Confirmation of Pregnancy

I had my confirmation of pregnancy this morning! It's more official because of the whole insurance thing (they pay for that) and I got a due date. Since I measured small 3 weeks ago, they wanted me to be a little further along before confirming things. I should've been, according to the original appointment, 9 weeks 5 days. Instead, I measured 10 weeks exactly :) We received a due date of March 20, so let the countdown begin!

I told Nelson before the appointment to take a video, because I knew the baby would be bigger and more than just a blob. As soon as the baby came up on the screen, he jumped up out of his chair in amazement - I love it <3 In the video (below), you can actually hear him say at the beginning, "Holy smokes." Our little bean was active and kicking!

And as just a side story to remember: I've been feeling really good. Almost too good.... It just had me worried because I'd started to feel kind of nauseous, never sick, but just "ew, vegetables!" So when I felt good, it just had me wondering, "Why?" Obviously my first thought was that I had miscarried, so it only made me worry more. Over the weekend, I realized I had one last pregnancy test, so I was going to take it to give me peace of mind. Well, the "pregnant" line wasn't nearly as dark as it had been before, so I assumed that meant I had lost the baby and the hCG hormone was going down. As I showered for church, I wanted to cry, until Nelson came in with a great Google find. Evidently, once the placenta has started to take over, your body naturally stops producing the hCG hormone, so it goes down. I ended up telling this to my doctor, and he told me to always call if I'm ever worried, no matter what. And the nurse said we need to stay off the internet ;)

8 Weeks Down, 32 To Go!

Welp, I'm officially 8 weeks. I feel like it's taken a while to get here, so makes me wonder just how far away March really is. Although I'm sure I'll feel the exact opposite once the time actually comes!

Mom's Take At Week 8: Vegetables are disgusting. Pizza sounds amazing. I really didn't start to feel this way until recently, and I've found eating smaller amounts throughout the day has helped. I haven't been physically sick yet (*knock on wood!*), but have noticed I wake up feeling fine and slowly feel more nauseous as the day goes on. We've told family and close friends, but it's still kind of scary since we're not officially out of the woods, so I'm anxious for our next appointment (I should be 9 weeks 5 days). I've also found I'm telling random people who have nothing to do with knowing: the Blue Apron support girl, the food truck guy, etc. I also made the decision to not attend the huge conference I'm the sole planner for in Miami. With homegrown Zika there, it's just not worth the risk. Therefore, I've told my boss and the leadership team at work, and will have to announce to the broader group (internal attendees) at the end of the month. It will be weird not going, and I'm so bummed to be missing my favorite part of my job. But keeping Bean safe is my #1 priority, so I'll just live vicariously through my colleagues going.

Dad's Take At Week 8: (I never got anything from Nelson. Shocking. But I think it's safe to say he's mostly stressed out and nervous. #typicalnelson)

I figured I'd take the chance, too, to quickly recap how we told our families:

• I wanted to tell my mom and Lindsay when she and Ben came back through Austin to pick the boys up after their weekend in San Antonio. I had this great plan that Jackson could do it. Never put your trust in a 3 year old. At one point, he started to go to his room, so I followed him and, in the hall, told him, "Jackson, tell mommy and Mimi, 'I'm gonna have a cousin!'" Right then, Ben walked out of the bathroom and he said, "Daddy! I'm gonna have a cousin!" and then ran into his room. Flustered, I just walked off. I'm not sure if Ben got it, but if he did, he didn't say anything. A little bit later, we were all in the living room. My mom and Lindsay were talking (too loudly) and so I said the same thing to Jackson. He finally said it, but too quietly for them to hear. Ben was sitting right there, so of course he heard. He looked at him and mouthed, "Really?" I nodded, so he said, "Mommy, Jackson has something to tell you." All eyes were on Jackson... and he goes, "Mommy, I have a cousin." *face palm* Lindsay asked, "You do? Who?" to which he replied, "Ummm... Nelson." I tried getting him to correct it by stressing the "gonna," but he was too shy at this point. So finally I explained what he was supposed to say. And you can just assume squeals, happiness, jumping, and hugs ensued.
• We went to Houston for Nelson's birthday weekend. Per usual, he gave his mom and dad a card (for his birthday, yes) thanking them for all they have done and do for him. He was anxious to give it to them, so did it once we got there Friday evening before heading out to dinner. The last part talked about him as a dad and them with their grandchild - which went over their heads. They hugged him and said they loved him, so he had to tell them to re-read the last part. They did, but were still confused. He gave them the sonogram picture and they just stared at it. "What is this?" they asked. Again, *face palm*. Finally his mom realized what it was and, again, squeals, happiness, jumping, and hugs (and some tears, I think) ensued.
• Saturday morning, Nelson and I had breakfast with my dad and Patty. When we sat down, he asked how I'd been. I said, "Work is pretty busy. I have that big conference I plan next month. It's in Miami. Zika is in Miami - " and then the waitress came up and asked for our drink order. Lady, can't you tell I'm about to announce I'm pregnant?! After we ordered out drinks, she asked if we wanted to go ahead and order our breakfast. OMG my heart is about to beat out of my chest. When she finally walked away, my dad asked, "Do you have something to tell me?" I said, "I can't go to Miami," to which he replied, "Because you're pregnant?" He said he clued in when I mentioned Zika because why else would I bring it up? Clever guy.
• When we got back to Nelson's parents' house, his sister was there since she came home for his birthday lunch. We walked in the house and I said, "Hi gūgu!" That's what our kids will call her; it means "my dad's older sister." She immediately started laughing and was like, "Why are you calling me that?" I said, "That's what you are, right? We should get used to it." She just kept laughing and asking, "What?!" So, unlike her parents, she was very quick to catch on :)

Seeing is Believing

We had our first appointment today! I was supposed to be 8 weeks, but Bean (the nickname until he / she has a real name) measured 6 weeks 5 days. So exact!? Therefore, Dr. Cowan wants me to come back in a couple weeks when I'm officially between 8-10 weeks before assigning a due date, but it will definitely be mid- to late-March 2017! It was fun looking at our little blob on the sonogram, and the Dr. was happy we were able to see the heart beat. It was just a little flicker in the middle of the blob, but so cool nonetheless.

The Most Relaxing Weekend in the World

There is really one picture that sums up this past weekend:

It was Trevor's 40th birthday, so he and Jenni rented a gorgeous house in Westlake and some of his friends from Wisconsin came down for the weekend. We went over on Saturday with Allison and Bino to hang out and celebrate. The afternoon basically consisted of the picture above, plus a few attempts by Nelson to do front flips and cannon balls.

I did have brunch with Marcie in the morning at Jacoby's, and it was really good catching up with her! I'm glad I've staying in touch with my Accruent friends :)