18-week Update

HIS STORY
Here we are at 18 weeks. Also, the day after Christmas. Several times over Christmas it was commented how next Christmas will be quite different. Kate still isn't showing much, especially compared to some other women we see at about the same stage of pregnancy, but I attribute that to her already slim and tall frame. I am eager for the baby to get bigger and have her showing a cute baby bump, a little bigger than what she is now. All in time, I feel. We're two weeks away from January 10, our next doctor appointment when we are due to learn the sex of the baby. I am very anxious for that to happen. Really, that is a huge date in my mind. We'll be halfway through the pregnancy and find out if we'll have a boy or girl, but more importantly I am just anxious to go back and make sure everything is ok. It will be a month since our last appointment and it feels like a long time since our last visit, and affirmation that all is well. So, I am eager for January 10. However, being that we are in the week between Christmas and New Year's, we're taking time off from work and happy to enjoy some down time. 2011 has been great, but 2012 holds the greatest hopes and possibilities of our lives.

HER STORY

I’m exactly 18 weeks today, and I really feel like the first 5 weeks of my 2nd trimester have FLOWN by!  I’m starting to get my energy back slowly – I have more stamina to workout and do things around the house, but I’m still crashing by 8:30-9pm.  That’s okay though, I need to “stock up” on sleep now. :) The only really unfortunate thing is I’m not showing!  Well, if you know me, then you know something’s a little off, but outsiders don’t have a clue!  So I’m just the really hungry lady at all the Christmas parties that isn’t drinking and makes her husband leave at 8:30.  Awesome.

December 26 - 18 weeks pregs

Speaking of Christmas - we hosted Christmas this year and I'd say it was a total success. We really tried to stress the "less is more" theme this year, since we foresee lots of money spending in the future. It was so nice seeing everyone and spending quality family time. I'm ready to get my house back, though, and start preparing for BABY! 

Speaking of baby - we got the test results back from our quad-screening and everything looked “great”, according to the nurse.  This is such a relief for me!  I was already a little hesitant to get the test, because let’s get real – it’s not like I’m NOT going to have this baby just because something is "wrong" – so what’s the point in finding out early?!  Once I actually starting weighing the pros/cons, I realized I wanted to know ahead of time so we can mentally prepare and learn everything we needed to know.  Now that we’re past this hurdle, I feel like its smooth sailing until January 10, when our lives will change forever. For some reason, finding out the sex is almost more of a "game changer" in our minds, than finding out we were pregnant in the first place. Maybe because it's more real then? Not sure, but we're really excited! I can't wait to start decorating and painting!!

How far along? 18 weeks
Total weight gain: 7+ (haven't dared check since my 16-week check-up)
Maternity clothes? Not yet!
Stretch marks? none
Sleep: I've been really exhausted by 9pm, and fall asleep easily, but I get up 1-2 times each night to pee, which makes it really hard to fall back to sleep.
Best moment this week: We've started clearing out the nursery and making it a real room...makes me so excited for the future!
Miss anything? Wine - for sure! Especially this time of year. NYE is going to be lame :/
Movement: none yet! I'm getting a little antsy...
Food cravings: pizza, any form :)
Anything making you queasy or sick: not really...maybe the thought of raw meat, but that's not much different than per-pregnancy
Gender: Don't know yet, although I've had several dreams that it's a boy, and Josh had a dream that it's a boy last night.
Labor Signs: no
Symptoms: gas (TMI, I know)
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: I've been pretty happy lately! Although I definitely have crazy bi-polar mood swings that come out of nowhere. I usually have to apologize afterwards :(
Looking forward to: Finding out the sex and decorating the nursery!

