Boobies and Baby Butts!

So tonight I finally got the time I wanted to sit down and do some much-needed research. I had been wanting to do this research for quite some time... as I stated before I want two things out of this new baby: I want to pseudo-cloth diaper, and I was to breastfeed for REAL this time.

The cloth diapering has been one constant headache since I started looking into it a good 6-ish months ago when we started trying to conceive. Tonight I sat down and put my all into the research and have decided on a brand to try and picked out a few types of this one brand. I am so excited to finally have some sort of direction! Even if this brand turns out to be crappy and/or doesn't work for Sprout very well, I am thankful for the amount of knowledge I have accumulated the last few hours =D

These are bumGenius 4.0 cloth diapers. There are SEVERAL different designs and colors to them, but these are the two "styles": Snap buttons and Hook and Loop (aka, Velcro!) Each have their own pro's and cons, but these diapers are some of the only ones that made ANY real sense to me practically and financially. A) you can use them from birth until potty training; B) they have received some of the best reviews in terms of durability, absorbency, and overall bang-for-your-buck; C) they are SO SIMPLE to use... hands-down one of the easiest to adjust to your baby. I am so thrilled with this find!! I cannot wait to see if Sprout is a boy or girl and then order colors accordingly!

Now for breastfeeding... with Landon, it didn't work so well. Firstly, I was distracted by several factors in home life as well as the first few days in the hospital. The nurses were of no help and while I signed up for a lactation consultant to call me, I never received anything from said person(s). It was rough. I was new to motherhood and everything seemed so foreign and overwhelming. While the actual act of breastfeeding didn't last as long as I had hoped, I did pump for quite some time for him. I got sick several times and lost milk supply, and while my pump was a nice pump for what I paid for it, it did NOTHING to help me build up my supply and create a "pleasant" experience.

THIS TIME AROUND, I am determined to not only make the act of breastfeeding my baby work, I have ordered a new pump that has gotten amazing reviews and will be taking a class (or two... or more if they offer them!) on breastfeeding so I can hopefully be ready to meet my child's needs and do this properly this time! We are also living in our own home now and I can have the privacy/relaxation I need to get this breastfeeding thing down! If I get sick during breastfeeding, not only will I (hopefully) have my child to help me build my supply back up, but this pump is guaranteed to increase milk production (pictured to the left: Ameda Purely Yours Breast Pump - Carry All). I am certain this time around we will make breastfeeding work !!!!

I am excited to make it to September/October and get my little Sprout here in my arms to love and nurture!

Symptoms and cravings

I forgot in my other posts to add these bits of info in.... not that it really matters but I will put them on here for anybody interested! So far I have been craving protein. Meat, nuts, eggs, you name it. Especially meat... sounds amazing. I love apples, oranges, bananas and strawberries. Most veggies are good too. Sour things are a MUST as sell. I like juice but it gets too sweet and unsettles my stomach so I have to water it down and limit it to one glass a day. Even if I am repulsed by it, I HAVE to drink water all day. Nothing else sits well in my stomach and if I go too long without drinking water I feel dehydrated and gross. Things that repulse me are chocolate, most candy really, and fast food... not all fast food. Once in a while Im ok with it but overall it sounds gross(which is great for me lol) What I want day-by-day changes but it always falls under the categories listed above. As far as symptoms go, they are very mild most of the time. Exhaustion sets in and I want to call it a day by around 5 if not sooner but Im usually able to push through it. During the morning whdn I first wake up and before Ive eaten anything I am nauseous... Ive learned to snack every hour or two and that pretty much keeps any sickness at bay. I have sore boobies but not usually retardedly painful like they started off being. My last unpleasant symptom is mucus.... I am so full of mucus all the time... My head, my sinus's, my throat... always with the mucus. Its not that big of a deal, I just hate not being able to take a mucinex or anything for it. The doctor said it could last all pregnancy too.... joy.... lol! Other than that, I have mild cramping ocassionally but thats pretty much stopped... and Im feeling good overall!

