I can make people…what’s your superpower?

I saw a tee-shirt a couple of weeks ago that made me chuckle:

It started as just a joke, but after this morning, I really am starting to feel like a Super Hero!  I’ve experienced (as a lot of women do) a heightened sense of smell since I’ve been pregnant.  During my first trimester it led me to the nearest toilet bowl, but now I’ve learned to embrace my Spidey sense!

Around 6:00 this morning I woke up to the putrid smell of gas filling the room.  I turned over to Greg and asked if he could smell it.  He couldn’t.

“Greg – you can’t smell that? I’m telling you, it’s gas.”

“Lin, I really don’t smell it.  Maybe, there is a little nail polish remover smell.  They are renovating the second floor so maybe it’s polyurethane or something.”

“No, Greg. It’s gas. Like at a gas station.”

So while I took a shower, my caring husband went to investigate.  About 15 minutes later, he returned with a smile and said:

“Well pregnant lady – you were right!”

An old lawn mower in the basement was leaking gas.  And yours truly smelled it from upstairs!

My father-in-law (retired fire fighter) will be proud

 

Bump is the New Black

Being a pregnant fashionista is tough!  As the belly grows, the wardrobe goes.  The last time I felt comfortable in my tight fitting clothes was on my anniversary.  Greg and I had an amazing evening planned: dinner at Abe & Louie’s followed by a showing of Wicked at the Oprah house.  So I put on a sexy shirt, black pants, and a leather jacket.  As I glided up to my full-length mirror and turned to my side, gazing lovingly at my barely visible baby bump, I thought to myself with satisfaction, “Bump is the new black!”  I felt like the cutest little pregnant lady, fitting into my normal clothes, bump and all!  I even made Greg take a picture, although it took him a while to find an angle that showcased the belly:

Looking at this picture now, I can understand why Greg had to take so many trial shots!  If I could go back in time and talk to anniversary night Lindsay I would say, “Girl…just you wait!  The bump is coming!”

And it did.  Between week 19 and week 20, I popped.

This Monday after work I put on a fashion show of dresses for Greg.  My goal was to pick out an outfit for a wedding this weekend.  I honestly believed that at least one of my dresses would fit!  Well, I was wrong.  Very, very wrong.

Pregg’s Fashion Fowl #1: My baby belly is pulling the back of the dress!

Pregg’s Fashion Fowl #2: They were big before, but these ladies can’t be tamed!

Pregg’s Fashion Fowl #3: I swear this used to zip up all the way!

The whole photo session was quite comical – I’m sure the baby was laughing along with us in utero.  I looked over at Greg with grin on my face and said, “You know what this means, right? I get to go SHOPPING tomorrow!”  What can I say?  I am just a girl who loves pretty things

The following day at one of my favorite stores, Free People I found the perfect dress. I’m emphasizing the belly bump here, but I love the bright color, the silky material, and how the dress flows.

I love my baby bump.  You don’t need to be a fashionista when your pregnant.  After all, bump is the new black as far as I’m concerned.  And you don’t argue with a pregnant lady.

It’s a….

My mom came with me to my 16-week ultra-sound.  Over her “Oh Wow’s” and “Oh Lindsay’s” I was able to ask the doctor a few important questions!  Her first comment as she rubbed the ultra-sound instrument around my belly was that I had a very active baby.  He was kicking around and doing a very impressive head stand.  I asked about the heart rate, which was 149 bpm (very healthy).  And then I asked whether she could decipher the sex.  She looked over at me and questioned whether I was sure I wanted to know whether I was having a boy or a girl so early to which I replied:

Yes, Doctor.  I’m a first-born, a pieces, and a planner.  I need to know.

It’s a boy!

Greg and I would have been happy regardless of the sex.  All we want is a healthy baby!  However, Greg is the last of the boy Benson’s in his family who can pass on his name, so for that reason, it is exciting that we are having a boy.  We love the name Cole Benson and are leaning towards that as being our baby’s name!  But who knows…still plenty of time to decide!

Okay – this feels really real now!!!!

“He has my lips!”