Love you all,
Josh & Kate
xoxo

First Trimester

HIS STORY
Oh my goodness, where do I begin? The idea of being a dad excites me to no end. Ever since I knew I wanted to marry Kate, I also knew I wanted to have a family with her & that we would one day have beautiful, talented kids. So when we started to try to start a family this summer & then when she told me that Sunday morning that she was pregnant, I couldn't have been more happy & excited. My goal since we got married was to be a good husband, & now I am excited to have the goal of being a good dad. Even right now, during the 1st trimester of pregnancy & early in the 2nd, I worry that everything is going OK. I can't imagine how much more I am going to worry about the kid(s) once they're here! We're blessed to have gotten pregnant so quickly, & blessed that things have gone well so far. Kate has been very tired due to the changes her body is undergoing, but she has been great. I try to be as considerate as I can everyday, & listen to how she feels or what she says she needs, & accomodate her in any way I can. I figure, the less stress on her the better.
--Josh

HER STORY
Honestly, I feel like I had a really easy 1st trimester. The worst part was the exhaustion. I would sleep 10+ hours each night and feel absolutely exhausted by 7:30pm. I also felt nauseous when I got hungry, and got ridiculous food aversions, so I had to make sure never to get hungry. Maybe that's why I gained 4 lbs :) oh well! The majority of my aversions were towards meat, especially chicken. My biggest craving (still is) is pizza! As we approached 10 weeks, we had several trips planned, so that was definitely a challenge for me. Thankfully, we were traveling to visit family, who were all really understanding as soon as we told them the news! I think the traveling also helped pass the time. By 12 weeks I was off Progesterone, because that's the time when the embryo officially becomes a fetus and starts relying on the placenta (instead of me!). Josh did such an incredible job through the first 3 months - he was so supportive and understanding. I couldn't ask for a better hubby!
--Kate

Baby makes THREE!

Well, most people that actually read this blog probably already know, but if not - WE'RE PREGNANT! I'm about 16 weeks now, and due May 28. Josh and I really want to document the entire journey, so I’ll try to get you up to speed with the whole conceiving and finding out ordeal…

We had been talking about “starting to try” on our 3-year anniversary trip to Jamaica, so that was a fun vacation. :) Upon our return, I missed my period. I didn’t think we were actually pregnant because no one gets pregnant THAT easy! So, the day I missed my period I took a few (5) home pregnancy tests, and they all came back negative. After I was 1 week late, I called my doctor and scheduled a blood test, which also came back negative. At this point I was almost 2 weeks late and really concerned/worried! I was throwing my best friend’s bachelorette party that weekend, so I knew I would be drinking and didn’t know what to do. I talked to the most accessible nurse I know, my mom, and she told me to stop worrying and have fun. So, I did just that – drank, ate, etc. I started my period that Sunday. I have to say, I was surprisingly upset. I didn’t realize how badly I wanted a baby until then.

So, we kept trying and about a month later I missed my period AGAIN! I took a home pregnancy test, which said negative again. I was about a week late when I started my period. I was even more upset this time, thinking about all my ovulation testing…maybe I’m timing it wrong, maybe we didn’t do it enough, etc… Then, one Sunday morning I woke up and my boobs were SO SORE (TMI, I know). I’m talking really sore – way more sore than when I’m on my period. I couldn’t figure out why this was happening, especially since I had just finished my period, but I figured I should take a pregnancy test just in case. VOILA! I was actually pregnant!!! As I stood there, staring at the 2 blue lines, I was trying to figure out the logistics. I remember reading about spotting when the embryo is implanting, so I just chalked it up to that! Who cares?! We’re pregnant!! I walked into the living room and asked Josh to come into the bathroom. His initial reaction was “what’s wrong now?” hehe :) I told him nothing, but just come here! As soon as he walked into the bathroom, he saw the stick and walked over like a zombie. He was really shocked that I had even taken a test, let alone that we were pregnant! We both hugged, and went on a run to Einstein Bagels to celebrate.


Now that I was officially pregnant, and what I calculated was 5 weeks along, I went in for blood work again. Everything came back positive this time! They like to do 2 rounds of blood work to make sure all your HcG and Progesterone levels are increasing, so I went in for another round of blood work. Already at this point, I’m so thankful I’M pregnant and not Josh! Can you imagine all the fainting that would’ve happened in those 2 weeks?! HAHA! Anyways, my Progesterone wasn’t high enough (mine was a 14, they want it at like a 19+), so I started taking Progesterone supplements. Apparently Progesterone is the hormone that helps your body hold the baby during the 1st trimester. A lot of women with low Progesterone levels miscarry. I scheduled my New OB appointment for 7 weeks and held my breath until then – seriously!! We went in and had our first ultrasound – everything was so amazing, small but amazing, and we saw our baby’s heartbeat for the first time! What an incredible sight! The ultrasound tech said the heartrate was a little slow for 7 weeks, but the baby is so small at that point (less than 1cm) that it’s really hard to tell. After meeting with the doctor, she told me we needed to come in a week later. Because my Progesterone was so low and the heartrate was slow, she was afraid we were miscarrying. At this point I hadn’t told ANYONE except Josh, and can I tell you what a terrible week this was for us?! It felt like the longest 7 days of my life! Thankfully, when we went in a week later, the heartrate was perfect and the baby was measuring at 6 weeks – which means I calculated the gestational age wrong! This would explain why the heartrate was so low at 6 weeks because it was really only 5 weeks! The fact they were able to find a heartbeat at 5 weeks in absolutely incredible!!! So, at that point the doctor put us at 6 weeks and gave us our due date – May 28. What a wonderful day!

