Hubzilla, I looked at Anya’s page, and I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a baby I’m more honored to share my (20th) birthday with. What a bright, beautiful little girl. Belated and continued congratulations!
Thanks! Looks like her modeling career is off to an auspicious start. She entered her first Halloween contest:
http://starbulletin.com/2005/10/24/news/weekend.html
And the results?
www.dulcemichaelanya.com/kidsfest
Forget the costume, she is obviously the cutest kid, period. I just want to squeeze her!
Hubzilla,
She certainly deserved that prize. How adorable! She managed to put a smile on my grump face this morning. Thanks. 
Bumping this thread up for some more action because I GET TO JOIN! I found out I’m pregnant today, and so we’re cautiously excited. My due date is in the middle of August. I had a very early miscarriage in September, so we’re a little freaked, but I feel really positive about this pregnancy. I’m already feeling a bit of soreness in the ‘chest area’ (to put it delicately), and a bit of nausea. I didn’t have that last time, so I feel very good about this.
One question for the more seasoned bellies - I’ve been having low back cramps and some small cramping in my stomach - it doesn’t really hurt, it’s more like a yanking sensation in my stomach. Is that pretty normal?
E.
Congratulations Elza B!
Feeling pregnant (aches, pains, nausea and all) is a good sign.
Okay, good:). I think I’m a little paranoid about the crampiness because of September, but it doesn’t feel anything like that time, so I’m not too concerned.
And thanks! We’re both pretty excited (even ElzaHub, once he got over the initial shock! Even though it was planned, he’s still a bit freaked out!).
E.
Yay! I remember you mentioning a while back that you were trying. I’m really happy for you!
I had the pulling sensations for the whole first trimester (I’m 23 weeks now), so it’s definitely normal. I’ve always heard that if there’s bleeding (red, not brown) you should call your doctor.
Also, I’ve never had a miscarriage, but I was still freaked out about not having a lot of symptoms. My boobs hurt really badly and I was very tired and peed a lot, but other than that, I wasn’t all that sick, so I always worried. If you don’t “feel” pregnant sometimes, don’t freak out. Just consider yourself lucky. That’s what I was always told.
Good. Now there’s someone else to keep this thread going. Everyone has been giving birth lately and I’m one of the stragglers, until April anyway.
I’ll be here until at least August! (I didn’t realize you were so far along - wow - did you find out the sex yet?)
And thanks for the reassurance! I do feel good - oddly enough. I’m going to schedule my first appointment next week and I’m hoping we’ll get to see this little one’s heartbeat via u/s (I should be around 8 weeks when I go to the appt).
E.
We’re having a girl! We’re naming her Susan Joan (after our mothers) and calling her Susie.
We had our second u/s at 18.5 weeks, so I was a little worried the tech wouldn’t be able to tell, but when I said I was really sure of it being a boy, she said, “Far from it!”. So I guess that’s good enough for me.
I even had dreams about us having a boy, but my husband was sure it was a girl, so when the tech told us she was a girl, the first thing my husband said was, “HA! I was right!”.
We’re really happy either way. Neither of us had a preference anyway. John is already referring to her as his “little princess”. Awwww.
My mother already bought 4 large shopping bags full of clothes and we just got 2 garbage bags of hand-me-downs from one of John’s co-workers. There’s no way she’ll be able to wear it all. Let me know if you need any girl clothes. 
Well, I was going to start a new thread, but since this one’s been brought back up … I had my 20 week ultrasound and appointment yesterday. Here’s a cut and paste of some update emails I sent to the extended family (with names removed, of course!):
We hit the midpoint of this pregancy, 20 weeks, on Tuesday. So far, so good. My only health issue so far has been a bladder infection. I just thought the baby was laying on my bladder, and that’s why I had to go more often. But Hubby’s mom suggested otherwise, and she was right. (And we all know how mothers-in-law love to be right!) Unfortunately, the antibiotic has lead to a yeast infection. 
I had my fourth OB appointment yesterday, and we did have an ultrasound done. We asked the tech not to tell us the gender, in case she could tell, and she complied with our wishes. (According to my OB, the tech sees the gender right away, but doesn’t put it in the chart if you don’t want to know.) I’ve never wanted to know the sex of the baby, and Hubby doesn’t really care. Since we know how unreliable gender based on u/s can be, we decided not to even try. We found some really cute orange and green sheets with dogs and kitties on them at Target, so as long as they aren’t discontinued before our time we’ll be OK. The bedding has hints of lavendar and blue as well, so they can be made more girly/boyish as necessary.
Both grandmas-to-be were there, and boy, were they excited to see this little one! (Hubby says I was giddy, too. Hmmm … wonder why?? ) The tech pointed out things like the cerebrum, cerebellum, kidneys, and bladder on Li’l Pookums. We got to listen to the heartbeat again. I think it was 162 - nice and strong. Everything appears to be developing normally. S/he was really wiggling around in there, but I’ve still only felt it once - and that’s because I was laying on my stomach.
Based on their measurements, Baby Z weighs in at a hefty 13 ounces. We got a couple of good pictures, including a face photo (still looks like a skeleton) and a clear foot.