6 weeks

Happy Superbowl Sunday! (I don't even know what teams are playing this year... *sigh*)

Today, Sprout is the size of a Lentil or a Sweet Pea... to understand that in basic length, it's about 1/4". It's amazing to think about how fast little ones grow in the course of a few weeks. Two weeks ago Sprout was only the size of a poppy seed. So tiny! It's pretty incredible to think about.

This past week I had my first OB appointment. The doctor didn't do too much (obviously, I am still so early... just some blood work to confirm) although he went by my last period and said I was 7 weeks and some odd days then offered to do an ultrasound. I told him I was pretty sure I was much earlier than 7 weeks and was wanting and ultrasound, but didn't want to NOT see anything. Even though I know it's normal to NOT see anything at 5-ish weeks, I would still worry until my next one. So we agreed that two weeks from Wednesday I would come back specifically for an ultrasound. I am so excited!! That's 10 days from now!! According to my estimated due date, I would be around 7 weeks and 3 days. We should definitely see something by then.

Alex decided to go ahead and tell his family after my appointment because he was too excited to contain such great news. I believe they are all happy (lol!!) and so I decided to go ahead and tell my mom as well. (I also need to tell my brother Ben since he lives with us.... lol!) I sent my mom a picture magnet with four pairs of shoes on it, side by side, and at the bottom it says "We are expanding by two feet. Construction Deadline September 2012." So that should get to her by Valentines days... let's hope she's happy too!

Big decision

We decided not to move. We were going to get a bigger place but decided where we are is plenty big enoughto accomidate our family of four. Ben is still living with us but hopefully next year we can get a bigger place. We will see how everything plays out. On a happier note, 14hrs until my dr appointment! Hooray! Hope I get to see baby Sprout :)

A day away!!!

I am so flipping excited, I can't fall asleep.

It's 12:25am on Tuesday the 31st of January.... Tomorrow (Feb 1!!!) at 9am is our FIRST O/B appt. I am thrilled! I know there will be the whole pee-in-a-cup, get-blood-tests-done, talk about what I can/can't do, ask how I'm feeling, and if I have any questions for my Dr... which I really have none.

But I'm excited because I might get an ultrasound done. It would make my whole week if I had one done. I know at just barely past 5 weeks the odds of seeing anything besides a sac is slim-to-none, but I could be content with that. I just want an estimation of my official due date and I want to know that this pregnancy is for real and that I'm not just dreaming vividly.

Ahhhhhhh I can't wait to see what he has to say!! =D

5 weeks!

Hooray!! Made it to five weeks!! (well, the "five weeks" that I'm predicting) We also decided to nickname the baby Sprout until we find out the gender =)

Today Sprout is the size of a Sesame seed.... still itty bitty but bigger than last week (the size of a poppy seed).

Feeling good! Little to no cramping anymore and I purchased prenatals yesterday (finally) so we are going strong!!! Still exhausted all the time but I'm happy I have SOME kind of symptom to show me there really is a little one growing.

I found a place...

...that does ultrasounds independently for a minimal cost =) I am so excited! It's only about 10 minutes from my house... I went to their website and they have a few different "packages" for different trimesters that you are in.

If our doctor doesn't get us an initial u/s this week or by our next appt (approx 9 weeks) Alex and I thought it would be cool to go get a cheap one done at this place we found. We wanted an u/s picture done so we can use it to tell our families that we are expecting again =D

Also, they offer 3d/4d ultrasounds... They are a bit more costly but I think it would be really neat to do in the late second/early third trimester. My mom said something about coming out to visit us sometime this spring, so I thought "how awesome would it be to have both my mom and Alex's mom come see their new grandbaby in action?" We will see how Alex feels about this though, lol! It all depends on if we will have the extra money once bills are paid... we shall see!