First Trimester Recap

We announced this past week through Christmas cards and on Facebook that I'm pregnant with another Baby Bower! 

I'm almost 15 weeks pregnant and I'm so SO SO thankful to be done with the first trimester.  The first trimester is awful to me for two main reasons - anxiety and sickness.  The anxiety comes from a fear of miscarriage.  So many babies don't make it through the first trimester.  One out of every four pregnancies doesn't make it and that fact makes me very anxious.  While I've never lost a little one, I know several friends who have lost their babies and it's something I can't imagine understanding, but I know it changes those mamas forever.  The other reason why I don't like the first trimester is because it makes me feel horrible.  I am thankful that I don't actually throw up, but I have nausea that's all day each day and especially bad in the evenings.  It has been the same through every pregnancy.  Thankfully, this pregnancy has been a little better because I've taken B6 twice a day and that has helped my gag reflex stay in check.  But I still felt light headed, dizzy, and nauseated.  Especially towards the end of the first trimester, I kept getting emotional because I wanted to feel better and I was angry that I couldn't do what I normally do.  I got overwhelmed with the mess of the house and trying to take good care of the boys - I so wanted to do more, but the nausea just made me sit in the floor at times.  It made me want to cry and I'm not a crier.   Thankfully, right around 14 weeks, the nausea let up.  Now I can cook again which is such a blessing because we were getting Thai takeout multiple times a week.  I still feel dizzy often and just feel bad in general, but the nausea is gone for the most part, so that's a huge improvement. 

When I told friends and family that I was pregnant this time, we got a range of responses.  Everything from "Congrats!  I'm so happy for you!" to "Was this planned!?" to "You know what causes this, right?" to "Yea, I figured, you looked pregnant." So - This baby was planned and we are excited about him or her.  We liked having James and Luke close together and while I did originally say that I wanted my next one further apart, after I made it through the newborn stage, I realized that I really did like them being close in age. 

We got to see the little Baby Bower on at ultrasound when I was 8 weeks.  During that ultrasound there was the possibility of a small subchorionic hemorrhage.  While these typically don't interfere with the pregnancy, they can cause bleeding which can be very scary for mom.  Thankfully, I never experienced any bleeding and when I went back for an ultrasound to follow up with it at 10.5 weeks, the issue had resolved.  My most recent appointment was at 14 weeks when I got to hear the baby's heartbeat. 

We will go for our anatomy ultrasound when I am 18 weeks to check in on baby.  I'm most excited about this appointment to get to look at baby and see if he or she looks healthy.  But an added bonus is that we will get to find out of we are having a boy or a girl.  Of course I'd love to have a girl.  But if we have a third boy, the crazy will go to a whole new level in my house and I'd happily welcome another little boy.  What do I think we are having?  I'm hopeful that it could be our first girl.  But then I slap myself in the face and tell myself to wake up to reality because I'm sure it's another cute boy in there. 

As far as other things with pregnancy - In the back of my mind, I am concerned about the size of this baby.  James was 9 pounds 5 ounces and we had an easy and uncomplicated delivery.  Luke, however, was 11 pounds 8 ounces and we experienced severe shoulder dystocia.  An otherwise peaceful labor ended with lots of stress.  My doctor was amazing and he took care of us quickly and neither Luke nor I were harmed.  But I think about what could have been.  It could have been bad.  I desperately do not want a C-section for a variety of reasons, but most of all because of the complications that go on with a major surgery and trying to recover from that kind of surgery while taking care of three children seems impossible.  As for now, I'm trying my best to eat healthy, to exercise, to keep an eye on my sugar (I'll start taking it several times a day in a few weeks), and to research and understand all my options.  We won't be able to make a decision until right before delivery, so much of this is up in the air.  I'm trying to be at peace with it by knowing that I have wonderful care providers and by praying that God will give us wisdom for the best way to deliver this baby. 

And of course I had to show my first baby bump picture.  This is at 14 weeks 5 days.  It's for sure true that you start showing earlier with each pregnancy!