I’ve gained about 10 pounds total now. I’m wearing size 16 elastic-waisted black pants and everything else is maternity pants. I don’t have any other choice, even though most of those are still too big around the hips. My big problem now is that I’m not big enough for maternity tops, but regular tops aren’t long enough to cover my belly. Oh - I popped last week! You can finally tell that I’m pregnant.
Hubby’s holding up just fine. Thankfully, I haven’t turned into an overly-emotional raving lunatic or anything, so that’s not a big deal. The one issue we’re having is sex. I don’t care about it, and he sure does! I have zero drive and like 10% of my normal response right now, so I just don’t notice when it’s been 2 or 3 weeks. We’ve had some long talks and come to some compromises, so things should be OK. But I guess I’m not going to turn into a nympho any time soon, much to his dismay.
I’m about 9 1/2 weeks right now. We go to the doctor next week to hear the heartbeat.
I gotta say, throwing up so hard you pee yourself and then bawl for an hour over the whole situation is not very pregnant-chic. :eek: Ginger Pills helped a lot with this…wait, wait…here it comes…
(start:hormone_infused_rant)
I’m tired, breaking out, constipated, am no longer a size 6 and get internally furious with people who serve foods I can’t eat (some at my own house!) and actually invite me to stand outside in the cold with them and watch them smoke cigarettes.
(end:hormone_infused_rant)
I think I will come around once I hear that little woosh-woosh though. Even though I peed on a stick everyday and watched that little red line get darker, heard it from the doctor herself, it just doesn’t seem real yet.
PS: Hey, anybody know the location of the thread that talks about the things you actually need to buy for the baby? I could use that one, but I cannot find it! I have no idea what to put on that “list”.
I was the same way! I tested 3 days in a row and it still didn’t feel real.
I have. I cry over everything. Several times, I’ve sat at my desk at work and started crying for no reason at all. My poor husband has no idea which of my personalities will walk through the door in the evening. He’s really good at saying “Yes, dear”, it’s almost robotic. Last week, he even gave up an hour of overtime to come home and clean the kitchen because he knew I had to make cookies that night. He said he did it more for him than me, since I tend to turn into a demon if one little thing goes wrong. Poor thing. He’s being really great. Plus, he feels guilty for “doing this to you”. 
Here’s the most recent one I’ve seen. Congratulations!
Congratulations!!!
I’m more than a little jealous.
After the bleeding chicken, I kind of figured you were pregnant, too:D. (I think I realized something was up when I started bawling not only at the Charlie Brown Christmas Special on Tuesday, but My Name is Earl, AND A Law and Order: SVU commercial).
Thanks! It’s still a little unreal right now!
NuttyBunny and sj2, I’m peeing on a stick for the fourth time this morning… . I told ElzaHub I really want to go to the Dollar Store and get a bunch of tests so I can watch the lines get darker and make sure everything is okay until I go see the doc next week. He said he understood! I’m hoping to get a ‘pregnant’ on the last digital I have - I took one too early the day I got the first positive ‘plus sign’ test and got ‘not pregnant’. Apparently, it takes longer to get a positive result on that one. But hey, three other tests with positive lines can’t be wrong!
E.
Guess I’ll jump in here, too. I’m due in May with #3, and we just found out it’s a boy (again, making boy #3). I’m going to have 3 boys under five years old! What fun!
This one was a bit of a surprise… I was on the pill, and then got that “uh-oh” feeling. Took a home test, and it was negative. I called the doctor, who said, “Oh, no worries. I’m sure you’re not, but you can come in and have the blood test if it will make you feel better.” Bingo, pregnant. Doc said, wryly, “I guess someone has to be in the .1% where the pill doesn’t work. You want to try something more permanent, maybe send your guy off to the vet to get neutered?” 
The response we’ve gotten from almost everyone has been along the lines of, “Another one already? You two need to get a hobby!”
We thought I was too. We weren’t planning on another kid, but after that we actually started trying last month. We have so far been unsuccessful.
but…pssssst…try http://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com. Good for compulsive testers like us.
Oh, and trust me- three tests mean pregnancy. Have you called a doctor yet? It’s time for blood tests and an ultrasound to get dates!
I was trying to get the name of a midwife that a friend recommended:). The digital came up ‘pregnant’ this morning , so we’re both entirely convinced (and a First Response test came up pretty damn quick, too…LOL). I feel better because they were pretty light on Thursday and Friday, and the First Response today came up quickly and it’s a lot more visible.
I’m calling the midwife on Monday to see if I can get in for an appointment this week! I just want to get a beta done to make sure my levels are increasing. After the m/c, I’m a little nervous.
I didn’t know you guys were trying! That’s exciting:). So Tinkleberry is going to have a sibling! Yay!
So should morning sickness be starting quite so early? It’s not bad, it just seems like I get a little nauseous pretty easily. Eating seems to help. We went grocery shopping this morning and about halfway through the food aisles, I started feeling pretty icky.
MissGypsy, congrats on boy 3! It’s going to be busy at your house!
E.
Nah, I think you two just need a different hobby.
Congratulations!
And you, too ElzaB. Great news.