Almost Outed at Dinner

To preface this post, for the past few years there have been a "core" group of my co-workers who'd get together on the occasion with spouses for dinner and drinks. Well, we're all growing up and some are now with babies, one is moving to a new school, and one is moving to a new school and state (well, District). So the other day we had a going away dinner to say our goodbyes to Gary, Anna, and little Ella Grace as they move on to a new chapter in their lives in Washington, DC (yeah, I'm jealous - I miss it up there....)

Gary, Anna, and little Ella Grace were already at McCreary's Irish Pub when Justin and I arrived. After I ordered a lemonade, Gary very bluntly said, "Not to be rude, but are you pregnant? Anna used to order lemonades when she was pregnant." I kind of expected people to wonder, but I was not anticipating a straight-up question (I mean, people do order lemonades when they aren't pregnant, right?), so I avoided it as best as I could with the old "Nah, I just don't like beer" falsehood (what I'd have given for a Harpoon of my own...). He went on to say how a friend of his didn't tell them, only to have them find out later after the friend had moved....making me feel totally guilty for lying, but I just had to maintain the lie. So, Gary, here's my apology to you. I'm sorry for lying. Forgive me?

You'd think that'd be it, right? Nope. I could see people looking at my humongo boobs and checking out my tummy (okay, this might not have been true, but I felt like it was) for hints. I really wished that we hadn't openly talked about wanting to have kids as a group because it made it all the harder to lie about it. I felt like the worst person when Amanda whispered to me, "So you're not drinking tonight, huh?" and I pretended I didn't hear her because I didn't want her to see it on my face. She was, after all, the drama teacher - how can I hide things from her???

After the yummy meal, a few of us went on to Sweet Cece's for delicious froyo. While the boys were talking, Amanda managed to bring up the subject again. Yikes. I did my best to be vague and make it seem like Justin and I are still trying but not quite there, but she kept asking questions about my next running race and coaching cross country and whether I was charting my temperature, that I just KNOW that she's on to me. So, Amanda, this is my apology to you, too. Sorry for lying to you...hope you forgive me, as well.

Man, I can't wait for September to roll around....this secrecy nonsense is driving me bonkers!

Telling the Parents over Baby Back Ribs...Get It?

The original plan was to have Baby Y a secret between me and Justin (and Amanda - See here) until we move on in to the safety of the Second Trimester. Yes, that meant keeping it a secret from my parents....including MY MOM.

After just a few weeks of keeping mum from Mom (ha!), I already had to avoid a straight "Are you pregnant?" question...not to mention the feeling of guilt of not telling her the good news.

Our original rationale was that our parents would be so super excited that they wouldn't be able to keep it a secret. Plus my mom has been hinting for grandchildren since even before we got married. You don't believe me? Here are a few examples: on my 29th birthday, her card said something about how I'm getting old and need to make babies. Oh, and not to mention the e-mail forward I received about how a woman's eggs go bad after they turn 30. Yikes.

But after seeing the first ultrasound, we figured - eh, why not? They'd get a kick out of it, and I can finally talk to them about all of the questions about pregnancy and child-rearing that I have no clue about.

So we invited the 'rents over for Sunday dinner of Baby Back Ribs (haha...I didn't even realize the pun until after I made my menu) and other Summer Goodies. As we sat down at the table, Justin took a picture of everyone and said those magic words: "Smile and say.....she's pregnant!" and the pictures were priceless.





Apparently, my parents already had an inkling that we were announcing something...but as you can see, they were all quite pleased with the news.

After our meal, Justin and I presented them with picture frames that said "Grandpa & Me" and Grandma & Me" with the inside saying "Picture to Come Around March 17, 2011." They were thrilled.







It is now slightly more tolerable to wait until September to tell everyone else the good news.

First Ultrasound

A few months ago, I was in the women's restroom at some random bar downtown and saw an ad wanting participants in an early pregnancy study sponsored by Vanderbilt Medical Center. By simply submitting daily online entries about exercise and possible pregnancy symptoms, participants receive Target gift cards, free pregnancy tests, and an early ultrasound at no extra cost. Knowing that this would be an easy way to score some sweet stuff, I took down the number and called right away.

