Anniversary!

Two years ago, yesterday, Zig and I tied the knot in a private villa in Ocho Rios, Jamaica with over 40 of our closet family and friends. It was truly an amazing day and more than I could have asked for, especially for planning the whole thing hundreds of miles away and never really seeing tangibly the decisions we made. We really put our trust in our wedding planner's hands, and she did not let us down!

On that day, I didn't think it was possible to love Zig anymore. I already loved him till my heart was bursting at it's seams, but the truth is, I fall more and more in love with him everyday! We have so much fun with eachother and he is such an amazing man. He is so good to me, even these days when I know I am a little high maintenance. He would never tell me no when I ask him in the middle of the night to get up and get me water, even though I tell him no to his requests at least 10 times a day. I don't know why, but him asking me to go upstairs and get 3 hangers was the end of the world for me yesterday. I am sorry babe, I am working on it!

By choice, we had a really low key anniversary. We decided that going to Ireland was our gift to eachother. While this is our 2nd wedding anniversary, Zig and I have really been celebrating anniversary's for our relationship for 9 years now. After that long, there is no need for all the fancy stuff, just being with eachother and making sure that we know what the other means to us is enough. I don't need fancy flowers to know my husband loves me. (In fact, and we stopped with the flowers a while back. I am one of the few weird women of the world who is not a fan of cut flowers. Instead, my husband has been known to buy me a potted plant instead and I love it!) So we basically hung out all day, did a little shopping for Cissy's shower, I laid out in my mom's pool for a bit while he went to visit Dad, and we ended the night by going to see a movie. I don't know what I enjoyed more, the movie or the nachos that Zig bought me while we were there! May seem like a boring anniversary to some, but we are simple people and we don't need much.

So long story short, this message is for Zig. Thank you for everything that you have done for me not only in the 9 years that I have known you, but in the last 2 years of our marriage! With you, I grow everyday (now literally), and I learn so much about who I am and who we are as a couple. Two years ago I read the poem "Love," by Roy Croft and those words mean so much more to me now, than they meant the day I read them to you overlooking the ocean on our special day. This is a big year of changes for us, lovie, but I wouldn't want to spend this time with anyone but you. I love you, I love you, I love you. You are my world and I don't know what I would do without you. You are what makes me, me and I thank you for that. I am so lucky to have you in my life and that you chose me to live happily ever after with!

Here are some pictures from our wedding. It really is hard to believe that was 2 years ago! I love how happy everyone looks in the 3rd picture!

Today is the day that I ate...

and ate...and ate...For some reason I felt famished all day long. I guess when I look back at everything I ate today, it really wasn't a lot, but I never felt satisfied. I still don't have any cravings which is a bummer. I went to lunch with a co-worker and ate a decent amount of the food that I ordered, which is pretty unusal for me. I usually have a ton of left overs. Not 10 minutes after I got back I was eyeing my banana and peanut butter, but I managed to hold off for a bit. The chips that were set out for everyone in our work kitchen were the icing on the cake, especially when I saw that we had some ketchup in the fridge. That may sound like one of those weird pregnancy combinations, but I have always had a place in my heart for potato chips dipped in ketchup. The good thing is that 90% of the time, when I am hungry and do eat, I am eating mostly salad and fruit. For now, the junk cravings are few and far between. My doctor did tell me that I needed to start forcing myself to eat...I just better watch it because this could get out of control really fast! Anyway, just thought I would share! Today was a good day!

Doctor's appointment

We were originally scheduled to meet with the doctor on Wednesday, but she had a conflict in her schedule and her nurse called while we were on vacation to tell me she had to move it to today. It was kind of a bummer because today was our first day back to work, and therefore Zig couldn't make it. It wasn't a big deal really. I was there for about 5 minutes.

