Pregnancy Update: Week Seventeen

There is a quote about having young children that says “The days are long but the years are short.” I feel the same way about pregnancy except the days are long and the weeks are short! I have so much going on everyday and I always feel like I just barely make it through, but then suddenly I arrive at Friday and I am like "Hallelujah it’s the weekend!" In this week alone, I wrote a paper, took my first exam of the semester and tried to keep up with school and work when all I really wanted to do was shop for strollers and diaper bags! I noticed over last weekend that I wasn’t feeling very good and was having some pain, but my belly grew so fast over a couple of days that I though it was just normal stretching. By Sunday night I was having a horrible time sleeping. I went to work on Monday morning and couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. When I started crying for no reason at work I decided to call my doctor just to see what they thought. The nurse wanted me to come in, and I felt so much better once the ultrasound tech told me that the babies looked fine. My doctor was super sweet and took her time with me, and we hypothesized that I might be having some gallstones. I went home feeling relieved, until horrible pain kicked in Monday night. Poor Michael was so sweet, and stayed up with me most of the night because sleep was impossible. I ended up with some pain meds that really helped and finally got a kidney and gallbladder ultrasound today. My ultrasound showed urine backing up into my right kidney so we are pretty sure I am dealing with a kidney stone. Unfortunately there is not much that can be done other than pain management with medicine, but I am so, so, glad to know that I am not crazy or overreacting. So I will keep taking medicine and hope this stone decides to dislodge on it’s own!

In happier news, I wanted to post about a couple of gifts I have gotten!  I am starting to slowly acquire "stuff" and it is helping me to start to believe that this is going to happen.  A sweet girl named Lauren knits tiny hats for our NICU. She made me two girl and two boy hats to cover our bases!  I love them!

 

 

 

And, a sneak peak!  This is the first "baby gift" I got.  My sweet friend Amy bought it for me the day my hormone levels came back as "very, very, pregnant."  It stayed wrapped in tissue after my 5.5 week ultrasound when we thought Baby B didn't exist.  I had no idea what to do with it, was emotional and just wasn't ready to make a decision.  After our next ultrasound it was the first thing I went looking for.  It is now the inspiration for our nursery!

 

How Far Along: 17.5 weeks

 

Size of Babies: Each are about the size of a sweet potato

 

Gender: We think we know...but I'll probably be cautious until we hear it again at our next appointment!

 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +9. Yikes. I gained like a pound a week!

 

Cravings: Fruit and scrambled are yummy...but no real cravings!

 

Maternity Clothes: Yes. Need to get some “lounge clothes” and sweat suit stuff now that the weather is cooler.

 

Movement: YES! Tiny flutters and maybe a kick earlier in the week?

 

Sleep: Yucky, but mainly because of the kidney stone. Symptoms: Fatigue, headaches, kidney stone…no more nausea!

 

What I Miss: Diet coke. And now with the kidney stone I have to be REALLY strict about sodas.

 

Best Moment this week: A stranger asked me this week when I was due! Super fun now that I finally look pregnant.

 

I'm looking forward to: Anatomy scan on Thursday! Please pray for two healthy babies, growing at similar rates, with no concerning markers for chromosome or genetic anomalies.

 

Love, Juli