17 3/7 Weeks

So we had our appointment with our perinatalogist this afternoon. The appointment went great! He did our anatomical ultrasound and everything looked wonderful. The skeletal system was in place and well formed, and all of little baby's organs looked great and were where they were supposed to be. That was a great relief! He did confirm as well that this is ALL BOY! =)

We videotaped the ultrasound so we could share it with all of you. Unfortunately, it is proving harder than I thought to get it formatted for blogger. So while we figure that out, here's the rest of today's pictures.

Here are some still shots from today's ultrasound.

Baby has been measuring a couple of days behind the last few ultrasounds. Today I am 17 3/7 and baby was measuring 17 5/7! So he is bigger than he should be!! This is a really good sign that the medications I am on are only affecting me and not the baby! Keep up the prayers!

I took some more belly shots tonight! Baby is growing! At this point in time, I have officially gained 6lbs! Woohoo!!!

The baby keeps flipping around in there! Today his feet were right where I have been feeling all those popcorn sensations, so I am pretty sure that he has been kicking me.  =) I am feeling them multiple times per day now which is awesome. I can tell when he is sleeping and when he is awake and active. Its great!!

We are so very excited! It was great to see baby moving and see how much he has grown. We are so thankful to God that baby is healthy and growing along just like he should. Just like you, we are gearing up for Christmas around here. So the next post will probably be after the holiday. So the three of us would like to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas!!!!

Technically 17 weeks

I'll find out my exact weeks along on Monday at our appointment.

Just a quick blog to say that I LOVE BEING PREGNANT! I feel so blessed to have this experience. After wanting this for SO long and waiting what seemed like forever, I still have to pinch myself that it is actually happening. That right now, a little baby is growing inside of me. It's amazing, and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Speaking of that baby growing inside of me. I'm at work just perusing the internet. I have been on my feet for the last couple of hours and have just sat down for a little while. At first I wasn't paying much attention, but it kept happening so of course I started waiting for it. I have been feeling it all shift, but have been passing it off as gas or something else. I keep having this popping sensation, like popcorn popping, over and over in the same spot. :)  Pretty sure that's the baby moving all over the place. This is very exciting. I have felt it before this, but never as much as tonight. I figure he must be awake. :D

This is amazing. There's a baby in there.   !!!!!!!!! 
<3 <3 <3

16 Weeks

I am tired. In fact, I am always tired and hungry. I am feeling great, like my pre-pregnant self, except for in a few areas.  I did throw up unexpectedly on Saturday. So we will have to start counting new from then. Today is one day with no vomiting! =) This feeling great is great . Except being the worry wart that I am, I just keep worrying. I worry that things aren't going the way they should be since I'm not feeling terrible all the time. I know, ridiculous. I can't help it. I see too many scary things at work, too many sad sad stories. My heart breaks for these families and these babies. It's really terrible.

Speaking of work. I am having a REALLY hard time being here. 13 hour shifts are long and hard and stressful enough. Being pregnant has not helped. I'm on my feet a lot, and my patience is tried multiple times a minute with multiple sick babies and difficult families. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do. I feel truly blessed to have this job. I just end up feeling the worst that I ever feel when I am at work. Midway through the shift I usually have a terrible headache from monitors alarming and babies crying. That lasts me all the way home, only to return the next night that I come in. I carry all my stress in my neck and back, and by the end of my shift they are THROBBING. The worst thing is I have no patience. NONE. I tend to get frustrated easily, and this job tests more than your patience. It makes your sanity waiver. There are multiple times that I just have to walk away and get a break from it or I will lose my mind. I am trying a new approach though. I am no longer working 3 nights in a row. I am breaking them up throughout the week. 2 nights here, 1 there. I am hoping this is going to alleviate some of the stress that is weighing me down. =)

I say all this to ask for prayer. I wish it were easier to be here right now. I wish my shifts went by faster. I can't imagine feeling more tired and worse throughout the pregnancy, and still having this workload. I wish they had a paid maternity plan where you could stay home throughout the pregnancy, as well as a wonderful maternity leave after the baby arrives. =) That would be perfecto. I am tired friends, and I have another 40 years ahead of me, WITH KIDS! Ok, that's all from Debbie Downer, it's just hard to not let it get to you sometimes.

I'm pretty sure that my appointment with my Perinatalogist is next Monday. The week of Christmas.  I say pretty sure because I haven't had my planner with me the last couple of appointments. This has caused some memory lapses as to when my follow up appointments are. I am trying to be better organized and have started using my phone. It takes a little longer when you're pregnant!  I think he will be doing my anatomical scan then and letting us know for sure what this baby is. Dan is not nervous at all, he says he knows that it is a boy. I can't wait to know for certain, I'm a nervous Nelly. My OB appointment is the following week, the week of New Years. The Holiday season! We are all busy busy bees! I hope this is finding you in great spirits and enjoying time with those that you love. Much love to all of our readers!

Christmas at the Payne's 2009!!!

Our highly anticipated, I'm sure, Christmas gallery:

Something happened here in Houston a few days back. SNOW. =)

Dan and my dad are in a Christmas light competition. =)

So here are some detailed shots of our light display.

I think the snow adds a little something, don't you?

