Baby the Size of a Prune!

Well, things are going great! My weekly email told me that Little Battjes (or as I like to call him/her "Number 3") is the size of a prune and will double in size over the next week. It also informed me that soon I am going to be feeling really (extra) fat and my skin is going to start breaking out like crazy! OH BOY! haha

I have been reading a great book by a world renowned midwife named Ina May Gaskin. The first half of the book is simply birth stories written by numerous women. The first few stories I read made me want to puke and really scared me... but.. after I read a few more I started to feel really confident. They were making me cry like crazy. I think it's gonna be the best thing I ever do.

My midwife Jenn called the other day to tell me that she got the results of my blood tests. Everything is normal expect my vitamin D and thyroid are low. She has me taking 6,000 IU of vit. D for the next month. To put that into perspective, the normal daily dose is 400 IU. (I'm not really all that shocked about this.. Seattle isn't the sunniest place...) She told me that the low thyroid is normal in early pregnancy but she is going to test me again at my next appointment.


Well, that's about it! Dave and I have been reading like crazy and sorting through all of our junk to make some extra room in the apartment. A coworker is GIVING us a crib and a swing. AWESOME.

:) <3

FIrst Appointment!!

SO!
We went to see the midwife yesterday. The appointment was sort of a get-to-know-you kinda thing. We talked for a long time about Dave and I as a couple, whether or not we have a support system in Seattle, how we are feeling about the pregnancy... it was good.

We also (obviously) talked a lot about family medical history and my personal medical history. I am always quite amused by the fact that I have really NEVER had anything wrong with me. It makes me feel boring when I answer every question with a "no." (and I realize that it's boring in the right way)

Everything seems normal and average. The one draw back was that we tried to listen to the baby's heartbeat and she couldn't find it. I didn't even know she was going to check but once she told me I couldn't stop smiling and kind of laughing (to the point where she asked me if it tickled and I had to explain that I'm just a laugher..) She said that it is perfectly normal but I found myself thinking about it all night until I was almost in tears. (I'm feeling better now.. I guess it was just the fear that something could be wrong.. I didn't really expect it)

She did a physical exam and told me that my uterus is slightly enlarged (which is normal) and that I should start thinking about getting bigger bras. I guess I always knew that my chest would get bigger but I didn't expect it yet. My goodness.  She also drew some blood. I warned her that I am not so good with needles and that I bruise even if you show me the needle but I don't think she expected  the almost immediate golfball sized bruise. It looks pretty nasty.


Well, that's about it! We will have our next appointment in four weeks. I'm sure that by then we will be able to hear the heartbeat. We are feeling pretty good about everything. It seems like time is already flying by.


Also... it's our four year anniversary today. I couldn't possibly love anyone more than I love Dave.. well.. we'll see how I feel in about 7 months...  :)

Holy Moly

So, There's a baby growing in me! We found out two days before leaving on a three week road trip to Michigan. It has been quite the month.
I am about 8 1/2 weeks along. I had two weeks of feeling like I was going to die but things are seeming a bit better now.  I am having some pretty wicked food aversions though.

Cravings so far: pop tarts, donuts, lemonade, cereal. (the lemonade craving has been by far the most intense.. I was about to lose my mind.)

This week has brought a lot of good news! I was approved for Medicaid, (it pays to be poor..?) and we found our midwives! I have my first appointment this week.

We have decided that we are going to have the baby in a birth center instead of a hospital. (and with the midwives instead of a doctor) This means that I will not have access to pain medication. I know this may sound crazy but it is what we both want. We will be in a private setting, just the two of us and the midwives. (also, it will be a water birth)

 That's it for now!
I'll post more after we go to our appointment!!