Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Fatigue and Runny Nose

So far throughout this pregnancy I have been truly blessed and have only experienced minimal symptoms. At 8 weeks and 2 days I haven't experienced any morning sickness, praise God!! I have had some queasiness on the mornings when I go to work and don't eat right away. I learned early on to eat a little snack when I leave the house at 6AM and then when I sit down to eat breakfast and it won't take me 30 minutes to get it down. So no more queasiness.

I have recently felt extremely tired and luckily it has only been on my days off. We wouldn't want a sleepy girl at work, I have patients to take care of. So I have finally given into nap time. I can been found napping around 2 in the afternoon or right before dinner. For many years I have been against napping for fear that it would keep me up at night when I try to go to sleep but let me tell you this baby has changed my thinking. I now find time to schedule a nap in during the day and yes I will still fall asleep at night. Even a 20 minute power nap will do it for me. So I would definitely say fatigue is a pregnancy symptom that I am experiencing.

Another strange but common symptom is rhinitis (also know as runny nose) during pregnancy. As my hormones increase to support this baby, higher amounts of estrogen can contribute to swelling of the mucous membranes lining the nose and even cause you to make more mucus. Oh goody so I have a runny nose and feel congested all the time. Well I guess it would be better to have these symptoms than to be getting sick all the time. Not to mention the benefit to having a stuffy nose is that my heightened sense of smell isn't as strong and when it comes to working in hospitals, well then that is GREAT!!

All that being said I am happy with the few symptoms I have been feeling and know that it could be worse. So as far a pregnancy goes for me... I am loving it!! But lets not talk about fitting into my jeans.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

First belly Picture

I know someone is reading this going are you for real.........
belly pictures at 7 weeks.

This picture was taken in Bodega Bay where we had a girls weekend.

As Chris says it's probably all bloat or maybe constipation but I just have to capture these moments. If you haven't heard me say it yet, we have been waiting a long time for this moment and we're sooo excited!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Seeing Baby's Heartbeat

So today marked the first day we fell in love with our baby's heartbeat. We officially saw the heart beat and it was anywhere between 120-140 bpm. This was such an amazing moment, it reminds me of my heart transplant patients and the first time they hear their new heart beating in their chest. It is a moment that brings tears to my eyes because it symbolizes the new chapter of their lives, the new beginning they have been dreaming of. Well I got to experience this first hand when I saw our baby's heartbeat for the first time; it actually looked like a light flickering on and off really fast.
Although I have been feeling calm for awhile now this was just another confirmation that our baby is doing well. It was a sweet moment shared by Chris and I oh and the ultrasound tech too.


We even got a picture of that little peanut, who is now looking more and more like a baby. Little eyes and ears are beginning to form, not to mention hands and feet.

7 weeks and 4 days
It's a little difficult to see but the baby's head is at the bottom
of the dark circle and the body is off to the right.

So far I haven't experience the horrible pregnancy side effects that everyone describes. A little queasiness in the early AM and then it's gone, it usually just takes me longer to get through breakfast. The only nuisance is getting up in the middle of the night to pee and I am sure that is only going to get worse once baby gets bigger, but I can handle that. Oh and finally my clothes are getting a little tighter. Now that is a bummer because all I feel right now is big and not pregnant. So until this belly gets a little bigger I am going to continue to squeeze into my seven jeans with a new belly band. Who ever invented that is a genius.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Baby Anxiety

Ok so you're probably thinking you must be crazy... anxiety now. Well let me explain.

