First Trimester Recapitulation

I am now out of the woods commonly referred to as "the first trimester". Unfortunately, no one ever warned me about the inevitable substandard home cleanliness that materializes in the first trimester, and it definitely wreaked havoc in my house these past three months. This weekend I noticed my energy coming back and my mood improving ever so slightly so I decided to dispose of my energy by cleaning the kitchen. Then last night a single tiny roach manifested itself on my kitchen floor as if to tell me that I still had a lot more cleaning to do. Not that I didn’t appreciate the reminder, but I allowed Art to squish and dispose of the tiny roach.

Upon my entry into my second trimester, I started having a lot of bladder pain and discomfort. It constantly felt like my bladder was at full capacity and I thought for sure that I had a bladder infection. After a few days I gave in and went to the doctor only to discover that I had no infection, just a bad case of Baby Squishing My Bladder Syndrome. Apparently, this is a common discomfort that no one ever warned me about. I wish it was an infection because then I could take antibiotics and feel better rather than having to wait until the baby removes itself from its campsite on my bladder.

I think it’s pretty safe to say that “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” needs some real life revisions in PLAIN ENGLISH. Perhaps a chapter entitled “How to Deal With Advice and Criticism” with special tactics for nosey co-workers. It would also be nice if they told you your baby is capable of squishing your bladder far before it is large enough to feasibly squish anything. Lastly, I would suggest an additional first trimester chapter to warn about substandard home cleanliness and the possible appearance of a roach.

Here is my last ultrasound from when I went to the doctor for the suspected bladder infection. You could see both arms and hands and both little feet, but not whether it was a boy or girl! Art was really excited when he saw these pictures. He was saying "I can't wait to find out if it's a boy or a girl! I wonder what color it's eyes are going to be!" It was cute to finally see him excited about the baby. I think since my tummy is poking out just a smidgen it is becoming a bit more real for both of us.

Tax Pickle

With one fell swoop, the government defeated all my financial plans for the entire year. It turns out that since Baby Cakes and I got married we adjusted our deductions too low and drastically underpaid our taxes- drastically as in $2,500 for our federal taxes and $700 on our state taxes. I cried… a lot. Then when I got done crying, I cried some more. Then when I got done crying the second time, I pulled myself together and started looking for a solution. Perhaps it was luck, perhaps it was carefully orchestrated fate, but my mom happened to have two thousand dollars left over from a car accident settlement that she graciously (and nervously) lent me to help pay for the debt.

Even with our tax rebate money coming, we still took an unexpected hit of two thousand dollars which changes everything. With the use of my fortune cookie’s wisdom to “modify your thinking to handle new situations,” we determined that the best thing for us to do would be to forfeit moving into a 2 bedroom apartment and stick it out where we are, but I have yet to devise a plan for installing air conditioning in my car and saving money for my leave and baby expenses. I’m telling you- money might not buy happiness, but it sure as heck would help!

Despite my obstacles of late, I have been trying to stay positive. I realize that I am blessed in many ways- especially that my mom was able to help me out of this tax pickle and that I have a husband who loves me and tells me everything will be ok. Bunny has also been much more uppity lately. His hop is back in his step, and he is back to his typical rambunctious self. I’m trying to learn that everything will work out one way or another, even if it wasn’t how I planned it.

Mexican Jumping Bean

I had another ultrasound yesterday and since the doctors have told me twice in a row that the baby is a week and a half behind my calendar date, I am giving in and going with their estimated due date which is October 25th and puts me around 10.5 weeks. I must have ovulated really late in the cycle.

It was so much fun seeing my little bean with appendages! And let me tell you, it knows how to boogie! The doctor and assistant were cracking up because it was jumping all over the place. They had to wait and wait for it to hold still so they could take the picture. My next appointment is in 6 weeks and I am hoping to find out if it is a boy or girl at that point.

Can you see it's little face and fingers? So cute!