After the snow had melted a bit the next day. Yes! It actually stayed for more than a day, well at least in patches here and there. This is our front tree.

Our second tree that sits back a bit further.

A great view of the whole house lit up at night! SO PRETTY!!!

Dan by Santa after a long day of Christmas shopping.

We finally started!

Our cute little mantle. Dan and I have our big stockings and the little one is the newest addition! We ran into some of Dan's friends at Panera today and they are expecting as well. She is 14 weeks along, and they were told they were having a boy. Well, they were at first! Now there's a 75% chance they are having a girl! Yowsers! That makes me all the more anxious to have my "big" scan and make sure this little guy is all boy!

Merry Christmas!!

15 Weeks!!! December 6-12, 2009

Baby at 15 Weeks:

The baby can probably hear now and is comforted by the sound of your heartbeat and your voice. Encourage your loved ones to talk to the baby and let him know how much he is loved already.

Colorless eyebrows and eyelashes have now appeared and the hair on the head is getting thicker.

Speaking of hair, a very fine down, known as lanugo is now covering the baby's entire body. Most of this will disappear before his birth.

The baby's heart is pumping the equivalent of about 25 quarts of blood a day.

The scalp hair pattern is developing. If you could see it you would already be able to tell if he got Daddy's cowlick.

Isn't that SO exciting!!! The baby can hear now?!?!? That truly makes my heart fly!!! Especially since Dan was just loving on that baby today and talking to him asking if he could hear him! Pregnancy is SO awesome! I can't believe all these things are happening inside of me. God is so good. I am loving every minute of being pregnant. It's unbelievable. I don't even want to think of a time when I am not pregnant, isn't that silly?

I am feeling a lot better! I still have waves of nausea, but accompanied with that I also have times where I feel like my old self. I am eating a lot more and throwing up a lot less. I am pretty sure that it has been 9 DAYS since I last threw up!  HALLELUJAH! I started wearing maternity clothes the week of Thanksgiving when I was home in Michigan. Oh did I underestimate the comfort of maternity clothes! I could live in the maternity pants I bought. I also purchased the belly band so I can still wear my old jeans, albeit not as wonderful as those maternity pants. I'm going to wait til I'm a bit bigger to purchase more.

We took more belly pictures today, I will post soon hopefully. Our computer, as always is on the fritz, and it takes me 30-45 minutes to upload one picture. That is if it doesn't start shutting down in the process. :(  I just want to throw it out the window, but Dan won't let me. So maybe I'll be able to get them up here on Thursday.

I need to figure out my exact dates here soon. Everyone is confusing me. The Perinatalogist measures me and says that I am measuring small and am a few days behind what I am supposed to be. Which he says is no big deal. Then the Midwives told me that my original dates were correct and that my measurements are right on target. ??? So what do I go by? Do I stick with my original dates? Or do I say I am only as far along as I am measuring? Sigh.

I have started looking at baby boy nursery themes online! This is a very fun and exhausting process. There are so many options! I can't wait for our next scan so I can start shopping already!!

BELLY!

14 1/2 Weeks

I had my appointment with the Midwives today. They put us in a room and closed the door. Dan was sure it was because they were probably talking about us. Come to find out, he was probably right.

One of the midwives came in, and told us that they decided to transfer our care to an OB. I didn't understand, so I looked at her as if this wasn't new information and just shook my head yes. She continued on, talking about how all of the Midwives had a meeting and discussed whether or not they were comfortable caring for me throughout the remainder of my pregnancy. The consensus was that I should be considered high risk at this point and I should be transfered onto a higher level of care. Then it started setting in for me. Dan and I both knew that this was a possibility. We were caught a little off guard though, because things have been going so well. I was still on very low doses of all of my medications, and the baby looked great. Our Perinatalogist was watching the baby carefully and had been reassuring us that everything looked great and there was nothing to be concerned about. We expressed these concerns to the Midwife. She said that she understood but they as a whole, thought it would be best for me and the baby to be followed by an OB. We once again reiterated that we were already being followed by a high risk Perinatologist, and so far my Primary Care Physician had been making all the calls on my medications as well as monitoring my blood levels. The Midwives at this point, were doing the least to follow this pregnancy in regards to my hyperthyroidism, so I didn't understand why they were passing our care on. Dan and I were both very upset. I am already an emotional person, and throw in pregnancy hormones just for fun. There were multiple times where I had to fight back tears. I just kept thinking about how my appointments for the rest of the pregnancy were going to change, as well as the delivery itself. I was very sad. Thankfully, the midwife they chose to tell us the news, we liked and already had rapport with. She is really funny, and she kept adding comic relief to the situation, so I didn't shed a single tear.  =)

So we talked with her for a while and she recommended a female OB that works with the Midwives in their practice. We made our next appointment with the MD she recommended and we will just go from there. If we end up not hitting it off with her, we will be on the search for someone else that delivers at TCH. So please be praying that we do end up liking her. The midwife did say that there was a possibility that if my pregnancy goes on without complication that we could be switched back to the midwives at 36 weeks. Just in time for the delivery. So we will have to see how this whole thing pans out.