The next few weeks are filled with naps, visits to the toilet, and hormonal rantings and ravings.  I can honestly say that my husband is the most patient man on the planet and I fall in love with him more and more every day.  This pregnancy has taken my craziness to a whole new level! I was driving home from work, 12 weeks pregnant, totally exhausted, but otherwise feeling pretty normal.  Then out of nowhere I started crying my eyes out!  I called Greg and he calmly explained:

“Lin – the reason you are crying is because you have hormones rushing through your body. You are very pregnant. Just get home safely, lie down for a bit, and you’ll feel much better…”

Seriously – I’m so lucky to have him.  He didn’t try to fix me and tell me to stop being upset.  He made me feel normal for feeling how I felt!  Does that sentence make sense??

The high point of week 12 was when we got to see Baby Benson again.  During the ultra sound, the doctor asked whether we wanted to know the gender to which we replied in unison – YES!  He said that he can sometimes be wrong this early, but he was pretty sure that the baby is a boy.  Here is our conversation after the doctor leaves the room:

Greg: I knew it was a boy as soon as I saw him.

Me: How?!

Greg: Because he looks like me…and has my lips.

Me: He doesn’t look like anyone yet…he looks like an alien at this point!

Greg: *Shrug* & *Grin* I can see it…

What do you all think?

We can’t wait to find out for sure whether we are having a boy or a girl!  We will be thrilled either way…all we want is a healthy, happy baby.

Baby B travels to Lake Champlain

Nestled between the Adirondack Mountains in New York and the Green Mountains in Vermont is Lake Champlain.  Greg and I booked a trip last year with a group of friends to stay on Garden Island on Lake Champlain.  The vacation was planned long in advance…unlike Baby Benson.  In fact, when Greg and I decided to start a family, we thought it might take awhile, and that there would be no way I’d be pregnant for this fun-filled vacation full of lake activities.  However, Baby B had other plans, so up we go to Lake Champlain – 9 weeks pregnant.

I have always loved the water.  My Dad’s side of the family has enjoyed Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire for generations, which is where this passion stems from.  Many of my first memories are from my summers at the lake.  Whether it’s swimming, water skiing, tubing, knee boarding, wake boarding – I love it all, and I’ve been doing it for a long time.  As you can see from the photo below, my Dad might have had something to do with it:

Dad teaching me to ski

So you can imagine how excited I was to be spending an entire week on Lake Champlain, one of the most beautiful lakes in the country!  Well, something happens when your pregnant.  You lose a lot of your energy, and a lot of activities become dangerous for the baby.  So here I was on Lake Champlain and instead of tubing with everyone, I was napping on the hammock.  Not that there is anything wrong with napping!  The cool thing is that three ladies on the trip were pregnant, and each of us represented a different trimester.  It was nice to have other people in the same boat as you – pun intended.  We are all so excited to have kids at the same time!

Our week on Garden Island was one of the best  vacations I’ve ever had.  We got to explore the island, paddle boat, swim, and just RELAX!  The sunset on Garden Island was breathtaking, and although Baby B couldn’t see how beautiful it was, I hope he/she could feel my happiness.

The Benson’s first family (sort of) vacation was wonderful!  And next time we visit Garden Island, Baby B can wear this tee-shirt!!

The Gummy Bear Stage

During my eighth week of pregnancy there are several things I know for sure:

1. Mexican food is gross
2. Green grapes are God’s gift to my stomach
3. All pregnant woman should be allowed an afternoon nap
4. My baby is the size of a kidney bean
5. I’m about to see my baby for the first time via ultra sound

Being a first-time mom I have no idea what to expect at this ultra sound. Questions are rolling through my mind.  Will I be able to see anything? Will there be a heartbeat?  How will Greg react?  Will the baby be growing properly?  Am I eating enough healthy foods?  The list goes on…

My overworked brain freezes the moment I see that beautiful little blob on the screen and see the heart beat flickering.  I’m told that my estimated due date is March 7th and the baby’s heartbeat is 151 beats per minute.  Perfection. The ultra sound tech calls this the gummy bear stage – makes sense, right?

Seeing the baby changes everything.  I realize that I’m no longer the most important person in my world.  Greg and I step outside and look at each other with giddy grins on our faces.  It’s official.  We are going be parents!

