15 weeks exactly!! Happy Halloween!!

How far along: 15 weeks

Size of baby: I find this out tomorrow

Maternity clothes: the other day I picked up a pair of maternity jeans and black maternity pants, two tops and a super cute sweater. Then I got maternity underwear and I swear if you're preggo and not wearing these underwear then you're missing out!!!!!

Movement: not yet :( still the same old growing pains. But I'm sooooo looking forward to that first flutter.

Sleep: no problems here, thank goodness! I'm loving all the naps I get when I can get them.

Cravings: other than the fight with myself to stay out of the Halloween candy bowl, just Pho from Pho Rex has been on my mind. Oh, and Mi Mexico, ok maybe the need for fruit cups and orange juice still surfaces every so often.

Symptoms: heartburn like you wouldn't believe!!!! Thank goodness that I've kicked my ass into gear and will bust my butt to eat healthier. That should combat the horrible fire I'm getting daily, I feel like a dragon.

Best moment of the week: when the doctor on Monday said I can definitely keep working full time. That was a huge encouragement to me to get moving, track my eating and take care of myself and my little pumpkin.


Have a very safe and fun HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!
I'll be the momma cat with the round pumpkin belly at my parents front door with the candy bowl.
N.

staying full time!

So I went to the doctor yesterday and was cleared to work full time. I'm quite excited that everything is healthy and the symptoms I've been experiencing are just a normal part of pregnancy. The cramping was especially scary, but doc said that my tummy is just growing, that's all!! The doctor was funny cause she called my work "mommy work" which is a very appropriate description. We'll re-evaluate every prenatal appointment with whether or not I should continue to work but as of now, I'm full time!!!

One thing that came out of the appointment was my doctors very real concern about my weight. I know, I was FAR from where I wanted to be when I got pregnant. BUT I did work hard to loose like 20-25 lbs before I got pregnant. So basically I just need to get back to the healthy mentality I was in before my nausea changed things. I can do it, I feel very empowered to take care of me and Bubba! Plus... they weighed me after I drank a liter of water, ate a big meal and was wearing a whole bunch of clothing (geeez!) so I'm going with the number on my own scale.


Look!! I worked out today, so happy to get back on the bike. I can definitely keep this up.

After the YES to full time work I went to the mall with my mom to get maternity jeans (and celebrate!). Buying jeans that I feel great in and that fit and look great was such a fabulous idea!! I even got maternity underwear which is THE BEST!! I must buy more cause they're that fabulous.

Of course I asked my mom to come for support, to speak up when I forgot to mention something and to remember what the doctor says cause I often forget. But the really neat thing was that she got to hear Bubba's heartbeat. She was grinning ear to ear, talking about it afterwards. Bubba is her first grandbaby so to hear the heartbeat was really special to her, I'm so glad she got to be there for that.

Anyways, I've been the worst with the photo updates (sorry) so the next photo will be week 15. I'm definitely showing!!

Happy almost Halloween!! Cam is searching for my cat ears :)
N.

14 weeks & 2 days

I can't believe that it's already been another week! So here's the next update... Enjoy :)

(Picture to come)

How far along: 14 weeks & 2 days

Size of baby: large navel orange (4.5 inches)

Maternity clothes: most definitely, I'm still fitting into my "fat pants" from last year but that'll change quick. My sister sent me her stuff (thanks again Jess!!) so that's helped with some tops but I still need to find some jeans and tights. Any good tips?!

Movement: not exactly, but I occasionally it feels different in my lower abdomen. It's SOOO hard to explain and words have somehow disappeared from my vocabulary, but whatever feeling this is, it's reminding me there's a person in there somewhere.

Sleep: work has been challenging this week, so I've been sleeping about 11 hours a night these last few nights. It's been glorious!!!

Cravings: I want pizza really bad and orange juice, mostly just orange juice though.

Symptoms: the new thing is this headache I can't shake. I broke down and took Tylenol even though I really didn't want to.

Best moment of the week: when I came home yesterday from work to a clean house, thanks to Cam! Then my brother Jason took me out for dinner and treated me to a delicious feast (it wasn't pizza, but it was still gooood!).

That's it!!

N.

Boy or Girl??

It's definitely too early in my pregnancy to find out the gender. But even when we would be able to find out, Cam and I agreed that we want to be surprised at the birth.

What I find interesting is that this question is the first I'm asked from everyone and very frequently I get the "I can't believe you don't want to know" response. Usually I respond that it's the biggest surprise in life and so we will wait but honestly, YES OF COURSE I want to know!!! But patience is a virtue and Cam has an abundance of it.

So what's your guess? Mine? I think this babe is a boy. I've been looking at boys clothes, picking out boys names, thinking about boy stuff. It only occurred to me a week or so ago that this baby could be a girl!! Just because I think it's a boy doesn't mean it is a boy, remember we aren't finding out until I push the baby out. So someone's gotta call it's a boy but I very well could hear "it's a girl!!!".

So why am I so intent in thinking that the peach sized baby I'm carrying is a boy?? Now don't think I'm crazy or anything but around the first week of August I had this very vivid dream. Do you ever get dreams were its more reality than dream? Well, I do and when I do it's very very real. I had one of these dreams and in it I was in a hospital bed in a hospital gown and in labour pushing. Then all the sudden a screaming, beautiful, perfect baby boy was put on my chest and the dream was over. Then a week or so after this I had another vivid realistic dream that I was lying in bed with a very large baby belly, I could feel and touch my belly and it was hard. I didn't think much of these dreams until my cycle never came two weeks after the belly dream and then the pregnancy test said positive.