On a better note, she did another doppler to listen to the baby! His heartbeat was healthy as could be! It was great hearing it! She said that as soon as she put the doppler on my belly that he kicked it! I thought that was pretty awesome. We could hear that he kicked it, but I didn't feel it. I had one more tiny flutter sensation while we were in Michigan. I was standing in the bathroom brushing my teeth and I felt it. So quick! I want it to last longer so I can know for sure what it is!

Anyhow, we have our annual Sugarland Town Center Christmas Tree Lighting tonight! It's gonna be so cold! I already know. ;) Speaking of Christmas, IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME!!!! I couldn't be anymore excited! Dan and I have yet to start our Christmas shopping. Shame on us, I know. It's going to be a frenzy now! I will have to post our most recent pictures of our finished house. We have all the decorations up outside and I think we are getting to the point where we could be called gawdy. That means we have just a few more decorations to put up until it's just right! ;) Hope you're having a Merry Christmas thus far!

Oh and did I mention that I am hungry all the time??  I AM HUNGRY ALL THE TIME. ALL THE TIME. Even if I just finished eating, I will still be hungry. It's ridiculous! I am back to my prepregnancy weight but I have a feeling it will be going up up up with how much I'm inhaling. Dan is really worried. ;)

14 Weeks THANKSGIVING!!! =)

So it's Thanksgiving week! I was so excited to eat Thanksgiving dinner! It is my favorite meal on the planet! Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes with roasted marshmallows on top, crescent rolls and cranberry sauce! It doesn't get much better than that! We had a preThanksgiving feast at our house the Sunday before Thanksgiving so that we could celebrate with Dan's family. I think that 2 Thanksgiving's is pretty much the best idea ever. We shall repeat this, just so we can eat that delicious dinner again surrounded by those we love.

We had a wonderful time in Michigan. It is always great to see family that you don't get see often enough. We had a family wedding the Friday after Thanksgiving and it was SO fun to tell so many people that we are expecting a boy! We loved every moment of it. =)

Unfortunately, whether it be the routine change, or lack of sleep my wonderfully loved feelings of well-being were fleeting. Before we even touched down in Michigan I was super nauseated. We made it off the plane just in time to see some food. I sent Dan immediately over to get some for me. It was too late. One bite, two bites, didn't matter. I was done for. I searched frantically for a bathroom, only to find it was closed with a security guard there blocking my entrance and everything! Gotta love Metro Airport! The security guard pointed me in the direction of the next bathroom, way too far away for me to make it too. So my only option was to get sick next to a window, with everyone being nosey and staring. My poor husband tried to stand guard and make a barrier with the luggage, but we still had gawkers.

This carried on throughout the trip. I was nauseous all day everyday and sensitive to hearing about/smelling/or even thinking about foods all over again. It was not fun. Especially since we have so many restaurants there that we love and make sure to stop at every time we are home. That didn't stop us though. We stopped at the usual places: 7-11 for some well needed slurpees. Delicious. National Coney Island Hani Specials. The famous Apple pancakes from The Pantry. Gross White Castle for Dan. Mongolian Barbeque and the always amazing Beirut Palace. My mouth is watering just typing it. The sad thing for me was that all this food that I love so dearly all tasted different. Everything tastes different. I am SO particular now, it is literally ridiculous. Much to my dismay, everything I bit into I found something that didn't taste right. :( It was a sad state of affairs.

I also have hyper-gag reflex. If I don't swallow my pills on the first go, or sometimes even if I cough too hard, projectile emesis everywhere. :(  I can barely brush my teeth. What can you do? I am so excited to be pregnant, that I don't even care.

The trip, as always, was way too short. We can't wait til we can take baby boy there! We were sad that it didn't snow, but we were so thankful to be able to spend the Holiday with family. We love you guys!

13 WEEKS!! Sorry this is so long, we all know I'm long winded.

So, sorry my posts are all late!! We have had a busy couple of weeks here. We all know how the Holidays are. Anyhow I have been hearing about it from everyone, so while here at work with some time on my hands, I decided to play catch up. =)

I have been feeling surprisingly well. I have been nauseous, but not all day. I am also only throwing up about every 3 days on average!  WOOHOO! Still plagued with heartburn and indigestion, but happy to be preggo! I am also able to eat more than just carbohydrates. Adding other things into my diet has been a very welcome change. =) I feel like I look a little pregnant now. At least from my perspective. Others may think I just have a gut, but it's a baby people.

So we had an appointment with Dr. Reiter my Perinatalogist on Monday November 23rd. IT WAS AMAZING!!!! Since I am here at work, I am unable to post pictures, but I will add them later. Baby has changed SO much!! From the moment the ultrasound started that baby was moving all over the place in there! I couldn't feel anything, sadly, but soon enough I know I will. ;) Baby looked like a baby and was moving all over!  The baby bent and kicked him(her)self in the head!  Dan and I were laughing so hard just watching. At one point I laughed so much I knocked the Ultrasound scanner right off my belly. I apologized and tried to calm down.

