14 weeks and Doula

I turned 14 weeks yesterday. I feel like my belly is sticking out more and I feel the urge to pee ALL.THE.TIME. It's insane! If I lay down, sit down, or stand I feel like I need to pee. I haven't gained any weight and I feel like my appetite has changed a lot since becoming pregnant. With my other two pregnancies I could eat and eat. This time around, if I get really hungry and eat a big meal, I am usually done for the day. I will usually skip dinner or have something small like a bowl of cereal or some snacks. My urge to eat has dramatically decreased and I get almost a sick feeling if I eat too much. Maybe this is why I have been sticking to mostly fruit and veggies. They satisfy me without making me feel overly full.

My next doctor's appointment is in 2 weeks and will be when I start my shots. We also scheduled our ultrasound appointment for March 28th.  I am so jealous because my sister finds out this Friday what she is having.

Hubby and I are meeting with our potential Doula today at 1pm. I am excited to meet with her and talk about our birthing plan. I hope that we connect with her, I think it will help put my mind at ease a bit about this birth.  Bennett's birth was a little traumatic for me and I really don't want to repeat that. I will update how it goes today.

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 13 Weeks

 

Size of baby: about 3 inches long. About the size of a medium shrimp and weighs about an ounce.

 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: + or - 1lb

Maternity Clothes: mostly jeans and pants although I discovered the other day that one pair of jeans I can still button comfortably.

Gender: We find out on 3/28/11

Movement: I think that I felt something at the end of last week. But only went I sit leaning forward and it feels more like them flipping around than a kick or flutter. I've felt this before with the other boys, so I assume it is the baby.

Sleep: so, so

What I miss: wine and feeling normal

 

Cravings: fresh things and veggies. This week I have mostly ate vegetarian, not on purpose, that is just what sounds the most appetizing.

Symptoms: I don't know if I am carrying differently this time, but I feel like the baby is so low. It hurts when I lean forward while sitting and a lot of my pants have been bothering me. I don't remember being this uncomfortable this early on with the boys. 

Best Moment this week:Knowing it's my last week before I start the 2nd trimester!

Peytonn ran over just as Hubby took the pic. He was still in his pj's!

Craigslist find

I've been searching Craigslist almost non-stop just looking for possible items we may need for the baby. For some reason, I got rid of a lot of things after Bennett outgrew them. I think the only things I kept were the Jumperoo and the Exersaucer. 

Anyways, I was searching the other day and found a swing that I was interested in. Its the Fisher Price Little Lamb cradle and swing. It's one of those swings that swings either front to back or side to side.  I borrowed one from a friend with Bennett and he loved the side to side motion.  We borrowed my SIL's swing with Peytonn but it was a front to back swing and he hated it.

I went to pick it up Saturday in Indy and it's practically brand new. I paid $55 for it and the lady said she bought it in July and her son quickly outgrew it.  (he was a cute little chunky baby!) She even gave me her original receipt.  I can't even find a stain, discoloration, or anything on the swing. It really looks brand new. I really lucked out!!

Bennett has been fascinated with the swing.  He has gotten into it a couple of times.  I told him that it's for babies and he is a big boy.  He went and got his "baby" and put that in the swing.  He will then swing the baby back and forth in the swing.

I can't believe I found such a great deal for this swing and what great condition it's in.

Update

My doc appointment went well on Monday. Their scale says I've gained 3lbs, but I weigh myself every morning before my shower and I haven't gained any weight.  Actually this week I lost a pound.  The doc was able to find the heartbeat using the doppler and she said it was between 150-160 beats per minute.  She said everything looked great and at my next appointment she would write me the prescription for the progesterone shots.  (ugh!)

