Have I been missed??

Truly, the holidays have taken control. So excited to have lots of family with us for Christmas! Including....our nephew Brady who we have not met yet!!! So much to be thankful for my friends. Work is crazy busy too with loads of events (which we are thankful for). I feel like I have so much to update people on. If I ever encounter restless, sleepless nights (knock on wood) I will be able to blog more. Thankfully, thus far, I am sleeping fairly well.

I could use a few more arms or at least a couple more hours in my days...if anyone can help me out with that...let me know!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving! So much to be thankful for in our lives. I hope today that we all take some time to reflect on those things and cherish our family and friends.

It's a boy!

We found out on Monday that we are having a little baby boy. How incredible it was to see the change in size and body parts since the last ultrasound. They grow so quickly and as I understand it, it continues even outside of the womb!

We have selected a name: Maddox Lennon Janulewicz

Amazingly, many have expressed a dislike for the name. To each their own, too bad for them though, because we love it and Maddox Lennon he shall remain.

We were having difficulty selecting a male name. We wanted a unique name, yet found ourselves drawn to common names, such as Jacob. When we saw Maddox in the baby name book, it immediately struck us. We knew that was the name. A middle name came quickly. We liked the name Lennon all along, but did not prefer it as a first name. When Hubs put the two names together, we knew right away, we had found our boy name. Lennon comes with some added bonuses, besides the fact that we both loved the name,: We both are quite fond of The Beatles, thus the John Lennon connection. Also, my father's side of the family has a few members of the family with "Lennon" as the last name. I would love to be able to say that we did this in memory of those who have passed; however, honestly it had no bearing. We had made a conscious decision that we would not use family names. It seems to cause animosity and sadness amongst families when some are honored and others are not.

We never did figure out a middle name should the baby have been a girl, but perhaps that is because we didn't need a middle name for our girl name.

I am pretty clueless it turns out

I think I am feeling the baby. That's right, I think. I truly have no way of knowing. Is it gas? Is it nerves? Or is Baby J adjusting his/her position?

No one gives the same answer either, on what I should expect to feel. Even books are very vague. The Dr H's suggestion was to jot down on the calender the first time I felt the baby, then through process of elimination, ultimately would be able to determine IF I am in fact feeling Baby J.

To me, IF it is the baby I am feeling, then it feels kind of like a fishie swimming around. Weird, I know, but hey that's me.

Hopefully my skills of a mother will have no bearing on whether I can figure this out. My instinct tells me that I am feeling Baby J, but many have said that it is too soon. I am rounding out the end of Week 17 currently.

What feelings did you experience?? Did you ever wonder if you would be a great mother?

I have always believed that my destiny in life was to be a wife and a mother. Because of that, I have always felt I would be a great mother. (I have already proven the "great wife" portion, haha) Sometimes though, I find myself fearful that I will not know how to do everything or have the answers for everything. Again, from what I have read, these feelings can be common in pregnant women.

Thankfully, Hubs and I have a strong support system of family and friends, who are sure to love Baby J ALMOST as much as Hubs and I do.

That's my ramblings for today. Excited for this evening, as Hubs returns from a business trip! Life is good on so many levels...so much to be thankful for this holiday season, but hey, that's another post.

Just wondering...

As my belly gets bigger, will I still be able to shave my legs?!?

Does Baby J feel scared and stressed when I do?

These are the two random things on my mind today. The shaving of the legs element came to light as I was shaving my legs. I realized my belly was out a lot more than I am used to, and suddenly wondered how that will work over the next 5 months.

Nice productive day here in our world. I even wrote out about half of our Christmas cards!

Nor'Easter

Baby J is experiencing his/her first Nor'Easter here in Virginia. It is a cold 56 degrees outside, windy and rainy. Wait, did I mention that it was rainy??

Unfortunately, I had some morning sickness this morning. Blah! Started today off at the doctor's for a routine blood test. It still cracks me up, that I actually spend less time at the doctor's office now than I did when we were trying to get pregnant. Always good to see the nurses though...they make me smile and seem so genuinely excited for our pregnancy.

