First Doc Appointment!

So, Wednesday was my first time at the Castleton OB/GYN center. I really liked it there, and I didn't have to wait at all, which was a change from any other doctor's office I have been to. Anyway, I didn't meet my doctor, but I met the nurse practitioner, and she basically took every ounce of my personal and family history. She also gave me a bag full of way-too-much-information about everything from vitamins to nutrition to exercise to prenatal testing to risks and what I can and cannot do for the next 9 months. She even started talking about delivery and all this stuff...I was a tad overwhelmed!

But, what she also told me was that I am 7 weeks along and due around April 13th. Tax Season baby?! She also informed me that I need to exercise for 30 minutes 6 times a week. Ahhhh! She also said that due to my height, I'm only allowed to gain 20 lbs with this pregnancy. This should be fun :-)

My next appointment is September 11th at 3:30, and we will meet the doctor for the first time and get a physical. I have to have blood drawn before then :-( 

This is in totally unrelated and non-baby news, but I miss Ball State so much tonight. Tonight is the first home game, and I just miss that college atmosphere. I feel like I could cry about it! I guess those are the hormones talking...

Doctor tomorrow!

Finally, I am going to see the doc tomorrow to answer a lot of questions and confirm that the raisin is truly there and growing. I am very excited about this, but nervous at the same time!

In the meantime, I have experienced an array of symptoms, none of which unbearable, but most of them uncomfortable. Also, staying away from Diet Coke has been grueling, especially since I am so tired when I get home. Luke keeps reminding me that I am not the only one who I have to care about now, and that just puts it all in perspective. 

In other news, my clothes fit but don't look nice. My belly is kind of poking out, probably 95% due to bloating, and 5% due to the raisin. I am not going to be able to keep this a secret for much longer....September 13th can't get her quick enough!

Mission: Bachelorette Party; Status: Accomplished

I survived the bachelorette party without anyone questioning what was in my cup. I had cranberry + orange juice minus the vodka that everyone else had. No one even noticed! Yay! I was worried I would be forced into telling the group before I was ready, but thankfuly, the secret is still safe.

We ended up not even going to the bars, which was nice. Everyone got very tired and just wanted to stay at the house. I hope Nikki wasn't disappointed, but she said that the party was exactly "her kind of party." 

I had a crazy craving for pizza rolls at 12:30 a.m., so Hopper and I went to Meijer to get some. They were awesome! :-) 

However, my stomach (or the raisin), hates me today....and I feel sooooo horrible. I have a hot pad on my stomach and I am moving very slowly. School is tomorrow and of course I have TONS of grading to do... :-(

BUSTED!

Abel & Elizabeth know about the baby. They came over tonight, and Luke didn't hide the pregnancy book like I had asked him to, so Elizabeth found it in the bathroom. I called her after they left and confessed. I have sworn her to secrecy for the next few weeks until we tell our families on September 13th. I have to say, it feels good to know that someone else knows. It felt weird to talk about it with someone aside from Luke.

We went to Babies R Us tonight and found a Notre Dame onesie that we are going to give my parents on the 13th with a note saying, "You might want to re-gift this to someone special next football season." I am sure they will get the point that they are having a grandchild. 

I am sooooo ready for Wednesday! The first doc appointment! I am praying it goes well!

The raisin has a bed!

Luke picked up the crib we got from Craigslist tonight! It was a steal at $100 for the crib and mattress together. It is a really nice light wood color and looks brand new! I am very excited and can't wait to tell people so we can assemble the crib and get a nursery decorated! :-) 

Today was the first morning when I thought for sure that my nausea would manifest itself into vomit. But, I prevailed and no puking occurred. 

Also, I have an appointment on August 27, next Wednesday, with an OB to make this thing official! 

Mmmm....donut holes!

I stopped by Meijer to get some bread to go with dinner. I was in the bakery section. This was a bad idea. I saw donut holes. They looked so good. I had to have them. So, I carried them around the store while I got a couple of other goods. I contemplated opening the box and eating one or two while still in Meijer. I opted not to. 

I blamed the purchase of donut holes on a pregnancy craving. I don't really know if it is too early to have such cravings, but this is a great excuse! :-) 

I am soooo ready to get to a doc, make sure all is well, and then announce this bombshell! 

Also, we are picking up a crib/mattress via Craigslist on Wednesday. SURREAL!

