I’ve never been interested in blogging, but I decided I wanted a way to chronicle…my first pregnancy! For myself and to share with family and friends. I wish I had thought of this four days ago when we found out, so this first post is a lot of catching up. I apologize in advance for the length. (Click past the break. Trust me, it’s long.)
Some people know this, some people probably had an idea, some people might not have had a clue. But we had been pursuing this whole baby thing for a while. I’ve been taking prenatal vitamins for months. That being the case, of course I always have a few pregnancy tests lying around. I buy them cheaply both online and from Dollar Tree. Since they’re cheap enough, sometimes I test early just for the heck of it. By sometimes I mean…almost every month for the last 8 months. I’m just not good at waiting. This month was no exception. On Friday, June 18, at 12 dpo (days post ovulation…yes I know exactly when I ovulated), I got up in the morning, used the test, and set it aside. I already had it in my mind that this whole getting pregnant thing would probably take forever…and it could very well require medical intervention, so I didn’t think much of it. After all, I’ve taken tons of these tests before. They’re always negative.
Okay, turns out, not always. After a couple of minutes, I look over (I’m pretty sure I do a double-take), and then I just stare. Light pink line. I keep staring, thinking this is definitely my imagination. I stare. Stare some more. Holy crap that is a pink line. There are two pink lines!
I always thought it was silly when women would say they took two, three, four (or more) pregnancy tests after finding out they’re pregnant. After all, a positive test is a positive test. So what do I do next in this situation? Get out another pregnancy test, of course. I use that one and try to go do things that will keep me preoccupied for a couple of minutes. I go back to the bathroom. Two pink lines. I pick it up, hold it up to the light, make sure I’m not just looking at it at an odd angle (ha). Okay, I guess I need a second opinion.
I crawl back into bed with Pete and start muttering about weird things. Friday mornings are often early mornings for me, so it was 7-something. Pete is semi-coherent, and I say something about how my pregnancy test looks positive, and Pete is suddenly a lot more alert than he usually is at 7 am. Heheheh. He looks at it…but he doesn’t really know how to interpret them. I quickly explain, he says there are definitely two lines, but the test line is a kind of faint. I explain that that doesn’t matter. We immediately go in search of the other brand of tests I know I have somewhere but couldn’t remember where since we moved. Finally, I find them. There are very clearly two pink lines.
At this point, I reaallllly need to be getting ready for work. But I took a few pictures of the HPTs to capture the memory before they started to evaporate too much. =P
All morning long, I was amazingly able to act normally (I think). Pete and I still feel relatively calm! I think it’s because it doesn’t really feel REAL yet. And I keep thinking about how this pregnancy might not stick. I know about statistics in the first trimester, plus I tested pretty early (before my period was even late). I was guarding my emotions because I was concerned about the possibility of a chemical pregnancy. I think I’m overdoing this though. It’s almost like I can’t let myself get excited (or even make myself believe that this is really going to happen) until the second trimester. I never imagined I would react this way…it’s kind of odd. Maybe it’ll feel more real and more exciting after my first OB appointment. =)
Okay, now I have to ‘fess up about a few things.
Confession #1: On Friday, I called my mom on my way back to work in the afternoon. Mom, you had an interesting choice of words when we spoke that day. You asked something like, “So what exciting things have been going on today?” Mom, I’m sorry I lied. I think I said something about just working and getting to go home to have lunch with Pete. The truth is, I had just had my first positive pregnancy test that morning. =P
Confession #2: Oddly, that very same day, the whole “when are we going to be grandparents” thing came up in conversation when Pete was talking to his parents. M2D2, we’re sorry. Pete didn’t technically lie when he said, “no news to share,” but he did choose his words carefully. We hadn’t even had time yet to discuss when and how we were going to share our news!
On Saturday, I woke up and decided to test again to see if I’m still pregnant. Yes, two lines. But I only used one test this time. Off to work I go. Must act normal!
By now, Pete and I had a chance to think about when we’d share the news. We decided we at least wanted to wait until after my first OB appointment, but we wouldn’t wait until the end of the first trimester to share with family and a few friends. Even if the worst happens, these are the people I would want to have for support anyway. I hope people are understanding that we didn’t tell right away. We just want to know more ourselves first. Trust me, the secret is hard to keep.