Work was also a quite productive and rewarding day. One our interns and I did a lot of clean up from last weekends events and some MUCH NEEDED organizing in the warehouse!

Now, Hubs and I are off to the Olive Garden for a little date night, then picking up some groceries-- Hubs is always worried during storms. He feels the need to stock up.

Baby names

So, can I just tell you first off, how excited Hubs and I are to learn the sex of little Baby J on the 23rd!!! The 23rd is the anniversary of the day we got engaged, so it will be such an incredibly special day for us.

We have picked names for each sex.

Boy: Maddox Lennon Janulewicz

Girl: Julia (Love) Janulewicz

Julia's middle name is still under debate. Joe was not a big fan of Love, so any suggestions would be greatly accepted and appreciated.

I **Heart** Weddings

One of my BFFs just called me to let me know she and her fiance have set a date to get married! I cannot begin to tell you the excitement that I am feeling, even though her good news came with some bad news as well though. I will not be able to be in the wedding or even attend. Not because she doesn't want me there of course, but because her wedding is on May 1, 2010 and Baby J is due on April 23, 2010. Pooh Bear and Fredster will be getting married in their hometown, which is a good 11 hours away from me. How exciting will the next 6 months be though!?! Pooh Bear planning her wedding and me getting ready for our family's new addition!


Here is a picture of she and I from my wedding:

And she and I at my most recent trip back to Massachusetts:
Congratulations you guys! Love you!!!

Vacation Part 2

On Monday of last week, we headed out to Salem, MA with Cousin J and K. This time last year, we had made the same trip. Both Cousin J and I had been trying with our Hubs to have babies for quite a long time. We were willing to try just about anything by that time. We rubbed a piece of wood that is said to make women fertile and we even entered a Wicken shop and underwent a spell. (The contents of which are still underneath our mattress). Low and behold, Cousin J and I proudly returned to Salem with babies in our bellies. Now who knows, was it the spell or the fact that we dropped gluten from our diets??? We may never know...

We had a blast though in Salem. My personal favorite of the day was the trolley tour of Salem. It is such a pretty town, with some pretty incredible history that goes well beyond witches. I was persuaded to go into a haunted house. I was worried I would scare our little baby right out of me, but all was well. Hubs even got scared at one point!

Monday night we were able to spend time with the Hubs Nana. We just love talking with her!

On Tuesday, we reunited with college friends. For lunch, a good friend of Joe's met up with us for some lunch. We headed out to an old favorite in Sturbridge, Soup To Nuts. Yummy, yum yum. I got the veggie pocket and the corn chowder soup. We're talking some of the best food ever! It was great catching up with him. From there I met up with one of my bestest friends, J-Lo. We have been friends since middle school and even attended the same college for a couple years. We did some shopping (she made me put a few things back) then headed to Springfield to meet up with a few of our other college friends. Pooh Bear and Gugs greeted us with pizza and ONION RINGS. I may have had more than my share of the onion rings...ok, maybe more than my share of all the food. I had such a good time catching up with everyone. Be prepared to see a picture of me as a giant...that's right, and it wasn't even Halloween yet.

Check back tomorrow for more visits that were held on Wednesday and Thursday. We had to extend our vacation a whole day because there were still people we wanted to see.

Vacation Part 1

Hubs, Pugs and I headed back home to visit family and friends for our vacation last week. It really was so exciting to see people with a little baby in my belly.

The 11 hour drive up caused some swelling in my feet. That first night there was wonderful though! Our parents and friends, Jay and Becki, all met us for pizza from Enricos! Enricos just happens to be the BEST brick oven pizza place ever! I was able to eat my Giordino pizza (white sauce, cheese, artichokes, ricotta cheese, and roasted red peppers). Yum, Yum. Becki and Jay surprised us with our first clothes for the little teddy bear in the belly. A onesie for a girl and a onesie for a boy. Covers all bases that way!

Sunday, we were able to get together with some of my family members who we had not seen since our going away party 2 years ago! We had a blast catching up and got some fabulous shots from the day. (Part 3 will cover a series of pictures for the week) The craziest part of Sunday was the snow! Yes, that's right, snow in October! It was really coming down and even accumulating on the ground. My uncle took some pictures of hubs getting covered with gigantic snowflakes!

