We closed!

The house is ours! It was a little less exciting than I thought it might be. Sign this, Sign this, here are your keys. Thats about it. Whatever, its done and the house is ours and thats all that matters.

I was nauseous most of the day. Im not sure if it was nerves or baby. Time will tell.

Jeremy got his first dose of mood swings and I think it scared him LOL He asked if this was going to become the normal! I didnt realize it was that bad until he called me out. Time for an early bed time!

mmm marshmallow fluff mmmm

Last night for dinner, I made a marshmallow fluff, peanut butter and banana sandwich. I saw nothing wrong with it but Jeremy found it quite note worthy. Fluffernutters are popular as are PB banana. Why not combine the two?

Today, I resorted to rubberbanding my pants. These jeans fit about 2 weeks ago when I last wore them. This morning, not even close! My boss comes in and commented that I was starting to thicken up. I totally dont mind this from him b/c it wasn't ugly at all. I asked if he saw my rigging and he didnt, he just noticed the disappearing waistline. grrrreeeeeaaaaaaatttt. haha

Not feeling especially pregnant today. I know I wont feel things everyday so Im not worried. Just noticeable today. I ate breakfast then a banana around 11. Nothing else until dinner at 7:30. Normally, I am on the verge of consuming my arm by 12:30. Not having a growling tummy is ok by me!

1st appointment is set

I called today for my first appointment for January 3rd. I will be 8 1/2 weeks. A little bitter sweet b/c Grammer's birthday is the 2nd. It makes me so sad that I cant call her and share this with her. I know she lived a long life and is not in pain anymore but the selfish side of me wants her to hold my baby.

Baby is growing from a BB to a pinto bean this week. Grow baby grow!!

Nothing new in the symptom dept. I almost wish there were. Well, ketchup tastes funny now. So strange. Its the only condiment I eat! I HAD to have hot dogs last night after seeing them in a model home. Jeremy humored me =) I had to wipe the ketchup off to eat the dog. Jeremy officially thinks I have lost my mind! I think there is more mind-loss to come haha

Buying for baby

Jeremy and I are telling his parents at Christmas and we have been trying to figure out how. We decided to get some Grandparent items like bibs and a blanket. I thought I would be on my own with this but Jeremy actually got excited about it and came with me to Babies R Us. We had fun looking around at cribs and whatnot.

Then we went to Kohl's and found a cute burp cloth for his mom. I noticed that the maternity clothes were on sale about the same time I realized my pants are getting tight. Mind you, they were tight before I got PG so the early bloat is more noticeable. I found a couple pants and shirts. We didnt have a lot of time and I think Im going shopping with Kristin sometime this weekend so hopefully I will find some more stuff. The pants were SO comfy!! And, as Kristin predicted, the shirts are perfect for assuring a pregnant belly for Christmas :-)

Lets talk symptoms for a sec

I have read enough to know about the common first symptoms. You know, the sore, growing breasts, changes in smell, on set of morning sickness blah blah blah. But, hardly anyone talks about the acne!! WTH is up with this? I have never, in my life, broken out like this. Every day, there is a new lump. They aren't even the kind you can pop. They are the deep pockets of junk that have no intention of coming out. I have one over my eye brow that is so swollen...I feel like a unicorn or something. From my new reading, it appears to be pretty common. damnit man!

Lets talk gas too while we're at it. I'm a pretty gassy girl to begin with but holy cow. Jeremy just cracks up. He's a "there is more room on the outside" kind of guy to begin with so he really doesnt care. Its belching and farting all the time. Thank goodness I am alone in my office most of the day. haha

Fatigue....thats a tough one. Im always up for a nap as it is. Im in bed at 10 and I sleep 8 hours. if this gets worse, it could be amusing. Poor Kristin is at the point of napping at her desk so hopefully the 2nd trimester boost kicks in soon for her.

I am not having the nausea or anything but I can definitely notice a change in my stomach. Had a little more spotting this weekend but it was all brown so nothing to worry about for now I guess. The boobs aren't growing yet but the tingling nipples are getting crazy. I slept in a sports bra this weekend b/c I couldn't handle the sheets rubbing against them. Thats fun times...

A friend let me borrow Girlfriend's Guide and I started on it this weekend. Parts are funny and parts are pissing me off. Who is she to talk down to those who want unmedicated births. I dont think ill of those who are dying for their epidurals so why should she judge me and assume Im doing it for a cookie or a medal. Its just not very encouraging of women to trust their bodies. But, maybe that is just too much to ask these days.

