14 weeks

For those who read our story about some struggles we had getting pregnant this time around (read here), I recognize fully how grateful we both are now that there's a healthy baby inside of me who is actually growing and developing a strong body. We are over-the-moon excited. And to find out on our fifth anniversary this year was something I'll never forget.

Here's a little snippet of the story. Before I begin, you have to know how much I love surprising Bry. I have to say I'm a pretty dang good liar when I'm hiding something really exciting for him. I get such a kick out of watching to see how he'll react. So, with that... let me tell you the story.

We were packing for our Thailand trip back in early May and I knew my period was supposed to start while we were there (and ON our fifth anniversary... I know... worst timing ever, right?). I slipped one pregnancy test in my suitcase just in case. We've sen a lot of negative tests this last year, and I thought, 'What the heck, I'll just pack one just in case.' So off we went. A few days into our trip, and the night before our fifth anniversary, I recognized my body didn't quite feel normal. I felt a little extra bloated all the time and not quite "normal." The day came when my period should've started, and the entire day I waited for it to start. That night, still nothing. I got this little flicker of excitement inside, and decided I was going to wake up in the middle of night to check without Bry there (as you can see... I plan all my surprises very carefully haha). I hid the test in the bathroom of our hotel under some towels, and set a quiet alarm to go off at 2:00 am.

Waking up at 2, I quietly snuck out of bed to the bathroom, and took the test in the pitch black. As soon as that positive sign showed up, the tears came with it. I was so overcome and overjoyed, I spent the next few minutes trying to just control myself and calm myself down so I could sneak back into bed and begin to plan how I was going to reveal the news to Bry.

As I was almost into bed, Bry woke up and noticed me sniffling. He asked, "You okay, honey?" Ohhhh crap, I thought. I had to fake something quick. Sniffling some more (this time as an act), I whispered, "I just started my period again." 

I felt a warm hug around my back. "Oh Meg, I'm so sorry. You know what? We're here in Thailand celebrating our anniversary, and let's just not worry about it. It will happen when it needs to happen. Don't worry, sweetie. Don't lose sleep over it, okay?" 

Yessssss. I smiled big behind my sniffling. Success. I had him.

Told you... I'm the worst. :) But just wait...

The morning came and I hadn't slept much because my heart had basically been exploding the rest of the night, but a taxi picked us up early after breakfast and took us to Khao Sok National Park where we were staying the night of our anniversary. Bry slept the whole way there, and I took that time to write him a letter and some other things I was going to use for my surprise that night. We arrived in Khao Sok and ended up having one of the most memorable days... hiking in a downpour through the jungle with a guide, eating fresh food on the lake, spending the day swimming and kayaking and reminiscing on our last five years... I held in my secret all day and waited until the timing was just right.

It started to drizzle rain again that evening and we had about an hour before we had to be back with our guide for dinner. I told Bry I had a letter and a surprise for him. We sat outside on our porch and watched the rain fall and bounce off the water. I had him read my note, and then held out a small wooden container with five pieces of paper folded up inside. I told him to read each one out loud. On each piece was a wish: something I hoped for the both of us this next year. He picked up the last piece of paper and read:

"I wish your love will only double in size as we welcome another angel into our life, January 2018. Sweetheart, I'm pregnant."

More tears. And maybe some backflips into the lake. :)

...And thennnnnn I had to quickly forgive him for faking him out the night before. But my plan had worked. He was so surprised. And SO excited. Being able to see that heartbeat at 10 weeks was such a blessing and one I won't ever take for granted anymore. We feel so grateful and continue to pray each day for this little one inside of me.

I'm excited now to update you as the weeks go on and to embrace every stage as it comes this time around. Growing a belly physically is one thing. But mentally it's a whole other obstacle for me. My goal this time around is to make my mental game stronger, to embrace the changes my body is going through, and to find the beauty in the entire process.

Now that I am waving first trimester goodbye... (happily!!), I thought it would be fun to do some little updates each week. (And each week my entry won't be this long, don't worry.)

Some tips that helped me through my first trimester... Let me start by saying first trimester is pure survival mode, right? The tips I'm going to share may work for some, but for others may not work in the least bit. Each of our pregnancies are very unique and individual, but I'll share things that helped me here, and hope they help some of you too.