Check back tomorrow for a haunting trip to Salem and then our Tuesday reunion with college friends.

Time is flying by so far!

Cravings galore and not so much craving...

What do you crave during your pregnancy? For me it has changed pretty much from week to week. In the beginning, all I wanted was Campbell's Chicken Noodle O's. (and yes, there is a difference between the O's and any other Campbell's soups!)

Right now, all I want are tart or sour items. Lemonade! Preferably lemonade from Quiznos. I swear, the lemonade at Quiznos tastes like pickles, which makes it even better!! Pickles and banana peppers are another favorite of the moment. I have been known to polish off a whole jar in one day. What pickles and banana peppers do I love the best?? Mt. Olive. AWESOME is all I have to say about that.

So what do I turn my nose up at or should I say my stomach turns over?? For starters, chicken. Really the thought of cooking chicken even grosses me out. I do not see to have a problem with chicken on the bone still, but boneless chicken breast, which I have always preferred, makes me want to vomit all over the place.

Seafood is a huge no-no around me right now as well. I have not eaten any, but if I am around the smell I get a headache and usually feel really sick.

Just a little belly for you

Week 12 shot

End of Week 12, entering WEEK 13!!!!!!

Well, as of today, I am officially in the second trimester, which seems to feel magic to me. I really did not stress and worry as much as I would have thought that I would during the first trimester, but it does feel extremely relieving to be done with the first 12 weeks!!

I am already less tired, having abandoned my daily naps weeks ago. I really am only DEAD TIRED on weekends when we have events. They are usually longer days than during the week. It would be expected for me to be tired. This past weekend we had a really cool wedding at a private home. Backyard BBQ style. The guests had a great and time and so did we. Sunday we did a quick setup in the morning for a cancer awareness event, which was when my feet started to tell me they had had enough!

Morning sickness is still around too. It usually does not lead to vomiting, just feeling nauseous. My stomach is very uneasy in the mornings. I have to drink an Ensure shake, which seems to settle my tummy...thankfully!

I am swelling a lot. By the end of the day, the feet need to go up. Unfortunately, I have not been able to wear my wedding rings for weeks. We bought a cheapo ring, just so that I still have the feel of the ring on my finger and so I don't get the stares from finger to belly, belly to finger.

Speaking of belly, I have one! Pics to follow soon.

The Crib Search

Hubs and I spent a couple weekends ago looking at, talking about, and researching cribs. Hubs had a very hands-on approach. He shook the cribs with all his might to see just how much they could withstand. I focused on the sturdiness, look, and then ultimately Consumer Reports and User ratings.

Just last night, we were discussing the crib again. We came to the realization that a convertible crib (crib/toddler bed/full-size bed) may not be the best option for us. Our bedrooms are a little on the smaller side. A full-size bed in one of them is not going to leave much room for play. So with that being said, we thought we had made a decision, but now we do not think we have!

Here is what we have narrowed it down to:

1. JC Penney- JC Penney has their own line of cribs. We know many people who have used and loved Penney cribs. We have seen them, placed sleeping babies inside of them, and picked up screaming babies out of them :-). We are very impressed with the quality. The ratings online are very good, especially in terms of safety and quality. The only negative press I have read indicate that shipping can cause issues. I am comfortable with that being the only problem, as long as we order well in advance.

These are the two Penney cribs we are considering.








This is the Grayson model. This converts to a toddler daybed, as well as a full-size headboard and footboard.






Here is the Bella model. This converts only to a toddler daybed.







Now, the final crib we have narrowed down is from Babies R US. It is a Babi Italia, Pinehurst Collection. This crib is rated number two on the Consumer Reports convertible cribs ratings! It converts to a toddler daybed and a full-size headboard/footboard.




We still have plenty of time to make our decision. Any feedback from my readers??

Maternity clothes

Looking for some advice/reassurance from other pregnant or previously pregnant women!

