7 weeks

We had our first ultrasound today! Oh man was it exciting. We saw your heart beat, which is such an amazing thing. It's so great to know that everything is looking good so far. Your little heart was beating between 149 and 154 bpm. (It's supposed to be between 140 and 180. So perfect.) They moved up the due date a few days to September 15. So, I was actually at 7 weeks few days ago.

The technician called you a little gummi bear (love) and said you're about 1.1 centimeters large. They tell you to drink 32 ounces of water an hour before your appointment. I guess a full bladder really helps them see everything. The technician kept commenting on how full my bladder was. "Oh wow, that's a full bladder," he kept saying. It was really funny, but pretty unbearable at the same time. I constantly have to pee nowadays and a really full bladder is no fun. After we left, Matt said we should've asked him if that was the fullest bladder he'd ever seen. :)

To get better pictures, they also stuck a little camera through the birth canal. Obviously it was super uncomfortable, but no different than a PAP. Matt kept asking if it was weird or if I felt weird with the two technicians being the room. And I told him honestly that the annual gyno appointment is way worse.

It was honestly so great to see your little heart beat. It is so reassuring. I guess the chance of miscarriage goes down even more now that they were able to see that.

Weight gained: Still none. It's amazing though because I've been eating like a machine. I have still been working out, which I know helps.
Symptoms: I feel a whole lot better this week. Still pretty tired, but as long as I'm getting my 8 or 9 hours, I'm just fine. No real morning sickness anymore either. I have times where I feel a little queasy, but eating usually helps. I've been trying to eat every two hours or so. I've been crazy constipated. Definitely sucks. Running usually helps move things along. I've also been breaking out quite a bit.
Food aversions: Coffee. Which is not such a bad thing, because I know I'm not supposed to have too much. Beef and pork haven't really been sounding good. Also, whenever I eat a really large meal, I think about what I just ate and kind of feel nauseas. I've also been kind of turned off by vegetables and sweets haven't sounded that appealing. (Which is cray cray for me! I would live on sweets if I could.)
Food cravings: Carbs, carbs, and more carbs. Just call me the Carbi Barbie. Corn chex has been at the top of the list. Also, Diet Pink Lemonade from Trader Joe's. We ran out the other day and I told Matt to just get two jugs right away. :)
Suspicions on gender: I'm leaning boy. Matt says he has no clue.
Baby items purchased: Nothing in the past week, unless you count stretch mark cream. Lots and lots of online window shopping though.
Next prenatal appointment: February 14. And, in about 5 weeks we can go in for another ultrasound.
Things you've done so far: We got in about 12 miles of running this week, and I hope to do another 4 tomorrow. The Wisconsin weather has been crazy bipolar. We had a record high yesterday of 60 degrees! And today it's snowing all day and the temperature is dropping like crazy. It's supposed to be a high of 10 tomorrow. Boo. Matt and I went to see Silver Linings Playbook on Sunday and it was amazing. Great movie that pulled at both of our heart strings. Unfortunately, I wasn't craving popcorn. I did eat lots of Skittles though. Saturday night we went out to dinner and then drinks with a bunch of Matt's college friends. Buca's for dinner with one group, and then met another group out at Dave & Buster's. I surprisingly made it out til 12:30. I'm also still bartending Wednesday and Friday nights for extra cash. I won't be doing that for too much longer. But, it's nice to still do it while I can.

This weekend we're heading up to Independence to tell Gma and Gpa Olson and Dana about you. It's going to be so exciting! We'll tell them on Saturday, and then we have the ice-fishing contest and party all day. Then, Sunday morning we're going to head up to Minneapolis to tell Andy I'm pregnant. I know it's going to be a rough morning for Matt. :) But, we'd really like to do it in person. Can't wait for this weekend and to tell the family I'm pregnant!

6 weeks

Well, we've made it to 6 weeks. You are about the size of a blueberry and your face is starting to take shape. I can not wait to see what you'll look like.

Weight gained: None yet.
Symptoms: Well, remember last week when I said I was lucky? Totally jinxed myself. Monday night, and I mean all Monday night, I had terrible nausea and vomiting. Couldn't even keep water down. I rallied and tried to make it to work on Tuesday, but ended up leaving at lunch because I felt terrible. Today, I feel fine! Not as tired as I was last week, so that's a positive.
Food aversions: Onion rings and pretty much anything fried. Kinda makes me gag. I made a pork shoulder in the crock pot yesterday for pork carnitas tacos, and I couldn't eat any of it! It looked so good, but the smell made me gag. Your dad said it was amazing. So, that's reassuring.
Food cravings: Nothing so far.
Suspicions on gender: I have no idea! I did look at the Chinese gender prediction calendar, and based on my birthdate and your due date, you're set to be a boy.
Baby items purchased: Nothing this week. I have been looking at ideas for nurseries and cribs. We'd like to wait to find out the gender until you're born, so we'll need to find a good gender neutral design. I've found a few I really like. I like the idea of a grey with a yellow, red, or blue, or all three. But, definitely white furniture.

Next prenatal appointment: Our first ultrasound in exactly one week!
Things you've done so far: I went on a church retreat with the Confirmation students this past weekend. I had a great time, but had to sit out on many activities, such as the sauna and boot hockey. I told the other leader, Erica, and Pastor David why, but the everyone else had no idea.

It's also been really, really, cold these past few days. I'm talking sub zero temperatures these last few days.
Other notes: Your dad is amazing! Last night when I felt so crappy, he ran to the store when it was so cold and got me saltines and a Powerade. He's also gotten very concerned about me and wants to make sure everything is okay always. I just know he's going to love you so much.

