Good-bye 1st trimester and Hello 2nd trimester!

Well I am a day behind but i figure that's okay because we still have a long way to go. It is amazing to me that we are a third of the way through this pregnancy. I have to say that it has gone pretty fast since we had so much commotion up to this point. We are also starting to feel more relaxed and excited for this pregnancy now that we hit the crucial 12 week mark. It is stated that the risk for miscarriage drops to less that 1% now. So that helps relieve some of the stress.

As for how I have been feeling...Well, I can say that morning sickness has not been my friend. I never really had much nausea until a few weeks ago, just as i was feeling better from the OHSS. Perhaps that pain just masked the nausea? Within the last week I have become much more sensitive to some smells. Which smells you ask? I never know until it hits me. At this point if i start to feel nauseous, i know something is coming up whereas I was just nauseous before. So meal times are always fun in the Umnus household. I never know what I want to eat and even after it is prepared i may not eat it. Derek has been very patient with me around meal time! So that is the biggest thing to report this week for me. Other than that I still get tired and out of breath easily. Hopefully after our first appointment on Thursday the doctor will lift these restrictions I have had since January 8th and I can start walking again to regain some of my lost muscle and cardio capacity.

Over the past week we have had many congrats over our little bundle of joy. We just feel so blessed to have some many supportive, loving, and caring family and friends. Thank you all for being so excited, because it has helped raise our excitement. We have gotten a few gifts for baby over the past week and I am pretty sure that our child will never go naked.

Derek had the joy of finally telling his co-workers the great news. He took the picture frame with the latest ultrasound picture in it and handed out cupcakes. I can only imagine the big smile he had on his face the whole day.

As for the baby, the books say he/she is about the size of a plum, measuring between 2inches and 3.5 inches. When I look my book and it has a picture of "actual size" I am in disbelief every time. I am just so amazed at the size of our little one already. All the baby's organs are formed at this point and are now in the growing phase. The baby's intestines are now contracting in preparation for after birth. The baby is also now producing hormones from the pituitary gland at the base of the brain. The first time I read that I thought, perhaps that is why i feel so much more sick...thanks kid!

Just one more fun tidbit...as Stef had mentioned on her blog...Come September when the Dinner Club heads out to a restaurant we will have to ask for a table for 18! Derek thinks we will need to rent out a banquet room just to accommodate. No more just showing up at the door, reservations required!

The Secret's Out!

Today is officially 11 weeks and I have been feeling okay. Most of the pain I had with the ovaries really is gone. Gone enough that now I can enjoy the phenomenon called morning sickness. I really only had some light nausea previously but within the last week every morning like clockwork between the hours of 6am-7am i go running for porcelain goddess! Then throughout the day if a smell/thought/look of some food catches me in just the right way, bathroom here I come. Luckily, I have heard that at the 12 week mark this is supposed to let up. So, hopefully that is the case for me! I do get those occasional headaches at night as well, which I am hoping go away with the morning sickness! I know that I am not going to feel "normal" for the next 6 months, but i can't wait for the day that I can start feeling good. I can't remember the last time I felt "okay." However, as much as I dislike these "symptoms" I am so very grateful that I even am given the chance to experience them. It has been a long time waiting.As for Baby Umnus's progress...well all the books say now is the time for rapid growth. It amazes me that the baby will double in size within the next 3 weeks. Right now the baby is between 1.5in to 2.5in...about the size of a large lime.

Well, up until this point only a handful of people have known about our little secret. Tonight is the night when the Dinner Club ladies will be let in on our exciting news. We are all getting together for a ladies night at the Melting Pot. It is will so great to see them because it has been far too long since i have been cooped up in this house. I also sent out some emails to others instead of making a massive amount of phone calls. I can't wait and am happy yet still nervous to let the whole world in. Still nervous because there is still so much time until we meet the little one.