Dan and I were really REALLY hoping that we would be able to find out the sex of the baby. Jessica had found out days earlier that she and John would be expecting a bouncing baby boy! Since she had found out so early we had really high hopes that we would be able to find out as well. So during the ultrasound Dan and I were glued to the ultrasound monitor looking for any "clues". I could have sworn I saw what the baby was, and come to find out later Dan felt the same way. At the end of the ultrasound Dr. Reiter froze the screen on a picture that looked like the baby was sitting on top of a zerox copier. Now, mind you, there are multiple screens throughout the room displaying the ultrasound. So Dan and I were literally surrounded by this image. Dr. Reiter was talking to me about hyperthyroidism, my medications, etc, etc. He was ignoring the picture that Dan and I were just STARING at the entire time he was talking. I remember thinking, "Ok, ok, Is that what I think it is?? Tell me, JUST TELL ME!!!!!" Finally, like he does this everyday ;) he casually stops and says point blank, "gender?" Dan and I answered YES immediately, he shrugged his shoulders and said "boy".  !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY! BOY!

I could write it a thousand times and that would not capture how excited Dan and I were at that moment! I would have been thrilled regardless, but  A BABY BOY! wOoT! Dan and I both guessed that it was a boy, we could see his little Christmas package during the ultrasound. This boy was not shy. He was spread eagle for the world to see. We have a picture of it, but Dan is not so sure he wants the world wide web seeing his son's package. :) So you may not get to view that one. WE ARE ECSTATIC! We couldn't wait to share with family and friends. So a few people got some calls, we waited til we were in Michigan to tell my parents. We wanted to share that in person, since we had to share all of our previous news over the phone.

So there it is, it was a big day for us. The baby looks great and is measuring well! We are still measuring a few days behind, but the Dr. said this early it really doesn't matter. My blood results were back as well. Praise the Lord, my TSI was normal, which is what we wanted. That means that TSI isn't circulating around in the baby's blood, causing his Thyoid levels to be all out of whack. My Thyroid levels have also dropped, but haven't completely gone back to normal. The biggest thing right now is my heartrate. Once that gets back to normal I will be able to stop taking the betablocker. This would be great to happen now because this medication is the one that can cause the baby to grow slower and be smaller than normal. So please be praying that my heartrate slows down and becomes normal. Thank you for all of your prayers thus far! God is faithful!

Dr. Reiter told us the same thing that Jess got, we know it's a boy, but wait til your big scan to start buying baby boy things. This is no easy task my friends. Everytime we go anywhere baby, I am always perusing the aisles.  Dan is very good at holding back, so we still do not own anything blue.  Although I also know a certain momo has been out shopping already...

After our appointment, we had dinner.  Most of which was spent talking about the baby together and with others via phone or text. It was a great day. I went to work that night elated. The very next morning Dan picked me up and we started our journey to Michigan to spend Thanksgiving with the family.

This is best I could do! It's really hard to capture a great picture of the Ultrasound pictures. But here's our baby boy! He's much bigger than last time! Can't wait for our next scan!

12 1/2 Weeks

I had my blood drawn today to check my Thyroid levels as well as my TSI. Please be praying that my Thyroid levels are lower and that I do not have TSI in my blood. I will not get the results for a couple of days, but I will update when I do. Dr. Krishna increased my BetaBlocker today since I am still tachycardic. Instead of 10mg, I am now taking 20mg. I am hoping that my Thyroid levels are lower so that he doesn't have to increase my Thyroid drug as well. Once my Thyroid is in check, I won't even have to take the BetaBlocker anymore. So that's the goal. =)

My Perinatalogist appointment is this coming Monday! I am so excited! I am pretty sure he is going to do an ultrasound. But as I already told Jess, if he doesn't plan on it, I will insist until one is done! I am so excited to see how much this little one has grown!

So I have had some new symptoms the past couple of days. I have had some cramping in my belly/uterus that felt like muscle cramping, or like I had pulled a muscle. Since I am the google queen, I googled to see what it could be. The best results said uterine stretching and or round ligament pain. Making room for baby!  Although it is early, I felt some fluttering a couple of days ago while sitting on the couch with Dan. It was very brief, but I felt it! I am hoping that was the baby, but who knows it could have been gas.

We are gearing up for Thanksgiving! We are very excited to be able to go home to Michigan and visit our family. It is coming up so soon. We are still decorating the outside for Christmas, but I wanted you all to see the progress thus far. So here are the pictures as promised.

Our beautiful Christmas tree! The same one Dan and Jess used as kids. Dan will not even talk about getting a new Christmas tree. It's just not Christmas without this one I guess.

Our Christmas puppies in front of the tree. =)

The outside so far! There's a lot more to do, we will definitely post another picture when it is done.

I gave in and took some belly shots. We had many MANY takes. I pretty much hate every single one. I have most of them saved on my computer, I will not post all of them. I will only post one that is half way decent, BUT AS I'VE BEEN TELLING YOU THERE'S NOT MUCH TO SEE. Maybe once the baby is showing more, I'll be brave enough to post some of the others. But this is it for now.

Unfortunately, you couldn't see very much of this baby from the side, so the next day we decided to take pics from some different angles. We got some more accurate representations!  So this is the belly straight on. Looks WAY bigger to me! AND I'm a little wider. : /

This is the belly from my perspective.  Dan was quick to point out that you can't see my feet. :P

YAY BABY BELLY!!!

YAY!!!!! 12 WEEKS!!!!! =D

So I'm finally 12 weeks!!!! 

