Weekly Chat: November 13-19th. « Back to Group Discussions

[forestmushroom]

Name:

Weeks/Days along:

Appointments:

Symptoms:

Food:

Exercise:

Body changes and other milestones:

Thoughts:

another week closer to baby!

[Kamiro]

Name: Kamiro :)

Weeks/Days along: 2 days shy of 15 weeks!

Appointments: Hoping for my first mw apt. this next week

Symptoms: I feel pretty darn normal, except I am hungry!

Food:  Greek yogurt, and I have a mad craving for salad rolls. mmm

Exercise: As soon as I am out of pain 24/7 from this dental surgery gone awry, totally getting back into fitness.

Body changes and other milestones: Greasy hair still. Otherwise, I feel almost normal. Can't lay on my tum.

Thoughts: Only a couple more weeks until we find out what it is. Hoping to hear the heartbeat finally this week. *sigh* I can't believe I made it to 15 weeks without hearing it. LOL

As soon as this pain goes away, I am going to be sewing and excercising and eating good food.

[callieollie]

Name:  Katie

Weeks/Days along:  14 weeks

Appointments:  In 2 weeks

Symptoms:  I'm hungry all the time!  I have HORRIBLE acne.  It is driving me crazy.  

Food:  Jalapenos!  I just want spicy stuff. And cheese.  

Exercise:  I've started doing some stuff but not nearly as much as I'd like to. I'm having a hard time finding the time and getting myself motivated to get there.

Body changes and other milestones:  My belly is huge!  I haven't told work yet, only because I never seem to run into my two bosses, but I plan to tell them as soon as I can because I can't hide it much longer. I am waiting to tell my clients at work until after my next appointment just to make sure everything is still OK.

Thoughts:  I wish my anxiety would go away. I thought once I got into the second trimester and heard the heartbeat, my anxiety would go away. Both miscarriages were early (5 and 9 weeks) so I'm way past that.  I think I got thrown for another loop when a friend of mine told me a about a month or so ago that she just miscarried at 15 weeks. So now I have it in my head that I need to get past that point before I can feel OK.  So I'm really hoping that after my 16 week appointment, I'll feel better. And I'm hoping once I start to feel the baby moving, that will ease my mind and I can just enjoy this pregnancy. I LOVE being pregnant and I hate the fact that I'm not able to fully enjoy this.  I'm just getting mad at myself at this point.  

Edited by callieollie - 11/14/11 at 4:37am

[maryamrose]

callieollie - my skin is TERRIBLE - lots of cysts and clogged pores and slow-healing red marks. I don't think it was this bad when I was a teenager, even. I'm trying to drink more water and I'm being gentle with my skin with no luck. I invested in a nice brush and plenty of mineral makeup, for now :( it's driving me crazy, too.

[janellody]

Name: Janelle

Weeks/Days along: 14 weeks

Appointments: Today!

Symptoms: Still feeling crappy. Not much else to say.

Food:  Repulsed by a lot of it, it's such a chore finding something to eat.  I would rather never eat but that's not an option.

Exercise: Soon.  I almost feel like I am ready to start walking.

Body changes and other milestones: Acne is annoying... I never got acne much as a kid and I have freckles which hides it well but still.. it's annoying.  I don't think anyone who sees me thinks I am pregnant, just overweight.  Sigh. I want a real belly.

Thoughts: Just hoping the sickness goes away soon... I am glad to be 14 weeks, but at which week will my body stop abusing me?  Hopefully soon.  I am most excited to get through the next month because my gender u/s appointment is December 12... after that it's ON!  Baby shopping will commence then!!!  I haven't done any shopping yet or even really looked at much because I don't see a point until I know who I am looking for, a boy or a girl.  So I am happy that I only have a month left before that...

