September 29, 2013

sweet child of mine

On July 23, 2013 we found out we were parents.

It didn't happen the way I expected-- taking the test and all that, I mean. I had little hope that this cycle would be the 'one', but I groggily forced myself out of bed that Tuesday morning and headed to the bathroom while Dave remained asleep.

I took the test ("You pee on a stick. It's idiot-proof!" ... one of my favorite lines from the movie What to Expect When You're Expecting) and sat on the floor while I waited the 5 minutes for it to process. And by 'sitting on the floor' I mean that I went back to sleep. 7am is not my favorite hour.

5 minutes passed and I reluctantly pulled the test down from the sink counter to check the results, certain that I would see one, and only one, dark control line. There had never been 2 lines before (indicating a positive result), so my expectations were low.

2 lines.

One dark pink control line and one light pink, but ever-so-there, line.

My eyes welled up with joy and disbelief. I always thought I'd have a longer, more emotional moment when I eventually got a positive pregnancy test, but I was in such shock that I quickly ran to the bedroom, turned on the overhead light, and jumped on Dave, waving the pee stick in his face exclaiming, "You have to look at this! Tell me what you see!" Even in his just-awoken state he could see that the test was clearly positive. 2 more tests (extra ones I had at home... the only reason I took them; the ones from the drug store are expensive!) in the following days confirmed the pregnancy, and we began to realize what our new reality was.

Today I am 13.5 weeks along, just out of the first trimester and still filled with as much, if not more, joy than the day we found out.

Dave is already becoming an incredible father and it has blessed me more than I ever knew possible to see him love on both me and our child. I love when he kisses my belly and tells our baby "I love you!" Or when he lovingly holds my hair back when I vomit at the doctor's office, in the bushes, in the car, at _______ (fill in the blank... seriously).

Speaking of pregnancy symptoms, I'll just briefly mention what I've been experiencing so far for those interested. While most of the symptoms in the first trimester are no fun, I'd take them any day of the week if it meant knowing our baby is healthy and growing. Most of these have begun to wane, though many will, I'm sure, stick around to an extent for some if not all of the remaining months of pregnancy.

So that said, here's some of what my life has consisted of for the last 10ish weeks (side note: this IS a pregnancy post, so be prepared for TMI, but I will try to keep most things I post about fairly readable):

* Morning sickness (read: ALL DAY sickness. seriously, who thought of just calling it "morning" sickness?)

* Ba. loat. ing. That spells bloating, in a more dramatic way. They aren't kidding when they say your, ahem, digestion slows down during pregnancy. And in my case, most things that may have helped the bloating or... kept things moving... were pretty much off the table due to the aforementioned symptom.

* Fatigue. On days that I didn't have to work, or even some that I did, I definitely slept more hours of the day than I was awake.

* Increased smell sensitivity. I don't know if there's an official medical term for this, but essentially, my nose has been like a dog's. I can seriously smell things from rooms away and sometimes even apartments away. You know how there's some people you meet in life that just don't smell? Like, not good or bad, they just don't have a scent you can detect when you're near them? Now I can smell EVERYONE. Suddenly I can smell your soap, deodorant, and any hint of unpleasant scent you may be carrying around with you. Weirdest and (almost) most obnoxious symptom.

When we made our news public on September 18, Dave and I were both overwhelmed with the love and support that people gave us. It reaffirmed how good it is to live in community and we are so thankful for each of you.

Our sweet baby will arrive within the first half of April, and we will find out the gender in about 5-6 weeks!

4 comments:

  1. Hooray! I'm so happy for you both! I loved reading your post...TMI and everything! Poor thing vomiting everywhere, though. That sounds MIS.ER.AB.LE.

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  2. YAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!! Congratulations you guys!!!! We are SUPER excited for y'all!!! Please share all you are comfortable with, Judy. It's a privilege to hear how you're doing and I wish we lived closer to one another so we could hang out and I could listen to all you wanted to talk about regarding your pregnancy! And yes - totally know what you mean about the smell thing. It's crazy! If you guys need ANYTHING (that pretty much consists of talking haha since we're across the country) please feel free to call, text, email anytime :) We love you both AND your new little one a TON.

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  3. Loved your comments about the new sense of smell. :) I can remember plenty of times when Ryan would open a can of tuna, and I'd have to make a mad dash to the room that was the farthest away from the kitchen...and then bury my nose in a pillow for the next 30 minutes until the smell was completely gone. So much fun... ;)

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  4. This makes so damn incredibly happy!!! I cannot wait to meet my Godbaby. I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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