Pregnancy Check-in

KH826

Good Morning pregnant peeps!

Please update us on your/your partner/spouse's pregnancy! How is everyone feeling? Anything new to report? Please remind us how far along you are and what your EDD is.

QOTW: If you are showing, tell us about how you are carrying and how it compares to what you expected. Tell us one positive and one negative about your pregnant shape and how you are dealing with your changing body! If you are not showing yet, tell us about your expectations... what you are most excited about and/or apprehensive about when it comes to rockin that bump!

YBnormal85

I am due on April 24th

I am feeling well, just tired.Sleeping has been tricky this entire pregnancy so I should be somewhat prepared for the nighttime breastfeeding sessions lol

The baby was quite low a lot earlier than I anticipated. I have been experiencing pelvic pressure since about 30 weeks, and some days it hurts even to walk to because of it. It literally feels like there is a head between my legs ha. However, because of this I have not been experiencing too much rib pain I am only 5' and have a short torso so I feel bad for my little peanut. Must be quickly running out of room

trisholio

I am almost 17 weeks and EDD is 9/2

I am waiting the 2nd trimester relief from exhaustion and have some energy, not to patiently waiting :-)  I did sleep the other night for 8 hours and only got up twice to pee, the babies slept thru the night that night.  I somehow was still just as tired the next day.  It is just the norm to be tired :-(  The other update is sharp shooting pains in my breasts.  Has anyone else experienced this so early?

QOTD: I am for sure sporting a baby bump (helped by pre pregnancy chubbiness now turned hard)  I enjoy it so far and it makes things feel real.  My wife loves it and my mom enjoys talking to my belly too.  The only negative thing about my new pregnancy shape is that my boobs are so huge very few bras fit.  I knew I would going to have to purchase more, but not this early.  On a good note my wife loves my bump, big boobs and pregnancy 'glow' I apparently now have ;-)

KH826

I am 29w6d (30 weeks tomorrow!) and due June 3rd.

My biggest problemo as of late is severe heartburn. I finally decided (at my OB's urging) to start taking Zantac last week, and it really is not helping much. I am supposed to take one pill twice a day (12 hours apart, not to exceed 2 pills in 24 hours). So I take one at 6:45am before I leave the house for work, and one at 6:45pm before dinner. The first day was great, since then it has been a gradual decline and now the pills will only give me relief for a few short hours before the heartburn returns. I didn't sleep much at  all this weekend due to heartburn at night, and last night was particularly bad. I ended up getting sick twice this morning (pretty darn sure from the heartburn), and still didn't feel any relief. About an hour after I took the Zantac this morning I started to feel a bit better, but it has been only a couple more hours since then and I am already starting to feel that acidic feeling creeping back up... If this continues, there will be a call to my OB in my future this week, because as much as I like to just tough things out this is making life pretty difficult and super uncomfy...

Aside from my ongoing heartburn saga, things are good. Baby girl has gotten into more of a pattern with her movements. I pretty much know mostly when I will feel the most activity throughout the day now. She also definitely has longer rest periods where I feel nothing. I know that is normal at this stage, but it does make me a little on edge at times because I just want to feel her all the time!

Oh, and I am tired. And I have hip pain that comes and goes, and I spotted my first stretch mark next to my belly button. HAHA

QOTW: I seem to be carrying wide (lucky me!)... My bump doesn't stick out super far, but I feel really big. I think my mid-section has expanded a lot, and that I am carrying further in (instead of sticking way out and having a basketball belly). I know this is likely to change in the coming weeks since baby will have no other options of where to go, so that will be interesting. I was trying to force myself to say something positive about my pregnancy shape by wording the question the way that I did, but I can't think of anything HAHAHA! I still have days/moments where I just feel fat. Not sure that is going to go away even at 9 months pregnant. Just the way my body/mind is. It's ok, I am working through it, and just happy to be pregnant and having this baby in the near future!

Manada

Hi Everyone,

We are 8w5d today with a late October edd.

I wish I had an update on the Rockies but our next u/s isn't until Wednesday or Thursday. I have been super sick with a chest and sinus cold since last week, I have been basically bed-bound since Wednesday afternoon. I am a bit worried about the Rockies, and will feel better to know they are still growing and kicking around in there this week -- it's just hard to imagine that my being this sick doesn't impact them. My PAIF brain is in full-swing these days. Being sick is hard, and it turns out that being sick while pregnant is just horrible.

