Food and Fun

Happy Friday my amazing bloggie friends!  I apologize for my absence the past week…I may have bitten off more than I can chew with work and personal stuff…but I have not forgotten the exciting adventures of “Where do Babies Come From?” and all of you who check us out to hear what’s new.

I am normally a huge “foodie”! Food is a BIG DEAL to me! I love food!  I’m not a picky eater but I have a very snobby palette (as JCH would say).  I don’t always know what I want, but once I figure it out- I’ve gotta have it!  I literally was a food craving prego before I ever was prego…and now that I’m prego, food is no longer cool with me.  EXCEPT NOW!  The 29^th Annual Lowcountry Oyster Festival is this weekend and I have NEVER wanted an oyster more!  To date, the only thing that I have really been “missing” that I cant have is deli meat (and fried pickles).  Being constantly nauseous and gagging on nearly everything that goes down the hatch makes a basic deli sandwich sound better than any steak, lobster tail, or cocktail.  But now with the oyster fest this weekend I literally cannot think of anything that I want more!  Actually it might be a toss up between roasted oysters (not allowed shellfish), Pluckers’ fried pickles (only in Texas), and deli meat (dang Listeria).  I chalked my deli meat and fried pickles cravings up to “always wanting what you cant have” but I truly REALLY want oysters…I’ve been looking forward to oyster season and the amazing “all you can eat” oyster roasts all over town!

Happy hour has taken on a completely different meaning!  A friends’ birthday is tonight and she sent a text early in the week to “join her for happy hour at 6pm this Friday”.  HAH! Happy hour! Happy hour to me is a good hour nap, or an hour massage, or if I could get one good hour with no nausea.  I am literally daydreaming about a happy hour spot with only pregnant women, jumping for joy, stuffing their faces, and talking about their gas and bloating for an hour- what a great dream!  Last night at prenatal yoga the instructor compared our “choice of positions” to a buffet, saying that it was a “Thursday night special” (too funny).  Her analogy to food made me think about other (prior) indulgences and yeah I guess Thursday night prenatal yoga has become “my happy hour”…but I’m (actually-lol) not complaining!  I love my “Thursday night special”!

I am a lucky girl in that I have a few very close friends that have recently had babies.  I am a very lucky girl that they are seriously some of the most amazing women I know and have offered up “goodie bags” full of clothes, books and miscellaneous prego needs.  Needless to say, my coffee table has about 15 books stacked on it (that I am slowly weeding through).  I thought it would be good for JCH to read the “daddy chapter” in one of my books to help him understand what I am going through and BOY DID THAT BACKFIRE!  He read the part about “men getting empathy symptoms” and as far as I can tell that’s as far as he got (sad face).  Two days later JCH is telling me that the thought of food is just gross to him and that his stomach aches, and that he isn’t feeling “well”, and that he is really tired. NO JOKE.  He tells me that he thinks he is having empathy symptoms and now he knows how I feel.  I told him that if he really wants to “feel like me” than he should eat 15 bean and cheese burritos (to be potentially as full, bloated and gassy as I am), and then stick his finger down his throat and keep it there…all day!  He didn’t really think that was funny…but then again I didn’t really think his “empathy symptoms” were funny…especially since they were taking away from my “pampering”.  I say this all with good humor…as frustrating as pregnancy is and is silly as JCH’s empathy symptoms are, this pregnancy has been a true testament to the amazing man, and husband he is and daddy that he will be.  It may not feel like it at times, but I know I am a very lucky girl!

Ultrasounds pics and preggo humor...oh my!

Today I don’t have any big news to share (or rather any news to share) so I wanted to share this hilarious blog post that a friend shared with me! It's called "Porn for Pregnant Ladies"--check it out by clicking here. (It's not really porn for those cautious-I promise it's worth it)

PLUS I've got a few ultrasound pictures (with commentary) from last Friday’s appointment to share!



The ONLY 4-D picture we got
Sucking his thumb, covering his face with one arm,
and sitting "indian style"



Facing the camera- you can see eye sockets
and his one arm pressed against my belly



Beautiful profile picture



Sucking "his" thumb- which is becoming "the standard"

Oh yes! I'm really excited for my shopping date this weekend with a girlfriend.  I am now shamefully sporting the "unbuttoned pants" look so it's extremely necessary! :) Let's hope I dont have another "exhaustion/dehydration/sickness spell" -this will be my 3rd attempt at shopping for "bigger clothes" (3rd times a charm, I hope). :)

Helllllllo 2nd trimester?

