Labor anxiety...from Aiden!

Unfortunately, our family has come down with a nasty stomach bug this week and I have spent much of my day on the couch, holding my stomach, or in the bathroom. I guess all of the baby shows we've been watching have gotten Aiden prepared for when I go into labor. Several times today, when he would see me clutch my stomach and groan or moan, he would ask me, "Mommy, do you need to go to the doctor to push the baby out?" I giggled, then explained that The Bean has a lot of growing to do before he is ready to come out. "Yeah, The Bean has to get THIS BIG before he can come out," he said, with his arms stretched wide apart.

Let's hope The Bean doesn't get THAT big!!

Babies everywhere!

Now that Aiden is aware of the fact that there is a baby growing in my tummy and that pregnant women with round tummies have babies in there, he suddenly believes that everyone with a round tummy has a baby growing in there. This can lead to some embarrassing moments in public.

"Mommy, does she have a baby growing in her tummy?"

"Mommy, look, her tummy is BIG! She has a baby in there!"

"Mommy, boys can't have babies in their tummies. Why is that man's belly so BIG?"

Needless to say, I hold my breath every time an overweight person walks by when we're in public! It is so mortifying, and I'm never sure quite what to say! I usually end up saying something like "People come in all shapes and sizes, and only some girls have babies in their tummies" while walking away as quickly as possible and praying that the person he was referring to didn't hear! I really don't want anyone to get their feelings hurt and I have no idea what to say that would make the situation better, not worse. Hopefully Aiden's outspokenness about pregnant bellies will subside soon!

When will it end?

The morning/afternoon/evening sickness is starting to wear me down. I throw up when I first wake up. I eat a light breakfast, manage to keep that down for a few hours, then get hungry for lunch. I eat lunch. Then I get nauseated and spend an hour lying on my left side and trying not to puke up my lunch. Then I start to feel better. I eat a snack to tide me over 'til dinner and try to accomplish a day's worth of work/chores before dinner time. Then in my rush to get things done, I end up starting dinner late, absolutely starving. I rush around to fix dinner, fighting back the urge to throw up while handling raw meat and dealing with all of the cooking smells. I sit down and eat, usually only eating half of a normal portion because my stomach can't handle any more. Then I get queasy again and end up on the couch, breathing deeply. Some nights I end up running to hurl, others I win the battle and keep dinner down. Then it's bedtime and I'm hungry again. Time for a late night snack, 'cause if I don't eat, I'll throw up. Brush my teeth, head to bed, and if I'm lucky, I'll fall asleep before the next bout of nausea hits.

The next morning...as it says on my shampoo bottle, rinse and repeat....

I was never this sick with Aiden. I wish I could believe all of my friends: "I must mean it's a girl this time!" I just hope this isn't foreshadowing of this child's temperament: drama and high-maintenance from the start! Keep your fingers crossed that this ends soon!!

10 Weeks

Only 10 weeks, and already I'm running around with my pants unbuttoned, rubber bands keeping them closed. I'm stuck in that awful phase in which the waistbands of all of my pre-pregnant clothes are too tight, but maternity pants are too big.



I didn't really show until 4 months with Aiden, but I've filled out much quicker this time around. I've only gained 2 pounds so far, which is I swear is more boobs than baby, but I'm already showing quite a bit. At this rate, I'll give birth to a linebacker! :)

10 weeks with The Bean...



10 weeks with Aiden...

8 Week Sonogram

OK, so I've been meaning to get this posted for a while, but I keep forgetting to scan it in. Here is "The Bean" in all of its scrunched glory. Aiden has his own copy of this photo, which he proudly shows to anyone that will look. "This is The Bean. This is my brother!" (Which always prompts people to say, "Can you tell this early?!")

FYI--No there aren't 2 babies in there. No, The Bean's head isn't floating unattached above its body. The small round blob on top is the yolk sac, the bigger lima-bean-shaped blob on bottom is our beautiful child.

I forgot...

...how miserable this is. The exhaustion, the nausea and vomiting, the frequent trips to the bathroom, the sore boobs. Pregnancy can be SO miserable in the beginning.

Yes, that's right. We're PREGNANT!

The Bean is due to arrive November 17th. (Aiden's nickname in utero was "Peanut" so we had to have something new, hence, The Bean). We attended our 8 week prenatal appointment today and all is well. The Bean looks like, well, a bean, measures right on track, and has a heartbeat. Aiden attended this appointment with us and was thrilled to see "his" baby on the ultrasound screen. The pregnancy is still in the early stages, so we are still worried and praying that things will continue on track, but since Aiden isn't so great about keeping a secret (everyone at his school and all of our neighbors have been told), we figure we might as well make the public announcement!

So far, this pregnancy has been different from my experience with Aiden. I'm much sicker this time around. Before, I mostly just felt nauseated, but I rarely threw up. This time around, I rise to spend my mornings hugging the toilet and even spend some of my evenings doing the same. My pants have already begun to get tight and my belly shows a little--MONTHS earlier than last time around, even though I've only gained 1 pound. I'm much more tired and run down, too--probably because I spend my days chasing Aiden! Don't tell The Bean, but I even spend hours at a time in which I never even think about the fact that I'm pregnant. With Aiden, it was all I could think about, but this time around, it seems to just hit me at quiet moments. I'm excited, but it isn't nearly as consuming this time--I'm just too busy raising the child I have to really obsess about the one I'm growing!

We're all very thrilled about adding a new member to the family. Check back often or sign up to be emailed when this page updates--I'll be posting pics and news and updates frequently, so stay tuned!