What is going on with my pre-pregnancy clothes? Now my pre-pregnancy pants are doing alright. Some have gotten a little tight in the thigh area and obviously in the belly. I can fix the belly situation, having purchased one of the fabulous Be Band, Belly Band. I am quite surprised that I would have a little belly forming already, but I do! I am excited about it though, just surprised. Especially because I have not gained too much weight. According to Dr. H's scale, only 1 pound. Our scale shows about a 3 pound gain.

SHIRTS! Forget about it. My pre-pregnancy shirts are pretty much a loss cause for now. The boob area is like a sausage and then the bottoms do not come down far enough to cover the belly. Sexy, I know. If it were still summer, I would be able to get on some of tank tops and sleeve-less shirts, but entering October, that just isn't an option.

I am curious to know, when did other people have to start wearing maternity clothes?

Also, what are some staple items people suggest for a fall/winter maternity wardrobe? What are some of your favorite spots for maternity clothes?

Thankfully, I actually owned a couple maternity pieces before getting pregnant. (Hey, I was getting a little large--they were comfy!) Plus, I have one of the most wonderful Mumsy's in the world, who surprised me with some new pieces during our trip to Kansas. Today I have on a Target ensemble. Black dress pants and a long sleeve olive color form-fitting shirt. Both of which are VERY comfortable. The clothes Mumsy got me were from Kohls and I LOVE them. They are comfy and I have gotten lots of compliments on them!

Gestational diabetes

I was surprised during my first prenatal appointment that they were planning to test me for gestational diabetes in the next two weeks. I had already read about the test, which is usually given around the 28th week of pregnancy. I was scheduled for my first at week 10. Having previously been diagnosed with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, this puts me at risk for various health problems. One of them being an increased risk of developing gestational diabetes.

This form of diabetes affects approximately 10% of pregnant women. Essentially, because of the fabulous pregnancy hormones in your body, they begin to affect your bodies ability to make and use insulin. Insulin is what your body uses to convert the sugar from your food into energy.

For the test, you are given a sugar drink. You need to drink it within 5 minutes, then wait 1 hour before they can do the lab work. I had heard some horror stories from friends and family who had previously had to take this yummy drink, so I had built up a little anxiety about it. Low and behold, it was not bad. Now it was sugary!! It was like Hawaiian Punch. I managed to get it down and keep it down.

No news is usually good news. I have not heard anything from Dr H's office this week, so I have decided to assume that all tests were good :-)

Our Sunday

Hubs and I are spending our Sunday doing some much needed household cleaning. We've also begun to discuss the arrangement of the baby's room. I will have to draw a diagram and get it posted for people's input.

A little off from arrangements, but is a jungle theme not a good theme if the baby is a girl? We definitely want jungle for a boy, that is for sure. I am not really all about having a pink room should the baby turn out to be a girl. Decisions, decisions...

I still owe you all a post about the glucose screening test, which I will try and do this evening. Hope everyone is having a great Sunday!

I thought I had been scared in the past

Last night was one of the scariest nights of the pregnancy. Early yesterday evening I started to have vaginal bleeding. No details needed. Somehow details of blood are even too much information for me to share. Let me quickly let everyone know that both I and baby are confirmed to be fine. Now I will continue with my story.

I immediately began to cry and hyperventilate. Hubs attempted to relax me, but it really was not working. At one point I actually said, "I have a motherly instinct and I KNOW something is wrong." Well, we figured it would probably be best to call Dr.H's office. I left a message and Dr.H himself called me back. Seriously, when I answered the phone, he might as well have been God on the other end. He listened to me explain what was happening, and said that he did not believe I was having a miscarriage, but that I should be seen in the morning for an exam. I actually was already scheduled to go into the office at 9:00AM, so that worked out pretty well. I was given instructions that if bleeding became heavier than a menstrual cycle and/or developed cramping, I should go to the emergency room.

I slept horrible! Sleep, if that is what we should even call it last night, was limited. Occasionally I would "accidentally" nudge Hubs and he would say, "How are you doing?" to which I would respond, crying, "I am scared!". He never lost faith. He says he knew in his heart that everything would be ok, but definitely wanted the relief that would come with a visit to the doctor.

