It's a Girl!!!!

Today was our long awaited "check all the parts" ultrasound.  I had not wanted to know the sex of the baby but I gave in to Chris and once it was decided we were both pretty excited.  I have to admit i have been very nervous about this appointment because it has been seven weeks since we checked on our little one, i have not really felt her move, and i am paranoid.  When we first started looking, she was not moving at all and i could not see the heart yet so i was getting a little stressed out. a minute later i was so distracted i did not realize that we were peering at the screen between her two little legs at what was clearly girl parts.  Shortly there after she started moving and her heart was beating away; my heart slowed down enough to realize we are having a baby girl.  I guess it really is true that as long as its healthy, it does not matter what sex it is.  Chris and i enjoyed the rest of the ultrasound marveling at her amazing perfectly forming organs and cute little arms and legs.

Baby Girl Elliott Stats:
21 wks 2 days
all parts confirmed to be intact and appropriate (except her feet which were kicking too much to check)
43 percentile in size and weight
has made momma gain 11 lbs
placenta is anterior (making it hard to feel her moving)

No names have been picked yet, so don't ask :)   

We look forward to the coming months of feeling kicks, belly growing, and making our nursery.  more updates to come!

Spring is Here!!

This Tuesday i was post call after a pretty chill night at St. Mary's.  After a morning nap on the couch, i noticed what a beautiful day is was outside.  The leaves have all grown in, Chris has been working diligently in yard making out grass thick and green, and the temperature was in the high seventies.  Chris and I decided to take the dogs for a walk.  We did two miles to the park and let the dogs play/chase the ducks.  Zoey had never done this before and jumped right in the water.  Ichiban has always been a little hesitant with water and preferred to walk on the rocks. 

On the way home we decided it would be a great day to break in our new BBQ grill.  We visited this cute little Polish market on the corner of our street and bought homemade bratwurst and potato salad.  I set up lawn chairs in the backyard and we had a delicious meal to end a beautiful day.

And of course, our 20 week belly pic

Yesterday Chris and I had a date day to hang out before he heads back to AZ for the annual canoe trip.  We saw Iron Man II and ate a fantastic BBQ dinner at Famous Dave's.  Overall it was a pretty good week. 

Let's Catch Up

So i know it has been a long time but for the sake of documenting my pregnancy somehow and letting my loved ones be a part of it from far away, here we go again.....

Recap of my last five months

January: very tired, kinda nauseated, terrible heartburn, and a little in denial.  Finally bought a pregnancy test in the pharmacy at work and took it when i woke up from my post call nap. It had that positive sign before i stopped peeing.  My poor husband found out we were having a baby (total surprise as i had failed to mention i was two weeks late) while he was chopping hot peppers for chili.  I promise i will tell him in a nicer way if there is a next time.

February:  Still very tired, even more nauseated, living on ginger ale.  If you want to know how crappy i felt, i was giving up surgery cases to other residents and hoping my attendings would not turn cases over to me. (and may have snuck naps at work). The worst part was hiding it.  I felt very strongly about not telling anyone before my 12 week mark but masking how bad i felt was pretty tough.

March: I started March exhausted but starting to feel better.  I was on my Plastic Surgery rotation which thankfully meant i was working an avg of 60 instead of 80 hours a week and had time for naps.  While i was not a big fan of plastic surgery,  by the end of the month that magic 12 weeks had passed i was physically improved. I was even able to stop going to bed at 8pm and go back to my 10pm bedtime.  We also had our first doctors appointment and had that special moment when we heart our baby's heartbeat and saw it for the first time.

April: This last month has been great compared to the previous three.  Even though i have pelvic pain, a growing belly, and heartburn is back, i am fully functional again.  I had a great month on Surgical Oncology, successfully took 30 hour call again, and even spent a significant amount of time studying (which i had given up for sleep in the previous months). 

So now i am going into May, almost five months pregnant.  I have noticeable but not overwhelming belly which my sweet husband rubs and kisses regularly.  I am waiting for the day i feel my little one move.  We have an ultrasound in a couple of weeks to check out the organs and see how it is developing.  So here's to being halfway.  Our quiet boring life is becoming more interesting and soon to be noisier.  Now if only Zoey would stop trying to stand on my belly...