Sunday. Father’s Day. After waking up, I snuggled on Pete and giggled as I told him happy first Father’s Day. =) Hee hee, it felt so weird to say that. He said thank you and gave me a hug. I thought Father’s Day would be a cool time to share the news. Like a grandpa card for dad or something. But we just weren’t ready to say anything yet. Sorry, Dad! This brings me to…
Confession #3: Sorry, Mom and Dad. Our primary reason for not going over to Grandma’s for Connie’s birthday was primarily to avoid my aunts. Connie, Vickie…I love you both dearly. But I don’t have enough confidence in my poker face if you had decided to interrogate us again that day about when we’re going to have kids. =) That, and I didn’t really want to lie if you asked. But I still didn’t want to tell. The best way I knew how to handle any potential situation was to avoid it altogether. I hope you’re not offended. (Also, I was super tired, and I ended up taking a 3-3.5 hour nap instead. I slept fine that night, too. Maybe it’s my body working extra hard that makes me want to sleep.)
Confession #4: Mom, Dad, sorry about not eating Andy’s with you Sunday night. The night we all ate at Taco Wagon, on the way home after Walmart, I decided to get an ice cream cone at McDonald’s. For some odd reason, it just felt gross to eat, and I ended up throwing a good chunk of it away and still forcing down more than I really cared to eat. The next morning, I got that positive pregnancy test. Since then, ice cream just sounds pretty gross. Pete just doesn’t eat it anymore anyway. =P Side-note: The primary purpose of going to Walmart (which was the reason we drove separately) was because I needed to buy more prenatal vitamins. And at that point I had no clue!
Backtracking a bit, on Sunday afternoon after lunch, we went to buy more pregnancy tests from Dollar Tree. I thought I had more, but they were ovulation predictor kits. I tested again on Monday (just one!) …still pregnant. I called to make an appointment at the OB office. I was thinking my schedule was great because I’m always off on Mondays. Perfect time to go to appointments without having to miss work and without having to tell work anything until I’m ready to tell. WRONG! Dr. only sees OB patients on Tuesday afternoons and Friday mornings. Which is really pretty terrible for me, but such is life. I called Chesterfield and blocked off a Tuesday afternoon and ran into Penneys to see what was already booked and what wasn’t. So here are my first appointment times:
Friday, June 25 @2:00 – This is when they do the blood test and take a thorough history. I think we also get to talk about fun things like finances, too. Fun fact: this kid has to be paid in full by the 28th week! I think I know where our tax rebate is going. Goodbye, new cabinets. I think the pet is going to have to wait, too. I’m okay with that. =)
Tuesday, June 29 @2:00 – This is when the doctor does the full physical. At that point, I’ll only be 5 weeks and a couple of days along, so I don’t know how much they’ll be able to tell about the pregnancy itself. From what I’ve read online, it’s unusual to have your first appointment with the doctor until week 8-12, but oh well. I think I like it better this way.
I still have two pregnancy tests left. I’ll probably use one on Thursday or Friday to see if I’m still pregnant. =P I haven’t stopped tracking my temperature, and so far it’s still elevated.
As far as symptoms go, there have been very few. First couple of days after I found out, I felt very mildly crampy as if my period was coming. That has gone away. Ever since the day I found out, my boobs have been sore, but nothing severe. Just don’t hug me too hard. =) I don’t really mind it like this. It’s the only reminder I have right now that something is different about my body. I hope I don’t get morning sickness too much. Keeping fingers crossed. I have been waking up well before my alarm since before I found out. I’m slightly more tired in the late afternoon/evening, but not too bad. I have taken a couple of naps in the last few days. My appetite is mostly normal. Sometimes I’m not too interested in eating, but I do it anyway, and I feel fine. Just don’t offer me ice cream. =)
If all goes well, I’d estimate my due date at February 27, 2011. Sorry, Grandma Laura, I don’t want to hold out for your birthday. A Valentine baby might be nice. =) We’ll see if the doctor agrees about due date. She’ll probably call it February 26, since that’s how it comes out if you go by the first day of my cycle. But that assumes I ovulated a day earlier, which I did not. None of that due date business really matters if I take after my momma though. I’ll be poppin’ that kid out in January. =P
This has been a ridiculously long post, so one more confession and I’ll close:
Confession #5: Dad, that time I had to “clean up” the bathroom after you got back from Home Depot? Yeah, I was actually just stashing all the test strips I had out. That’s not really how I want to “tell” you. I’m glad you asked before going to the bathroom though. That could have been awkward. =)