SO excited. So I started spreading the news a bit. I updated my facebook status, which is quite a big deal. It was really fun. I would have this big ole cheesy grin on my face every time I checked to see if anyone had commented. I had TONS of comments. Lots of love showered down on Dan and I and our little turkey/peanut/snowman/whichever you prefer. We loved and appreciated every bit of it. Dan wanted me to read him every comment, each time I checked. Pretty cute I think. We are really enjoying telling people.

What's funny, is I feel like I am spreading a LIE!! I still don't feel pregnant. Well, I feel pregnant, just don't quite believe it yet. Dan keeps bugging me to put a picture of my 12 week belly on here. Doesn't he know that my 12 week belly is just some stomach flab from my abdominal muscles relaxing, and well.... my stomach flab???!?!?!?!  I know he knows this, but he doesn't care. He wants it up here. So maybe if he continues to be persistent, you may get to see it.

I am still nauseated and throwing up. =(  I have heatburn and indigestion and am tired all the time. Did I mention hormonal? Throw that one in there for good measure. I am anxious because I haven't seen this little baby since 9 weeks. I really want to see what's going on in there. Anyone have an ultrasound machine handy? My appointments can't come fast enough!

Thanksgiving is coming!!! In 2 weeks. Yowsers. Being the Payne family that we are, Dan and I already have our Christmas tree up and decorated. All of the indoor decorations are in their place, including Lexie and Charlie Brown's Santa and Elf collars. What? Too much? Dan will begin placing the outdoor decorations tomorrow! I am very glad to say that on my way to work last night, one of our neighbors (way down the street) was putting his Christmas lights up as well! Not the first ones this year! We have of course started watching Christmas movies: ELF, A Christmas Carol with Jim Carey, and A Muppets Christmas Carol. We are a little behind, I know. Pictures soon to come, but not of my belly, if I can help it. ;)

Midwife Appointment: Thursday November 5, 2009

11 Weeks

Well I went in for a Midwife appt yesterday for my 11 week check-up. The appt itself was uneventful. We went over all that has happened since my last appt and talked about my meds. I let them know that I will be being followed by my PCP, my Perinatalogist, and their office. They were happy about that. I asked my questions and voiced some concerns. Everything was answered and my concerns were relieved.

The midwife had brought in a doppler to check the baby's heartrate. When I saw it, I was kind of sad because I was really hoping for another Ultrasound. She kept trying to find the baby's heartbeat, but was having a hard time since the baby is still so little. She asked me if I had a tilted uterus, because that would make it harder to hear. I told her I had no idea, no one had ever told me that before. She called for an Ultrasound machine so that she could better assess the baby, I was so excited! I was thinking, keep hiding baby!! While we were waiting for the Ultrasound machine to arrive, she kept trying with the doppler. She would hear it, and then it would disappear. Right before the Ultrasound machine got to the room, and I mean minutes before, she found the baby. We heard a healthy, happy heartbeat. The Midwife was satisfied and cancelled the Ultrasound.  :(  So sadly, no Ultrasound picture to post this week, but happily baby is perfect. =)

I have been feeling a tad bit better! Since about 9 1/2 weeks the nausea has cut back a litttle. With that, I am only vomiting about every other day on average. Yay! I have been having heartburn and indigestion galore. I'm just glad to know that baby is growing the way s(he) should be. I have been on weird sleeping schedules. I am normally a night owl, but for some reason, on my days off of work, and unfortunately, even on my days to go to work, I am waking up early. Early for me is before 10am, and then I am completely zonked by 10pm! WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO ME??? All I really want to do is sleep. What doesn't help, is that the medications I am taking for my Thyroid are supposed to cause sleepiness, and not to mention pregnancy itself making me tired!

This whole pregnancy thing is still not real to me. I am still shocked everytime we go in for an appointment that I am the one who has a baby growing in me. When other people talk about it, I'm surprised as well. It still hasn't hit home. I can't wait until I am showing, and am able to feel the baby move! I'm hoping it'll be more real to me then! I don't have any appointments scheduled until around Thanksgiving, so that will be my next Ultrasound. I can't wait!

Please continue praying for our little family. I am confident in God, I know He is faithful. Dan and I both feel very blessed to know that you are all lifting us up. We are thankful for each and every one of you.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

10 Weeks

So I went in for my appointment with my new Perinatologist today, per the recommendation of my Midwife. He was very nice, which was a relief. I had some issues with his secretaries trying to make my appointment, and I did everything but go through the phone and strangle them. I digress.

He made a copy of my Thyroid labs and my medications. He said that my medications were the lowest dose that I could possibly receive. Which he assumed would probably not bring my Thyroid down to where I need it to be. There's a possibility that these doses will work, but the stronger possibility is that they will need to be increased. The meds themselves were appropriate though, and thats a relief since I have been taking them since Monday.

I still don't feel any different. My heartrate is less bounding, but it is still high. All in all, it will take at least a month for the meds to fully kick in. The doctor suggested that when I get my Thyroid levels drawn in 4 weeks to add a TSI (Thyroid Stimulating Immunoglobulin) to the labs. This lab will test if this immunoglobulin is present in my blood. If it is present, it is the reason my Thyroid levels are so high. He said it would be better for me to NOT have it present, because if it's present in my blood, then it is in the baby's as well. This would cause the baby's Thyroid to start overproducing Thyroid hormone. Which we don't want. The baby doesn't start using its own Thyroid until the 13 or 14 week of gestation, so I'm hoping my meds are appropriate and working well by that time. So please be praying that this is not present in my blood. I want what is best for the baby.

