Pregnancy: The First 11 Weeks

Yes, it's true—I am 11 weeks pregnant and couldn't be more excited about it! Before I get into detail about how the pregnancy has been so far, let's back up a little... (disclaimer: this post talks about periods and other girly things...boys—beware). Also, sorry about how long this post is...I'm using this as a journal entry of sorts so I wanted to get all the details down :)

First, I should probably mention that I went off the pill back in July and my period only came every two months since then (I skipped it in September and November). We didn't start trying to get pregnant back in July...I just really couldn't handle the pill anymore so we used other methods of birth control.

So, as mentioned in my last post, Colby and I flew to NY for the holidays this year. About a week before we left Utah I started getting cramps and was pretty annoyed because that meant I would most likely be visited by my "favorite" monthly visitor on Christmas eve or Christmas day. However, on December 12th Colby and I had made the decision that we were finally ready to start trying to get pregnant so I was glad the cramps meant my period was coming back. We had a feeling it might take us a while to get pregnant since I had been so irregular. Anyway, the cramps came and went every couple of days (and when I say cramps I mean an achy feeling in my lower stomach/back...no sharp pains). Pretty normal for me about a week before I get my period and I didn't think anything of it. So, we flew to New York (the day before we left I slipped on our icy stairs and fractured my elbow...but that's a story for another time).

While we were home for the holidays I noticed that the cramps were a little stronger than they had been in Utah—but that didn't really phase me either. They usually get really bad the day before I get my period...so at this point I was expecting it to come at any moment. Well, Christmas came and went and no period came. After a week or so of this I started to get suspicious...but pregnancy really didn't even cross my mind yet. So, I turned to my handy medical adviser: google. I think I googled something along the lines of: 8 days of cramps but  no bleeding. (haha, so sorry if this is TMI) I was very surprised to see that a lot of the results said "cramping can be a sign of early pregnancy." Immediately my heart jumped and I hoped so badly that somehow it was true. However, even though we weren't trying yet, my two skipped periods in September and November tricked me into taking some pregnancy tests that were negative so I really tried not to get my hopes up.

I called my two cute sisters over to the computer and secretly showed them the search results. They immediately burst out in giggles and smiles and told me I HAD to get a pregnancy test just to see. So, a few days later when my mom took us to Walmart I snuck away and bought one...not wanting anyone to know I even had it in case it was negative again (my family really wanted us to have a baby...we even got children's books for Christmas before any of us knew!).

After the ball dropped on New Year's Eve we all hung out for about half an hour before everyone started drifting up to their rooms to go to sleep. At this point that pregnancy test had been hiding in my purse all day and I couldn't wait any longer. I snuck upstairs to an empty bathroom, peed on the stick, and then flipped it upside down and put it in the sink where I couldn't see it. After a couple minutes I decided to be brave and see what it said. Yup, pregnant. I literally did a double take I was so surprised! We had JUST started trying and I skipped my period altogether in November. I grabbed that test, rinsed it off and jumped up and down all by myself in the bathroom. I was SO happy and SO excited. Then doubt and fear kicked in and I started to wonder if it was possible for a test to give you a false positive.

So, I put the test in my back pocket and went out into the hallway. Colby passed me and a huge smile erupted on my face but I disguised it with some fake story about how I was laughing at his expression or something. haha. I didn't want anyone to know until I took another test to prove it was true! Not even Colby.

So, around 1:30 a.m. I tried to go to sleep. Needless to say, it was one of the worst night's sleep I've ever had. All I could think about was that positive pregnancy test hiding in my purse. Finally, morning came and I rushed to my purse to grab the second test from the box...turns out there wasn't one in there. I bought a pack that only came with one. Panic set in and I knew I had to run into town to buy another. Fortunately, Colby was still asleep and my family was all downstairs eating breakfast so I snagged my little sister Nicole and told her to come with me to buy another one (she didn't know I had already taken the first one we bought...I told her I wanted to have two before taking any).

So, I ended up buying two more tests. I am a little paranoid, as you can see. No one even knew we left...it was great. When we came back inside I took the second test and sure enough, positive again! At this point I was on cloud nine and I couldn't wait to tell everyone. Though I wanted to tell Colby first, he was in the shower and my sister Lauren was about to leave for the day to go to Palmyra (and Colby and I were flying back to Utah in a few hours). So, I brought her into the laundry room and just showed her a picture of the  positive test on my phone. I think she was just as excited as I was!

Now it was time to break the news to Colby. He was finally out of the shower and in our room packing so I came in to help, pulled two of the tests out of my pocket, and said "Hey, we can't forget to pack these too." Haha...the silly boy stared at them and said "Ugh, did you take one of those while we were here?" (He didn't realize he was looking at used tests and thought that I was hoarding more things from my mom's endless supply of bathroom products). So I said, "Haha, yes...I took both of these." He stared at them for a few more seconds and then realization set in. I wish I could say he was ecstatic and thrilled like I was, but this poor boy was not ready for us to get pregnant as quickly as we did...we both thought it would take us a lot longer. He wasn't mad, he was just in shock and he told me we couldn't tell my family until he got used to the idea. haha. So...we finished packing and went downstairs for lunch.

Finally, it was time for us to leave and Colby agreed it was time to let them in on our news. This video explains the rest better than I can :)



Once we got back to Utah I made an early appointment with the doctor's office so we could try and figure out how far along I was (since you usually determine that by the first day of your last period...the one that I never ended up getting in November). The midwife determined I was about 6 weeks along based on my symptoms.

I started on prenatal vitamins as soon as we got back and waited for morning sickness to hit. Fortunately, it never came. No throwing up at all for this lady! However, I am STARVING all the time and I feel like I'm gonna pass out/throw up every time I feel any sort of hunger pain. I have to be snacking hourly in order to function. I've also been extra tired (I'm in bed by 9 or 9:30 every night) and my chest has been VERY sore...but it has grown a little too, so I'm not complaining ;) The smell of most foods makes me feel nauseous and I gag ALL the time at work. I pee a lot but have troubles with other bowel movements. But, other than that, it has been a pretty easy, breezy 11 weeks. The baby is the size of a lime and I can't wait to find out if it's a boy or girl!

I had another appointment on February 11th, the day after my 25th birthday. That's when we got to hear the heartbeat and it was the sweetest sound I've ever heard. The next day we posted this picture on Facebook to let the rest of our family/friends know our exciting news. I am so ready to be a mama and I can't wait to meet this little angel inside of me!!