[lightheartedmom]

Name: lightheartedmom
Weeks/days: 13 and change...14 weeks on Friday.
Appointments: Dec 2 and Dec 7 is the start of my prenatal group. Yay!
Symptoms: I pee a lot. I'm breaking out here and there and my skin is super dry but I kind of love most of the other symptoms. I feel pretty and sexy and all womanly, it's like I woke up one morning replaced by some freaking pregnant cliche. Now, anyone is free to hit me over the head with this crap when I'm coming here to whine about how much I haaaate being pregnant at 35 weeks. :-) Oh also, migraines. Bad ones. Every day. I've relapsed on my caffeine addiction as a means of self- medicating. Mw said two cups a day are okay now...
Foods: I need to be really careful now that my appetite is back. If I don't watch it, I am going to be huge in a matter of weeks. My favorite meal is still breakfast, especially sunnyside down eggs cooked very lightly. With turkey sausage or on toast slathered with pizza sauce and a few slices of sharp cheddar - even better. For the most part this baby seems to adore anything savory and hates most sugar. I haven't had chocolate in three months...I'm thinking I'll try to wait until christmas to splurge on chocolatey things.
Exercise: walking. We took a short hike on Saturday and I think we'll be doing that more often as weather permits
Body changes: not much. I switched to my maternity jeans even though I'm still in that fluffy "is she or isn't she" belly phase. My boobs feel pendulous despite losing weight and cutting back on bf'ing dd2. And a bit sore. And I feel movement-y flutters. Cannot wait for that part.
Thoughts: still emotional. I heard a song the other night from a mother to her son and cried like a baby. I am torn between trusting my intuition that this is a boy and questioning it...but man, when I heard that song I was already planning a fifth-birthday slideshow for my son. I'm feeling a bit guilty for feeling such a strong hope that this is a boy...which is funny because a month ago I was terrified to even think about having a boy. Of course, I also was just looking at pics of dd2 when she was a baby and thinking how sweet it would be to have a girl...so... time will tell I guess. :-)

Have a great week ladies. I'm off to trader joes to stock up on eggs. :-)


Oh! On acne, I thought I'd just throw it out there - I have this mask called Indian Aztec clay or something and you mix it with apple cider vinegar and it cleans out your pores like magic. It's strong and for me I can only use it once a week or less and I have to slather my skin with coconut oil after (and your skin will be red and puffy for about 30 minutes after) but it does work...and it's super cheap (I paid $6 for a 1 lb tub of the stuff at my local health food store).

[cookie_]

Name: Marina

Weeks/Days along: 12 weeks

Appointments: Nuchal scan on Wednesday. It was supposed to be last Wednesday, but I completely forgot about it until my midwife called me that afternoon to ask me why I'd missed my appt. Oops! My husband says I'm already phoning it in on this baby, haha.

Symptoms: Still having some issues with low grade nausea. Mid-day tiredness is fading, thankfully, although I'm pretty much lights out by 9:30pm these days. Not showing at all, and in fact, I seem to have lost 2 pounds in the last 10 days.

Food: Blech. I don't really have any aversions except for chicken (had that last pregnancy too), but I also don't have any real cravings or any appetite. Forcing myself to eat three small meals a day at least. Hoping that as the nausea subsides (assuming that it will, the sooner the better), my appetite will increase again. Although today I remembered that my husband had gotten me some taleggio cheese (my favorite), so am sitting here eating that with a baguette and it's pretty delicious.

Exercise: I'm so thankful to live in an urban environment because it forces me to walk at least a few miles almost every day. I've been trying to do some yoga during my son's nap time, but haven't been too consistent with that.

Body changes and other milestones: My nails are growing like wildfire, but that's the only thing really going on. I'm also struck by how different my body is reacting this time around. Last time, outside of 10 days of nausea around the 5 week mark, I was starving the whole time. I think I put on 10 pounds in the first trimester.

Thoughts: I'm excited to be moving out of the 1st trimester. Looking forward to the u/s on Wed, just want a bit of reassurance that things are still going good with the little bean. I was buying some cute girl clothes at a second hand boutique for a friend's new baby, and I fell in love with this one little corduroy dress and felt like I had to have it. I bought it, though I couldn't help feel like me buying it meant that I was definitely going to be having another boy. I couldn't help myself though!

[Shannon Owens]

Name: Shannon

Weeks/Days along: 15 weeks today

Appointments: Another appointment next week.