First: water, water water. Ice cold water. I kept a huge water bottle by the side of my bed, and when I would wake up feeling all sorts of nausea and sick, I'd start with a few sips of ice cold water. Getting food down was just about the hardest thing to muster through my worst weeks (weeks 8-12), but I noticed when I'd force something down in the morning, I wouldn't get as sick as if I just avoided food completely. Toast became my best friend, and that was sometimes just about all I could get down in the morning, but it helped me a ton. Last pregnancy with Ellie, when I avoided food because of my nausea, it was wayyyy worse throughout the day. This time around, I've been trying my best to eat a little something every few hours (even if I kind of have to force it down at first), and that has helped to keep my sickness at more mild state. This has also helped me to avoid more headaches this time around too. With Ellie I remember taking Tylenol just about every day through some of those bad weeks, but I noticed the more hydrated I was, I didn't have near as many headaches this time around. Just a thought!

Second: exercise. Holy moly, if there's one thing I'd say to keep doing while you're pregnant, it's exercise. It has helped me SO much this time around: physically, mentally, and emotionally. I've been way more fatigued this time around, and getting out of bed in the morning can be extremely hard, but the second I get up and start to move, I feel amazing. I've been keeping my normal routine for now, just lifting a little less weight or stopping if I feel uncomfortable in any way. I've been listening to my body and letting it guide me. But so far, I've been able to keep up my regular routine, and training with my clients has become one of my biggest blessings. Even if it's getting out on walks, or doing some laps at the pool, get out and move!

Third: controlling cravings. I've been trying to recognize my cravings earlier, and doing my best to choose healthier options when I can. But with that being said, I also recognize the importance for BALANCE and moderation in all things. My cravings have been all over the map, but always really strong.  I journaled my pregnancy closely with Ellie, and it's been to fun to compare the journal entries week by week to see the differences/similarities between the two. The funny part is they've been almost identical so far, which points my guesses straight toward having another girl.

Although my craving is watermelon this week, want to know my cravings pretty much all of first trimester!?

Soda (yes, weird... I hadn't had a drink of soda in almost two years until this pregnancy.)

Salty chips. Don't get me started with Fritos! Yummmmm.

Pickles

Corndogs and fried food (weird, again.)

Anything salty

Nothing sweet (chocolate and ice cream have been out of the picture for 13 weeks)

I laugh because I am telling you, this is EXACTLY what happened when I was pregnant with Ellie. Same exact cravings. Why is it always bad food during first trimester? The funniest part is that when I start to feel normal again (which has happened this past week), my cravings change entirely... salads, watermelon, fresh fruit, chocolate, sweets... those things come back full force. Weird. But as I've been able to recognize these cravings early and label them as just "cravings," I've been able to wait it out just long enough to see if they'll go away... and most of them eventually do. If the craving keeps coming back and back, you bet I've indulged from time to time. And that's totally okay! Like I've always said... it's okay to enjoy our cravings from time to time, we just have to find that balance. So yes I've had the occasional soda and salty chips, but I've balanced them out with mostly healthy food in between. I have to say I'm pretty proud I've resisted a corn dog so far though, and that's been hard haha. We'll see how long I can keep that up. 

Okay enough about my tips and cravings... here are the fun questions to answer:

Biggest craving right now:

watermelon

Baby is the size of:

a lemon

Weight gain:

1 pound and growing

Funny pregnancy moments:

Leaving my wallet in a store (and thankfully having it returned two days later), losing my keys more times than I am willing to admit, leaving my keys in the fridge, forgetting where my sunglasses were and searching the house only to find them on my head 10 minutes later... I'm telling you, pregnancy brain is a REAL THING.

How I'm feeling now:

This week I'm finally feeling my energy come back. I'm feeling more like myself, waking up with no nausea (praise the heavens!), and cravings are switching. My appetite has skyrocketed in this past week, and I'm embracing that fully. My bump is enough I can't hide it quite as good anymore. It's the "muffin top" look I'm just learning to embrace each day haha. I'm still waking up in the night to have to pee, but not as consistently as the weeks previous. Hoping that changes soon! I'm so happy and thankful to be feeling better.

Predictions:

Girl. All the way. It's been an almost identical pregnancy to Ellie's (from what I journaled), so that will be interesting to see.

Yay for second trimester!