10 Weeks and graduation!

Well, I think the posts from here on out are going be a bit more fun and upbeat. Derek and I went to see Dr. Hayes for another ultrasound and blood work to see how the baby and my ovaries were doing. I am happy to announce that the ovaries are on the retreat! After 8 weeks of attacking me with pain, I have almost none! YEA! Here is a belly picture taken today (10weeks and 3 days). I still am swollen from the ovaries and i don't think it looks much different from a few weeks ago. I suppose it's a good thing though! I was able to get into my biggest pair of jeans today but chose not to button them, because the pressure was too much when i sat down!

My blood work came back good. Everything continues to become more normalized. I lost another 2 pounds so that puts me at a weight loss of 6.5 pounds over the course of this month. Not surprising though due to everything that I have gone through. Dr. Hayes wasn't concerned, it's not like i am a super thin if you know what i mean! The baby is doing good. Dr. says everything looked really good and normal. The baby was very active today (not that I can feel him/her yet) but like Dr. Hayes said he/she was doing aerobics in there. It was the first time we could see movement and it just reinforces what a miracle this whole thing is! It was amazing to see this time because now he/she is really starting to look human and not just a blob. Heartbeat was good at 168bpm as well. I had asked if we would see any lingering effects on the baby due to all the narcotics i had been taking and she said that there should be none. That was such a relief to hear because the first trimester is such an important time period for development. Well here are some pictures of the little one. The last one is a little alien looking because it is just the butt and legs.


And for the word Graduation...well much to our surprise today, we graduated from the Fertility clinic! I knew it was coming but I had thought there would be one more ultrasound and meeting with Dr. Hayes. However, she had said that everything looked really good and since my ovaries are on the retreat that "It looks like you really don't need us anymore." So after i got finished getting dressed and head to the nurses station, we saw this...


It was such an awesome sight to see. It was confirmation of the one thing we wanted to accomplish when we walked through those Clinic doors back in July. I of course got all tearful because I knew it was time to say my "thank you's" and "good bye's". Dr. Hayes and a few of the nurses were standing there to see us out. We are just so appreciative to all that they have done for us and the patience they had with us. I had even said to Dr. Hayes "I know i haven't been the best patient" referring to all the troubles we have had since conception. We already agreed we will be sending them a big thank you with a picture of the little one when it happens. It was also a little strange to be walking out those clinic and hospital doors for the last time. It strangely has become so familiar and routine, really like an extended family. You get to know them so well and vice versa. I guess that happens when you are there every week sometimes more than that!

Now onto the next chapter. We are now just another pregnant couple. That feels a little scary and wonderful at the same time. I really had gotten used to the personal attention we had received at the Fertility Clinic. I have found a new OB. Like I had posted earlier, my regular doctor no longer does OB so I had to look elsewhere. We have decided on Dr. M.S. Young from the Womencare office in the Waukesha area. We really liked and took comfort in the fact that the clinic also performs infertility services. Not that I would fault any other straight OB, but with all we have been through with the infertility, especially the OHSS, I took comfort in the fact that she has experience with it as well. I have heard good things about Womencare and Dr. Hayes seemed to agree. So this means I will be delivering at Waukesha Memorial Hospital, nice and close to home just in case we need to make any more trips to the E.R.! Fingers crossed that that is behind us!

Progress...