Symptoms: Been feeling pretty good. Glad to hear I"m not the only one with acne issues. Man it is pretty bad, my skin is probably the worst its been ever!! 

Food: Not been eating very well, but getting back into the swing of healthy eating again.

Exercise: None for about a month, I did walk today though.

Body changes and other milestones: The bump is definitely here, which is good. I feel like I just look really fat though right now. Not quite pregnant, but really bloated. By the end of the day my tummy is 5-6 months pregnant look - blah. Been having people think I'm way further along depending on what time of day it is, ha!

Thoughts: It's been really nice being able to feel the baby. I can't believe how quickly this pregnancy is flying by compared to my first. Whoa!!!

[Cat77]

Name: Choco Mom

Weeks/Days along: 12w, 3d

Appointments: Next one TBA

Symptoms: Still fatigued quite a bit, but I was advised on my last appt that my iron is low and I need to commence iron supplementation so maybe that will help... I THOUGHT that I was getting over the nausea and vomiting but alas, not so.  I know I am not really successfully keeping down enough food to run my body efficiently right now. 

Food: The vomiting is just making food really difficult for me now.  I throw up whatever I ingest first thing in the morning without fail, so what I've been doing is just having juice or a smoothie, waiting for the inevitable, and then after that getting on with trying to eat something substantial (whatever that means these days, haute cuisine sized portions are all I can manage).  DH says I should eat a meal first thing regardless of whether or not I'm going to vomit it back up.  I'm like WTH? Right now most foods have no appeal, and you want me to eat when I know I'mma see it all back in the bathroom 10 minutes later?  That'll put me off food even more!  Am I right, or is he?  Somebody help me here...

Exercise: Still nothing solid or regular, I usually get some energetic dancing in one day a week.

Body changes and other milestones: My tummy is starting to look fluffier than usual, but its still not a proper belly, it mostly just looks like bloat.

Thoughts: Will come back and post random thoughts throughout the week if needs be, but for now, I'm obsessed with all things pregnancy and baby.  I am hooked on TLC's baby shows, though the intervention rate is high and representation of natural births is a little scanty but hey...

Originally Posted by janellody 

Symptoms: Still feeling crappy. Not much else to say.

Food:  Repulsed by a lot of it, it's such a chore finding something to eat.  I would rather never eat but that's not an option.

Exercise: Soon.  I almost feel like I am ready to start walking.

Thoughts: Just hoping the sickness goes away soon... I am glad to be 14 weeks, but at which week will my body stop abusing me?  Hopefully soon. 

Janellody I could've written the above, me and you are so >>here<<, same page, same book.  You and I are the same age, as are your hubby and mine.  Is this your first pregnancy too?

[EmTheWife]

Name: Em

Weeks/Days along:  14wks 4 days

Appointments: after Thanksgiving; the nuchal translucency scan was last week, and my dates got moved up 8 days, more in line with what I initially thought.

Symptoms: nothing this week!  My constant nausea is finally gone, and I've been getting my energy back

Food: craving sweets, which I usually hate, so I'm starting to worry about weight gain :(

Exercise: basically none, though I did have a nice 3 mile walk with friends this morning

Body changes and other milestones:  I have a nice sized bump, I feel like I look huge, but no one else thinks I look big for my gestation.  They just say "you're tiny, of course you're showing so much"

Thoughts:  I really want to go take a shower, but have to wait until DH gets home so that DS won't see me undressed and ask to nurse.

For those suffering with acne, have you heard of the oil cleansing method?  The idea is that your skin is out of balance, not dirty, so you stop washing, just rinse with warm water, and start hydrating your face and whatever else is breaking out with good, healthy oils like evoo.  There's a thread here on MDC somewhere...found it! http://www.mothering.com/community/t/162376/check-this-out-oil-cleansing-method   I do my own version and love it, it's really helped my skin heal from nasty, pervasive cystic acne, and it helps those spots that do come to heal much faster :)

[MeredithA]

Name: Meredith

Weeks/Days along: 14 weeks

Appointments: next one in 2 weeks

Symptoms: still tired, acne (mainly along my jawline! like a beard of acne - its awful! thank goodness for concealer and long hair to cover it somewhat), I had just a few drops of spotting (very light pink) and became so nervous, but my midwife seemed completely relaxed about it and said not to worry about it unless it keeps up or I have cramping too. I haven't had any more spotting, so i guess it was a one-time thing and not a big deal. Still a bit scary though. I've also been having headaches, probably because Im struggling to drink enough water each day. I just don't like water at all right now. 