QOTW: I don't have a bump yet, just an extra 6 lbs (so far!) and my belly fat seems to be getting pushed out more. My expectations are that if we get to keep our Rockies, and they keep growing, my bump will start showing within a few weeks (!!!) and will grow fast and furiously from there.

Jazibel

Almost 35 weeks, EDD April 29th.

A brief meeting with my midwife Saturday (for the GBS test) revealed that baby (Owen) is very likely breech with his head up.  My midwife requested I make an appointment with my OB's office for an ultrasound to confirm the baby's position.  She also suggested I start the hot/cold method this weekend to try and get the baby to turn.

I'm super anxious about this current challenge because it threatens my potential for a homebirth, and maybe even a med-free vaginal birth since often breech babies are delivered via c-section at 39 weeks. On top of it Dr. Google has ominous information about breech babies and abnormalities... I decided not to read to much into it. Darn Dr. Google sometimes.

Anyway our goal is to do everything we can to help turn baby and just let go of our expectations otherwise.

I'm carrying a basketball for sure - very narrow and forward. Baby has dropped somewhat thus increasing my waddle, but I can still get around - just slower and slower. I love my bump, and I like my pregnant look.  It's like having something big in your life that the whole world knows about (unlike most big events that are just the inner circle (like marriage, etc).  Every now and again I freak out about the weight I've gained. Never thought I'd see these numbers. Ever.  Ever.  But. I remind myself that its what I wanted and the sacrifices I will be making for the rest of my life for my kids, a little weight will seem like nothing compared to everything that lies ahead that I will glad do.  I do have a plan to focus on getting healthy and losing weight once baby arrives though! ;-)

We bought a double stroller this weekend.  The city select by baby jogger in silver w/ a black frame. I'm super stoked.  I have 2 other strollers by this manufacturer (a single and a triple I used with the kids I watched last year).  I didn't even realize that fact until I was cleaning my garage yesterday.  Anyway with the new stroller we can use a single seat or have both seats installed. And they can face each other (or away, I think there are 16 positions) which was important to us.  Sorry to sound like a commercial but I can't wait to use it.

@KH826 - aloe juice (I use an unfiltered organic kind from Whole Foods) really helps with HB when nothing else did.  It tastes a little sour (you only need a little bit less than 1/4c. 1 - 2x a day).  But supposedly the aloe heals the raw lining in the stomach and throat, while also settling the acidity.  It was my life saver last time when I was waking up getting sick from HB in the middle of the night. FX you feel better soon.

healz413

@Manada beat me to it today. 8w5d with twins with an EDD of Oct 29.

Poor M is so sick and has been for days. She's got all the medications that are allowed during pregnancy, but they seem to only help her survive, not actually help her feel better.

I'm looking forward to seeing the Rockies this week. I'm also anxious that something will be wrong. I know this is standard, especially for folks with infertility brain.

We started talking yesterday about what would go where in our apartment if we actually get to have both Rockies and we came up with the possibility of switching bedrooms--moving our stuff into the much smaller bedroom and giving the twins the bigger bedroom. We'll see what we decide.

ball.and.chain

24w1d, due 7/13/14.

Let's see. We are officially signed up for childbirth class on 5/10 and are looking into a bfing class and a newborn care class (we want to learn infant CPR). I have been reading a lot on childbirth as well. I started with The Birth Partner and now I'm reading Easy Labor: Every Woman's Guide to Choosing Less Pain and More Joy During Childbirth by William Camann, who is the director of obstetric anesthesia at a major Boston hospital. I like getting the perspective of someone who is an expert in natural childbirth and someone who is an expert on the medical intervention side; though both books discuss natural options as well as medical interventions, reading both has made me feel like I am getting a more balanced picture of my options. I have a couple more books I want to read, but I'm definitely starting to get a clearer picture of what my preferences are.

My Circle + Bloom session yesterday mentioned that babies double in size between 22 and 26 weeks (from about a pound to about 2 pounds), which could explain why I am constantly hungry and more tired than I have been. I've been pretty good about WHAT I'm eating and I have been better the past week or so about going to the gym, but I'm a little worried about weight gain at this next appointment (Wednesday). I did skip yoga this weekend because I slept poorly on Saturday and just could not manage to drag my butt off the couch in time to go. I went back to bed instead, which felt pretty darn good!