Labs are in!

All is well :-)
Progesterone was 23.5 and anything above 10 is good. This is what prevents the uterine lining from shedding and why they think lots of miscarriages happen. This is great news!!

HcG, the pregnancy hormone was 118 Monday and 258 Wednesday. As long as it doubles every 48 hours, they are happy. Wonderful news!!

So, all in all, this is turning out to be a great day. Jeremy is starting to allow himself to get a little excited which makes me very happy. First appt will be between 8 and 10 weeks. So, I should know a little more after the new year. Until then though, I am going to stock up on Dollar Tree tests and keep PIAC to make myself feel better.

Happy Friday!!!!!

Work

I realized I havent said anything about work lately.
I got a job, which I knew I wasnt going to like, at an insurance broker for health benefits. The girls were catty and it just wasnt for me. I sucked it up though just to pad the bank acct. while never giving up hope for the builder I had interview with a while ago.
One day, things just got terrible at the office and I decided that I would follow up with the builder at the end of the week. When I got home that day, I had an email from him asking if I was settled or still interested. I was SO excited.

So I met with him a couple days later, got an offer which will end up exceeding my last job in Augusta, and I gave notice. That was the best day! So here I am, in my new job with things falling into place around me. I am an office manager/scheduler/client liason/project manager/accountant/IT Dept.... I think that about covers it. haha http://www.stonecraftfinehomes.com
Bill is a custom home builder for high end homes. The homes are amazing. But more importantly, I get some freedom with no one watching my every move, a fairly casual work environment in that jeans are acceptable and I can be flexible with my schedule when I need to be. There are only 3 of us that come in the office. Bill has his own office and Jack and I share mine. Jack is the project manager in the field so he is here maybe a hour a day. Not too bad!

Overall, I am really happy with the way things are here. Its a mess for right now, but I love cleaning up messes and making things run the way I want. I have been told I have free reign over how things go. Well, within reason of course! I still have a lot to learn about quarterly reporting and all that good stuff. Learning new computer systems but things are coming pretty well.

Just finishing my first month here and I have to say, Im not planning on going anywhere for a while. I think he will let me bring a baby in when the time comes. We'll see if Cheryl lets that happen though! I think she may just move in for a while.

Things are coming along

First thing Monday, I called Fruitful Vine and went in to get lab requisitions. I had a blood draw Monday and yesterday to check the hormone levels and progesterone. I should be hearing back any time now.

Tested again last night just to make myself feel better. I heart Dollar Tree tests!!! The line was darker so I take that as a good sign.

Today I am more aware of my stomach than usual. Its not really nausea, more just queasy. I dont feel like Im going to throw up, just that something isnt quite right in there. Again, I take that as a good sign. Boobs are sore on and off. The tingly nipples come out of no where and wake me up a little! haha

Im not supposed to get an appt with the midwives until 8-10 weeks. But, Im hoping I can see a heartbeat before Christmas. Thats probably asking a lot but it cant hurt to try. Using the birth center is going to be a lot more expensive than a traditional OB. Close to $2k out of pocket. It sucks. BCBS feels that the one 35 miles away is a good alternative and that they shouldnt have to cover Fruitful Vine as a network extension. I say thats crap. Who wants to drive 35+ miles for appts and when in labor? I am going to fight it but in the end, its worth it to me to us the birth center so it is what it is.

Looking forward to telling the family at Christmas. Im thinking of all sorts of ways to do it. Leaning towards printed M&M's for my MIL. She loves M&Ms and I think it would be cute.

Things are wonderful with us. The house closing is getting so close. Job is going great! Things are just falling into place so nicely. 2007 has been a year of blessings for us.

Lets try this again!!

So, IM PREGNANT again!!!!!!!
This 2ww has been awful. I have spotted pretty badly the whole time despite my temps being up. Then yesterday morning, my temp went way down and I got really upset. I got up expecting to find my period but found nothing. not a drop of anything. So, I tested. When I got out of the shower, that pretty little shadow of a line was there.

I woke Jeremy up asking him to double check. He is trying to not be excited after last time but I know he is. Then I went to Tracey's room and she saw it too! She squealed. SO fun!

T and I went to Michelle's baby shower and had a great time with the girls. Michelle was shocked to see T here. Then I spilled the beans and she wanted to cry. Good times.

Took a digital and another test this morning and both are +!!

More to come after I see the midwife =)