Food: My cravings last about 48 hours. I'll eat one thing like crazy and then become sick of it and not want to eat it at all. I polished off a whole bunch of bananas in a few days and now I don't care if I ever eat a banana again! I'm really into eggnog lattes too, which is a terrible habit to have...they are just sooo good!

Exercise: not yet...I am going to start walking sometime soon

Body changes and other milestones: Giant belly (sorry I havent posted on the belly thread yet!!) 

Thoughts: Happy to be in the 2nd trimester! Hubby is still dead set against finding out the gender. My sweet little toddler has been a bit more clingy lately. We co-slept with him until he was around 2 1/2. Then, he happily transitioned into his own bed. Ever since I told him about the new baby, he has been wanting to be in our bed again. We welcomed him back into our bed, of course, and it is so sweet having him next to me in bed, but I honestly am not sleeping well as a result. He is just wild in his sleep! Kicking and rolling around. I wake up to his toes in my face at least one per night. Plus I'm already up to pee a couple times in the night...I just need more sleep!! 

[janellody]

Meredith - I am sorta the same with food.  I like something for a bit and then don't want it anymore and have to find something new to focus on.  Food is so difficult while pregnant!!  Also, where is your belly pic!!!!!!!!!!   You keep teasing us with it but never showing it booooooo!

[Kamiro]

Haha - yes. I mean, I am having no problem finding food I like (it all sounds good...Except fried food and fast food kind of food) but I find a food I like and it is all I really want to eat for 3 days + and then one day I drop it like a hot potato.

I really, really, really want some thai salad rolls.

On payday I will check and see if there is a vietnamese or ethnic grocer within 30 miles of here. I have tapioca papers but no rice papers.

Originally Posted by janellody 

Meredith - I am sorta the same with food.  I like something for a bit and then don't want it anymore and have to find something new to focus on.  Food is so difficult while pregnant!!  Also, where is your belly pic!!!!!!!!!!   You keep teasing us with it but never showing it booooooo!

[babycatcher12]

Name: Erin

Weeks/Days along: 14

Appointments: I had one with my midwife last week. It went well. 

Symptoms: I just don't feel like eating...

Food: Nothing. This week not even spicy sounds good. I have to force myself to take a bite of anything. Seriously. Eating seems like such a chore. 

Exercise: I've been doing some prenatal yoga. 

Body changes and other milestones:  I'm wearing maternity clothes all the time now. I guess with a 5th baby it's to be expected. I think I've been feeling a few little baby flutters here and there. It's kind of fun. 

Thoughts: I'm really looking forward to Thanksgiving. We're headed back to visit family and I'm excited (it also means we'll be staying here for Christmas which is even better). I told work this last week. I was getting a lot of suspicious looks so decided to come clean. My boss just kind of gave me a "shame on you look", but was polite about it. We'll see how this next semester goes. I think she's happy it won't be in the middle of a semester. I haven't been sleeping well at all. I had terrible nightmare last night and it took me forever to get back to sleep. Hopefully tonight will be better. 

[Kamiro]

Shame on you? Why would your boss do that? :( 

I'm curious cause of last weeks "If you feel pretty its a boy, if you don't its a girl" old wives tale some one shared. I felt like crap and ugly and awful my last pregnancies and this pregnancy I don't feel so dog awful ugly. I suspect boy this time, I have only girls...How did you feel your last pregnancies? Prettier than this one?

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by Choco Mom 

I throw up whatever I ingest first thing in the morning without fail, so what I've been doing is just having juice or a smoothie, waiting for the inevitable, and then after that getting on with trying to eat something substantial (whatever that means these days, haute cuisine sized portions are all I can manage).  DH says I should eat a meal first thing regardless of whether or not I'm going to vomit it back up.  I'm like WTH? Right now most foods have no appeal, and you want me to eat when I know I'mma see it all back in the bathroom 10 minutes later?  That'll put me off food even more!  Am I right, or is he?  Somebody help me here...