Well, I have begun to think that this blog is a little more depressing then I first imagined it! On Monday, I went back in for more repeat blood work because on Friday my levels were abnormal and they were hoping that they would have gotten better. Well, this is Sara we are talking about...the problem pregnant lady from day one. It appeared that my liver enzymes were still elevated, but now my hemocrit was now dropping and the nurse said "it is very disconcerting." Dr. Hayes wanted me to come back in ASAP to have another ultrasound done, but this time down in Radiology because they have stronger equipment for what she wanted them to look for. There was a concern that i was bleeding internally somewhere. Needless to say I freaked out (probably because of hormones, stress/anxiety from the pain, and did I mention the pain?) So, because I was still taking the Percocet i could not drive, nor did i really want to. So i called Derek's mom in a sobbing mess asking her to take me to the hospital because i felt so bad Derek had taken so much time off already from work. Then i called Derek and he tried to calm me down over the phone and assure me that everything was going to be okay. Yeah right! You try being the one who might be bleeding out somewhere and pregnant! But he tried anyway. So, after another long 13.7 mile drive to West Allis Memorial due to the lovely bumps that must have been placed in the road just for me, we arrived to have more ultrasounds done! The Ultrasound was painful to say the least...my Percocet was wearing off, my bladder kept filling up (that's when i am in most pain), and i had to lay flat on my back (also not conducive to full bladder with someone pressing on/in it). It took an hour because they did an trans-vaginal and abdominal ultrasound along with checking my spleen/kidneys/gallbladder/etc. Come to find out...my ovaries are still HUGE and i had a "pocket" of blood that either was surrounding my ovary or a follicle in the ovary (i missed that part) and that is why they figure my blood count dropped. It doesn't appear to be bleeding any longer which is a very good thing. Doctors orders were to still keep resting , drinking ungodly amounts of fluids and wean myself off the Percocet. But the nice thing was to be able to see the baby again and hear the heart beating at 180bpm! We even got a few more pictures to take home.


I had more blood work on Thursday and everything is starting to normalize the nurse said. Thank the Lord! They also said that it looks like i probably hit rock bottom with last stint of pain. My ovaries should start to decrease in size for the remainder of the pregnancy due to certain hormones normalizing the second trimester. It was funny when we arrived in the back, everyone had smiles and appeared to be happy i was upright again. The last few times i have arrived via wheelchair due to the pain and the distance from the front door to the clinic. I had happily announced i was off the Percocet and walking, albeit very slowly, around the house. So we will have another ultrasound next Thursday with Dr. Hayes and it sounds like it sadly might be one of the last. I say that because we have gone through alot together and she technically got us to this point...even though we didn't listen to her at the end...but then again we wouldn't have our little bundle of joy arriving in September!

Here is a picture i took on at 9 weeks and 1 day. It shows how bloated and filled with Ovaries I am. I think i look so much further along and should be funny to see stomach pictures as the pregnancy continues. Perhaps I will just be stuck at this size for alittle while while my ovaries decrease in size and my uterus and baby grow! If that's the case, i need to go shopping because i do not fit into any of my pants and haven't for a few weeks now!


Now I hate to write about it and jinx myself again, but I AM feeling better as each day passes. The pain I was having was some of the worst pain i have EVER experienced. So I have decided that I am fully on board for the epidural train because as I see it i have fulfilled the "laboring" part of the pregnancy contract. That only seems fair right? Somehow i don't think I will get off that easy! Oh well, i just keep praying and keeping my eye on the prize and that has gotten me through. I have some lingering pain in my left side and lower back. I am now upright and walking around the house, able to stand up from a sitting position, able to get myself out of bed (with a little groaning and deep breathing), and able to take a shower on my own again. We have decided that we got alot closer this past week then we ever thought was possible at this stage in our marriage. Derek has been the most wonderful husband i could ask for. He has taken over all the house chores on top of being at my beck and call. I am tearing up just writing about how grateful I am for him. Words cannot express those feelings right now! Thank you so much Honey! I love you!

This is how the bed has looked since last Thursday, sadly Derek has been sleeping on the pullout couch in the spare bedroom partially because there is no room for him. The only way i can "sleep" somewhat "comfy" is basically almost sitting up on my back. It doesn't help that Derek gave me his cold, so this position allows me to not choke on my snot and decreases my coughing fits.

This is where i spend the other part of my day. Sitting in a chair with all my necessities around me so that i don't have to get up for everything and rest my back and belly.

Well, that's it so far. I am now looking for an OB because we only see Dr. Hayes until the 12 week mark and my family doctor no longer does the OB and delivery part. Which is a bummer because that is why i picked her 5 years ago! But this nice thing is that she will be able to be the baby's doctor as well. I really like that she will be treating the whole family, just feels more put together and reassuring!