Another concern that he had was that the medications that I am on pass through the placenta to the baby. That means that my Thyroid med and my heart med would also be working on the baby's Thyroid and heart. :(  These drugs could suppress his or her's Thyroid. This would trigger the baby's Thyroid to work harder to make up for the lack of the hormone, thus causing Hyperthyroidism in the baby. That is why the higher the doses of these medications that I require to keep my Thyroid levels appropriate, are dangerous to the baby. So the lower doses required the better. I won't know exaclty which levels are appropriate for me until I get my levels checked. Even then, it can be back and forth with the doses until we find the right one. Please be praying that these low doses that I am on do the trick.

He looked at the baby to make sure that everything was alright. WOW!!  What changes occur in a couple of weeks!!!  The baby looks like a baby! Well, Dan said it kind of looked like a snowman. :)  The baby's facial features are in place and were somewhat visible. We were able to see the small eyes, nose and mouth!! The baby's arms were clearly visible and moving! The baby had a very large belly. Which I had the doctor quickly verifiy to NOT BE ANOTHER HEAD. Just one little turkey in there. :)  He moved the image around and we were able to see the legs, but the Ultrasound picture we received only shows the head, arms, and belly. Hence, our little snowman. We heard that wonderful heartbeat, which is a bit faster now--176 bpms. He said the baby looked great! GREAT NEWS!!

Here is our little one.

I turned the Ultrasound photo on its side to clearly see the baby. My womb is in the shape of a heart!!!! LOVE THIS PHOTO SO MUCH!  Head is the circle on the top, baby's right arm is visible, then that big old belly.

Dan called Marcie to update her on the way home, and he told her we were having a snowman.  :) so funny.

The baby's head is down though and right where it is supposed to be. The way the picture was taken was looking at it with the words right side up. It's easier to see the baby the way I posted it though.

The baby has grown from 0.8cms to now 1 inch in length! In just 3 weeks!

Our real life representation is a dried strawberry. I was hoping to find a more attractive strawberry, but this ones size was closest. Don't worry, I'm sure the baby's much cuter!

So much growth!!!!!

I have to go back and see this doctor the week of Thanksgiving, right before Dan and I come home to Michigan!! Before that appointment I have to get my levels checked at my PCP's office and possibly adjust my doses. I am not considered high risk at this point, but he wants to follow up with me along with my Midwives.

Midwife appointment is next Thursday at 11 weeks! I will update then. One thing he said is that to make sure everything is alright we will have to do more ultrasounds throughout the pregnancy. Fine by me. :)

Monday, October 26, 2009

I went in today for my appointments. Bright and early at 830am. The ECHO was done and the results were normal. My heart looks healthy although it is working hard.

After the ECHO was complete Dr. Krishna came into the office and told me that my blood results were in and they were as he had suspected. All of my Thyroid levels were more than double what they were supposed to be. This means that I do, unfortunately, have Hyperthyroidism.

He wanted to get me started right away on a Thyroid Inhibitor PTU, as well as a BetaBlocker to help bring my heartrate down. This news was distressing, because after working so hard to not be taking any extra medications during this time, here I am getting put on two. The PTU I was fine with, I had researched it over the weekend and knew that it was safe during pregnancy. The BetaBlocker on the other hand, I wasn't so sure of. I wanted to get a second opinion on it before I started it, because it was contraindictated in pregnancy. After a long ordeal, I received the RX's from Dr. Krishna, and made my way to my Thyroid Ultrasound. I wasn't going to start taking the medications until I had heard from my Midwives that it was safe.

I waited forever to get in for the Ultrasound, and when I finally did I was done in 15 minutes. GO FIGURE!
The Ultrasound tech would tell me nothing, apparantely they will be fired if they discuss results. So I had to wait to hear from Dr. Krishna.

I went home and tried to get some sleep since I had to work this evening. I was woken up by a few things. One was a call from my Midwife. PTL! She also reviewed the medications that were prescribed to me and said that the benefits outweigh the risks and that I should start both medications asap to keep the baby safe.  With that said, I decided to fill the prescriptions and get started with the treatment. My midwife also said that she would like me to see a high risk perinatoligist. That way someone who specializes in pregnancies of this nature can make sure that everything is fine, including the meds that I am on. I agreed and am waiting to hear back as to when my appt with that doctor is.

The second call was from Dr. Krishna. He said that he viewed my thyroid ultrasound and that there were no nodules or cysts found. He said that it was a little enlarged, but nothing too great. I have to follow up with him in 4 weeks to check my Thyroid levels and make sure that they are appropriate.

So as of yesterday now, I have started my PTU and my BetaBlocker. I am excited to see the changes in my everyday life, but those changes more than likely will not become evident until I have been on the treatment for a month or so. I am however, nervous for the baby. Dr. Krishna said that the baby's thyroid will have to be checked via ultrasound in a couple of months, and once again after delivery. The baby could have Hyperthyroidism because I have it. There are a variety of other concerns regarding pregnant mothers with this disease, I am hoping that I have started treatment early enough to have bypassed these risks. By God's grace alone.