Almost spilled the beans...

We are getting so anxious to tell people the good news. We hung out with Abe & E today and just wanted to go ahead and spill the beans. However, we didn't, figuring it was probably bad luck to say anything before an official report from the doc. So, we are waiting until hopefully no later than Sept. 13...which is a family cookout we are arranging for the event. We hope both sides of family can make it so we can reveal in style. 

I read in the book that I can gain 30 lbs during the pregnancy. Now that just can't happen! I also read about labor and all the horrible things that happen leading up to it...current biggest fear is pooping on the table. What an unpleasant thought....

We discussed today if we should make plans to deliver in Muncie or in Indy, given that I spend just about equal time in both cities. We decided on Indy, probably Community North off 82nd street...hopefully if I go into labor in Muncie, someone can drive me to Indy. We are thinking of a list of "reliable" people we can hire for the job... :-)

Dodging bullets...

Last night, we went out to the bars to celebrate a friend's birthday. You can imagine my fear when I am handed a beer immediately upon entering their apartment. I had to politely decline, not drawing too much attention to the issue. As the time went on, the pressure became more intense, and it was getting harder and harder to think of excuses. This was peer pressure to the fullest! Finally, the issue dropped, and it was time to go to the bar.

Luke and I went to the bar and he ordered a beer, and I got a cranberry juice. Juuuuuust cranberry juice. But, no one else knew that! Luke told me just to "act crazy" and no one will notice I'm not drinking. Can you believe the cranberry juice is free? Good to know!

We are planning the "big reveal" to family/friends in mid-September. Eeeeek!

What to Expect When You're Expecting

We totally bought the above mentioned title today... :-) We also went to Target and looked out the baby gear as official soon-to-be parents. For once, I wasn't just the creepy lady stalking the newborn clothes and nursery sets. I actually had a purpose...

Tonight will be the first "outing" with friends since finding out the news. Our reunion was last weekend, and I had no idea there was even a possibility of someone growing inside of me, so I am ashamed to say I had a few drinks. BUT tonight, we are going out in celebration of a birthday, and I am going to have to play off the "no drinking" very casually. Next week is a Bachelorette Party, and that is going to be even MORE difficult...but I will do it, hopefully without giving away too many clues. 

Discussion over the dinner table lead to names, middle names, and Godparents. I can't believe all the things we have to think about. It is truly so exciting! Also, Luke's fortune tonight (we had Chinese) told him to "invest in family." :-) 

6:05 a.m.

For three days straight, at 6:05 a.m., a wave of nausea hits me hard. It is so strange! I don't know if it is triggered by my breakfast that I eat around that same time each morning, or if it is just some kind of biological timer, but it is sooooo not fun. So, from here on out, I am definitely waiting until after the 6:05 wave to hit before I get in the car and drive to Muncie. 

Still on the hunt for a doc. Luke called one, and they can't really accommodate my teaching schedule. I mean, seriously... do people REALLY take time off work for each and ever appointment they have? I'm barely going to have a maternity leave the way it is. 

Oh well, there's got to be someone out there.... :-)

"Your Dream Will Come True."

I ate chinese food with my parents tonight in celebration of the first day of school. My fortune cookie said, "Your dream will come true." This made me smile, but I of course couldn't mention why.

Called my doctor today to make an appointment to verify that this "dream" was indeed a reality. Well, I was informed by a very crappy receptionist that my doctor no longer does OB, and if I was wanting to actually deliver the child, I would have to look elsewhere for healthcare. Seriously? IF I want to actually deliver? What kind of question is that?

So, I am on the hunt for another doctor. This receptionist started asking me where I was wanting to deliver and all this stuff...and I just wanted to say, "WHOA, reverse the baby train"...I literally have known I am pregnant for 2 days. All I want is the official word from the doc that all is well and a baby will be on its way in April. Until then, it all feels very strange to even be talking about it. 

A first...

My first wave of Morning Sickness hit me like a bus right when I was getting ready to walk out the door for my 50 minute drive to work. I was grabbing my keys and saying goodbye to Luke when it hit me...and I thought I was going to toss my waffles. 

But, just as I went to the bathroom for safety, it went away. A piece of gum later and I was definitely feeling great. 

I seriously can't believe I am writing this...

"That's definitely a second line..."

