What do you mean I have to eat in "moderation"?!

When I was pregnant I loved what I would call "the 4 S's": salt, soda, soup and sandwiches. I have no idea why I retained so much water and gained 70 pounds...I mean, you can't get any healthier than that RIGHT? 

My eating was out of control so trust me when I say, I don't judge any pregnant (or non pregnant for that matter...) women that wants to eat whatever the heck they WANT. But there are a few things that you should steer clear of for not only your health, but for baby as well! Parents.com has a great list but I'll summarize for you:

1. It is it raw...you probably shouldn't eat it. I'm going to go into the nasty details of why bloody meat and runny eggs are not so great for you but if you are pregnant, you might want to skip ordering a rare steak. This includes any uncooked sushi too! And think twice before you eat an entire batch of raw cookie dough...being pregnant and trying to bake cookies SUCKS!

2. Unpasteurized juice, milk and soft cheeses. Most of the stuff from your local grocery is going to be ok...but steer clear of anything (even apple cider) from a farmer's market. 

3. Alcohol...do I really need to explain this?

4. Your exhausted and could probably guzzle 3 gallons of coffee right? Scratch that because you can only have 2 or 3 cups MAX a day or 300 milligrams of any caffeine to be more specific. This includes chocolate, soda, coffee, tea...etc. I know, I know...I'm ruining people's lives right now.

5. Deli meats, hot dogs, bacon and sausage should also be limited. Did I mention I loved salt and sandwiches right? So I might have sneaked in a piece of bacon and some turkey meat...oops!

The items in that list might look like a piece of cake to avoid while you are still in your first trimester...but just wait until you are in your second and third trimesters, or as I like to call them the "I want to eat everything in site ESPECIALLY if it is unhealthy or on the list" trimesters. 

http://bumptobabyblog.blogspot.com/2010/12/week-30-testing-holiday-prep-and-paint.htm

It is okay to occasionally indulge in your favorite lunch meat or cup of coffee, but as with all things while you are pregnant, moderation is KEY. As you can see from my before/after pictures, you will swell up faster than a hot air balloon on Memorial Day if you don't watch yourself. If you feel the undeniable craving to eat excessive amounts of food/drinks on this list...just grab a gallon of ice cream and go to town, I didn't see THAT on any "do not eat" list. ;o)

Dealing with a Miscarriage - Ash B's story

I found out I was pregnant with our second child in November of this past year. We were so nervous but VERY excited. We decided to wait until we were home for Christmas and tell our close family, then wait until we hit the 12 week mark to tell the world. We shopped for the typical "I'm going to be a Big Sister!" shirt for Layla and couldn't WAIT to see everyone's reactions. 

We left to go home for Christmas on December 21st. The next morning I woke up at my in-laws house with spotting that progressively got worse throughout the day. That evening we found ourselves in the ER with pretty severe bleeding and I just knew that our visit home was going to be much different than planned. There is no good time to have a miscarriage, but 3 days before Christmas and 7 days before your daughter's 2nd birthday party (and right after you've told a select group of family members) seems to be pretty horrible timing.

We had to wait 4 days (gee, Merry Christmas to us!) before the miscarriage was confirmed. I was 7 hours away from my OB-GYN back in MI and hadn't had any baseline blood work done. The entire time the ER doctor was saying that "50% of women have bleeding like this and still end up having a perfectly normal pregnancy". I can't explain it but I just knew that I wasn't pregnant anymore. It is amazing how you can go to sleep one night, waking up every 10 minutes to pee and with a headache then the next morning not feel pregnant anymore.

Now it is time for a self confession- As some of you know, I tend to be very vocal about things that happen in my life. I mean, I have 3 blogs and a FaceBook account that is never lacking in updates so when I sneeze…people know about it. But there are VERY few people that know that I've lost a pregnancy. It just isn't something I felt like talking about, I went through every emotion in the book from "I guess it just wasn't meant to be" to "Something is wrong with me, I think I have cancer" to "My life is over and I'll NEVER. STOP. CRYING.".

After the holidays, we got back into our daily routine. I started opening up a bit to some friends we have met here in Michigan. The more women I have talked to about losing this pregnancy, the more women I find that have lost a pregnancy themselves. Could it be? Am I not the only one in the world that has gone through this?! I can't tell you how much it meant to Bryan and I to have the support of friends that had been through this.

I found the greatest comfort in knowing that there was a reason this happened to me. I had been horribly sick with the flu a few days before I got a positive pregnancy test and then I got a horrible sinus infection. At first, I blamed myself for getting sick and thought that was the reason I miscarried. Looking back that is so silly…This miscarriage wasn't a result of something I did wrong, there was a physical reason why those tiny cells didn't continue to grow and my body terminated the pregnancy. I found this article from BabyCenter to be very informative when it came to realizing the causes of a miscarriage (although in my case, we'll probably never know exactly what happened).

Another great resource I stumbled upon is PregnancyLoss.info. This site answered so many questions for me from physical to mental healing. They also have a great section on medical terminology. This was a tremendous help since I didn't have access to my prenatal doctor while home for the holiday and had to deal with an ER doctor that didn't really have time to answer my hundreds of questions.

I was fortunate enough to not have to have any follow up procedures other than blood work. For some women, a D&C is needed. I found an article on The American Pregnancy Association's website while doing research right after my miscarriage. It helped me relax about the possibility of needing the follow up procedure and helped me realize that it is a fairly common/routine part of a miscarriage. 