I ask all of you to join with me in prayer to lift up this baby that God has blessed us with. This baby is already a miracle just for being here in the first place. Hyperthyroidism plays a large role in mothers being infertile, which is why I suppose it may have taken so long for this little peanut to arrive. Dan and I are so very blessed to be entrusted with this little baby, and I want to do everything possible to protect this little one. Please pray that the baby is healthy, that God has and is protecting (s)he from any risks that could have been or will be a possibility. Also, that the baby will be born as a FULL TERM HEALTHY bouncing baby. (Well the bouncing part isnt quite as important I guess.) God is great, and He is faithful.

I'll leave you with what Dan left me today as I went to sleep.

"He will have no fear of bad news; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord" Psalm 112:7

Week 9

Friday, October 23, 2009

My appointment with Dr. Krishna was for 3pm. Dan and I prompltly arrived and were ushered into waiting room one. Dr. Krishna came in and asked me what I was here for. I explained to him about my pulse and that my Midwife wanted me to be checked out, just to be sure. He asked me if I have ever had my Thyroid checked, I said no. He then began to ask me a series of questions that the content of which was all to familiar.

How long have you had a high heartrate? As long as I can remember.

Do you have heart palpitations ever? Yes.

Hold out your hands, do you find you tremble often? My hands are always shaky.

Are you warm blooded, or cold? Warm, but that just changed a few years back. I used to be cold-blooded.

Do you sweat a lot? More so than my friends, yes. But not excessively.

Do you experience shortness of breath with physical activity? Yes! I thought I was just horribly out of shape though.

Do you find that you don't gain weight, even though your appetite may be increasing? ABSOLUTELY. I have stayed the same weight, forever. I just thought I was blessed with a high metabolism though. ;)

He came to the conclusion that I may have Hyperthyroidism. He did an EKG there in the office, which was normal except for tachycardia of course. He scheduled me for an Echo and a Thyroid Ultrasound for the following Monday. We drew the normal Thyroid functions there at his office and I would receive the results on Monday when I came in for my tests. He told me to cut out all caffeine since that would raise my heartrate more.  =(  BIG SADFACE. I had already cut out 90% and was saving that last 10 for when I felt sick to my stomach and moments of weakness. Of course, I can't cheat even a little bit, because there are people all around to call me out every time. Marcie mainly.

The weekend preceding my appointment was uneventful. Time was spent with Dan, and cleaning the house. Of course, I researched away about Hyperthyroidism and all possible complications for me, for baby, treatments, etc.  One great thing about this week though? The nausea and vomiting has cut down a bit. I don't feel miserable ALL day long. Only at certain parts. My vomiting has been cut down to an average of about once a day. Which is a great improvement!! All things I have tried have failed unfortunately.

My midwife suggested B6 50mg twice daily. She also wrote me a RX at week 7 for Zophran to hopefully stop the vomiting. I tried the B6, my sweet husband could only find 100mg pills and he spent 30 minutes cutting each pill in half for me. :) Sadly, the B6, would start quickly dissolving in my mouth and would make me more sick, so I stopped those after a couple of days. Much to Dan's dismay. I never filled the RX for the Zophran because I didn't want to take unneccesary pills. I tried Saltines, Pretzels, anything salty. These things definitely helped for a time. Dan scoured the city for SeaBands, the small accupuncture wristbands supposed to help with nausea. Those did little but put indentations in my wrists. Surprisingly, the thing that helped the most, was eating constantly. I have to eat every 2.5 to 3 hours on the dot, or I will be sick. Eating those small meals often as well as thinking positively has worked to make me feel a bit better. I am thankful for every minute of it. And for my sweet husband.

Weeks 6-9, October 7-21

Week 6:

So this is the week that nausea starts hitting me. Not just nausea, but nausea and vomiting. :(

I really thought for some reason that I was going to breeze through pregnancy without any "bad" symptoms. Call me naive, I know. I like to call it wishful thinking. Unfortunately those are not the cards I was dealt. So each and every day from sun-up to sun-down, I am nauseated and vomiting. Not quite the breeze I was hoping for, but hey, I'm pregnant! =)

This actually proved to be a good thing for me though.  Nausea was a somewhat welcome visitor to let me know that the baby is doing great and growing away happily. Being a NICU Nurse, you tend to be a tad paranoid. Not that I wouldnt be paranoid if I worked somewhere else. But, you know what I mean.

Week 7:

So the nausea continues.  I didn't believe that it would just last a week, but I sure was hoping. I am feeling pretty tired, and downright crummy all day. I just got over a  cold, and am trying multiple remedies for this morning sickness that lasts all day. Oh yeah, and there's that work thing. Needless to say, I am exhausted.

I had a Midwife Appointment, the same day that Jess did actually. Which is pretty awesome! Dan and I got to see the baby's heartbeat! It was amazing, the baby was so little but it had a HEARTBEAT! It still isn't completely real to me yet. I mean, I feel miserable. I know that it is caused from all the pregnancy hormones. I know I am pregnant. I feel pregnant. It just still isn't completely real. I really think it won't be real until I am showing. We will just have to wait and see.

Here is our 7 week Ultrasound picture! That's our little turkey!! 