The Blood Type Debacle

Pregnancy brings to light so many things I never knew about myself.  For example, I never knew that I had O – blood type.  And more importantly, I never knew that my blood type could potentially harm my baby!  At six weeks pregnant a couple new phrases were added to my vocabulary: Rh negative and RhoGAM shot.

A midwife calls me one afternoon and brings to my attention that I have O – blood type, which means that I am Rh negative.  If I am carrying an Rh positive baby then my body will treat the baby like a disease and try to fight it.  Yeah – creepy.  She advises that I make an appointment right away (this afternoon or tomorrow morning) to come into the doctor’s office and get the RhoGAM shot.  This shot will stop my body from creating antibodies based on the Rh factor.  A lot of medical speak, but basically it translates as follows:  I need to get this shot (in my butt – ouch) ASAP to make sure there isn’t any belly matches going on.

After doing a little research on the subject I quickly identify a missing piece to the puzzle that the midwife neglects to tell me.  If my husband is also O – then I don’t need the RhoGAM shot.  I know… what are the odds that Greg and I happen to have the same blood type, especially since this is one of the more rare blood types.  Regardless, I go home that night and tell Greg the whole story and ask whether he knows what blood type he has.  He tells me about a blood type activity he did in the 10^th grade and recalls joking about being the universal donor (O -), but doesn’t know for sure.

Fast forward to the next morning.  The first thing I have to do when I get to the office is get more blood drawn.  I’ve become good friends with the phlebotomist at this point after being poked and prodded several times in the past couple weeks.  After I explain to her my Rh negative situation, her first response is to ask whether they tested my husband’s blood type yet?  Ha!  After the blood draw was done I marched right into the small waiting room to wait for my midwife to appear.  Please note that today I am seeing a different midwife than the one I spoke to one the phone who prescribed the shot.  Once she came into the room I told her that unless my Rh negative status is going to have any immediate harm on my baby then I’d like my husband’s blood type to be tested before we confirm that I need this shot.  How did this midwife respond?  She asks:

“You could still be pregnant?”

Can you imagine?  Who asks that question to an obviously nervous, first-time, crazy pregnant woman?  All I could think of was that she knew something I didn’t know.  Check my charts for goodness sake!  Naturally I respond:

“Last time I checked – yes!”

She proceeds to tell me that normally it’s only after a miscarriage that someone would get the RhoGAM shot so early.  And that yes it would be perfectly fine to check my husband’s blood type before making a decision.  This story does have a happy ending, because Greg has O – blood type.  I fell in love with him even more that day.  It’s kind of funny that the last thing I’ve learned about myself is the first sure thing I know about baby Benson: our growing family is going to share the same blood type!

Love at first site…of the test strip

Through the bedroom window a cool morning breeze brushes against my cheek.  I quietly remove the covers and sneak out of the room so as not to wake my husband. While pouring a glass of water… I ponder romantic and unique ways to tell the love of my life that we are having a baby.

***

Life doesn’t happen like the movies. And I’m certainly no Grace Kelly.  The truth is that most of the time I feel like I’m just kind of stumbling along feeling a bit goofy and awkward, but in a confident sort of way.  So if you are hoping for me to share stories of raindrops on roses – I will sometimes deliver that.  After all, I’m creating the greatest miracle I could ever imagine.  But like I said, life doesn’t happen like the movies, and I can already say that the journey of pregnancy is unpredictable.  I’ll share with you the good, the bad, the funny, and the strange.

***

While choking down a glass of water I stare for another moment at the double blue line on the EPT test, check the instructions on the box (for the eighth time) to make sure I’m reading it right, and call my husband to ask him to pick up more pregnancy tests on his way home.  The conversation went something like this:

“Hello?”

“Greg – we had a leftover pregnancy test and I took it because I’m usually really regular but I’m a couple days late so I took it and it showed the two blue lines so I think I’m pregnant but I think I should take more tests so can you pick up more at CVS?”

“How many should I get?” (nothing phases my wonderful husband)

“Five boxes please.”

Five boxes later – there was still a double line.  And it was love at first site.