((August 11, 2008)) In one second, life changed. 

We had dinner at Bravo to celebrate the first day of the school year. I was tired, but that was nothing new. I was sitting on the couch working on some school things, and a wave of grossness washed over me....something was definitely weird and different. 

I thought maybe I was just crumbling under the stress of the new year...or that maybe my Bravo was not sitting well in my stomach. However, for some reason, I felt compelled to just make sure...

This split-second decision led me to the bathroom...digging out a reserve prego test from somewhere in the depths of my cabinet. I had done this before, thinking for sure "I was," and seeing absolutely nothing in the little window....so that was what I was expecting.

Not this time. Almost instantly, two pink lines made an appearance, and I was in such shock I dropped the thing on the floor. Afraid that I "shook it up" like a piece of sand art, I picked it up quickly and checked to see if it was actually true. I was by myself (Luke was studying on the other end of the hall), and said, "What....WHAT?" 

I froze for a second, unable to process the information. Was this true? One line was fainter than the other...so maybe it wasn't real? In my mind, all these thoughts raced by, competing for attention. My most immediate one was that I needed to get Luke. I haven't done anything big in my life or had any moment worth speaking of without him by myself. With one quick jog to the end of the house, all my plans for a cute "baby reveal" like you see in movies went out the door. I didn't care...I needed him. I was, indeed, scared.

"Luke...you need to get out here..." He was enthralled in some med school blah blah blah and was hesitant to come out at first. His original thought was that a cat had done something strange. Behind my back, he knew what I was holding....and my face said it all. I showed him the stick of destiny as I clinched my eyes shut. When I opened them, his face was frozen in a half-scared, half-happy face. He was really confused, given that he had just seen me typing away on my computer not 5 minutes earlier...

We sat...and froze....for a while. We re-read the little thingy that came with the stick of destiny...and sure enough, it seemed as though the test was honest and true. Luke's idea was to get another one so we could make sure. So, we piled in to the car and went to our favorite store, Meijer. One more test later, and it was positive...literally.

The second test wasn't as scary as the first. We kind of knew what was coming. And according to calculations, something (or shall I say, someone) is coming around April 18...and right now (at 5 weeks), she's the size of a raisin. 

Hindsight is 20/20. Last night, we put lots of pieces together over the last month...all of them leading up to this fact that God had chosen us to be parents, and He has been preparing us, giving us subtle clues (that we were not picking up on quick enough) until he just had to drop a stick of destiny in our laps. 

For example, Luke and I just celebrated last weekend our 5 year class reunion. One of my friends, Candace, let it slip that she was pregnant. She just found out. I have another friend, Megan, who is pregnant. Liz is also pregnant....and Luke told me last night that for some reason, in the back of his mind, all the news of the other pregnancies planted some kind of idea in his head that I could be pregnant, too, and I would just have some prego friends to share the ride with. Liz is due January. Megan is due February. Candace is due March. I am due April. 

Next one...Luke traded in his sporty 2-door Monte Carlo for  a 4-door Malibu. We wanted a family car and deemed the Monte Carlo inoperable for a car seat...you know...for the future. 

With all the talk about Candace's baby, the convo definitely centered on us by the end of the reunion (shamefully at a bar...I took the raisin to a bar...but I didn't know!). One of our friends, Nick, told us that when we had kids, he would have to settle down and have kids, too, because he saw us as the example for grown-up life, and he would need to follow suit. Well, Nick, find yourself a nice girl....

Luke's good friend Joey left for the Marshall Islands a few weeks ago. We went out to a bar (ahhhh, another!) to wish him off, and he informed us he won't be back until June. We joked and said that we could have an entire pregnancy and baby and he wouldn't even know (because there is no communication to the Marshall Islands). I can't wait to see the look on his face!

Lastly, I never buy raisins. Ever. But last time I was at Meijer, I had a bag of little boxes of raisins in my cart. I put them back, but I thought about them. I also had a loaf of cinnamon raisin bread. I put that back, too. Coincidence? I think not.

I hardly slept at all last night. There's a lot to think about...a lot to worry about....a lot to process...and that is why we will be taking our time in telling the world...I haven't been to the doctor yet (I haven't even had the time to call!), but once we know it's official and all is well...we will be shouting from the rooftops that we, Ashley & Luke Ernstberger, will be parents.