We immediately started thinking about how and when we were going to tell our families. I really wanted to do it in-person. I knew we would be seeing my parents in 2 weeks to help them move, so we waited until then! Talk about anticipation! We had printed out a bunch of recent pictures to send to my grandma, so I slipped the sonogram picture in the mix, and asked my mom to “review” the pictures before we gave them to grandma. I seriously think I stopped breathing. When my mom got to the sonogram, she said “what’s this sonogram??” She looked at Josh and I, and then said “are y’all pregnant?!” And we all started freaking out and crying. It was such a special moment, and I’ll never forget that feeling and the look on her face. I think my mom and dad are finally warming up to the idea of being grandparents. We’re still working on “names” for them.

In complete contrast, Josh told his dad at Game 5 of the World Series. It was already such a special bonding time for them, we figured – what better time to tell him?! He was elated, of course.

We told Josh’s mom on her birthday. We got her a birthday card and inside that card, we put a “congrats” card. We taped a copy of the sonogram inside the congrats card and wrote “YOU’RE GOING TO BE A GRANDMA!” Again, the look on her face was priceless – it went from confusion, understanding to excitement in about 10 seconds! Haha! Josh’s mom is sooo excited to be a grandma – she’s picked out the name Coco, which I think is perfect!

Sooo…that gets you up to speed. From now on, we’re going to try to do his and hers stories. Of course, I’m going to have A LOT more stories to tell, so I might get on here and share some happenings, BUT now…its onto the 1st Trimester.

Love you all,
Kate

3 years! Wow!

First of all, I am so sorry to all our loyal followers (wink, wink) - we've definitely neglected this blog!! I randomly clicked on this link via my Facebook page, and realized it wasn't even active anymore! How terrible! Josh & I are about to embark on a new chapter in our lives, and I want to document it all. Hence, this blog post...

On Sunday, we leave for Jamaica to celebrate our 3-year wedding anniversary. I cannot for the life of me, believe it had been 3 years. Some days I feel like we've been married for 100 years, and some days it feels like yesterday. Either way, it definitely doesn't feel like 3 years.

I think back to 3 years ago, and how excited and happy I was to marry my bestfriend, how in love we were, and how willing we were to take on the world! I don't think I could've imagined how much MORE I could love Josh, and how much MORE happy we could possibly be. Its crazy to think about it.

Anyways, I wanted to post one of my favorite marriage poems. It was read at our wedding 3 years ago, and I think its a great reminder of how precious a marriage really is. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

The Art of Marriage

Happiness in marriage is not something that just happens.

A good marriage must be created.

In the art of marriage the little things are the big things.

It is never being too hold to hold hands.

It is remembering to say "I love you" at least once a day.

It is never going to sleep angry.

It is at no time taking the other for granted;

the courtship should not end with the honeymoon,

it should continue through all the years.

It is having a mutual sense of values and common objectives.

It is standing together facing the world.

It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family.

It is doing things for each other, not in the attitude

of duty or sacrifice, but in the spirit of joy.

It is speaking words of appreciation

and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.

It is not looking for perfection in each other.

It is cultivating flexibility, patience,

understanding and a sense of humor.

It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.

It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.

It is finding room for the things of the spirit.

It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.

It is establishing a relationship in which the independence is equal,

dependence is mutual and the obligation is reciprocal.

It is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner.

It is discovering what marriage can be, at its best.

by Wilferd Arlan Peterson