The Nurse Midwife said the baby is currently 0.8-0.9cms long, as illustrated on the ruler. SO TINY! Size doesn't matter here though, baby is quickly growing and will be double the size by the next appt. Baby's heartrate was in the 130's. Nice and healthy. I tried to get a real life demonstration, to show just how small the baby is. The best I could find was a small pine nut.

At the Midwife appt, we went through all the normal things. I asked my questions and talked about my concerns. One of the things I mentioned to the midwife is that I have a very fast heartbeat. Even when resting. She took my pulse a couple of times, and agreed that it was too fast. She recommended that I see a Cardiologist and get an EKG and an Echocardiogram done to make sure that my heart is healthy enough for pregnancy.

This was not concerning to me at all, my heartrate has always been high, and bounding. Ever since I can remember, my pulse has been the same. I was excited to get my heart looked at though because I do sometimes have palpitations, and it would be good just to know. Unfortunately, my work schedule was very busy, leaving me little time off.  Dan and I already had a family trip planned to Florida the next week, so I figured I would have to wait til I got back to get checked out.

Week 8: 

I worked Sunday, Monday, Tuesday night, and slept and packed on Wednesday. On Thursday, in the wee hours of the morning, Dan and I flew to Florida to meet up with Dad and Barb. With my brother Mark soon to follow.

We had a fantastic trip! We were right on the ocean, our room was beautiful, and our company was great! We enjoyed a wonderful time of eating and sight-seeing. Of course, my now good friend that I know so well,  nausea and vomiting, enjoyed the company of my presence throughout the whole trip. But, all in all, I can't complain. I was able to branch out and eat more foods that just simple carbohydrates, which I was growing tired of anyhow.

Throughout the trip I checked my heartrate multiple times throughout the day and like clockwork, tachycardia. My heartrate is usually around 100-120bpm. Even when resting. I have read that your heartrate normally rises during pregnancy, but I knew that it shouldn't be that high. I felt more of an urgency to get in and get checked out.

The week of course ended way too soon, and Dan and I made our way back to Houston, and back to the daily grind of work and our daily lives. We arrived home on Tuesday night, and I worked Wednesday and Thursday. I made an appt with my new Primary Care Physican, courtesy of Marcie for Friday afternoon.

The Day Our Lives Changed--SEPTEMBER 24

So! Dan and I have been trying to get pregnant since November of last year. I was very excited about this new time in our life, Dan was too, but he was also very scared. Throughout the past 10 months, we have had many suspected pregnancies, but unfortunately the month always ended the same way. :(

This past month we found out that Jessica was pregnant! While this was very exciting, I felt that it also brought attention to the fact that I wasnt pregnant. It did for me at least. I was very teary and sad this month. Dan did his best to comfort and encourage me. He told me things like, "It's gonna happen soon, I think you and Jess are going to pregant at the same time." Marcie had also been very vocal about her desire for 2 June bugs. She kept telling me that this was going to be the month that it was going to happen. Hearing all of this was of course encouraging, but also exhausting. The stress and pressure I put on myself to get pregnant was already pretty heavy. I just casted it all to the side and continued on day by day, KNOWING that this WAS NOT the month.

So a couple days after we found out that Jess was pregnant, Dan hit me with a shocker. He said that he had a dream that I was pregnant. I was tickled by this thought, because he has never said that or felt that before. He also told me that he was finally ready and ok with it. He had just told God, in the month prior, that he would be ok with me getting pregnant. These were all exciting things to here, and the first things that got me thinking and hoping.

Later on that week, I started having a stuffy nose for no reason, with sneezing. ACTUALLY a pregnancy symptom, weird I know. Coming into the following week, I started havung menstrual cramping, and knew that my period was about to start within the next 2-3 days. In fact, I told Marcie and Dan that. 3 days went by, no period. I was having the cramping still, and was extra hungry. I looked at my previous months charting and realized that my period wasnt "due" for another week!! I couldnt believe that I was already having symptoms of it, when it was that far away!!! I was REALLY EXCITED at the possibility that this could be "the month".

The last week waiting for my period to start was really a struggle. I wanted to test so bad, but I knew that the tests are not always accurate before your period is due. AND they are expensive! So I decided to wait it out. THURSDAY, SEPT 24 finally came. There was no visit from Aunt Flo and no signs that she was coming. I had been having horrible insomnia and heartburn, so I decided I could wait no more. Dan and I bought tests that day and tested that evening.

THEY WERE POSITIVE!!!!!! Can you believe it?

I took one, and it immediately turned positive. Dan was in shock and told me I HAD to take another one. I drank as much water as I possibly could, so I could maybe have enough to test once more before meeting Marcie and Larry for dinner. That one was POSITIVE too!!!! It took me about 5 minutes, and then I started bawling. I cant believe it finally happened! I know God's timing is perfect, but the wait has been terrible!!

So we made the rounds and called some family to tell them the news! We dont want to share too soon, we want to be cautious. So we are going to try to wait until the second trimester to share with the world. I could just wait no longer to start this, so here it is!

WE ARE EXPECTING!! How amazing is that? How amazing is God? I stand in awe of Him.

Please be praying for our little family, as of today, I am 2 days shy of 6 weeks. :D