Dealing with a miscarriage isn't easy; women and their families will deal with it in their own different ways. For me, knowing that I wasn't alone and doing lots of research was enough to help me get through it. I will say that this miscarriage made me realize creating a new life is, truly, a miracle. I'll never read a pregnancy test in the same way I was able to read it with Layla and how I read it this last pregnancy.  That extra pink stripe is an indicator, not a guarantee.

Now that I've just poured my heart out in a blog I never intended to write (but am glad I did!), I'll pick up a Kleenex and feel sorry for myself one more time…and consider myself mentally "recovered" from this. Ha! This isn't something that goes away overnight but it does get better and better everyday. Chin up, chocolate out, take a bite and onward we go! 

We love a prego with a sense of humor!

Party ROCK! 
It's almost the weekend baby...right?! What better way to celebrate Tuesday than from a newly released LMFAO video. 
Okay...so it's a parody but this video is hilarious and the lyrics are even better.

 

I Thought I Only Puked When I Had a Hangover???

Prior to being pregnant...praying to the Porcelain God was a right of passage for partying too hard the night before.  Sure, the puking was no fun...but the night before was awesome so we could suck it up for a few hours the next day.  

Now that you are pregnant, the puking is a reward for getting knocked up...except it lasts for 13 weeks...err 2,184 hours.  

(Note to self:  don't get drunk AND knocked up!) 

I digress....

Fighting first trimester nausea??  

Feel like you could vomit at any given moment?

Does brushing your teeth make you gag continuously?

Grocery shopping for meat make you feel like you are in a slaughter house?

The texture or taste of something make you want to hurl? 

Yes, my friends, this is called morning sickness.

But why in the heck do they call this MORNING sickness when it lasts ALL. FREAKING. DAY. LONG!?!?

I was jealous of my friends who got to puke all day.  I wanted to.  Instead I felt so nauseous all day that I was almost willing to put my finger down my throat to make myself puke....but I didn't 

(because that is not cool in my book).  

And I swear once 13 weeks hit a light switch went on and SURPRISE! I was not sick anymore.  (I am SO sorry if you were not one of those lucky ones.  I have a few friends that were sick their whole pregnancy.)

So....Lets discuss how to fight this morning sickness.

Saltine Crackers.   (During your first few months of pregnancy, I give you permission to count this food in one of your major food groups!) 

Sprite.  (Bottoms Up...Hey, if you can't chug a beer isn't a Sprite the next best thing?!?) 

Pop those little (huuuuge) prenatal vitamins during a different time of day...and take with food!

Eat small meals throughout the day.  (maybe this is where is messed up...I ate a lot of large meals throughout the day)

Eat something when you first wake up.  (Leave something by the side of your bed to eat before you get up.)

Avoid being in warm areas. (so if you live in Florida...move to Alaska)

Try to eat bland meals.  (Hello Saltine Crackers...we meet again.)

Avoid Cooking.  (Hey...no problem here...Martha Stewart and I have never been best friends.) 

Ginger tea or tablets. 

Get fresh air when possible.

Get rest throughout the day (sleep wherever you can....we won't judge.) 

Drink lots of water and juice.

Go to bed early.  (You will need the rest to repeat the next day.)

(Source: http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health_advice/facts/pregnantnausea.htm)

Hopefully by the time you have tried all of these remedies your first trimester will be over and you can move on to the next part of your life...stomach turning not included.  

In the mean time....Happy Puking!  

Telling Your Family and Friends

Telling Your Family and Friends

So now that you are pregnant, I am sure you are dying to tell everyone.

Wait a few minutes though, lets discuss a few details.

Before you update your Facebook status and Tweet the big news, stop and think it through.  I, personally, would try my best (I don't keep secrets well) to wait until you have had your first ultra-sound or are through your first trimester.  

Telling your baby daddy...

In many situations, he is probably sitting outside of the bathroom rocking back and forth.  But, in the case that he is not...wouldn't it be fun to do something really special?!?    

Here are some ideas...

Put a bun (bread bun) in the oven.  Ask daddy-to-be to get the dinner out of the oven....I wonder how long it will take him to catch on?!?

 

http://pinterest.com/pin/30117891227548186/

Head out to dinner and park in the "expected moms" parking spot.  whoa...he will be shocked!

 

 Give daddy-to-be an invitation that says, "You are invited to the birth of your first child on expected due date".  (love this one!) 

Get a shoe box and put baby shoes inside.  Somehow, have husband open the shoe box to see the surprise!!

Telling the grandparent to-be, friends, and other family members...

With baby number one, I just picked up the phone and told them the big news--I couldn't wait--but how fun would these ideas be?!?

"I do not have a face to see, or put inside a frame. I do not have soft cheeks to kiss, I don't yet have a name. You can't yet hold my tiny hands, nor whisper in my ear. It's still too soon to sing a song, or cuddle me so near. But all will change come ________, That's when the say I'm due. I'm you new grandson or granddaughter, I can't wait till I meet you. All I ask between now and then, is your patience while I grow. I promise I'll be worth the wait, because of all the love we'll know. So what I have to give you now, is a wish to you from me cannot wait to be a part of this wonderful family."  resource unknown

http://mrsvolnoff.blogspot.com/2011/09/im-baaack-huge-announcement.html

 http://www.lilsugar.com/Creative-Ways-Announce-Pregnancy-18901346

http://www.lilsugar.com/Creative-Ways-Announce-Pregnancy-18901346?slide=4

 http://www.lilsugar.com/Creative-Ways-Announce-Pregnancy-18901346?slide=3

http://www.lilsugar.com/Creative-Ways-Announce-Pregnancy-18901346?slide=5

 

http://pinterest.com/pin/219128338088760140/

And just for giggles...

http://pinterest.com/pin/79094537175224565/

Did you do something special to share your big news??