Trust Me I am Grateful

I had a 10 week check up this week and everything is going well! We heard the heartbeat and it's a good one, at about 160 or 170 beats per minute!

One happy momma this week!

Each week seems to be getting a little better in some ways. The first few weeks were rough (with morning sickness, fatigue, etc.) but I think I'm finally able to believe some of the people that tell me the second trimester will be better.

Regardless of how I've been feeling physically, nothing beats the feeling of gratitude, faith, hope and love. All of which I feel every. single. day.

So, even I don't look like I'm grateful while I'm trying to avoid throwing up on you, trust me, I am.

If I don't sound grateful when I'm complaining about how I can't keep my eyes open past 6 p.m. some  nights, trust me, I am.

And finally, if I don't seem grateful when I share my experiences with you, including the not-so-great side effects of the first trimester, trust me, I still am.

I kind of thought those things would go without saying, but after some thought, I believe that it may need said.

As you all know, I'm not one to hide much of anything. I share my struggles, my victories and my life with little to no restraint. I am a firm believer that by sharing your journey, no matter what the journey, if there's a chance that it can help others, then don't hold back. Share it. So, I will continue to do so.

First Trimester: Weeks 4-8

Right now, I am at 10 weeks and I'm feeling good. Last night, I exercised for the first time in a while. I did 15 minutes of Wii Fit Yoga and boy, did that get my heart rate up! Something that was so easy for me before is very challenging now! I took a few minutes in between each pose to rest and drink water. 15 minutes of poses is a good start for me.

More on how this week is going, later on. For now, I'll share with you how I was feeling during the first four weeks after finding out that we are pregnant!

Week 4:
Shock, disbelief, anxiety and yet, a sense of calm.
Tired! Bed time was at 8 p.m. all week. Almost went to bed at 7:30 p.m. on 5/15/14, the night that I decided to take the test that turned up positive.
Slight cramping, no bleeding.
Craving: heated subs with provolone, ham, tomatoes, lettuce, italian and mayo. Before I found out I was pregnant, I ordered one of these subs FIVE nights in a row.

Week 5:
First sonogram on 5/21/14, sonogram indicated I was 5 weeks and 2 days at that point.
So much blood work!
Still tired.
Experienced how painful gas can be.
Cramping was dwindling.
Mood swings began, a lot of unexplained crying.

Week 6: 
Oh, so that's what they mean by morning sickness!
Dizzy, queasy.
Saw and heard the heartbeat on 5/28/14. Overwhelming in the best way possible. Such a precious moment!
New routine: couch-bound at 6:00 p.m. until bedtime at 8:00 p.m.
Cramping gone!
Roller coaster of emotions.
Good blood work results!
Naps during lunchtime at work. Very hard to make it through the day. 2 p.m. - 4 p.m. is extremely hard.

Week 7:
Ginger ale and crackers first thing in the morning has been a must!
Headaches
Learning to deal with fatigue by eating more often throughout the day.
Fatigue is still strong!
Morning sickness isn't just for the mornings, I see.
Traveled to Harrisburg for work this week. Very challenging!
No real cravings but a lot of aversions. Sometimes I don't know what I can't eat until it's in my mouth.
Rarely able to finish my plate, which is so unlike me!
Mood swings; highs and lows. So noticeable yet uncontrollable.

Week 8:
Black tea has been a Godsend this week! It perks me up. When I start to get cranky at night, my husband goes right to the tea kettle and pours me a cup.
Woke up morning of week 8 feeling a little less exhausted.
Taking Tums before bed and early in the morning to help ease heartburn.
Not couch bound as soon as I get home, as I once was. Able to do some light chores after work.
Early bedtime still a must!
Less mood swings. Kind of.
Made the announcement to our friends and family and my readers!

I'll post another update like this one as soon as I reach 14 weeks! Until then, just know that while things have been a little rough, they are getting better and better every day!

