Yay!

Today I went to the doctor to get my blood drawn for testing, finally! They actually called me this morning at 8:30, an hour before I had to be there to cancel and reschedule my appointment because of the weather. I was so pissed, thinking back on how long i've already waited to get this over with so I can continue on with my next appointments. They claimed they would open at 1PM and call me back to set a new scheduled date. Of course, I never got a call back. I called at 1:10 and got a message saying they wouldn't be open until 1 and to call back after that time. Uhh, d'oh! I'm glad everyone knows how to do their job. I called again at 2:30 to see if they could get me in today and luckily, they were able to at 3:15. It seemed to work out just perfectly. I rushed over there with my mom and niece since we were already out together, and they took five tubes. I thought I was just going to die of how deeply disturbed I was over the whole thing. I can't stand blood. It just makes me freak out to the max.

Anyway, I have my next official appointment on the 23rd to actually meet with my doctor. I'm really excited. I feel like time is going by super slow though. I'm hoping they'll at least check for the heartbeat so I can get some kind of reassurance that everything is okay down there. I'm able to get my ultrasound exactly five weeks from today at the earliest, making it 20 weeks. That will be the big day I absolutely cannot wait for. I'm a little nervous for my next appointment on the 23rd as I have decided to keep in my nipple piercings for now. If I decide to breastfeed once I get closer to the due date, i've decided i'm going to see how easily I can take the bars in & out inbetween feedings as i've read other women who have had them suggested. By that point, I will have had them for a year and a half. It's something that makes me feel a little more confident in my self-image, and I don't think I could bare getting them repierced if I just took them out for months. Especially with scar tissue built up. I'm a big baby when it comes to piercings. But I would definitely never attempt to breastfeed with them in. I've read that it can cause problems for the baby and also be a major choking hazard if it were to come loose. Anyway, this is why i'm nervous about the appointment. I'm sure they will probably want to examine my breasts and well, let's face it: doctors don't exactly approve of body piercings. Nonetheless, on a pregnant woman in such a delicate area. I have decided that I want to invest in some threadless Tygon bars, which are supposed to be very flexible and much more comfortable. And the fact that they're threadless, it shouldn't be painful putting them back in as other non-threadless bars are. I'd like to get them before the appointment, but it depends on how this week goes for me. They are definitely the bars I would want to use for awhile though, especially during the time of (if I decide to) breastfeeding.

I was weighed today, the first time since before I got pregnant. Apparently i've gained ten pounds in the last three months. Which is absolutely shocking to me of course because i've been the same weight for a few years now. I've never been able to gain more weight than a whopping 105 pounds. It's so funny to me. I know where it's all going though: this growing belly and the new boulders sitting on my chest. And to add to it, i've also went up a bra size. I was originally a 34C. I am now already a 36D. It terrifies me a little bit. Hah! On the downfall, I still suffer from persistent headaches almost every single morning and occasionally throughout the day. I'm still keeping up with my gummy prenatal vitamins, that are absolutely delicious might I add. Sometimes. One thing that kills me though at least at some point on a daily basis is pelvic pain. I was reading up on it and it's due to the relaxin that your body starts to produce when you become pregnant, which temporarily softens the bones down there so that they can be prepared for giving birth. Well unfortunately, my pelvis seems to shift alot, causing great pain for me. Sometimes I can go hours standing, walking, doing whatever and feel perfectly fine. Other times it will literally just come at me from nowhere. Once I sit down, I feel fine. But if I stand back up even an hour later, it's usually still there. Yesterday it was so bad before I went to work that I found myself limping. It generally occurs more on one side than the other. It's almost always been on the left side, but here recently also on the right side. It hurts to put pressure on the leg that is on the same side as the pain is. Also, slightly bending over hurts aswell. I have found no stretching or back popping of any sort to be relieving or helpful in any way. Unfortunately, it just comes and goes and the most random and sometimes worst times.

I've been staying at my mother's house for about two weeks now. Don't ask me why, I really have no idea. I suddenly just feel the desire to be around her alot more. My sister's been taking care of my dog at the house while i've been gone. I ask her how he's doing and if he needs any food or anything. He seems to be fine just like he always is. I really fear that I may have to get rid of him the closer I get to my pregnancy or once the baby gets here. I will hopefully be living by myself at that point, and I just fear he won't be able to get as much attention as I used to give him. I already seem to be neglecting him and I feel really bad about it. If it comes down to it, I will leave him with my sister. She loves him very much and likes having him around.

Anyway, I have to be at work in the morning so I need to be getting off here. The picture i'll be posting on the bottom was taken a few days ago on December 12th.

Turkey Day.

I was sitting on the couch talking to my mom this morning when I realized I haven't really blogged in awhile. To give a slight update on what's been going on, I went to the doctor for my first appointment on the 23rd. To my surprise, my insurance doesn't cover any kind of pregnancy-related stuff. I wasn't able to get my bloodwork done, however I was at least able to speak with someone and get alot of booklets and information from her. Once my other insurance kicks in, i'll be able to go back in to get my bloodwork done and also meet with one of the doctors they have there in December. I'll be getting my first ultrasound at about 20 weeks. On the upside, I will be able to see the gender by that point. So that will be a nice surprise.

The woman I spoke with estimated that my due date would be June 8th, making me 12 weeks pregnant as of yesterday. But until the ultrasound, I don't want to trust that guess too much. All I can think of now is how excited I am. I just hope that everything is okay. I received samples of prenatal vitamins while I was there and was finally able to really look at them yesterday. After being blown away by the size of them, I decided to search online to see if there was any smaller ones that they offered. I saw there was one brand in particular everyone seemed to like that sold smaller pills, and there was also an alternative I read for taking the larger ones. Some people suggested grinding them into powder and then mixing them into something like a banana smoothie. Sounds like an awesome idea to me. But unfortunately, I don't have a blender! So I think for now, i'm just going to look into purchasing the smaller pills.

A few new things i've been experiencing the past week and a half was having extreme lower back pains and feeling quite over-emotional when watching upsetting or amazing movies & shows on the television. It's quite pitiful honestly. I've never been one to cry watching something as simple as someone else crying over a tragic thing happening in their life. I feel like a big baby. And as far as the back pain goes, i've discovered that alot of the pain is coming from pressure on my sciatic nerve. Unfortunately, it could last all the way until I give birth. But on the upside, sitting down for awhile seems to relieve alot of the pain for awhile. It just seems to happen at random moments, really. But usually when i'm working for long periods of time. I haven't spoke with Chris in probably a week now. I don't know how California is treating him and I don't know if any more of his family knows yet. One thing I do know is i'm beginning to feel very alone in this situation. All I can keep reminding myself is if it comes down to it, my baby is all I need right now to keep it together.

Happy Thanksgiving. This is probably the first turkey day I will be able to really take advantage of with my new, big appetite. Everyone better be prepared for me to devour everything! I'm off to help my mom make the peanut butter pie now. Hopefully more updates soon..