Thankfully, this mornings appointment validated Hubs feelings. Everything is fine with our little one. Cervix is thick and intact. They even did an ultrasound so I/they could see the heartbeat. Heartbeat was strong and little baby even had the hiccups. Mumsy says I had the hiccups all the time in the womb, so I wonder if our baby will be the same! Bleeding is not coming from the baby and is nothing to be worried about. It has already started to get lighter.

So here is baby at 10 weeks:

I think that our little baby resembles a teddy bear in this picture. It is much easier for me to point our the features that they showed me in the office in person, rather than explain them. You can see the head/face. One of the teddy bear features are the little ears that at this time are more at the top of the head, but move to the correct spots as the baby develops. You can see the hands. They said you could see legs, but I never could really make those out. It is amazing just how much baby has changed since the Week 6 ultrasound. It was very reassuring to be able to see the heartbeat and to even know baby had the hiccups. Probably had the hiccups from the glucose test drink I had just drank when I first got to the office.

Check back tomorrow to hear about the glucose screening test. We are so thankful everything is going well and SO thankful for Dr.H and his staff members!

What will today bring

Heading to Kansas

Since I last wrote, I had my first pre-natal appointment. Boy was that a long one! Just about an hour long. We went over lots of material, physical exam, blood work, etc... I was pretty excited though. Honestly, it is still hard to believe that we are finally pregnant! Well, I guess maybe it is not too hard to believe, given the symptoms/ailments I have been going through over the past few days!

WAY too much TMI for me to share...haha

So, I leave tomorrow morning for Kansas with Mumsy. SOOO excited to see Uncle Glenn and our Kansas family! Flying out of Norfolk in the morning, meeting up with Mumsy in Chicago, then onto Tulsa. From Tulsa, we'll drive to Parsons, KS. My constant need to use the bathroom shall be interesting...

I have the ok from the doctor to fly, but I am still nervous about it. Honestly, my biggest concern is the plane crashing!! Do you know how many plane crashes have been in the news in the last year alone?!? The last time that I flew was 2004. I guess I have a little bit of anxiety now since it has been awhile. My second biggest concern is developing another UTI and not being near Dr.H. But, something like that can be treated anywhere and maybe the office would even call something in??

So I started packing this morning. Some of the most important things will have to wait until morning...you know, Turk, eye covers, and ear plugs :-)

Have a good weekend everyone!

You have all waited patiently...

This was such an amazing moment for Hubs and I. We were able to see our baby's heartbeat on the ultrasound last week! It makes it that much more real for us. I also read a statistic today, (I know Cousin J, no internet research, right?) that once you can see the heartbeat on the ultrasound your risk of miscarriage is reduced to 2%. Pretty exciting and reassuring. It is hard not to worry about that sometimes. Especially when I was sick last week. I was so worried that I was not taking in and retaining enough nutrients for our little one.

Crazy Auntie and I were having a conversation today about just how many people infertility issues have affected just in the circle of people in our own community. I told a wonderful person who we work with occasionally today a little bit about Hubs and my story. She was so grateful to hear what we had gone through because she and her husband are also going through fertility issues right now. She said her hope has been renewed, which is so important at times. You get so caught up in the monthly processes and the dreaded two weeks waiting after ovulation, it is no wonder people don't get pregnant. We're so stressed! Crazy Auntie and I also discussed gluten or other food impacts upon the infertility issues of many people. It seems obvious that something is affecting the body's reproductive system.

P.S. Crazy Auntie essentially chose her own name :-) A few weeks ago, she was giving me some advice, and dubbed herself "Crazy Auntie". I am LOVING all the advice everyone (crazy or not), so keep it coming!

Hiatus

Sorry for the lack of updates over the past few days. As most may know, I have been a little under weather. Between recovering from the UTI, then an almost 3 day long migraine, followed by the beginning of morning sickness. Today was a productive and wonderful day. I only slept 5 hours, woke up at 5:00AM and proceeded right into morning sickness. Hubs was scared, not realizing what was going on. After that, I felt MUCH better! Ate great all day and really didn't even feel tired much. I am quite tired now though and will be getting to bed early this evening. Hopefully I will post the latest ultrasound pic for you tomorrow.