When are you taking your prenatals, and how long are you going between dinnertime and breakfast?  If you're only vomiting first thing in the morning those would be the two things to look at first.  I completely agree with you not to eat anything that you're going to have to see again, but at the same time, maybe some troubleshooting will stop the vomiting.  A protein snack right before bed, or even a snack when you get up to pee in the night can really help with the morning nausea.  A cheese stick or a handful of almonds, even a few bites of apple if that's all you can manage.  I know with DS I had to eat before bed, and I couldn't even think about food in the morning until after eating an apple (had to be crunchy and not too sweet) first thing.  After that apple hit my stomach, I had about 20 minutes before my BS crashed again where I could get some eggs down.  Once I did that, the nausea stayed low grade - irritating but no vomiting.  I had to do that every day until 36 weeks.  With my first, DH would get up and get me a cheese stick and some PB crackers before I ever got out of bed in the morning, it was far worse with that pregnancy. 

As for your prenatals, if you're taking them at night, that's probably the best call.  Hopefully you're not trying to take them in the morning.  But you may want to try a different brand.  I take one that has tummy soothing herbs blended in, so it helps combat any nausea that might be caused by the vitamins.  I don't know if that's contributing to the difference between last pg and this one, but I'll take it. 

Name:  Cristeen

Weeks/Days along:  13 weeks

Appointments:  NTT on Wednesday

Symptoms: None, really.  Minor cravings, minor aversions.  Nothing world altering like my previous pgs though.

Food: Anything.  Whatever sounds good at the moment.  Lots of spicy foods early on - I was completely insensitive to spicy for several weeks, and I was craving it.  But that seems to have disappeared now - the medium salsa that came with my burrito today burned my mouth. 

Exercise: Trying to walk every other day or so.  Pushing my 40 lb toddler in his 20 lb stroller up this massive hill we live on must count for something.  :)

Body changes and other milestones: My tummy is definitely rounding out.  I've popped out of my jeans already, but the rest of my pants are elastic waisted, and I wore some of them until 9 mos with DS.

Thoughts:  The lack of symptoms really has me questioning reality.  Both of my previous pgs have been accompanied by life altering nausea, so to not have it this time, I guess I won't really believe it until I see the U/S on Wednesday. 

[cookie_]

Originally Posted by MeredithA 

Name: Meredith

Weeks/Days along: 14 weeks

Appointments: next one in 2 weeks

Symptoms: still tired, acne (mainly along my jawline! like a beard of acne - its awful! thank goodness for concealer and long hair to cover it somewhat), I had just a few drops of spotting (very light pink) and became so nervous, but my midwife seemed completely relaxed about it and said not to worry about it unless it keeps up or I have cramping too. I haven't had any more spotting, so i guess it was a one-time thing and not a big deal. Still a bit scary though. I've also been having headaches, probably because Im struggling to drink enough water each day. I just don't like water at all right now. 

Food: My cravings last about 48 hours. I'll eat one thing like crazy and then become sick of it and not want to eat it at all. I polished off a whole bunch of bananas in a few days and now I don't care if I ever eat a banana again! I'm really into eggnog lattes too, which is a terrible habit to have...they are just sooo good!

Exercise: not yet...I am going to start walking sometime soon

Body changes and other milestones: Giant belly (sorry I havent posted on the belly thread yet!!) 

Thoughts: Happy to be in the 2nd trimester! Hubby is still dead set against finding out the gender. My sweet little toddler has been a bit more clingy lately. We co-slept with him until he was around 2 1/2. Then, he happily transitioned into his own bed. Ever since I told him about the new baby, he has been wanting to be in our bed again. We welcomed him back into our bed, of course, and it is so sweet having him next to me in bed, but I honestly am not sleeping well as a result. He is just wild in his sleep! Kicking and rolling around. I wake up to his toes in my face at least one per night. Plus I'm already up to pee a couple times in the night...I just need more sleep!! 