Fast forward to two months later. After taking all of the free pregnancy tests that they offered me (plus several purchased ones - refer back to here), it was time for me to call them to schedule the ultrasound.

On Friday, July 23rd, Justin and I were able to see Baby Y for the first time and see the little heartbeat flicker furiously. Okay, I lied. I could barely see the Baby (come on, I was only apparently 6 weeks at the time) and I missed the flicker...but Justin saw it, and Baby seems healthy, and that's all that matters.



Note that Baby is apparently between the two Xes.

The ultrasound confirmed a due date of March 17, 2011. St. Patrick's Day! I love it :-)

Now we're in the middle of a waiting game for the "real" ultrasound and first doctor's visit since being pregnant. Come on August 3rd, we're waiting for you!

First Person to Know / Chicago Girl's Trip

One of my good friends from high school is doing her law school internship in Chicago. What better excuse for me and my bestest friend ever (also from high school) to go up to visit for a girl's weekend!

I wondered how I was going to pretend that I wasn't pregnant in front of my two best friends, and Justin the Pharmacist gave me a wonderful alibi: antibiotics. He even gave me specific dosage info and quizzed me on it. The problem was that I knew that Amanda knows me too well and wouldn't buy into the alibi. Result? We decided that she would be the first person (outside of the two of us) to find out.

[You may be wondering why Amanda is the first person to know and not either of our parents. The reason is that my mother is wayyyy too excited for grandchildren (that's a separate post in and of itself) and we knew she wouldn't be able to keep it a secret....and we don't want to spill the beans until after the first trimester. Besides, Amanda was also the first person to know that I was engaged (another story, as well), so why break tradition now?]

I planned on telling Amanda at lunch, but the girl knows me way too well and stops me IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET to ask me if I was pregnant. Flustered because this was not the way I wanted the news to come out, I said "let's just talk about it at lunch." But being smart and stubborn (sorry, Amanda), she refused to move and asked the question again. I obviously had no choice but to say....YES. This caused quite the commotion as she squealed and jumped and hugged me (IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET), but I was very relieved to have it out in the open...and, especially, to have someone to talk to about it since I've been keeping all of my emotions and concerns and questions all to myself.



Girls' weekend was a blast. We caught up, planned weddings (both Amy and Amanda are in wedding-mode....so exciting!), ate well, shopped well, and took in the sights. It was Baby's first (in utero) plane ride and weekend getaway. It was also a huge success!

Ten Tests Later...

I've been feeling a little off lately - very tired (I walked out of the movie theater for the first time ever due to sheer exhaustion!), achy, having vivid dreams, etc. After researching pregnancy symptoms, I was convinced that I was pregnant. I took a few tests and got negative results, but I just KNEW I was pregnant and was convinced I just needed to wait it out a little longer.

In comes July 6, 2010. I took another test and noticed a very faint double pink line. By very faint, I mean, I was squinting and holding it up to the light and could just barely see something. Excited, I took another one that evening...but nada. I figured that maybe I drank too much water and the hcg hormone couldn't be detected.

So I tried again on July 7th. Two morning tests later, I got another two very faint positives. Justin wasn't convinced, though, so I bought a digital test which very specifically spelled out PREGNANT.
Things are now getting exciting, but to be sure, I waited until the morning of July 8th to be doubly sure. FOUR POSITIVE TESTS LATER, I think we're both convinced that a little Baby Y is on its way!

I called my doctor, and the ultrasound date is set for August 3rd, an estimated 8 weeks into pregnancy. I CAN'T WAIT!!! In the meantime, I'm spending way too much time doing internet research and reading up on everything I can to learn about being pregnant and having a baby. Our Family Tree is Growing! P.S. I know I'm a little obsessive about testing. Sorry.

Alaska Bound!

To celebrate one year of wedded bliss, we went on a 7-day Alaskan cruise.

The scenery and wildlife was absolutely breath-taking. We saw glaciers from the Ice Age, humpback whales, bald eagles, sea otters, and more.

We took a bike tour and an off-road Jeep tour of Scagway and kayaked around Tatoosh Island. We ate...and ate. We won at BINGO. We made new friends. We were mistaken for members of the crew.


In all, we had the "time of our lives" (get the reference to our first dance?).