PS. We bought a couch today! We had an odd agreement, that once we got pregnant we would get a fouton/couch. Well, the fouton was quite uncomfortable, but we found an awesome couch $400.00 off for Labor Day sale!!

Week 6

Week 6 brought with it some illness, thankfully just for me and not the baby. Over this past weekend, I started to lose my appetite, which even pre-pregnancy was rare! Sunday I started to have this pressure on my bladder, and when I say pressure, I mean it felt like Santa Claus was sitting on my stomach. I have a tilted uterus that was discovered during Week 5's ultrasound, which can make you vulnerable to urinary tract infections and for anyone who does not know me, for 2 years my name was synonymous with urinary tract injection/kidney infections.

Monday morning I felt a lot better. I went to work and did my usual Monday morning routine and also did a first day orientation with one of our Fall semester interns. Literally all of a sudden I started to shake and was hot and cold. When I stood up and had to hold onto the wall not to fall over, I figured perhaps I should go home. I was running a low temperature, but held off on going to the doctor.

That night was rough. My lower back started to hurt, which I unfortunately know means the infection is spreading to the kidney. I called Dr.H's office in the morning and was seen later that afternoon. My suspicions were right, positive urinary tract infection, which based on the increased pain and sensitivity in my back, was beginning to spread to the kidney. I was given a shot which will boost my immune system and was given an antibiotic (which is safe to take during pregnancy). Let's just hope the oral antibiotics will clear it up without requiring a hospital visit for IV antibiotics. They explained that it takes more for the body to fight it off because it is essentially fighting off "for two". I need to continue to push fluids, which I have been doing and try and get my eating back on track.

Moral of the story for me is not to let things go, especially if your gut is telling you something is wrong. Dr H. let me know that it is definitely better to fight infections early on and he is confident that this infection will clear up. I didn't want to be "that pregnant woman". You know, the one who always thinks something is wrong and calls her OB-GYN office weekly or even daily.

Also, Dr. H did a physical exam as well and baby is doing great! No bleeding and the cramping I was experiencing of the last couple days is the uterus pushing on the bladder. When I use the bathroom, the uterus "sees" all this room to fill now that the bladder was using and tries to fill it. Essentially, I guess they are fighting for space. Sounds kind of funny to me. We have our ultrasound tonight too. I CANNOT WAIT!

Little side note on the tilted uterus for those who are curious. Apparently, it typically corrects itself during the first trimester. I will tell you this though, from now on it's cranberry juice everyday for me!

Boiling?

So, the Duggars are having a 19th child! My good friend Pooh sent me an email earlier today asking me if this makes me boil. Why yes, it does. I do not understand why a woman at 42 years of age, who has already been blessed 18 times and has a grandchild on the way, would continue to have children.

A few other pet peeves about the Duggars: the mother's voice makes my skin crawl and they preach how the live debt free. I would too if I pimped my kids out on national televison.

Our first ultrasound

Week 5 we had our first ultrasound. We were a little nervous because we were faced with the probability of multiples, yet at the same time we were so excited. Hubs and I went together and we held hands as we looked anxiously at the screen. There on the screen was one little baby. Ok, not exactly a "baby" yet, as more than a yolk sac. Measuring in at 11 MM, our little baby is growing quite fine at this point.


Week 5 is still too early to hear a heartbeat, so we are heading back for ultrasound number 2 this Wednesday. Hopefully that will make it all that much more believable for me. Each morning I still wake up in utter shock that I am pregnant and will be having a baby of our very own. Pictures to follow...

Mystery "ingredient"?

Hubs and I feel like we have one specific person who we can thank for the rest of our lives for our current state of bliss...Cousin J. Cousin J. and her hubs, Cousin K. had also been trying to get pregnant during the same period as us and going through the same hurdles as us. They were a huge support system for us and guided us through the process. This support includes a late night call to re-instruct us before we did our first muscular injection of the HCG, as well as a trip to Salem, MA for a fertility spell!