I am down 8 lbs from from my first appointment. My doctor didn't seem overly concerned, but she said now that I am in the 2nd trimester I need to start forcing myself to eat. It's not that the baby is malnourished, the baby is taking everything he/she needs, but more if I don't make sure and eat enough I will get sick. None of the nutrients from the food I am putting in is going to me at this point. So I am doing my best, but nothing sounds good. Right now all I can really stomach is watermelon, grapes and salads. I guess it is not a bad thing, because all of these things are really healthy choices, but I need the protein. I am going to start drinking protein shakes to make up for the lack of meat I am getting.

I also got to hear the heartbeat again today. She found it right away. It was really neat. The heartbeat was about 160bpm. Still pretty fast. She said the normal rate is 120-160, but she was not worried. I am still considered to be early and it will likely slow down over the next few weeks.

I talked to her about the gender u/s today and she said she prefers to do it around 19-21 weeks. That puts me in early-mid July. I am hoping I will find out closer to 19 weeks. Don't worry Rebecca, I am still working on it for your birthday. :)

I haven't started taking any pictures yet, because really there is nothing to see. Some days I feel really bloated, but all my work pants and jeans still fit. Maybe I will take one starting this week when I am 14 weeks and then every week from there. It is hard because I am in the phase where I don't really look pregnant, but more like I have been hitting up Dunkin Donuts a little too much.

On a final note, I told work today. It feels good now that more people know. Plus, I need to start scheduling my jobs for next year and I am sure managers and partners are happy that I am doing everything I can to work take as much maternity leave as I can and still keep my clients happy. At this point, I am planning on taking 3 months off, but we will have to see how much vacation time I have then. Plus I want a little bit of a cushion for sick days and doctors appointments. Well that is it for now!

We're back!

Ireland was amazing. It is hard to describe in words how breathtaking it was. We had so much fun! I will definately post some pictures over the next few days. We were lucky because Danny took tons of pictures for all of us. Zig and I got some good ones on our digital too. The people in Ireland are the nicest people I have ever met in my life. They really welcome you in and treat you like family. We made some good friends out there, that is for sure. They are party animals as well! We had a hard time keeping up a couple of nights, the others because of the Guiness, me because I am still exhausted!


I am feeling pretty good. I only had to take my meds once the whole trip, but my food aversions are still in full affect. That was the hardest part about the trip. The food in Ireland was very different, but Zig says he thinks it is just because my tastes are off, which is likely true. We are still exhausted and trying to get used to the time change today, so this will be a short post. Once we get all the pictures uploaded I will post a recap of the trip.


Since I didn't get to post the last 2 weeks of pictures, here are what Baby was up to during week 12 and the rest of week 13. I am 13 w 3 days today. I also have an appointment to see the doctor for my monthly check up tomorrow. More to come....


Week 12


"As you move into the second trimester, baby shifts into the growth and maturation stage. After weeks in the critical development stage, almost all of baby's systems are fully formed. "



Week 13


"Your fetus is forming teeth and vocal cords... savor this, their non-functional phase. Baby is approaching normal proportions, with a head now only one third the size of the body. Intestines are in the process of moving from the umbilical cord to baby's tummy. (Much more convenient.)"

11w 3d

Time actually seems to be moving along a little more quickly these days. For a while there it was dragging. This weekend was a good weekend. I didn't have to take my meds at all this weekend! It was amazing. Today is a whole other story though. Not sure what happened but the m/s hit again this morning big time. I am hoping it just wanted one final hoorah before we leave for Ireland on Thursday. Here is what baby is up too...

"Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through. But, fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future"

Reality Check!

...So Michele and I went to the doctor to check for a heartbeat (see post below) and at first I was a little skeptical and all we could hear was Michele's heartbeat, then, like in a climax scene in a drama movie, the triumphant music started, and...thump thump thump thump. It was the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. I looked at Michele and she the biggest smile I had ever seen. So now we are pretty much out of the weeds. Later that day, I was at work and boom, I get my first dose of reality. What the hell am I going to do. We don't have a nursery set up yet, no crib, no bedding, no cloths, I am sure Michele whats me to paint...holy crap there is so much to do and so little time...AAAhhhhhhh. Deep breaths were about the only thing to get my heart rate down. Now it's been about a week and I am still a little stressed, but with that whole patience thing I was talking about, I'm just going with the flow.