I've always been a little sad that I couldn't get my son to cuddle with me in bed at all, at any time of the day or night. Last weekend at my in-laws, he refused to sleep in the pack n play (we arrived at midnight, he was all out of sorts), so my husband slept on the couch and my son was in bed with me. He did exactly what you described here - wild man, toes in my face, not satisfied unless his feet were resting on my head, kicking and rolling around, etc! Now that I'm pregnant again, I'm so happy he doesn't want to be in bed with me. I'm sleeping poorly as it is...can't imagine having that factor in bed each night, too!

Also, mamas, this pregnancy is making me do weird things. I've been feeling so much more...disgusting this time around. I haven't had an appetite in days, then last night around 9 I found myself piling on homemade pickled red onions onto a baguette, then piling on some pinquito beans, then topping with raw onions and cilantro, then drizzled vinegar on top. I MEAN, WHAT IS THAT? That is disgusting. I hate onions! I haven't eaten a bite of raw onion in, basically, ever. I've always thought that the occasional food craving was my body's way of telling me I needed a particular kind of nutrient or something, but what on earth does that disgusting sandwich mean?

Also, I threw up in a trashcan at the playground yesterday afternoon. Classy! My son was on the swing, when I had to run away very quickly. Luckily, there was another mom there that I knew from my neighborhood's 2010 babies group, and she took over swing pushing duties for me while I was sick, then went and got me something to drink. Hurray for fellow mama friends! But ugh, I guess the afternoon nausea is going to stick around for a few more days.

[shastalily]

Cristeen ~ What brand of prenatals do you take?  I'm still dealing with some nausea here and that sounds like something to try.

Hard to believe another week has gone by.

Name:  Jenny

Weeks/Days along:  16 tomorrow

Appointments: Next one at 19 weeks; anatomy u/s & midwife appt

Symptoms:  Nausea isn't as bad, but still bothering me most mornings and occassionally puking still.  ugghh  Sciatica and back pain off and on and still more tired than usual.  Some days I feel SO very pregnant and others hardly at all.  It's weird.

Food:  Sometimes I feel like it, sometimes I don't.  Not many huge cravings yet

Exercise: Still so tired.  It doesn't help that I've had sick kids off and on for the last week and I think I'm fighting something off myself.  So regular exercise still isn't happening.  I'm just glad when I get my body moving doing laundry or raking leaves.  Yesterday and Saturday I spent a couple hours dejunking and organizing and moving boxes so I counted that.  :-)

Body changes and other milestones:  About the same...maternity pants or yoga pants.  Bigger shirts.  Some days my belly feels huge, others not so much.

Thoughts:  I'm excited for a change in pace next week.  Dh is a teacher so he gets Wed-Fri off for Thanksgiving.  We are going to paint our daughters' room.  It's been this hideous green color with nicks and marks on it since we bought the house a few months ago.  We are finally getting around to painting.  :-)  Looking forward to spending time with our families and eating yummy Thanksgiving dinner.  Also hoping I can pop in to see my friend at work and see if we can find out babies sex via u/s next week.  So happy to be feeling baby move right now.  It feels like little pokes and flips.  I haven't felt anything in a few days so it's good to feel it again.

[Cat77]

cristeen thanks so much for your suggestions. I started out taking my prenatals with breakfast, but now I take them with whatever meal my stomach fels most settled with. I generally eat my last meal at around 9 or 10pm, and breakfast is not usually til after midday honestly. There was a period when I was doing well eating something small and snackish every 2 hrs or so, but that kinda went out the window in recent weeks. I'll try the protein snack before bed. Thanks again.

[licadee]

Name: Karrie
Weeks/Days along: 13 & 1/2ish...14 on Friday
Appointments: a week from today
Symptoms: nothing worth complaining about really...some heartburn, GI discomfort, nausea but not often anymore.
Food: totally depends, I like things one day but not the next. Anything someone makes FOR me I am happy to eat.
Exercise: prenatal pilates
Body changes and other milestones: getting a little poofy...wearing some maternity pants now
Thoughts: I could use a nap right now