous for this. Andrew's mom told me that they typically have you do an US to find out how far along you are, and then they do testing for abnormalities before 15 weeks. I'm terrified just thinking about abnormalities.

Urg, I don't see how people do this all the time.

I can't wait until I feel better...

We're Adding a Limb to Our Family Tree...

So sang Ricky Ricardo in an episode of "I Love Lucy." Man, I loved that show as a kid.

Andrew and I never planned on having kids. We were content with the idea of being the world's greatest aunt and uncle. Sometimes, life doesn't turn out as you plan.

Over the last couple of weeks at work, I noticed I was getting hungrier than usual. I didn't want to over eat, so I purchased healthy options like string cheese, yogurt and fruit to eat. Then, I started to feel more tired than normal. At work, I kept thinking how I wanted to go home and sleep. Then, on Wednesday, my good friend Aminta and I went to do our usual work out. My stomach felt full, like I had indigestion or something, and I finally told Aminta I'd have to go home early.

On Friday, I felt the same full feeling. Andrew and I went out shopping for some Mucinex, and everything we passed looked delicious. Hot cocoa! Canned corn! Yum, yum. He teased me that I just wanted everything at the end of the aisles: "Do you need a cell phone charger, too?"

Friday evening, I was craddling my bloated stomach trying to think what I'd eaten that might have caused the indigestion. That's about the time it occured to me that I was late... like 10 days late. How had I not thought of it before? I tried to tell Andrew, but couldn't think how. When I finally worked up the courage and let him know I was late. He stayed calm and practical and offered to go out to buy a test. I was nervous and wasn't sure if I even wanted to know. He assured me that knowing is better than not knowing, and that's basically how I ended up peeing on a test stick at 10pm.

Truly, I didn't expect a positive result. I'm not sure why. I thought Andrew read it wrong when he told me it was positive. It was very overwhelming. I don't know how to be a parent! How's it going to come out of me? What about the house we wanted to buy? And could we even afford rent, much less a mortgage with a kid? I cried over the confusion, and Andrew hugged me. He told me that life doesn't turn out like we plan, and that's a good thing.

The next day, yesterday, I started to feel much better. It was nerve-wracking telling my parents. Everyone knew we didn't want kids; what would they all think when they found out we were expecting? But they were happy for us; my dad started talking about taking our kid to ball games. My mom joked that I'm so small; she said I'll end up looking like a basketball. Really, they were excited for us. I think that was the turning point for me, too, where I started to see having a kid as a positive thing. On the way home, Andrew and I talked about baby names. I won't tell you the ones we did like, but I'll tell you the ones we didn't. Andrew hated my pick Wyatt; I hated his choice of Harlen. He decided that we both get unlimited name vetos, since it's important we both like our child's name.

This morning, we went over to his parents' house to tell them the big news. Andrew told them in their kitchen, and they both started crying. His dad, Paul, told me I'd be a great mom. Colleen even bought me prenatal vitamins (the picture on the front with the very pregnant woman reminded me again of the fact that this baby is going to have to come out somehow).

There's a lot we don't know. I don't know how to hold a baby, much less figure out how to breast feed it. I don't know how to change a baby or, frankly, how to raise it. I know nothing of the birthing process, and the whole needle thing to the abdomin is a little too much for me at this point. Andrew asked me about birthing classes. I guess I'd go if it's recommended, but do we have to watch videos? I definitely don't want to watch a video. It'll only succeed in freaking me out more.

All I'm saying is I have 9 months (maybe 8? Possibly 7?) to figure all this stuff out. I have no idea where to start...

Gotta Love the Scrubs!

So, as it turns out, people actually read this thing. That's motivation enough for me to log in on a more frequent basis and ponder the chaos of my little life.

I'm sitting here in my scrubs, and I feel so cozy. Scrubs are just like PJs, only you can wear them outside and to the grocery store without the weird looks from strangers. I love them. I really, really love them.

The job's not bad, either. I have a boss who mostly likes to talk with us about her life and share funny stories. The girls I work with are so friendly to me, and very patient, considering the fact that I have -zero- medical experience. The nurses are my favorite. From a few rooms away, I can still hear them, exasperated, trying to help people with their various problems. There's at least one patient that makes me laugh uncontrollably every day. Is that bad?

And, of course, I get to work with Colleen, my mother-in-law, and her best buddy, Jean. I like working with Colleen. In addition to having a ride most mornings, she helps teach me about different GI diagnoses and treatments. This way, I slowly (slowly) feel more confident answering the phones.

It's weird working Monday through Friday, 8:30-5pm. I mean, I like it very much, and I like the regularity. But it's weird. Every day, I come home, and Andrew's there. I find myself cleaning less because he's around, and we can be doing things like.... cooking together, playing Rock Band, whatever. So I need to be more productive with my time. Also, I need to get better at finding more personal time. And time to work out. You can see that this becomes difficult to resolve.

I think I want to request a random day off, once I have vacation. Just time to clean and then do nothing by myself. Unfortunately, I was also called for jury duty on the first Monday of March. My dad told me they choose the grand jury on the first Monday of the month. Not that I'd mind jury duty; I just mind having to not show up to work at a new job and having to drive downtown. Still, the possibility of not working for a couple weeks puts a kink in the random vacation day idea.

Ah well.

More Change!

Ah, so much change in my life!

I started to really struggle to get myself into work these last few months. My job long stopped being fun and started getting stressful. Then, Starbucks started cutting jobs. Before it was my turn, I began a job search and polished my resume.

Before too long, Andrew's mom found me a job with Rocky Mountain Gastroenterology. I'm so excited! I got the official word last week. I put my notice into work on Saturday, and my boss explained to me that managers with access codes to people's personal information and money are paid out their two weeks. So, I am currently being paid to not work! Hurray!

The new job starts Monday, January 5, so in the meantime, I've been getting into the holiday spirit by making cookies, buying everyone's Christmas gifts. Also, it's helped clear out my calendar to make sure I can runnnn to prepare for the half marathon!


In other, more somber news, yesterday was the day that Grandma Jo passed last year. My mom took the day off work and went to the hair dresser, then I went with her out to Target. I love remembering Grandma and thinking about her laugh, but yesterday was definitely tough. It reminded me too much of her death.


I love family, and I love that we get to spend more time with family around this time of year. And, yes, it makes it easier to do so w/no job to go to! This weekend, Uncle Matt is coming into town with Beth and Ben, so hopefully I'll get to see them. Then, on Christmas Eve, Julie and Andy are both coming into town. I'm so happy!

A few days ago, I sent out my Christmas cards. It was neat to see how many states they were all going out to! Let's see; I sent cards to Washington state, Washington, D.C., Oregon, California, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, Texas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Massachussetts, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida. So many people in so many places! I hope they all have a great Christmas.

Call Me Back; I Have Good News

So went the message left on my answering machine my Dr. Marie, Bailey's oncologist.

I called her back and learned that most of Bailey's tumors were benign, and so was the 1 lymph node that she worried about. Because they removed everything, she said that this surgery most likely "cured" her.

I'm so happy! So excited! And so's Bailey (as she chews on her new snowman chewtoy).