My sister went a long with me to my appointment and then we went out for lunch to have sushi. It was sooooo good! Then we went to Babies R Us and looked around and tried out the strollers and carseats.  I like the Graco infant seat the best because its lighter and has the canopy that rotates 180 degrees to really keep the sun out of the baby's eyes.  But we  both hated the Graco stroller. It felt really cheap and we couldn't figure out how to even sit the seat upright in the stroller.  We then looked at the Chicco travel system.  We had a Chicco infant seat with Bennett and I really liked it except the sunshade sucks! I liked the stroller, it seems very well made, but bulky and a bit heavy.  Then I saw the Baby Jogger Mini City stroller. I loved how light it was and very easy to maneuver.  I showed it to hubby when I got home, but he wasn't a fan. 

It looks like we will probably be getting the Chicco travel system in Fuego.

Although, we scheduled our ultrasound for March 28th and I might wait until then to buy it because, if by miracle we are having a girl, I really like the colors of this set too:

Both sets are on sale right now at Albeebaby.com and I would really like to get them on sale, but I also kind of want to wait until the ultrasound. Decisions, decisions!

12 weeks

Holy cow, I can't believe I am 12 weeks today! It seems like it went by pretty fast, although some days it felt so slow. I have my second doctor's appointment tomorrow. Then comes the dreaded 16 week appointment. Why am I dreading it? Because 16 weeks is when I will start my weekly progesterone shots. I'm not really looking forward to that 3 inches needle and jabbing my hip every week.

I am excited to see if we are able to hear the baby's heartbeat using the doppler this time. My uterus is tilted so it takes some time for it to grow above my pelvic bone. I hope she can find it. Thankfully I haven't gained any weight yet, but I do feel like I have grown the most this week in my belly. I am finding that the waist band on a lot of my yoga pants isn't very comfortable right now. That leaves me with a total of about 3-4 pairs of pants that I can wear, thats including jeans. I've resorted to stealing my husbands sweat pants for around the house. 

I thought it would be fun to post a comparison pic of each pregnancy around 12 weeks, or 3 months along. Just to see the difference in each pregnancy.

12 weeks Baby #3

 12 weeks Baby #1

I can't seem to find one at 12 weeks pregnant with Bennett. The closest I can find is 16 weeks.  I love how I was able to wear regular jeans at 12 weeks with Baby #1. I almost made it 8 weeks with baby #3 before breaking out the maternity pants. Oh well, I'd rather be comfortable.

update on Doula

This week I got in contact via email with two doula's in our area. There is one that I really like so far, her name is Tammy. Tammy is willing to drive the hour to the hospital where I deliver. She seems very nice through her emails and she has great reviews from other mom's that have used her.

I talked with Hubby more on the subject. I was sure he was going to veto  the idea as soon as he found out how much it was going to cost. Surprisingly, he didn't. I talked with him a little about what role a doula plays during a birth and why I wanted to use one. He is on board with the idea.

We plan to meet Tammy in person to interview her and decide if we want to hire her as our doula. I am very excited about this. I can't wait to meet her. I also have a doctor's appointment on Monday and I plan to discuss this with my doctor. My doctor is nothing short of awesome, so I'm sure she won't have a problem with it.  My sister works at the hospital that I deliver at and she said women have doula's there all the time during their births. This makes me feel good that our doula would be accepted and welcomed.

I am really excited about this. Maybe that's weird, but its a big sense of relief for me if we end up hiring Tammy. I think just to know that I have that support is a big reassurance for me.

Doula

I have always wanted to have a medication free childbirth. Each time I get to about 5-7cm and ask for the epidural. This time I would really, really like to experience natural child birth. I have been tossing around the idea of hiring a doula for this birth. My sister has been my labor coach in the past, but this time around I don't want to take any chances of her not being there.  Then I will be left in a room, alone, with my husband. EEEK!

I am a member of our local La Leche League group and have asked around for opinions and experiences.  A lot of women suggest getting one. My only concern is the cost. It is can anywhere from $200-$600. The fee includes 2 prenatal visits, labor and delivery, and a post partum visit.

I also have the problem of: we live in one area and I deliver at a hospital an hour away. I would need to either find one willing to drive the hour, or one in the area of the hospital.

I have contacted 2 doula's that came recommended so we will see what comes of that. I just wish I knew of someone personally who has used one and their experience.