Heartbeat!!!

We had our first ultrasound this morning (if you hadn't noticed from the photo... lol).  Everything is looking perfect!  Baby C is measuring 6w 1d with a strong little heartbeat of 130 bpm!  Praise Jesus!  DH and I are SO excited and SO relieved!

After the ultrasound, DH and I had to wait around for a few minutes to meet with the nurse and schedule our 8 week scan.  During that time, several of the other nurses came and congratulated us.  It was so cute!  They were so sweet, and seemed genuinely happy for us.  I absolutely love the nurses at my RE's office, and I'm going to miss them (and how nice they are) when I transfer back to my regular OB.

Speaking of my regular OB... I also scheduled my first appointment with him today, per my RE's suggestion.  I have to go for my "intake appointment" (a.k.a. bloodwork and getting talked down to by a nurse who thinks she knows more than you about everything) on April 11th.  I tried to get out of this appointment because it was a seriously horrible experience the last time, but they told me it is required and that they won't let me see my doctor until I go through the intake.  This did not make me happy, but as I told DH some battles just aren't worth fighting.  The receptionist at least scheduled me to meet with a different nurse than the bitch nurse I had with Baby M, so I'm hoping it goes more smoothly this time around.

So I will have my OB intake appointment on April 11th, then my next RE appointment later that same day.  Then, my first real appointment with my OB will be April 25th, which will probably also be the same day as my last RE appointment.  So many appointments!  But of course I don't mind.  :-) 

HOORAY FOR HEARTBEATS!!!!

6 weeks

Sorry for the lack of posting, this past week was seriously insane.  I worked 40 hours in 3.5 days so that I could have a long weekend for a friend's out-of-town wedding.  Then, after the wedding, DH and I went to visit my family to tell them our news!  We decided to go ahead and tell them now, since (heaven-forbid) if the worst were to happen again, we would definitely want to have their support.  We didn't tell them about Baby M until after we had already lost him/her, so we thought we would share the good news this time while we could.  And I am SO glad that we did.  They are all so ecstatic for us, and they had the best reactions!  One of my little sisters jumped and screamed, and the other told me she had to hold back her excitement because otherwise she would have peed her pants.  Haha!  I love them.  :-)

And now... my weekly post!

How far along?  6 weeks, 1 day.

Weight gain/loss:  Up 0.2 pounds from last week, but still down 0.2 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight.  And still super bloated!

Maternity clothes?  Yup, maternity jeans.  And I wear my elastic-waist (but surprisingly, not maternity) work pants every chance I get!  I haven't caved and bought bigger work pants yet; I've just been doing the rubber band-through-the-buttonhole trick to give myself a bit more room.

Stretch marks?  Nope.

Sleep?  As much as I can get.

Best moment this week?  Me and DH telling my family we were pregnant again.  Their reactions were priceless!

Food cravings:  Everything, as long as I'm not feeling nauseated.

Gender:  I still think it is a boy, but DH says girl.

Belly button in or out?  In.

Movement?  Way too early.

What I miss?  Caffeine... and not being exhausted ALL of the time.  (Again, of course I don't really mind.  haha)

What I'm looking forward to:  Our ultrasound tomorrow... feeling kind of nervous but mostly excited.

Milestones:  I now feel nauseated on and off all day, every day.  I take this as a good sign. :-)  Also, we have now told all of our parents about Baby C!

5 weeks

Whoo hoo, I'm still pregnant!  I am still feeling pretty good, but am starting to have some other symptoms.  I am still exhausted most of the time, and have noticed I go from zero to STARVING in about 2.5 seconds.  And of course I still have the crazy bloating.  I also started experiencing my first bouts of nausea these past few days... thankfully, no vomiting yet.  ;-)

Hooray for symptoms!  I am so happy to have them, and to know that Baby C is still growing!

How far along?  5 weeks, 0 days.

Weight gain/loss:  Down 0.4 pounds (not like you tell with all of the bloating!).

Maternity clothes?  I definitely busted out my half-elastic-waistband maternity jeans this week.  None of my regular pants will even button.

Stretch marks?  Nope.

Sleep?  Yes, please!

Best moment this week?  Honestly, starting to get a little bit of morning sickness.  It is reassuring to know that things are progressing normally.

Food cravings:  When I'm starving, anything!

Gender:  I still think it is a boy, but DH says girl.

Belly button in or out?  In.