So does this mean I'm having a boy? I'm not sure, but I really wouldn't be surprised. I was definitely pregnant at the time I had both those dreams, I just didn't know it. How crazy is that?? But of course, there's a good chance this baby is a girl! We'll just have to wait another 26 or so weeks to find out!

N.

13 weeks pregnant!

So a friend of mine did this on her blog when she was pregnant with her second (ahem, kortney). So I decided once I hit my second trimester then I'd do the same and start taking weekly photos.

So here is post #1


How far along: 13 weeks!

Size of baby: peach (3 inches long)

Maternity clothes: yep! Black maternity pants, still can fit into my fat jeans from when I lost a bunch of weight before I got pregnant. A few pregnancy tops and will be receiving a box from my sister full of more stuff (YAY!).

Movement: nope, too early for that but I do feel a lot of stretching type sensations in my lower abdomen. A few minor cramps too when I bend over too much at work.

Sleep: looove sleep, I can't get enough sleep. I'm fast asleep by 10pm and take naps when I can get them. Now I'm finally having a harder time sleeping on my tummy.

Cravings: I just had to have a whopper with cheese no onions or pickles the other day! I caved and gave in, it was glorious!!

Symptoms: tired, a lot of the time I'm just tired. I'm trying to find motivation to get out walking again.

Best moment of the week: telling some of the kids at work that I have a baby in my belly! It's so surreal to say.

Now finally it's second trimester!! So happy to have reached this point. It's going by so fast. I'm loving it :)

N.

Priorities

Apparently I can't do it all, according to my husband I'm not superwoman, I'm super mom! So back in the spring as I was planning my life for the fall I never thought for once that I couldn't complete my goals. Even if I was to get pregnant.

I mean why wouldn't I be able to work full time daycare, go to night class and grow a baby in my uterus? I mean come on, I can do it all right? NOPE!

I'm so grateful for the fantastic company I work for. A company that loves children and believes in investing in their education. But also in their employees, enough to communicate concern. Especially if the one they're concerned about is pregnant, exhausted, stressed and could burn out sooner than later (ME!).

So after I shed tears, prayed, realized how I'm truly feeling and the reality of what's happening in my body, I made some serious changes. First, I dropped my ECE night class and praise GOD that they refunded me the full amount. Then I committed to trading shifts at work for the later shift which means more sleep. And now I'm in conversation at work about going down to part-time.

This means a lower maternity pay, but you know what? Money isn't everything and as Cam mentioned before, his baby and his wife's health mean much more than a few hundred dollars a month.

So yah, I'm not superwoman. I'm a 27 year old super mom growing a miracle and prioritizing the importance of that miracle. I love you Bubba, with every fiber of my being and I will do anything and everything for you!!

N.


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Tears of joy!

When we told my family about Bubba coming my mother burst into tears and couldn't stop! We decided to save our news for our Kroeker family Whistler trip. Cam was intent on getting cigars for the boys so I insisted on getting my mom a board book. On it I wrote: for my Omie, love your grand baby coming April 2013. When we got to whistler, after an incredibly horrible drive up for me which involved fish n' chips, nausea, brothers deodorant smell and very strong smelling mint gum. The front desk at the hotel invited us for a free drink and appies at a mixer and if you know my family we never say no to free food and booze. So we had to tell our secret sooner than planned cause if I wasn't drinking the free booze then there would be some raised eyebrows!
I came out of my bedroom with the book behind my back and announced that I had something to give mom. I handed her the book and she started to read it out loud. When she finally realized what it said she looked up and was like "wha?!" I then said "yes! I'm pregnant!" She then burst out in tears, dad had the biggest smile I've ever seen and my brothers were beyond words! Cam handed out the cigars (which they smoked our last night out there). I had to admit that Cam was right to save our news for the trip even though we knew weeks prior. Hardest secret to keep!!
Since then we've told friends personally and went public after our ultrasound. The amount of love and support has been incredible! We are so blessed by everyone who is sharing in our joy. My good friend Amy was in tears the other day telling me that my pregnancy is making her so happy! My mom has had friends crying when she shared the news! My auntie Lori was in tears when we told her and our good friend Dave made sure I knew how happy he was cause he knew the surgery, pain and uncertainty that came before this little one.
My brothers are even experiencing their own celebrations with people giving them overwhelming congrats! My best friend Nantina is showing off my ultrasound photo to people like a proud aunt should! My grandpa told me that it's about time!!! Hahaha... So THANK YOU! To everyone... every single one of you who have shed tears, given us hugs, came over with gifts (kailee!), said congratulations, made me dinner (twice, Alissa), and loved us through the journey to get here and will be there on the day of to help me get Bubba out (Kortney). YOU'RE the best!! And we love you!!!
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The moment we found out!

The moment my life changed was when I peed on that stick (pictured below) on a Saturday morning in August! It was incredibly emotional and shocking all at the same time. I did NOT expect to have gotten pregnant so quickly after we started trying in May. The gynecologists gave us the green light in April after I finished my MVP hospital program for my Vestibulodynia. We conceived the end of July!!! Good thing we were so diligent with our birth control before, who knew I was as fertile as my mom was at my age.

With all my hopes and dreams, tears and fears about motherhood. That moment the pee stick said positive was one of glee, excitement and crazy happiness. I'm going to be a mommy, I'm carrying a beautiful baby! I can not wait to feel it moving and kicking. But the first few weeks of this pregnancy was scary with intense cramps that got me worried. All is well though and baby is happy, healthy and growing strong! Keep growing sweet Bubba, mommy can't wait to meet you :)


Happy thanksgiving!!!!!
N.