We have been trying to figure out whether to hire someone to fix walls and paint in the nursery or just re-wallpaper it (which we can do ourselves, and which requires less work because the walls don't need to be mudded/skim-coated for wallpaper). We finally decided this weekend to get some electrical work done and re-wallpaper, and we picked out some cute anchor-printed wallpaper. Once we order new light fixtures, we should be on our way to getting the room ready to be set up for Mr. Baby!

QOTW: My main issue, which I think I've mentioned before, is that while I am showing, I do not have one bump, I have two -- one above my navel and one below. The one below is baby; it's firmer and it's where my uterus actually is at this point. The one above may be partially organs that the baby has pushed up, but it also has fat on top and is squishy. At this point, it sticks out further than the actual baby bump, and there is an indentation across my belly around my navel where the two bumps haven't joined together yet. If I wear certain maternity shirts, they just fall from the top bump and it looks like I am a) definitely pregnant and b) carrying high. But in other shirts, even some maternity shirts, it just looks like I have two very large fat rolls. Not my favorite look. I'll see if I can post a picture later -- I tried to show off the "B bump" (vs a "D Bump") on PGAL on Friday but the sweater I was wearing didn't really show it and no one believed me.

That said, I like looking "pregnant" (when I do look pregnant) -- I have waited a long time to get here and I am proud of it! I do look forward to the two bumps joining, which I think will happen soonish. And of course, my wife is obsessed with my boobs. My hair is also thicker and growing faster, which is nice, and pregnancy has been good for my skin as well.

redrockmama

Hi all!

24w3d due July 11th

What a week. My midwife is for sure moving, not sure if it will be before our baby is born or not. She wants us to see a MFM OB because of the previa so we have an appt this Friday. Good news is that they will do an ultrasound so we can check on the previa. I am crossing everything that it is resolved. If it is we need to find out for sure if our midwife will be here for delivery or not and if not we need to pick a new one. Baby Bubbles is great though. Lots of moving around all the time. Some of the movements feel so weird, I wish I could see what was going on in there. One night it felt like baby moved sideways and it looked and felt like I had a giant hot dog across my stomach suddenly. 

QOTW: I am feeling pretty giant. I would say it's more of a basketball shape. From behind you can't really tell I am pregnant at all. At our last midwife appt I was measuring a little ahead. We'll see what it is next appt. I don't have anything negative to say about the way I look, but is getting harder physically for sure. I can't bend over easily anymore and am pretty uncomfortable a lot of the time. I don't mind getting bigger though, it's kind of fun. 

KH826

@ball.and.chain - I have the B belly too! I was about to write about it in my check-in, but then I chickened out. I don't know why. I didn't even know there was such a thing, but then I googled it a few months ago and realized this is relatively common for plus-sized people (or in my case people who used to be plus-sized and lost weight but still had the folds of skin around their mid-section). I am super self-conscious about this, and so I only wear full panel maternity pants, and a tank top over the top that helps round out my bump to the outside world. I think when I am dressed no one can tell, but at almost 30 weeks my B belly is still there. I hate it a lot. I try to embrace it, but it is hard. I have been thinking for literally months now that it was "almost gone" -- meaning that I would wake up miraculously with a D belly, but it hasn't happened yet. Different days (and different times of day) it is more D-like than others, but I still have the indent/separation. I also think I am carrying much more inward, as I mentioned before (instead of the folks you see that are "all baby" and jut right out in front with their belly), and I think that is adding to this. At any rate, it is by far my biggest insecurity right now -- to the point where I didn't even mention it here (and I trust and feel comfy with all of you). IF my belly ever completely rounds out, I am going to throw a little party HAHA.

yachee

@jazibel - the City Select is AWESOME! We are currently using it with the infant seats,  and it is amazingly maneuverable. I can get both babies clicked in in less than 30 secs, and I can push it with one hand.  Love it!

2momsinCA

Hi all, this is my first check in...

I am 18 weeks 5 days with twins and my EDD is 8/20.

This week has been good! My reflux has calmed down somewhat, I'm eating a good amount, weight gain is positive (I had 12 weeks or so of weight loss from nausea and reflux, and Ive finally more than made up for it). In the last week my belly has really popped, I think I look about 6 months pregnant with a singleton. No more just wearing large regular clothes, I've invested in a true maternity wardrobe begrudgingly. Last night K, my wife, looked at pics of a full term twin belly on line for the first time and she was somewhat horrified at what was in store for me. I don't think she realized at all how big a belly can get. We will enjoy these months of mobility while we can and be happy with the belly as it grows because the bigger the better- I definitely want to avoid preterm labor.

