And so it begins... (7 wks, 2 days)

Well, I've been gloating all along about having not truly suffered from morning sickness. Yes, I've been nauseous constantly, and yes, I've even lost several pounds (I was 142-143 this morning). This morning, however, one bite of my cereal, and oh no! At least I had time to run to the bathroom before it really came back up. Then I suffered through the rest of my cereal, knowing it would only get better if I continued to choke it down. The "joys" of pregnancy!

(picture at 6 weeks)

I was feeling so bad, I almost called out of work. But as I continued throughout the day, I made sure I had a little bit of something in my stomach at all times - even if it was just some soda or water - and I seemed to do much better as the day went on.

Oh, and much love to the staff at Abingdon Walgreen's for helping me out today :) I think mostly the reason I felt better was because of the support I received from each and every one of you - so thanks, girls!

Tomorrow we go for the first sonogram. I'm super nervous. A bazillion things could go wrong. Or it could be twins. Or it could be a tumor. Oh geez, please just let everything be healthy, normal, and happy. And I have to have a full bladder. I know the reasoning - so the position of the uterus is in a better spot for visualization of the baby - but it's like pure torture to a pregnant lady.



(picture at 7 weeks)

One last thing, I've been super hormonal (obviously). I apologize if I've suddenly started crying or bawling. I truly can't help it. Most times, I don't even know why I'm crying...it just happens. I think I've only had this happen in front of Mark, but if you see me get teary eyed, you've been warned. :-p

First Appointment (6 weeks, 5 days)

And I'm freaking out! Ahhh! I'll fill in more afterward.

...

So the appointment went well. Mark came back with me, which really helped to make me feel more comfortable and at ease - even if it was only because it made him more uncomfortable. Thanks for taking one for the team, Mark :)
We talked to Dr. Aziz for a while about our family histories, twins in the family, diseases, etc, and then we went back for the exam. It was no different than any other doctor visit, except for the part where she felt my uterus and exclaimed, "you are definitely pregnant! Six to eight weeks along - perfect size." I was (as the title says) 6 weeks and 5 days, so that's a relief. I'm still a little anxious about having multiples, but I seriously doubt it's happening now. Phew. She also weighed me, and with all my clothes on and having downed a bunch of water to be able to go to the bathroom - I was at 147. I've been 145 at home, so with all my clothes on, I figured that wasn't too bad. :)


After the appointment, we went to get the bloodwork done - and boy did they take a LOT of blood! I was really unprepared for it... all NINE vials! At least I didn't have to look, I didn't pass out, and I got to eat an awesome lunch at Red Robin afterward :) Well, I sort of ate... that's been a bit of a problem these days, but we're working on it. I'm learning that I can no longer eat the way I used to - 2-3 big meals/day with relatively no snacking. That just isn't going to cut it anymore. I definitely have come to realize I need to be constantly eating, or else the nausea takes over and I can't eat at all. Not good.

I have a sonogram scheduled for next Tuesday. Here's hoping all turns out okay!

Telling the Parental Units... (6 weeks)

So, after long debates between Mark and I, we finally decided we would go ahead and tell our parents early. My sister already knew (see previous post), and I was dying to share the news with the most important people in our lives! Grandparents' Day was September 12th, so we made plans to see both sets of our parents over the weekend.

I bought cards for Grandparents' Day to give to each set of our parents. We went to the Hannas' House on Saturday night for dinner. After a delicious dinner, I went and got the card for them. I asked them if they knew what holiday Sunday was - they had no clue. I told them to go ahead and open the card, letting them know it was a day early for the holiday the next day. Mom H opened the card; confused, she said, "I think you meant to give this card to the Grandparents..." then her eyes opened really wide as she read, "Happy 1st Grandparents' Day, with love, Baby Hanna!" She got really excited and came over to feel the belly - of course there was nothing to actually feel yet, but who doesn't love touching a pregnant woman's belly? Dad H told us how proud he was and happy for us. A great reaction for the first time grandparents. :)

My parents, on the other hand, seemed a little more expectant of the news. We stopped by their house on our way home from Kings Dominion on Sunday with a similar Grandparents' Day card. My parents already have 5 grandkids, so it took them a little while to read through all the names before they got to "Baby Hanna." My mom smiled, handed the card to my dad, and let him read it before reacting. My dad said, "Well, thanks for telling us - we've known since last Sunday. When did you find out?" I have no idea how they had known for that long - Mark and I didn't even know until the previous Tuesday! I guess parents just know these things :) My mom had a dream that I was pregnant with a baby boy. I have no desire to find out before the baby is born. As long as little Susque is healthy, that is all that matters to me. Mark has always said he wanted to know as soon as possible, but I may just have him convinced that we are waiting! :-D

This past Thursday, we went to visit Mark's Grandparents - to share dinner and the big news! Mark's grandma, "Gah-gah" already seemed to know - she was very excited to hear the news, but her first words were "Really? I was hoping that's why you came over!" It will be their first great-grandchild! Very exciting night for all of us.

Today is 6 weeks. I can't believe I have 34 to go! I still somewhat feel like a "fake" pregnant lady, although today I had my first mini bought of nausea, and I think I'm starting to really show. Scary to think that most people don't start showing until 12 weeks or so, and I'm already bulging! My mom said that she was showing at 6 weeks with her first pregnancy, so maybe it's in my genes.... or maybe it's twins! :) haha, let's not go scaring Mark too much, now. Fraternal twins runs on both sides of my family (multiple sets, including my grandfather's brother and sister on my dad's side, and my great-grandmother on my mom's side), and the freakish coincidence that almost everyone in my row of townhouses has twin boys! I suppose we'll find out soon enough! If we have twins, I will slightly reconsider finding out the gender ahead of time. It's a lot of unknowns with twins not to be better prepared. We'll see!

We're Expanding!

On September 7, 2010, Mark and I found out our family would be growing by two little feet :) That's right - we're expecting! Baby "Susque" Hanna is due in May 2011.



I found out first thing on Tuesday morning. After getting Mark out of bed, I contemplated taking a pregnancy test. I went back and forth several times, convincing myself it would be negative...but just taking it to get it over with. I thought he was downstairs, so I went to go get him while waiting for the test results. Much to my surprise, Mark had already left for work! So I went to look at the test, and it was POSITIVE! So there I was, sitting there, brimming with all kinds of emotions - and I had to share with someone. I definitely did not want to tell Mark over the phone, so I called my sister. I barely got two words out, probably something like, "uh, Kate?" and she knew. I didn't even have to tell her. Then I went to her house for the day, stealing all her pregnancy and baby names books, so I would have something to keep myself occupied until Mark came home. I also made a trip to BabiesRUs, picked up some bibs that said "Daddy's Hugs are the Best" and some plain white onesies.




I carefully wrapped all of these things up in a gift bag, pregnancy test on the bottom, onesies (decorated with "Will you be my Daddy?") and bibs next, and the book "How to be a Pregnant Father" on top. I let Mark open this gift when he came home from disc golf (yes, not only did I have to wait all day for work to be over, but then I had to wait for him to finish playing disc golf! and I am not a patient person!). As he opened each thing, the expression on his face went from - "do you have something to tell me?"



- to - "are you serious?"



- to - "are you SURE? how do you KNOW?" :-D



We are both VERY excited, shocked, surprised, nervous, etc. :)

As of tomorrow, I am six weeks pregnant. We go for our first OB appointment on the 23rd. Can't wait to see little Susque for the first time!!