Surprised by Joy

(Not a reference to the C.S. Lewis book, but an excuse for my month-long absence from our blog)...

In a previous post I mentioned that Sean asked me if I had a baby in the belly and I said that God hadn't put one there right now.  Well, I guess Sean has some sort of ESP, because about a week later God did put another baby in my belly!  And boy were we surprised!  Shocked, yet surprised by the great joy God provides with these little ones and our expanding family.  So, I am now 12 weeks, we have seen the baby's heartbeat, and I am nice and sick to confirm our little one's presence....praise God!  We definitely still have some things to figure out (moving Jamesie into a big boy bed in Sean's room, finding a car to fit 3 carseats, etc), but our anxieties are turning into joys every day thinking about our wee little one.  And here are some commonly asked questions and answers and random thoughts to satisfy and curious minds out there....feel free to comment:

What's your due date? July 17, 2012, my uncle John's birthday.  My due dates tend to get moved up though, so stay tuned.

Are you "finding out?" For those of you not familiar with pregnancy-speak, this means will we find out if the baby is a boy or a girl, information usually available at about 20 weeks.  And the answer is, we don't know.  We're still in negotiations about it.  I like surprises, and drama, but it would be nice to know if I can get some hot pink curtains for the nursery or start picking out 3-way matching boy outfits.

How are you feeling? Like crud. Thankfully.  My "morning" sickness is always a welcome sign the baby is healthy and a not-so-welcome-omg-i'm so miserable i'm never having another baby-sign at the same time.  This baby seems to be following the same pattern as the last two--i feel constantly nauseous most of the first trimester then just as I'm about to finish the first trimester I'll say to someone, "I'm almost out of it, and I haven't thrown up yet, maybe I won't throw up with this one," and then I start throwing up at about 10-11 weeks.  (PS throwing up is my least favorite thing in the world...if I were a POW they could make me throw up and I would give up all the national secrets to prevent it).  True to form, on Dec 23 I mentioned to my mom after dinner, "I feel sick, but I haven't thrown up yet, maybe I won't with this one." (why, oh why do I ever say this anymore?) On Christmas Eve shortly after saying hello to my sister's husband, I ran to the bathroom to let the puking begin.  Repeat performance on New Years Eve-- right on cue--11 weeks.  This is cruel in itself for puking reasons, but crueler b/c everything one could possible read about pregnancy says the nausea and puking will stop at about 12 weeks--- NOT TRUE!  Sean's pregnancy was the same timing as this one, almost exactly and I threw up from New Years past Easter.  One time when I was 12-13 weeks someone said to me at a party, "Oh, so you're starting to feel better now, its always good when you get out of the first trimester."  I almost punched her in the nose.  Instead, I went home and puked in my in-laws kitchen sink in front of my brother-in-law and his (then) new girlfriend.  Welcome to the family.

Are you tired? Oh yes. Here is a list of the places I have fallen asleep in the last 2 or so months:
-The ottoman (couldn't make it to the couch) in the family room while cody fed the boys lunch.
-The floor of the family room, in the middle of the day while other people milled about-- twice.
-The floor of the living room.
-Sitting up at our desk waiting for the computer to start up.
-In the car too many times to count.
-In my bed at 7:20 p.m. 

Any cool food cravings? If by "cravings"  you mean "aversions," then yes.  If by "cravings" you mean food I actually want to eat, then no.  Nothing sounds good, but especially not sweets, which is crazy for me.  I actually asked Cody to move his bowl of ice cream away from me the other night so I wouldn't have to look at it or smell it.  FYI, every other day of my life, except the beginning of pregnancy, I eat ice cream while watching TV at night.  Also consistent with my other pregnancies.

Don't you have like Thyroid problems, or that weird exercise thing?  I have hypo-thyroidism, and a symptom of the specific disease is exercise-induced anaphylaxis.  Most days I can control it with thyroid medication and anti-histmaines, but when you're pregnant, your body uses more thyroid hormone than usual.  Since I'm starting at 0 thyroid hormone, I go into a greater deficit, which means I display the symptoms of hypo-thyroidism more. This makes me freezing cold all the time (sleeping in full long sleeve sweats, with socks and an extra blanket), and extremely tired all the time (see above).  Fortunately, I have a great doctor who gets me in right away after the first pregnancy test to change my medication levels.  So far, its been fairly well managed.  There is an increased risk of miscarriage with hypo-thyroidism, so we feel very grateful to be at 12 weeks and have seen the baby's heartbeat.  And that I'm throwing up. 

Well, that's all I can think of for now, mostly because I'm getting hungry again.  I'll post some updates of our wonderful Christmas soon and start taking some belly shots soon too.  We are really happy--Sean loves talking about the baby in mommy's belly (and told his whole preschool class), and if Jamesie could talk, I'm sure he would too.  He has poked my belly a few times to communicate his affection.  Cody and I are figuring things out, but confident in the Lord's plan for our family that it will not only "work out," but that we will be happier than ever with this new addition.  We are grateful for any prayers in the meantime!