Taste of Spring

The weather has been absolutely beautiful the past few days. I've loved it! For the first time in months, I've been able to get outside and just enjoy it rather than running to and from the car and continuously trying to stay warm.

My dog and I have been going on walks. We've enjoyed the Spring-like weather. The fresh smell of crisp air. The in-general feeling of being outdoors. It's absolutely wonderful!

This coming week, however, it's supposed to drop back down into the 30s and 40s. So much for the Spring weather. I guess this was just a taste of what is soon to come. I'll just have to be patient and know that pretty soon, these wonderful days will be reality rather than just a sweet taste of what is to come.....

Hello Second Trimester!

Today is the day. The official start of the second trimester!

Tomorrow, I have an appointment with the gestational diabetes counselor. My numbers are staying consistently pretty low, so my most pressing questions for her are: 1) Where do I need to keep my numbers to not have to have insulin shots? 2) What can I eat beyond what I'm currently eating?

I think I'm ready to get my sewing machine out to start making a few things. One of our friends who lost a baby a few years ago just told us that they are expecting a little boy in May. How exciting! I'm going to make a baby blanket for them.

Last week, we told our close friends and family about the baby. Surprisingly, the news hasn't spread nearly as fast as I thought it would. Hopefully, the gossip mill has overlooked me this time!

Prickly

I failed the 1-hour glucose test. I failed the 3-hour glucose test. So, now I have to prick my finger to take blood glucose readings 4 times a day. Ideally, my readings will be between 60 and 120 following meals. I have been hovering right at the mid-80s. My one high reading was 107 after Taco Bell (those nachos sure were yummy!). Even my high reading is within range.

I spent the week before my 3-hour test in New Orleans. Apparently, the food that a person eats for the few days before the test will impact the results of the test. Even though I told the doctor that the food I ate while in New Orleans was not my normal diet, I don't think that anyone believed me. Hopefully, they will after they look at my numbers on my normal diet.

The only problem is that some of my readings are pretty low. I'm going to call the doctor today and see what they say. I don't want my numbers to be high because then I'll have to give myself shots for the duration of my pregnancy and that is simply not something that I want to do.

"By Jesus' stripes, I am healed!" That means that my blood glucose numbers have to be the levels that God designed them to be. Thank You, God, for my body working perfectly, just the way You intended!

Spreading the News

Our baby is currently the size of a plum (not including the legs). They measure from the crown to the rump to determine these sizes. So, we have entered plum-stage.

My stomach is getting bigger. I'm still losing weight, which is not a bad thing. Of course, changing my diet as drastically as I have will easily cause me to lose a little weight. It has gotten to the point where I can't really cover the pregnancy up with clothes any more. I only have 1 pair of non-maternity pants that I can button and they are so uncomfortable by the end of the day.

So, I think today is the day to start spreading the news. I need to make sure some significant people, like my grandma, hear it from me before gossip gets to her.

I definitely like having the secret and not dealing with the questions from people, but I guess I've enjoyed that for as long as possible. Maybe people will surprise me....

Made It!

Last night finished up the biggest meeting of the year that I have. I made it! Things went very well, even though it was questionable right up to the last minute. I call that the Favor of the Lord!

Now, I'm just tired. Sitting in my hotel room with the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door, I'm seriously wondering how long I can stay here. I have a few things to do today before I go home to my husband and puppy dog tomorrow. I'm ready to go home, but I'm so tired. I'm very thankful for a day to really chill out. To not have very much responsibility. To just relax. Ahh, relaxation.

My baby is continuing to grow. My stomach seems to be expanding on a daily basis. People can now look at me and know that I'm pregnant. I hadn't planned telling people for another 3-4 weeks, but my baby has other ideas.

So far, everyone that I've told has been extremely supportive, which is wonderful. I just hope that trend continues.....

Almost 12 Weeks

Baby is now the size of a lime!

And I'm hungry! I've never had this big of a turn-around, ever. One day, all I want to eat are bananas, grapes, and bagels. Then, the next day, I want to eat pretty much anything that I can reach. I'm trying to not eat continuously, but I really think that I could.

Plus, today, I walked quite a bit. Hopefully, that will counter-act some of what I have been eating.

The Glucose Tolerance Test is in 3 days. I've cut out sugar and am seriously trying to drink my gallon of water a day. I think that I succeeded yesterday. Last night, I went to the bathroom 4 times throughout the night. Guess this is going to be the norm moving forward....

Test Results

Work has been super-busy the past few weeks. This weekend is my biggest meeting of the year and I've been preparing for it. That doesn't mean a lot hasn't happened in the past few days, because it certainly has!

My husband and I went to the doctor for our NT scan. Since I'm over 35, the doctor does an early ultrasound to check for Downs Syndrome. So, we got to see our little doodle. As soon as the wand showed a picture, a little, tiny arm came up and looked like a wave. It was the cutest thing!

The good news is the Down's Syndrome tests came back negative. I also had to have a Glucose Tolerance Screening. It came back at elevated levels, so now I have to take a 3-hour Glucose Tolerance Test. During it, they take blood 4 times. That test takes place next week, so I'm really trying to avoid sugar until then.

Also, the doctor told me that I need to be drinking a gallon of water a day. Seriously? A gallon of water???? Do you know how much water that is? So, I'm giving it a try and really working on drinking a gallon of water a day. I thought I went to the bathroom a lot before this, but that was nothing!