A good friend of mine (also 13 weeks pregnant) ventured out with me to attend a prenatal yoga class last Thursday and I think I speak for both of us when I say how awesome it was.  It’s ridiculous how WEAK my body has gotten from absolutely NO EXERCISE over the past few months.  Okay, I have had some exercise, if you count my daily puking routine as an abdominal workout.  I must say it’s pretty effective in the sweat-breaking and lunch buster departments but highly un-enjoyable and not recommended!  Prenatal yoga however was awesome!  My poor thighs shook with each lunge that we held more than a few seconds, and my arms screamed for a break during warrior pose but it felt so great and I honestly wish I could do it everyday.  I didn’t break a sweat but my body (and mind) felt so good afterwards.  I bought a bundle of classes so not only will I be returning for more “arm screaming and thigh shaking” I’ve got a little fire under my “ever growing” butt to finally do something about that “yoga room” I initially planned on having.

Speaking of holistic therapies I also had an acupuncture treatment this weekend.  The purpose of this treatment was “to promote overall health and function of my body and organs” to assist with the healing of my “SCH” (subchorionic hematoma).  I’ve had acupuncture before but never did the needles hurt going in…this time they did.  Is the pregnancy making my body sensitive maybe? I’ll keep y’all posted on whether I feel the treatment was helpful.  I was disappointed to find out that acupuncture can’t be used for “pain management” further into the pregnancy (back pain, etc.) as acupuncturists are banned from points on the abdomen, lower back, head and ears…which apparently are the major “points” that help with that sort of thing…major bummer.

Friday we had our 1st trimester screening and everything seemed to be going perfectly. According to the ultrasound evaluation our baby has all normal measurements and although we’re still waiting on the results from the blood screening the doctor said based on what he sees we should have nothing to worry about.  They were screening for increased or decreased risk of chromosomal abnormalities that would potentially cause Down Syndrome, Trisomy-21, and Trisomy-18.  Should hear something this week. 

With the 1st trimester screening out of the way I am longing for the 2nd trimester to “officially” begin…meaning no more puking, more energy, less grouchy…more of the bubbly happy pregnant lady that I always imagined myself to be... I’ve also always imagined myself to be a food loving, face stuffing fool...fried pickles and strange “street food vendors”...yummy yummy yummy! Still, I’m on a “need to force food down” basis…not cool…when do I get to eat?

JCH and I talked a lot this weekend about baby plans.  For those who know me pretty well I’m slightly annoying when it comes to “planning”.  “Failure to plan is planning to fail” is a strict motto that normally helps me stay focused and grounded (and sane), but right now it's just a haunting subconscious that I cant tune out.  All I can accomplish lately is the bare minimum (and that is really a stretch) so you can only imagine the internal battle I've got going on...I just want to start nesting!

I've got a ton of pics to share from our appointment last friday, but the pictures are on a CD and apparently the disk reader on my laptop is broken...soooo I'll try to post some tomorrow from work! For now...we are "out of the closet" and official since posting this picture on facebook tonight!

We're OFFICIAL

My Little Indian Boy (or girl)

The most dramatic development this week: Reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements.
-Baby Center, 12 Weeks

What is so fascinating about this tidbit of information is that at today’s ultrasound “baby hoffman” was sucking his thumb.  I think “he” is ahead of his class!  Not only is his mouth making sucking movements…he’s already found his thumb and fingers and is just “having a ball” with them.  Mommy’s first prideful moment! Smarty pants hoffman! He takes after his daddy (has a big head like daddy too).  These ultrasounds just keep getting better!  Last week was my first emotional ultrasound and this week both JCH and I were crying (well he had tears in his eyes and the most prideful look on his face-worth a million bucks).  Baby hoffman also sat “Indian style” for a while at one point during his tumbling act…it was beyond amazing!

Dr. Conatser said the subchorionic hematoma (let’s just refer to it as SCH from now on) looked better and to forget that it even exists.  I asked him his opinions on acupuncture as an alternative therapy and he said that he believes that it is helpful in some circumstances, but cannot find any “scientific data” that backs it up (a very “doctor” reply).  He said he is comfortable with it if I would like to give it a try.  I think I might!  He said he has heard a lot of success with acupuncture helping with pain management during pregnancy and labor…so maybe that will be something I also discuss with the acupuncturist (since I’m considering “no drugs” as my birth plan).  Stay tuned on that!  I’m still not set in stone- I’ve just barely begun the tedious amounts of research I plan to do prior to making a decision!  Also, noteworthy is that I spoke with Dr. Winslow and Patty (from F.I.R.M.) and they said that because the blood was already brown it most likely means the clot has resolved itself and is shrinking.  They too were not too concerned.  Conatser said most likely I will get a full report from the specialists that we see this Friday for our “1^st trimester screening”…man we are spoiled with all these ultrasounds!

I think I had previously mentioned the difference in “my family” and “JCH’s family” when it came to “gender preferences”.  I have been chatting away with my sisters and like to provoke humor from their previous comments of “it better be a girl or else” and thought I would share a couple texts that made me giggle.