Another treat was last night we were finally able to feel one of the babies kick from the outside. I've felt some movement here and there for the past two weeks but last night I had my hand on my low abdomen and definitely felt a nudge so I took K's hand and she felt it 3 times! That was pretty awesome!

QOTD, we have been bad about taking belly pics and finally took maybe the third one of my pregnancy yesterday. I wish we had been better about it because I can honestly say I love seeing how pregnant I've become. After a very difficult path of ttc and thinking on several occasions that I just would never see this happen, I now feel so thankful that the bump is finally here.

@Jazibel‌ I should let you know, Owen is also one if our top 3 names. So I hope you can flip that little one around!

2MamazInSeattle

18w5d – EDD 8/20 with lil'mamaz!    

Last Friday we had a pretty amazing visit with the Geneticist at Children’s Hospital in regard to lil’mamaz’ Trisomy X. This doc is a pediatrician, and runs the genetic clinic there for kids with sex chromosome differences. Long and short is that we left feeling incredibly reassured! She recommended allowing our pediatrician to drive any treatment needed vs. being paranoid helicopter moms all the time. That was a relief! If any assessment shows a delay or concern, we will aggressively start therapy vs. a ‘wait and see’ approach. Otherwise, she really, really stressed that the materials out there reflect the 10% of females actually diagnosed, not 100% of the population with this chromosome difference. In other words, she said all you have read is about outliers. That said, we are not letting ourselves totally off the hook here – we will still be quite aware and certainly if anything comes up, we will be all over it. But, the appointment left us feeling some relief, and we felt we had permission to finally stop worrying about this and just get ready for our baby!

Otherwise, I seem to alternate good nights and bad nights in terms of sleep. I’m having a love/hate relationship with my Snoogle pregnancy pillow. J calls it my “girlfriend”… “honey, get your girlfriend, maybe you’ll sleep better with her.” “Honey, your girlfriend is on my side of the bed…” etc. Honestly I think I’ve been doing better on the nights without it still. I can still back sleep a week longer, but am starting to get more used to side-sleeping. Belly sleeping is definitely causing heartburn, which gets me to move pretty fast – but that is my natural sleeping position and it’s hard not to! Yuck.

Still going to yoga 2x/week and walking our 3-mile in-city lake a couple/few times a week for exercise. I feel like I’m porking up, but definitely am not yet feeling ravenous or eating a whole lot. I do find heartburn is coming on faster these days, so I am stopping myself from eating too much in one sitting. I eat a Fage peach yogurt daily, and sometimes a second one…Simone is going to come out with a sidecar of peaches I think, snack on a couple scrambled eggs, nuts, cheese’n’crackers, fruit...  I’m probably doing 6 small “eating events” a day (3 or 4 don’t qualify as meals really…) and that seems to be working.

Next up is the for-realz anatomy scan on 4/4 at 20w2d. We debated announcing on FB at 20w since it’s J’s bday and we thought we could make a play on that. But we’ll see. Maybe we’ll never FB announce, which is ok too. All of our IRL friends/family know, which is good enough for us.

QOTW: Ok, nice timing @KH826! I went maternity clothes shopping this weekend for the first time due to a work trip and needing some things. Oh em gee that was a horror no one should have to endure. We do not have a full-length mirror at home, but Macy’s sure does. Sweet mary. I am SO WIDE from the side view! I had a total moment of former-fat-girl panic. However, J was there and reassured me, and the moment passed and I was fine. But the reality of looking so big was a little hard to swallow after having had weight loss surgery and promising never to get that big again…J says over and over “honey you’re doing God’s work” (which is funny b/c we aren’t religious) but her point is taken – this is bigger than me, my body, my ego, etc. And I’ve done it before, and I can do it again – there will be a serious clean-up on aisle 7 once this baby is born!

Overall I’m carrying ‘high’ because I was showing a good D-shaped bump by 13-14 weeks, and yet jamming my little at-home Doppler under my pubic bone to hear the h/b, indicating there was nothing ‘baby’ going on up there. Now, things are more obvious. While I don’t have the B-shaped bump due to having had a lower-body lift after my weight loss, I am trashing a wicked expensive tummy tuck. Ah well, again, I remind myself this is not about me and some extra skin in exchange for a daughter is ok with me – despite the likely need to digest a different body after all this.

ball.and.chain

OK here we go with the B Bump!