I Made a Meal

A few facts about this week.

On Monday, I made dinner for myself and my husband for the first time in weeks! This may not seem like much to you, but for me, this is a huge accomplishment. I have felt incredibly lazy these past few weeks and if I were to be quite honest, a little lost, too. I can hear my mother in my head right now saying, "you're not lazy, you're pregnant!" but I still can't help but feel a little helpless. Especially when first trimester symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, etc. act up.

In a very short matter of time, I went from being somebody who loved to plan my meals a week in advance; somebody who would love to spend time trying new recipes, and; somebody who tried to cook all dinners with as fresh of ingredients as possible. That person has left and I'm not sure when she is coming back. It's hard to cook when I'm gagging anytime I open the fridge. Most say, I will feel better come the second trimester. In the meantime, I am just taking things day by day, rather; moment by moment.

I took a day off of work on Monday so I could get some much needed sleep. I felt better when I woke up and did some minor cleaning. For dinner, I made baked BBQ pork chops with twice baked potatoes and corn. I'll share the twice baked potato recipe with you, soon. It was hands-down amazing!

Baking on Monday made me feel good. A little more like my old self. I'll give you an entire run down on how I've been feeling week-by-week, soon. For now, a spoiler alert: this week has been much better than previous weeks!

Something else that has been making me feel good is watching my garden grow. Silly, right? My husband and I planted a vegetable garden about two weeks ago. Early spring, we started some seeds inside. Earlier this week, before the storms came, we spent about a half hour watering the garden. It was so peaceful and relaxing.

Our biggest zucchini plant.

Weeding the garden is being put on the back burner. For now, we are welcoming whatever grows. So far, we've got tomatoes, green peppers, yellow peppers, jalapenos, pickles, string beans, pumpkins, yellow squash and zucchini.

Do you have a vegetable garden? What are you growing?

Nana's Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Lately, my husband has been cooking most of the meals while I battle first trimester nausea, fatigue and all that fun stuff. One meal that he has been making, almost weekly now, is my grandma's recipe for homemade chicken noodle soup. Nana's recipe, that is.

I have been using the soup for lunches throughout the week. This recipe makes a lot, so there is plenty to share or freeze for later.

This soup is easy on my stomach and it's familiar taste qualifies it as "comfort food". I don't know about you but, when I'm sick, chicken noodle soup is the way to go. Apparently, it works same way for pregnancy, too. Nana's soup is just the best!

Ingredients

2 tbsp. butter
3-4 celery stalks
1 whole rotisserie chicken
8 oz. egg noodles (any kind)
3 tbsp. Mrs. Millers chicken flavored soup base*
16 oz. chicken broth
pepper

Directions

In a large pot, add two cups of hot water. Slice 3-4 stalks of celery. Add 2 tbsp. butter. Let boil until tender, about 10-15 minutes.

Pull apart rotisserie chicken, add to pot of celery and water. Add 8 oz. noodles, fill pot with water until 1/4 inch above chicken and noodles. Add 3 tbsp. Mrs. Millers soup base. Add 16 oz. can of chicken broth. Add more water, to taste. Add pepper to taste, about 1/2 tsp.

Lightly boil until noodles are cooked. Stir frequently.

*My Nana insists that Mrs. Miller's is the best way to go for this soup.

You should consider yourself very lucky to have found this recipe. It's not very hard to make and I swear it's the way chicken noodle soup is suppose to taste. Every other way is just not right.

The Positive Test

As you may have seen from my last post, I finally admitted to why I haven't been blogging as much lately.

We are expecting our first child in January, 2015!

I am blessed to be 9 weeks along, today. We found out the great news back on May 15th. We have gone through a lot these past few weeks and I can't wait to share it all with you! First, I'll start with the day that we found out.