Today ...

I was driving to work and started crying while listening to the song, "Bonnie and Clyde" by Jay-Z and Beyonce.

Seriously hormones? Seriously?

5 (and a half) weeks

Baby Olson is just over 5 weeks old! You are about the size of an appleseed and look like a tadpole.

Weight gained: None yet.
Symptoms: I've been really lucky so far. No morning sickness, no bloating, no cramping. I have had to  pee more often than usual. I feel like I've been getting up at work like every 30 minutes to run to the bathroom. Fatigue. Definite fatigue. The other day I was nodding off at work several different times and then fell asleep around 8 at night. I'm definitely getting hungrier, too. My stomach is crumbling immediately when I wake up in the morning. I've also had quite a few mood swings. I'll be super happy one hour. I mean, crying happy tears so happy. And then I'll be down in the dumps the next.
Food aversions: So far nothing!
Food cravings: Again, nothing.
Suspicions on gender: No idea!
Baby items purchased: I bought the bib and the socks to give to your dad when I tell him. I also bought two onesies. They say, "I'd rather be with my aunt." and "I'd rather be with my uncle." We'll give them to your Aunt Dana and Uncle Andy when we tell them we're pregnant. We still need to find something for your grandparents.
Next prenatal appointment: An ultrasound in the next few weeks, and then an appointment with Dr. Hoelzle on February 14.
Things you've done so far: Celebrated Christmas and New Year's, moved to a new house, spent lots of time with friends and family, gone on a few runs

And so it begins ...

Here we are. At the very, very beginning. As of now, January 17, 2013 at 2:11PM, I'm the only one (other than the doctors) who know that something's a brewing. And I must say: The secret is killing me! If there's one thing you'll learn very soon, it's that I suck at keeping secrets, while Matt is amazing.

Matt and I have been trying to have a baby since about October. We kind of eased into the situation. A sort of "we're not trying, but we're not not trying" deal. I just stopped taking my birth control, went to see the gyno, and that was that. She told me the usual: have fun, don't put pressure on yourself, and start taking prenatal vitamins. And that's exactly what I did.

Last month, I started to pay a little more attention to my cycle and try to figure out which day I was ovulating. I bought those ovulation strips (which don't work at all). I couldn't find which day I was ovulating and was just planning on calling this last month a wash and then trying again next month. It was a busy month anyways with the holidays and then the first week of January we moved into our house. A lot was going on and there was plenty of other things to focus on.

Well, the days passed and I noticed I wasn't getting my period. Another thing I noticed was how much slower I got on my runs. Working out was a lot more taxing than usual. No way, I thought. Can't be possible. I took a pregnancy test, and the results were inconclusive. I figured I'd wait a few more days. That period  would show up. I tested again on Tuesday (today's Thursday), and sure enough: PREGNANT! Werid, I thought. I saw the double positive line and started crying tears of happiness. I was so happy and immediately thought of how happy your dad, and aunt and uncle, and grandparents would be.

But ... I still didn't want to get too excited. False positives happen. I still couldn't believe it. Plus, I have no pregnancy symptoms. No sickness, or soreness, or anything. I didn't want to tell your dad until I'm absolutely certain. So, I tested again on Wednesday: positive! I called the doctor and got in for an appointment today. Here I am, back from the doctor, and definitely pregnant. I had to tell work that I was going to get a flu shot. Not a total lie. I did get the flu shot. It just took me almost two hours. Thankfully, no one asked why it took so long. :)

The OB I chose is Dr. Hoelzle. A younger female doctor. After my first meeting with her, I'm very happy. She was great. Made me feel super comfortable and really enjoyed her. The appointment was pretty long, but it was good to get to know Dr. Hoelzle. I had blood drawn, got the flu shot, received a pelvic exam, and answered lots of questions. The doctor could tell I was about 5 or 6 weeks along just by feeling my uterus! Isn't that crazy? So cool.

I'm about 5 or 6 weeks along, with a due date on September 17. I have to schedule an appointment for our first ultrasound so we can hear your little heart beat. I can't even wait.

Anyways, I'm telling your dad about you tonight. Thinking about how he's going to respond brings tears to my eyes. It makes me so happy to think about. Both yesterday and Tuesday, I was driving to work and just started crying because I'm so excited to tell him. Needless to say, these last few hours of work are excruciating! God is he going to be happy.

I bought him this book called, "Dude, You're going to be a Dad," along with a bib shaped like a baseball and a pair of newborn socks that have dogs on them. (We love our dog!) I'm going to wrap it up and just tell him it's a congratulatory gift for his recent promotion at his new job. (He was just promoted to supervisor at UPS. Woot woot!) He'll open it and I can't wait to see his reaction.

In two weeks, when I'm about 7 1/2 weeks along, we're headed up north to Independence for the annual ice fishing contest. We plan on telling your Grandma and Grandpa Olson then, and hopefully your Aunt Dana. That Sunday I'd like to drive to Minneapolis, then, to tell your Uncle Andy in person. Not sure yet when we'll tell your Grandma McChain. She's in Milwaukee so that's easy. I know it's a little early to say something, but I'd like to do it all in person so we can see everyone's reaction. It's going to be fantastic! No one even knew we were trying. After we have our first ultrasound sometime in the next few weeks and find out that everything is hopefully a-OK, I'll have no problem telling immediate family.

It will be really hard not to say anything to all of our friends yet, but we'd like to wait until we're 12 weeks to tell any other friends. To keep suspicions away, I'll have to hold a beer or something all weekend at ice fishing so people think I'm drinking. I just can't wait to tell everyone.

And so your story begins little one ...