Friday, March 28, 2008

The Cat's Out of the Bag

We were going to wait until the first trimester was over, but we couldn't. I'm sure Paul could have, but he's not the one with the kid growing in his belly. I've wanted to tell people as soon as I peed on the stick.

And now the family knows, and my friends, and most of the hiker community... and in another week I'll be back at work and they'll know. And hopefully my assistant teachers will forgive me for all the times I somehow got out of changing the poopy diaper because it was going to make me barf. Hopefully...

This morning, Paul & I talked about the Belchigator's personality. We both agreed that the Belchigator will be a pain in the ass smart ass like us (whether it's genetic or learned, we'll probably never know). I said "smart, caring, & considerate." Paul said "evil."

"Why evil?" I asked.

"Because it has to be that way," he replied. He's very eastern in his thoughts sometimes. There has to be balance.

"Well-behaved," I suggested. And then uproarious laughter from my husband. For two minutes. He lauged so hard, he cried.

"Well, maybe for everyone else, but not for us," he managed to squeeze out between guffaws.

"I can live with that."

What I can't live with is the idea that the Belchigator might have Paul's toes. That would be a travesty.

Thursday, March 6, 2008

First Prenatal Visit

My first prenatal visit was Monday. It went well. We had the official pee test, so Paul was finally able to accept the fact that he really did knock me up.

The midwife is really cool. She is glad that I'm in yoga class, and will let me ride my bike until I begin to lose my center of balance as the belly grows. That's a bit of a bummer, since that will happen just as it's warm, dry and light enough to ride every day. While that is sad news, she did tell me that I can still backpack the Oregon Coast Trail in June. She gave me a few suggestions for gear and nutrition and said we can discuss that more as the hike approaches. I doubt that I will hike the entire trail, as I'll be 4 months pregnant, but I think I'll be able to manage a rather large chunk. If I can talk Teatree into joining me, it really won't matter how far we travel, because we'll be having a hell of a time.

Tuesday is my first OB exam. It's also the day we discuss genetic history and testing. Paul and I have already decided that we're going to test for everything. Since I'll be 35 when the baby is born, I can have an amnio done and get it paid for by insurance. I guess that's one positive for having a "geriatric pregnancy." Of course I'm terrified of the potential results. I don't know how I would handle bad news. I think I would handle it better before the birth than after, but still... I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that everything is developing and will continue to develop perfectly.

I've finally begun the nausia phase. I don't like it. I haven't barfed yet, but sometimes I think that if I could barf, I would feel much better. I've gagged a few times: brushing my teeth, eating, trying to choke down the prenatals... but no actual vomiting. I want this phase to finish quickly. I want it to finish right now. Nope, still have nausia. Dammit.

On the plus side, I've not yet experienced constipation. I think that I'll be one hell of a good time when that hits.