Week 12? It's all so confusing

First of all, gotta give the weigh-in numbers: 220.4

I feel pretty good about that, given that my weight was about 237 when I figured out I was pregnant. I just don't feel like eating much. I am eating, and I wouldn't have thought that I was eating so much less that I'd be losing weight like this, but I guess coupled with the nutrients that are going straight to the kid, it's working for me. I do need to start working out, though, or I'm going to be in pretty lousy shape (lousier shape) when the kid gets here.

Thankfully, Brendan is finally past his big milestone. After 13 months of never being sick, the kid had a wicked virus that gave him three full weeks plus some of diarrhea. Poor guy. He didn't seem to feel particularly bad, but his diapers were all slimy, nasty, and runny; he got it all over his clothes, all over us, all over the place; and he had the most horrible diaper rash imaginable. I'm surprised his little hiney wasn't bleeding, he was so raw. But he's finally better; his poo has been solid since Wednesday or so, and so I'm hoping we are out of the woods. That was pretty miserable. I hope he's done being sick for a long while.

I finally had a doctor's appointment last week. Well, nurse's appointment. I won't actually see the OB for the first time until January, when she comes back from her own maternity leave. But I had my initial consultation with the nurse. I must admit, I am a bit freaked out, because she did not pick up a fetal heartbeat with the little transducer they rub around on your tummy. She rubbed it all over the place and didn't pick up anything. She didn't seem super concerned--I would think if she really had been she would have gone and gotten the portable ultrasound machine they have and plugged it in to check, or at least would have gotten the vaginal transducer out to see what she could pick up--but still. I would have thought that I was far enough along now (heck, based on my estimate of my last period, I should be about 12 weeks) to pick up the heartbeat without any problem. Anyway, she scheduled me for a gestational ultrasound--to determine a little more accurately how far along I must be--and an ultrascreen, the test they did last time to determine likelihood of any genetic problems like Downs Syndrome. I go in for those next Monday. Cross your fingers. And cross them that the little peanut is OK in there. I would think that if something had happened, like a miscarriage or something, that my pregnancy symptoms would go away, but I'm still a little queasy and have to pee all the time, and I would think there would be some kind of sign--pain, bleeding, something. So I'm hoping the little guy or gal is still in there and just hanging out quietly for now.

I'm not the only one.

Today's weigh-in: 205.6

I know that's somewhat moot, but I am finding it interesting that I have not gained any weight yet. I haven't been eating as much as I probably should. I've read that a pregnant woman should add 300-400 calories to her diet. I'm surely not there, and so those extra calories may be coming from my admittedly ample supply of fat, so I'm losing a bit of weight. I've got an appointment with an OB/GYN next Friday, and I'll be sure to ask her what I need to do as far as diet is concerned. I know I will need to gain some weight, but perhaps this losing thing isn't all bad. I just don't know.

We haven't told anyone in the family yet, and I'm wondering how long we'll be able to maintain that. My concern is that, if we let everyone know early in the pregnancy and then something goes wrong, it will be that much more painful and awkward letting everyone know. I'd really like to wait until I'm about halfway along, which would be the end of May. I will probably be showing before then, and since my in-laws live only five hours away and we see them fairly often, we may not be able to keep it a secret for very long. I do feel a little guilty, because my brother just shipped out to Afghanistan until January, and my dad is leaving for Djibouti Africa until December. I feel like I should let them know sooner, since they won't be around for the adventure. But if I tell them, I need to tell everyone else.

I did read in the news today that I will be sharing this adventure with someone from my childhood. Danica McKellar, math goddess and everyone's darling Winnie Cooper from The Wonder Years, just announced that she too is pregnant. She and I are about the same age (I'm three months older), so we're both in the same risk category. It will be interesting to hear her perceptions as we both progress along...

Do-Over Day 53 - 2/22/10

Today's weigh-in: 207.0

I'm actually really surprised by this. We had Mexican food last night, which is one of the Big Three that usually doom me (pizza and Chinese food are the other two). However, there were two significant differences with last night's meal that may have made the difference in my weigh-in.

Instead of using refried beans, I used black beans. I suspect these have quite a bit less fat and salt than the refried beans do. Also, we didn't have any taco seasoning. Usually we used the little packets, which have really high sodium. Instead, I just seasoned the beef with cayenne pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, and a little salt. These two seemingly minor changes to the usual routine may have really lightened the amount of sodium I took in, which may have lowered the amount of water I retained.

I have no idea if that's true or not, but it was really nice to see a weigh-in that was lighter than I anticipated.

Still no news about anything else. I am still late. However, I've been having that "pre-period" feeling, a little crampy in my lower abdomen. I have no idea if this means my period is going to start or not. We continue to wait and see...