Movement?  Still way too early.

What I miss?  Wearing whatever clothes I want without worrying whether people can see my bloat-bump.  (But really, I don't miss it at all.  I'm thrilled to have that problem!)

What I'm looking forward to:  Our ultrasound on the 28th!

Milestones:  Making it to 5 weeks, wahoooo!!!!

So far, so good...

I just wanted to update from my cramping post the other day.  I still have some minor cramping several times per day, but overall the cramps seem to be letting up.  They are at least not as intense as they were the other day when I posted.  And I haven't had any spotting, praise Jesus!

So, so far, it seems Baby C is doing just fine.  *knock on wood*  Thanks again for the reassurance you ladies gave me the other day.  I'm trying really hard to be confident that this is normal, and to not freak out at every little twinge I feel!

Cramping

I have been having some cramping (but no spotting) this afternoon and evening.  While I know this can be completely normal and ok in early pregnancy, I would be lying if I said I wasn't a bit freaked out (given my history).  I have spent a lot of time Googling and was also reassured by the ladies on PgAL that cramping is completely normal and nothing to worry about.  But I'm still nervous.  I would feel much better if it would just stop already!

I'm really, really hoping this is just Baby C digging in for the long haul.

P.S. Thank you all for the kind words on my last few posts!  I am so touched that you all are so excited for me and DH!  :-)

Holy bloat!

So, you remember that 4 week belly picture I posted, oh, two days ago?

Well, this is what I look like today...

Holy freaking bloat, Batman!  And that is not even me pushing it out, that's just what it looks like all the time!  (It is nearly impossible to suck it in and keep it in.)  I already can only barely button my work pants, and definitely had them unbuttoned by the end of the day today!

Not that I am complaining AT ALL!  I love every second of it.  I'm just afraid I won't be able to hide this pregnancy much longer at the rate we are going.  lol

Second beta and 4 weeks

I went in for my second beta this morning.  The nurse just called -- my betas today were 66.8!!!  They more than doubled, and the nurse said things look fantastic... well, as fantastic as things can be at 4 weeks!  I am so relieved.  My RE wants to do a 6 week, 8 week, and 10 week ultrasound before releasing me to my regular OB.  My 6 week scan (to look for a heartbeat, eek!) is scheduled for March 28th.  I can't wait!  I think I will finally be able to believe this is real once we are able to see the heartbeat.

So far I am feeling great.  My boobs are still sore and continue to swell, and I am exhausted most of the time, but since I am all of five minutes pregnant I am blaming that on the progesterone I'm taking and not the baby (yet). 

And now, because this is officially the second-longest I have ever been pregnant... my 4 week post!

How far along?  4 weeks, 0 days.

Weight gain/loss:  None yet, just bloating.

Maternity clothes?  Not yet, but I might switch to my maternity jeans (from last time) soon if the bloating gets worse.

Stretch marks?  Not yet.

Sleep?  No issues yet.

Best moment this week?  Getting a BFP and hearing that my betas are doubling!

Food cravings:  None yet.

Gender:  I know its early, but I think it is a boy.

Belly button in or out?  In, of course.

Movement?  No, WAAY too early!

What I miss?  Nothing yet!

What I'm looking forward to:  My 6 week ultrasound and (hopefully!) seeing a healthy heartbeat.

Milestones:  Making it to 4 weeks was a HUGE milestone, considering my previous chemical pregnancies all ended before the 4 week mark!

Drumroll please...

Well, there is no doubt about it this time. I got not one, not two, but THREE BFPs this morning!!!!  

I also had betas drawn today.  They came back at 28.6!!!  Depending upon what beta chart you look at, that number is either exactly average or slightly above average for 12 dpo.  Houston, we have a baby!

I go back to the RE on Saturday morning for my second beta draw.  DH and I are slightly nervous but mostly cautiously excited.  The fact that this baby has stayed put long enough to have a positive beta makes me feel like we've already reached a huge milestone.  (This is the first positive beta I've had since Baby M; none of my chemical pregnancies made it long enough to be detected on a blood test.)  Now we just have to make sure he or she doubles the hCG before Saturday!

And, just for fun, here's my BFP chart.  According to FF, our EDD is 11/19/11.  :-)

Eeek!

I think I'm going to test tomorrow... I'm not saying anything else, because I don't want to jinx it!  :-)

Congrats, FF...

You have finally correctly identified ovulation!