It’s weird, but I feel like baby hoffman is going to be a boy (as you can tell I’m already referring to baby hoffman as “he” in my writing).  A friend at work and I looked it up on the Chinese calendar and that too says baby hoffman will be a boy.  Another really cool thing about the Chinese calendar is that apparently this year is the “year of the dragon” meaning that it is a lucky year!  Another friend told me that they read an article about it being “the year of the dragon” online and apparently China is expecting a major “baby boom” because of it.  Hopefully we don’t have a baby boom here…that just means more competitive preschools, colleges, and job market for baby hoffman and his birth year friends.  Protective mommy doesn’t like the sound of that!  Stay tuned…I’ll most likely post after our ultrasound on Friday too! Good bye 1st trimester...hellllllllo 2nd trimester (hopefully that means no more puking too).

p.s. One quick last thing! If you are reading PLEASE comment on my blog! Most of y'all are not "following" which is fine I know "tech savvy" isn't for everyone-but if you could at least comment here (rather than shoot me texts/emails once you read) it would be a better way for me to keep records.  I plan to print this blog for baby hoffman to read one day and having your words of wisdom, excitement and encouragement will make it so much better! One day when baby hoffman is 20 years old and has known you for 20 years he will look back at your comment and it will mean a lot to him too! Plus, the emotional support and knowing I'm not just blabbing to myself will make me feel better too (you know these crazy hormones).  Okay-that's it for now! xoxo



a little bump appeared over night
(this outfit usually accentuates my waistline-not so much right now)



Easy? What's that?

I've never been an easy girl...not as a stubborn child, potty mouthed teenager, or in high school with the boys (couldn't resist)...so what would give me the crazy idea that any part of my pregnancy (or getting pregnant for that matter) would be easy!?

Today I scheduled an impromptu visit with my OB-GYN.  It was the BEST ultrasound to date!  Baby Hoffman, “Chudo”, was feeling very acrobatic today doing somersaults and waving its arms around saying hi to mommy!  The ultrasound technician is brilliant and got some phenomenal shots of Baby Hoffman (the pictures really are amazing but just watching our baby move around and than lay perfectly for the picture-breathtaking and tearful)!  It was the first ultrasound that I cried at!  Not that the other ultrasounds weren’t equally touching and exciting, I think it more had to do with the relief that “chudo” looked so wonderful- he was just so big, and defined (the profile, and arms and legs) and active and I was overwhelmed because of the initial reason I was there! 



1st picture- Baby H is waving hi to mommy
2nd picture you can see Baby H has daddys long lean feet! SO CUTE



Why did I schedule this impromptu visit?  Yesterday and this morning I woke up with a dark brown discharge in my panty liner.  Normally the discharge is bright yellow (from the progesterone inserts that I put in each night) but not for the past two mornings and it concerned me (especially since today there was a little more than yesterday).

Turns out that I have what is called a subchorionic hematoma.  Read about it by clicking here or here.  These websites descriptions are closest to the way that my doctor explained it to me.  Dr. Conatser was optimistic and said the most important thing to focus on is that my baby has a good strong heartbeat and that it’s moving around and growing perfectly.  The hematoma (blood clot) will most likely fix itself (what he said).

As you might imagine I am a basket case! I’m going back and forth between feeling confident that it WILL FIX ITSELF to feeling self pitty and disgust that we have this horrifying “we’ll see” over our heads.  Major bummer that what I thought was the scary part (first trimester) was nearly over and now we have something else to worry about.  Now I have to wait EVEN longer until I can feel safe and comfortable and not vulnerable and scared.  As lucky as we have been throughout this whole process I still cant help but be pissed…yes we have been lucky…lucky for someone who had to go through IVF in the first place…cant at least a portion of this be easy!?  Apparently not.

This all comes after such a wonderful holiday with our families and when I was finally allowing myself to get excited and start planning.  I was planning a maternity clothes shopping trip this weekend (all of my shirts are showing what looks like a “large lunch food baby”), and a prenatal massage for when I reach my 2^nd trimester, and a normal sex routine with my husband when I am no longer doing those nasty vaginal inserts (in 2 days), and exercise-I was finally starting to feel confident that it was okay to do light exercise, and maybe even allow myself the 6-8 ounces of caffeine (oooo coffee) that I am told is okay!  Now I feel like I should just plan on sticking to my normal 12 hours of sleep, and go to work routine with no fun in between (pretty lame I know)! UGH! I’ll say it again…can’t at least a portion of this be easy?

Other than today’s news, JCH and I are feeling pretty good- completely out of our norm, but good.  We’ve had some very productive conversations over the past week over how we’re feeling emotionally and what each others concerns, questions, and wants are- short and long term.  We’ve got a lot of big decisions to make over the next few months and a lot of really exciting milestones!  Next tuesday will be a follow up appointment with Dr. Conatser and next Friday is our 1st trimester screening!  Keep us in your thoughts! xoxo