Made it to the 2nd Trimester!

13 weeks

I couple of days ago we announced on facebook that we were expecting, which was a lot of fun. It was nice to get so much love and support from our friends and family. I'm currently feeling pretty good. I still have some low energy days and the nausea is almost all gone. My last midwife appointment went well and we heard the heartbeat again. I've got a really cool audio from it but haven't figured out how to change the format so I can upload it on here. Our midwife has been including Luke as much as possible in the appointments and used the doppler to hear his heartbeat as well.

I've been feeling the baby move lately. Not very consistently but every now and then when I'm sitting still I get a little poke or what feel like somersaults in my tummy. I'm really looking forward to when those kicks are strong enough for Alan and Luke to feel. 

Our Favorite toys

In my opinion, a good toy will hold Luke's attention for more than 15 minutes and perhaps help him to use his imagination or develop needed skills. Preferably, the toy will not require batteries and isn't expensive.

 Legos

I personally remember playing with legos for hours constructing houses and towers. Luke has a little lego tower in the living room and likes to see how tall he can stack them. It helps with muscle coordination in his little hands.

 Magnifiine glass

I may change my mind when he discovers he can start fires with this thing but for now he loves to explore everything and discover hidden aspects of whatever he sees.

 Playdough

This might be my favorite right now. It holds Luke's attention the longest. Throw in some cookie cutters and a rolling pin and there goes the afternoon. The only down side is that it tends to be single use and can get a little messy (small price in my book). I've even found recipes online to make is yourself.

Bubbles

Who doesn't enjoy bubbles? Super cheap, simple, pure joy.... what more could you want?

Dinosaurs (or other animal figurine)

Art supplies
Crayons, colored pencils, markers, paint and big roll of paper. Luke has heard this phrase many times: "you only color on paper."

Stuffed animal
Nothing like a good ol comfort toy to squeeze. This is Wa-Wa. Luke named him/her (and took this picture).

Awesome Mother's Day

 Why today was so wonderful:

• Breakfast in bed of banana pancakes with butter, brown sugar and a cup of french press coffee.
• A drawing from Luke and a funny card from Alan
• A couple of hours to read the paper and watch a chick flick

•  Brunch.... country eggs benedict (my new obsession)

•  Luke got dressed up in a tie and did his hair. He did his best to show me his manners in the restaurant
• We went to the park. It was beautiful and sunny.
• I got to wear a pretty summer dress since it was so nice out.
• I took a nap! 
• I got calls and made calls to my family
• Alan and Luke washed my car and did the dishes

• Antipasto dinner and roasted artichokes (can you tell my appetite is back?)

• We watched the Labyrinth, a childhood favorite. Luke was mesmerized. I mean, Bowie is cool. 

Heartbeat!!!

While at my brother's new house, my mom checked for a heartbeat. It took a while to get the  right angle but we heard a heartbeat yesterday. A strong 180 beats per minute. My mom is convinced it's a girl and has named her Leia (not going to happen). The only bummer is that Alan wasn't there to hear it. He was out shootin' with the boys (that's another story). We tried to find it again but no such luck. My next midwife appointment will be at 12 weeks.

Appointment update

I had my midwife appointment yesterday. It went well, I'm still pregnant. We couldn't find a heartbeat with the doppler, but 8 weeks is a little early to hear it. I was a little disappointed but I'm feeling more confident in the pregnancy. For one thing, I can't button my pants any more. And I'm nauseous all. day. long. Not fun, but reassuring. The midwife said it's hard to find the heart beat when babies are so small (I believe the size of a kidney bean right now) but, she thought the baby was moving around. My mom is borrowing a doppler from her clinic and we are going to try again Saturday night. If we still can't find it, my midwife said I could pop in for a quick heart beat check in week 10 if I wanted.

Right now I'm battling Luke over breakfast. He would like an english muffin with butter and sugar on it (no doubt, he got that from his dad). I told him his topping options are butter (without sugar), peanut butter or jam. Of coarse, he reacted by running to his room crying over my tyranny. A similar exchange has happened two more times this morning and he has now settled on apples, cheese and crackers.

I'm trying to find the energy to clean up because my house is gross and covered in little dried play dough bits. But, I'm exhausted and it's only 9:30am. I'd use synthetic energy (aka coffee) but that makes me want to barf.

I think I'll just lie in bed for the next few weeks instead.

Jordan's 21 run and Easter

Alan photo bombing with jello shots

My baby brother turned 21 last week. Myself and his other older siblings (and in-laws) half been taunting him for the last year. There were threats of throwing up in public and getting arrested but it ended up being pretty tame. Probably because I was the designated driver and kept all the drunks in line. In fact Jordan was the only one of us that didn't participate in any underage drinking (go figure).
We went to three places: an Irish pub with live music, a fancy beer bar, and a dive bar. At the dive bar we played pool and Alan drank enough to karaoke Bon Jovi (the highlight of the evening).

The next morning was Easter. Luke, Marie and Russell opened their baskets and I cooked everyone breakfast.

Marie and Russ in disguise.

Then we had an egg hunt in the backyard. We found them all except one... it still hasn't been found.

Luke was so excited every time he found an egg and shouted "AN EGG!" Until he found a rolly poly and then he wasn't interested in search for eggs anymore. Bugs trump candy.

Russell opening all his eggs from the hunt.

Hcg

I pulled this image from a hcg search, ignore the red "data" line, it doesn't apply to me

So I've had two blood draws, each a week apart to check my Hcg levels, which is something I requested not what my midwife recommend. My first one came back at 1038 at 5 weeks and the second came back at 6083 at 6 weeks. This is good. My levels are normal and doubling a little less than every 72 hours. I also found a study that looked at what Hcg levels were at 16 day past ovulation (dpo). Of the 48 women who had levels of 200-299, 96% carried their babies to full term. Of the 105 women with levels above 300, 100% had healthy pregnancies. Based on my levels at 21 days, I believe 16 dpo would put me at 275 (math is not my strong suit).

All of this is very reassuring but I still feel like I have a 50/50 chance. I know I'm pregnant but I'm guarded. I'm having a hard time telling people because it causes me to become more emotionally invested in the pregnancy. The more invested I am, the harder it will be if things don't work out. Plus, my last baby stopped growing at 6.5 weeks. I think I'll feel better after I hear a heart beat.