Thankfully, Cousins J. and K. were blessed and will be welcoming Baby Cousin K. into the world on December 31st. Cousin J. had started a new diet instructed by one of her doctors. This diet would help to eliminate foods that she is sensitive to, GLUTEN, being one of these "ingredients". Cousin J. eliminated this product from her diet, and subsequently Baby Cousin K. started to grow in her belly.

Cousin J. suggested after our fourth unsuccessful IUI that the following month we may try taking GLUTEN out of our diets. Honestly, knowing that it worked for them and plus being at a point where you are pretty much willing to try anything, Hubs and I were both on board.

I started to do some research on GLUTEN sensitivities and how it affects fertility. Apparently, when you have a GLUTEN sensitivity, your body develops antibodies to fight off to GLUTEN in your body. Those antibodies then attack the sperm that enters your body, or in a male sensitivity attacks their sperm "bank". Once the sperm is attacked, it pretty much does not have a chance of making it to the egg.

I was shocked and appalled that infertility doctors do not discuss this with their patients. Dr. H still does not know that I have removed gluten from my diet. Joe and I stopped eating GLUTEN on July 12th, 2009. On August 11th, 2009, 12 days after our 5th IUI, we were told we were pregnant. We full heartedly believe that our GLUTEN free lifestyle was a strong contributing factor in our success.

Just a side note as well, living GLUTEN-free has made us feel much better. We have much more energy and do not have a constant bloated feeling any longer.

More to come in the coming months on GLUTEN-free living for infertility. Cousin J. and I have discussed leading a GLUTEN-free movement for infertility. Unfortunately, we feel as though the word has not made its way to everyone yet and we plan to do something about it!

Awkward

Hubs and I decided to tell a lot more people early on than we had ever thought we would. We had tried for so long and were overcome with so much joy that we wanted to share it with those that we love. I have actually read that if you do share your news with your support circle that it can actually be positive, especially for your first trimester. If you keep the news to yourselves, then you worry more about the 10% chance of miscarriage. It made sense to us, granted by the time I read that, we had already told more than a dozen people.

Now, I have announced the pregnancy to a few people who clearly are not in our support circle. First example: I had a meeting at a local bakery to go over cake design with one of our clients. I arrived early and the woman whom we were meeting with asked me if I would like something to eat. My response, "I am pregnant!" Awkward! Now just yesterday, another vendor in the business stopped by to pick something up, she asked, "So how are you doing?". I responded, "I am pregnant!". Awkward again! She then went on to advise me I should not tell anyone until the second trimester, which really just made me paranoid. I guess everyone will always have opinions.

I have also had urges to tell other pregnant women that I am pregnant. Standing next to a pregnant woman at the store the other day, it was all I could do not to turn to her and say, "I am pregnant too". But considering, she did not know me and I obviously do not look pregnant yet, I figured that could be creepy and again, Awkward!

Check back tomorrow when I announce the key "ingredient" that we believe helped us get pregnant.

I am pregnant!

Not even having announced it to our entire families or all of our friends, I am ready to blog... We are pregnant. 6 weeks pregnant to be exact. I found out early, only just a little over 3 weeks pregnant at that time. Being that we were going through fertility treatments, they test you early. Everything was so calculated...quite romantic I know. Well, a year and 8 months of trying and 5 IUIs and we have been blessed!



So everyone always wants to know, "How are you feeling?". Well, honestly, I feel pretty good. You see, I have always been the "sickly" one. Chronic kidney infections, constant runny noses, strep throat, etc, etc... Myself and those around me, always imagined I would be very sick! Knock on wood, so far so good. Week 4, I was extremely tired and constipated. Don't get me wrong, constipation is not a walk in the park, but it is better than morning/noon/night sickness. Week 5, even more tired and now experiencing diarrhea.



Well, Week 6 milestone was yesterday and the diarrhea continues. Speaking with Mumsy on the phone last night, she felt I should call the doctor at this point and see if I should take anything for it, as she pointed out it could be affecting my nutrition. So now I am waiting on a callback from Dr. H's office to find out what I should be doing.



That is it for now my friends. I shall use this blog to keep my friends and family updated on the progress of the pregnancy and would love for any others to stop by as well.