We began this baby journey 2 years ago and every month has been filled with so many expectations and so many "what ifs". So when the test finally said POSITIVE I was ecstatic and overjoyed. And then this week the worry set in... what if we loss the baby, what if something happens and the baby stops developing, what if I do something wrong. I began to over think things and "freak out". I even called my doctor and asked to have my HCG levels drawn. (The hormone human chronic gonadotropin which is produced during pregnancy. It is made by cells that form the placenta, which nourishes the egg after it has been fertilized and becomes attached to the uterine wall. It continues to rapidly multiple during the first trimester)

I truly believe that my medical knowledge helps me but also hinders me. I know too much and can work the system to get the answers that I desire but it also makes me over think everything. So after the first HCG came back normal a few days later I asked to have them repeated to confirm that they were multiplying and that our little baby was continuing to grow. It was at this point that some of those closest to me that knew told me to let go of the control. God had blessed us with this child and now I was trying to control everything. I needed to let go and let God be in control. But for so long I have spent every month anticipating a positive pregnancy test and now finally to have one I feared the worst, that I would lose it. Every month ended with a huge let down and now that we are so happy I can't help but think or anticipate the let down is still to come.

I woke up Thursday morning feeling a sense of peace and knowing that this baby was planned by God and protected with prayer that I need not worry. And I have carried that peace ever since. Many women in my life have left me messages or sent me texts helping me stay positive and sending me scriptures of inspiration. I feel so blessed to be pregnant and know that this baby is already taken care of by God.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Telling Our Families

Since Chris and I have been trying to have a baby for 2 years now I have had some time to think about how I would tell my family. And believe me I have had some lavish ideas but when it came down to it I couldn't contain myself and many of those ideas didn't seem to matter. The hardest part for me was that all of my immediate family lives out of town, well out of state to be exact. So telling them over the phone seemed a little anti-climatic to me. So thank goodness for Skype.

After we saw our peanut on the ultrasound we decided to tell my sister. I was the first person she told that she was going to have my beautiful little niece Sophia. And I needed her now more than ever. So I convinced her to Skype with us so we could see Sophia, she kept asking me if I had something to tell her and I just said no. As Sophia lost interest in talking to us and found that Nemo was way more interesting. I asked my sister and brother in law if they would be around in October when we had our baby! I started crying and she was screaming! I was a great moment that we'll all remember forever. Even Sophia got a little excited about the news or maybe it was just that everyone else was excited.

After a few days we decided to share the news with Chris's parents, who live about 10 minutes away. We headed over to their house to pick up some things and while there Chris placed the ultrasound picture on the fridge. He then called his mom over to ask her what was on the fridge. She saw the picture and said, "Is that what I think it is?" I shook my head yes and started crying and then she started crying. She kissed us both and called for Gary, Chris's dad to come in the kitchen. I think that his moms reaction was one of shock and overwhelming joy cause they know what a long and painful road it has been for us.

Along with all the joy comes sadness too, when you think about those that are still struggling with infertility. We continue to pray for our friends and people we don't know that struggle with fertility issues cause we know first hand how painful and gut wrenching it can be. Every month is filled with so many what ifs? But we pray and hope that our story and journey will help them to have new faith and know that God has the perfect plan for them. Not to mention that he is working on a custom baby for those that struggle with infertility and that is why it takes so long, we aren't just getting one off the shelf.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Smuggling a Peanut

Smuggling a peanut
This is our first picture of the newest addition to our family.
Chris and I had our first Ultrasound on February 3rd. Our doctor wanted to narrow down how far along I was so she called us in to confirm we were 5 weeks and 3 days.
Which means that baby Ferraro will be due October 3, 2011 (give or take a few days).

All I can say is that my heart felt like it was going to jump out of my chest while the ultrasound technician was searching for our baby. And then finally I was overcome with a huge sense of relief when he said there are your babies..... I said "What". He then informed me he was kidding that we were only having one baby!

This picture is magnified so many times that the "baby yolk" is actually the size of my pinkie nail.


I feel so overwhelmed with joy and love for our baby that I times I think I have to pinch myself. I know that God has answered our prayers. Even in the times when I start to worry and feel like something is going to happen I am reminded of the journey it took to get here. Then I remind myself that God has got this all under control. I will have many more years and other things to worry about right now I want to relish in the fact the WE'RE PREGNANT!!
I mean really pregnant!