Ever since we found out we were having a baby, everyone told me that the second trimester is much easier and you feel much better. This is being wrote at 13 weeks and 3 days, which most agree, is the beginning of your second trimester. I still have the urge to vomit if I don't take my medicine, so time will tell if I actually do feel better.
So since we are starting this wonderful and joyous time of the second trimester, I would like to reflect on the past 13 weeks and 3 days that have not been all that wonderful and joyous.
Where are we going to have our baby?
Before I even got pregnant, or tried to get pregnant, I was very interested in where people were having their babies and why. Most people have them in a hospital and if you ask why, they will typically respond with, "Well that is where you are suppose to have a baby, right?" That answer wasn't good enough for me because when I started to do my research, it seemed like the hospital was the my last choice to give birth. I am in no way trying to get in argument over where is the best place to have your baby, I think that is a very personal choice. After watching a ton of documentaries and reading lots of books on natural birth/home birth, I determined that this was the path that I would like to take. Little did I know, it is so hard to have your baby out of the hospital. The state of Pennsylvania has created several laws restricting the practice of midwifery. Not to mention, everyone has an opinion, which most of them go like this, "I had this friend who needed an emergency c-section because they induced her labor and then she wasn't progressing, what are you going to do then?"
On that note, I had started searching for a home birth midwife before I was pregnant, so I already had some contacts. I set up an appointment as soon as I got the positive test. Home birth was for sure what I wanted, but I wasn't thrilled with one available midwife in Pittsburgh that would be doing mine. The kicker came when I was informed that my house would not hold a birthing tub, and I would probably fall through to the basement. So scratch home birth and move on to birth center. This pleased more of my family, little do they know that this birth center is just a glorified home (well I guess they will know now). We are set though, and are birthing at The Midwife Center on Penn Ave right on the strip. I LOVE THEM! I still get my earthy, older women in Birkenstocks that has birthed a billion babies, it is just a more structured type of care. Anyway we are super happy! Follow my story if you are interested in the care from the midwives, I know I found very little information out there.
Will this morning sickness ever end?
When I first found out I was pregnant, I was husband-less, well I had a husband, my Dufda, he was just 6000 miles away listening to me cry over Skype about how unfair this was that I was all alone and I had no help (mind you, I purchased his ticket to return home from Jordan one month after me, knowing that there was a possibility that I would come home with more then just some hummus and olive oil). This time would have been ideal to be craving junk food, and not really care to eat much of anything that wasn't a potato. Well instead, I wasn't sick at all until week 6, I was actually on cloud nine and I would make all these fabulous salads and well balanced meals. I even wrote everything down to make sure I was getting all the correct nutrients (haha, what a newby). Dufda missed this time, he loves to eat so I am sure he would have loved all this food. Cue 6 weeks and 0 days, I was sitting in work eating frozen grapes ( Thanks Kimmy!), I turned to my co-worker and said, "Today is going to be the day I start to puke.", it was, and it was awful. From that day forward I have been in a constant battle with saltines, Zofran, Reglan, and the ugly pink toilet. Morning sickness is exhausting, I never knew if I was tired because I was pregnant, or if I was tired because vomiting so much is basically like doing a ton of sit-ups. I even had "morning sickness" that occurred in the middle of the night! If this happens to you, Unisom is a lifesaver. I was told a million times that it is going to get better. I really hope this is the case, I hate taking all this medicine while pregnant!
Where's my Bump! I want a Bump!
Your first trimester normally includes sharing the news with everyone. You tell people you are pregnant, then they look right where your baby bump will be, some will even say, "You don't look pregnant." Well I was not born yesterday, but I don't think it is normal for you to go from zero to whale in eight weeks. Those same people will see you again in 4 weeks and still expect that you are going to have a huge bump. Another thing I noticed is that everyone who knows your pregnant, will always look at your bump-less stomach region as soon they see you. Listen people, I am looking for my bump too, but the pregnancy bible (What to Expect When Your Expecting, of course) says that there will be no visible bump until week 16-20. Dufda, along with my dad seem to feel that the bump makes you pregnant, right now I am only kinda pregnant, but with the bump you are full blown OMG YOU'RE HAVING A BABY pregnant.
Nonetheless, we take picture every week to capture the growing bump. Dufda and I have a photo obsession that will make this nugget the most well documented child in history, don't believe me? Check out how many picture we take just going to the zoo by ourselves, imagine throwing in a real live nugget!
I have decided I will never get upset when someone says, "I don't see the bump". This from my cousin who's wife just had a baby, and is very well aware of the typical bump growth (yeah, that's you Mike). This is my time to enjoy still fitting into about 25% of wardrobe, because although none of you can see the bump, my size 2 jeans know it is there, I know wahhh, I'm no longer a size 2, I won't wait for you to cry me a river.
You crack me up.
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