I am human though, and every once in a while I get a little irritated. It is usually around dinner time. Because I know the routine; Come home, ask how Michele's day was, sit on the couch for about 5 minutes thinking of 37 ideas for dinner because close to all of them will be shot down. Then I ask the preemptive strike..."What do you feel like for dinner?"...I always ask with a little twinge in my face because I almost always know the answer. "Just pick something?" Bless her heart, I know nothing sounds good, and I know she is tired of me asking...so here is what ends up happening...

I make what ever the hell I feel like. I do this for two reasons; one, she usually doesn't eat more than a small amount anyway, and two, I know whatever is left I will get to eat as left overs, so truly it's a major win-win.

Oh, I forgot to tell you about the triggers...oh man the triggers have to stop. Basically its a random word that leads to other words...that lead to a craving. Here is an example for what goes down.

Sean ...blah blah blah so and so just went on a cruise...
Michele ...you know what sounds good, pistachio almond ice cream...
Sean ...(thinking to myself) how the hell did she get pistachio almond ice cream out of
that...

After much hard thinking, here it is...cruise...ship...titanic...iceberg...icecream...vuala, cruise equals pistachio almond ice cream.

I must be very careful what I say, as it may lead to me fetching a fix!

We heard the heartbeat!

I have been super paranoid because we are going on vacation out of the country and I wanted to make sure everything was ok with Baby before we left. I called my fantastic doctor's office yesterday and explained my situation and the awesome nurse told us to come on down and she would look to see if we could hear the heartbeat on the doppler. It took a couple of minutes, but sure enough at 170bpm there was Baby letting us know all was ok. I had nothing to lead me to believe that something was wrong, it was more just for piece of mind. Zig brought his phone and we were able to record it, but I tried for hours last night to get the audio to load with no luck. Take my word that it was an amazing sound to hear! It's like hearing that noise made it all more real! We are so excited!

On another note, I made it till about 5:00 last night before I had to take my anti nausea pill. Hopefully that is a sign that this morning sickness crap is on the way out! Today I had to take it a little earlier, but I made it almost halfway through the day. Normally I take it as I am rolling out of bed. I think it got to the point where I was taking it in fear of what may happen. Now I wait till I start feeling icky and it seems to be working out ok. We leave for Ireland in t-minus 7 days! This time next week Zig and I will be waiting for Jenn and Dan in Chicago! Woot woot!

10w 3d

I have hit the 10 week mark! Woot woot! Here is what baby is up to this week...

"With bones and cartilage starting to form and vital organs beginning to function, baby is making major progress. Body length will almost double in the next three weeks, and arm joints are now working. (Soon, legs will too.) "

And this is just something I found comical because it is totally true. Nothing really sounds good to me anymore. I eat to survive these days. I have noticed that I can stomach most fruits and that I can't get enough watermelon. I also eat REALLY slow. I am definately eating small meals, but not as many as the doc would like. I am doing a little better at staying hydrated though. Praying these next 2-3 weeks fly by and the 2nd trimester brings back my appitite!

What the.....

So I have been having the weirdest dreams lately. After watching Doubt the other night, I had a dream that I was a nun. Only problem was, I was a pregnant nun. Then after watching Pride and Glory, I had a dream that I was a pregnant crooked cop. So I learned not to fall asleep watching movies. Well then the next night I had a dream that I had Baby. It wasn't a dream about actual child birth, more like I was pregnant one minute, and the next I was holding a baby. I don't even know if it was a boy or girl. Now here is where it gets weird....all of the sudden Baby turned into a ferret... and ran away. I chased it for a little bit and then I just gave up. What the hell! I don't even know what to think about that. Just weird.