I was home alone at the time, watching "What to Expect Before Your Expecting" on Netflix (for the fifth time because I think that movie is super cute and hilarious) and I was about to doze off for the night. I looked at the clock and it was only 7:30 p.m. I decided enough was enough. I had been unable to stay awake past 8 p.m. for two weeks now. Even though I had already took 2 pregnancy tests within a few weeks, I decided that I would use my last test. Something just wasn't right, I thought. I shouldn't be this tired! So, I took the test and went outside with the dogs as I waited on the results. Negative again, I assumed. However, when I came back inside, I checked the test and it was positive. Wow! My entire world turned upside down in a split second, and in the best possible way!

My husband was at night class for another hour and a half. That was the longest hour and a half, ever. I just couldn't wait to tell him! I couldn't wait to tell, anyone!

I called my mom, and cried. I didn't have words, so she was worried at first but then I was finally able to speak. All of my worries spilled out and she reassured me that everything would be fine.

After talking with my mom, I layed on the couch and prayed. I was incredibly anxious so I prayed until that feeling went away. Afterward, I was relaxed and hopeful and excited.

Waiting for my husband to get home to share the good news was incredibly hard to do. I wrote him a note telling him that there was a surprise for him in the oven. I put the positive pregnancy test in the oven and closed the door. When he got home, he read the note and gave me a hug. I asked him what he thought it was, and he said "meatloaf" with a big smile on his face. I told him it wasn't meatloaf and to go check it out.

He opened the oven door and look at the test for a few seconds. Then he looked back at me and said "are you serious?!" I shook my head and cried happy tears and he came and hugged me. He had happy tears, too. He said, "Is everything okay? Should I sell my truck? Are we going to be okay?". I just laughed as he went through his turn with the panic stage and reassured him that it was all going to be okay.

It is all going to be okay. I pray every day for the baby growing inside of me. I pray every day for good health for my child, myself, my husband and my loved ones. Life is so precious. God is so good. We are so blessed!

Our Special Announcement

Sharing our joy with you all!

My husband, Nick, and I are so blessed to announce that we are expecting our first child in January, 2015!

More details to come, soon.

Simple Goals for the Week

Happy Tuesday!

As I mentioned in my last post, I have a few goals to work on this week. Just to lay it all out for myself, my goals are to:

1. Eat more good things than bad. That means I can have an ice cream cone just as long as I eat more good than bad.

(BTW. This is a small from a local ice cream shop. Glad I didn't order anything larger!)

2. Go on more walks. I'm not running right now due to a foot injury that I'm allowing time to heal and also for some other reasons.

3. Blog more often. I've been slacking when it comes to blogging, but I'm hoping to change that this week!

Those are my goals for the week, what are yours?

Another Business Trip Down

Well, I made a goal to blog more often last week and it just didn't happen. So, I'm making it a goal for the week ahead, as well.

This past week, I was on a business trip and my sister joined me. We had a lot of fun in between meetings! We went out to eat at Carrabas for dinner, which was a real treat since we do not have a Carrabas near where we live. I got the Fettuccine Weesie. It was pretty amazing.

We went to see Maleficent in theaters while we were out of town, as well. Even though I still have trouble pronouncing the movie title (please don't tell me I'm the only one), it was a great movie and I recommend seeing it. Especially if you enjoyed the Disney version of Sleeping Beauty.

Trips away from home are best when they are just for a day or so. I was gone for two days and by the third day I was totally ready to be home. My husband was ready for me to be back, too.

I didn't go on as many walks as I hoped to this past week, but that will just be another goal I try to work on for the week ahead.

I have a lot of extra work and responsibility dropped on me these past couple weeks and I'm still trying to adjust. During that time, I have lost about 5 pounds (228 lbs) through eating intuitively, something I plan on continuing for a little while. At least until things slow down a bit for me.

Eating intuitively is slowing becoming eating whatever I want, or in other words, bring on the bad stuff. With that in mind, I am going to make it another goal to keep myself in check this week. Eat more good than bad. Simple as that.