the little bump that causes so much commotion

So here's what I look like, circa 15 weeks (about a week ago). Can you believe this little pot-belly is what's causing me so much grief? The belly's getting there, but I am looking forward to actually looking pregnant and not like I've got an impressive beer belly. I don't even drink beer (that's cranberry juice in my hand, in case you're wondering)!


Jae took this picture last Sunday. She also got a few of my now very ample bosom, but I'm a little too prudish to show those off!

sicky

I sometimes feel like all I do on this blog is gripe. Oh well, it's my blog and I'll gripe if I want to. :P

Yesterday was a day to define all others. I don't think I've been that sick, well, ever that I can think of. I quite literally puked all day. It was something else, I tell ya. I'm feeling better today, but man alive, I thought I was dying yesterday. It seems as though every time baby banana (that's its current nickname) goes through a growth spurt, I get the sh*t kicked outta me. This kid had better be strong like bull after all this.

I had gone to get my Maternal Serum Screen test done last week (it's a test that helps determine your baby's risk of having Down syndrome, trisomy 18, SLOS, an open neural tube or a ventral wall defect) and I got a call from my obstetrician's office this morning asking me to have the test redone. I'm not really sure what it means, but I'm trying not to panic. I might have had the test done too early last time or the results were compromised or something else, but yeah. Reignites the paranoia, sadly.

That's my update for this week. My next doctor's appointment is next week Thursday and I'm scheduled for my first ultrasound on October 3rd. Stay tuned for more!

foggy

And I'm not just talking about the weather this morning. My brain feels a lot...slower lately. Like my synapses just can't fire at the rate they used to. I guess I'm experiencing the joys of 'pregnancy brain' now. It seems to take me a few seconds longer than usual to figure out what the heck people are trying to talk to me about. Kind of annoying for a girl so used to multi-tasking and being on top of things all the time.

So, because I feel little sluggish, here's a list of my pregnancy symptoms and their current severity:

• Nausea - subsiding. Thank goodness for drugs! Though, I am down to maybe one pill a day instead of three, so that's a good sign.
  


• Fatigue - high. So tired. All the time. And yet, all I do when I sleep is dream. Dream and dream and dream. Currently it's variations/combinations of Brideshead Revisited, Amadeus and Harry Potter.
  


• Pregnancy brain - getting worse. Cogs in the wheel are going missing every day. Soon I shall be a blubbering idiot incapable of stringing more than two or three words together at a time.
  


• Emotions - more stable than they were. I still cry at the drop of a hat, but at least it's not at Avril Lavigne videos anymore. Seriously. It was pathetic.
  


• Pain/Headaches - persistent. This kid's beating the crap out of me and I can't even feel it moving yet! Lower back and pelvic pain (that radiate through my butt and legs), upper back pain from storing all my stress and dull, throbbing headaches round out the list. Good times. Thank goodness for my new masseuse! Gotta use my work benefits for something, no?

That's all I can think of for now, pregnancy-wise.

On another note, my sister Breanne is in town next week with her boyfriend (who's moving to Manitoba to obtain his Master's) and then Brenna is coming in on the long weekend, so that's exciting. My parents were in town last week and we spent a day and night with them at my uncle's cabin. It's been a good family month. October is Sheri and Jonathan's last wedding ceremony/reception (yay!) and I'll be headed off to Cambridge for that. December, I'll visit my family in Edmonton for a few days after Christmas and then February Verge and I will, God willing, welcome a new dela Rosa to the world. Fun!

stop being a hero

At least, that's what I'm trying to tell myself. After 7 weeks of generally feeling carsick all the time and finding out that I'm one of those women who do not magically get better after the 12 week mark, I finally broke down and asked my doctor for a perscription for my nausea and vomiting. It makes me drowsy and adds to my general feeling of continual tiredness, but at least I'm not losing my lunch (breakfast and supper) every day. God bless modern medical miracles.

This kid had better be really robust and healthy is all I can say. It's beating the crap out of me and I can't help but pray it'll be worth it.

I'm still anxious from time to time that I'll miscarry, even after all of this, but I'm feeling more positive more often now than before. Be glad I didn't make my reveal earlier on this blog or you would have been subject to the rantings of an often irrational, manic-depressive, convinced-a-conspiracy-was-a-foot mind.

Changing the subject completely, the power went out at work on Friday morning and we ended up getting the afternoon off. It was kind of a nice way to end the week, to be honest. I spent most of my afternoon napping, which was good times all around. Sunday we spent the day at my uncle's cabin with my mom and dad who are there for the week. We're going back on Friday with my Oma and Opa, so that'll be fun.

And that's the week in the life of me.

happy day

Well, here's a big shout out to everyone out there who's been thinking/praying for Vergil and I over the last few months. I am officially making it official today and announcing that we are indeed pregnant again!

We had our first doctor's appointment today and got to hear the heartbeat for the first time. I had a grand plan of recording it and posting it for everyone to hear, but it was still pretty faint and hard to hear over my own heartbeat, so that might have to wait for another time. BUT, I have proof of life this time and I have to say, I am beyond relieved. The last 13 weeks or so have been pretty roller-coaster-y, emotionally speaking. Well, and physically speaking too. I've bascially felt car-sick the entire time. Much fun. But at least I feel like this is actually gonna happen this time.

I don't even know what to say beyond this! I'm thrilled and terrified and every other synonym to those two words. I've spent the last three months counting down to this day and now I'll spend the next five weeks counting down to our ultrasound. Last time I felt like I fast-forwarded to far into the future and this time, all I can focus on is tomorrow and the 'next big thing' in my pregnancy.

Oh, by the way, we're due around February 12. :)

Thanks again for your support and encouragement, whether it be only 'virtual' or in person.