And here's what it looks like when I'm not pulling the shirt against my belly:


And while we're at it, let's compare to 17w:

2MamazInSeattle

@ball.and.chain - I think you are going to have your D bump soon! But I can see the B-bump in this shot moreso than on the PAGL pic. When you let go of your shirt it looks like a totally 'normal' bump though!

pauljl

I'm 8w 2 days today and happy to be back to bumping after a week without internet in the new house.

We had our ultrasound today! Our little one is measuring right on time with a strong heartbeat. Our OB also drew cartoons by each photo so we could remember which picture showed which angle. I feel so lucky to have seen that little flicker. 

I'm not showing yet but dealing with bloat and weight gain has been tough for me. I also lost quite a bit of weight and it's harder than I thought it would be feeling my clothes get tighter and tighter. It doesn't help that my queasy self has been living off of salty processed things. This week my goal is to get closer to how I was eating before. Even if it's just adding one veggie a day. 

My biggest hope is that when I get a real bump, I'll just embrace it and rub the belly  

ball.and.chain

2MamazInSeattle said:

@ball.and.chain - I think you are going to have your D bump soon!

Definitely getting there...

@KH826, I would have never guessed you had a B bump so evidently your efforts to disguise it are working! 

YBnormal85

@trisholio‌ I gave up on bras for the same reason...I didn't want to have to buy a new one weekly, so I picked up some nursing tanks from Target. So comfy and they stretch well. Plus they will come in handy when baby arrives

YBnormal85

@KH826‌ heartburn sucks...so bad.I have recently been experiencing it also but luckily I have narrowed down the triggers to pasta sauce w tomatoes and any citrus items.so basically I am avoiding all acidic food and drinks.That has helped a bit, but my midwife also suggested a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar when symptoms arise. I thought I was going to die when I tried it... But it did work. But ugh, so nasty.

Jazibel

The more "Owens" the better ;-)  How exciting to feel your LO(s) from the outside, its one of favorite experiences of being pregnant. Welcome again btw. :-)

Jazibel

Jazibel said:

The more "Owens" the better ;-)  How exciting to feel your LO(s) from the outside, its one of favorite experiences of being pregnant. Welcome again btw. :-)

Sorry @2momsinCA I meant to quote your post with my reply above.  I guess its late and I should head to bed! :-)

KH826

ball.and.chain said:

2MamazInSeattle said:

@ball.and.chain - I think you are going to have your D bump soon!

Definitely getting there...

@KH826, I would have never guessed you had a B bump so evidently your efforts to disguise it are working! 

I think you are getting there too @Ball.and.chain - bring on the D Belly!

And I am the master of disguising my true body shape with clothing -- years of practice being a heavy girl who hated her body! When I was in 8th grade (before I knew that spanx/shapewear existed), I wore a one-piece bathing suit under my dress to a school dance to smooth out the lumps and bumps I didn't like. HAHA

Byrrd

So let's see.  We had a really scary couple weeks. We're 8 weeks along as of Monday. We went to the RE clinic at 6w4d for a confirmation of pregnancy scan and they could not see anything in the gestational sack. No fetal pole, no yolk. Doctor told us at that point that we had about a 50/50 chance of a blighted ovum.  We had to wait 10 days for another scan and it was the worst ten days of my entire life. I couldn't even bring myself to log into The Bump.

But all the awesome in the world, we went in on Monday and there was a tiny little bug with a good strong heartbeat measuring exactly perfect for dates! So, we are now 8 weeks officially! EDD: Nov. 3  

The Wife and I are starting to narrow down our list of a billion names, which is fun. Having names makes me feel a little more connected to the little bug. Now if I could just curtail my cloth diaper buying habit. 

QOTD: I'm a fat woman. So, I'm really not anticipating showing until six months or so. I'm kind of disappointed by that, but I know it's a matter of reality. I have noticied that I'm starting to get a little uncomfortable in my jeans though when I'm bloated. So, maybe I'll get to buy a belly band.  

2MamazInSeattle

@Byrrd, so glad everything turned out ok. That 10 days must have been brutal!! So sorry you went through that.

Names are super fun. We had that lucky moment when we just hit the name jackpot and that was it. She was named. We love calling her by her name! It makes her feel more real to me for sure.

healz413

@Byrrd, WOW! I can only imagine how difficult that 10 days was. I'm so glad things worked out!!