Week 13-Disneyland!

Symptoms: Last week was week 13 of pregnancy and it was a doozie. I was still throwing up most mornings, it seemed to help if I took my prenatal vitamin at night instead of during the day, though. Going to Disneyland didn't help, either. Don't get me wrong, though! The park was great and John and I enjoyed ourselves more than we thought we would. But the travelling....that was bad. I was praying so hard that I wouldn't throw up on the bus, but that prayer wasn't answered but I'm ok with it. With the constant motion of the bus for 20+ hours, it was nearly impossible not to feel sick. Plus, I think it helped my students realize that this is a difficult time for me. The Chacos that I bought would have been awesome if I broke them in sooner and if it wasn't scorching hot during the afternoon. I burned my feet so that made walking around Disneyland a bit uncomfortable. But after a full days walk, they were broken in. I am so glad I bought those dresses from Ross last week because they were seriously so comfortable! When we weren't travelling, though, I felt like my old self again! That was an amazing feeling!

Cravings/Aversions: I still love fresh foods. At Disneyland I wanted a good fresh salad, I found a caesar salad without homemade dressing that was delicious! Unfortunately, the fruit and veggies we bought and put in our hotel fridge froze and thawed out. Thawed out apples...they are pretty gross. Fortunately, our grape tomatoes and bananas were saved. YUM!! ICE CREAM!! We had ice cream at Disneyland 3 times. Man, it was so good! Oatmeal was also another craving. I ate oatmeal for breakfast every morning. The thought of pancakes and waffles still makes me gag. Also, John was eating Doritos on the bus and they smelled so nasty.

Isn't that the tiniest carton of milk you've ever seen? So cute!

Best Moment(s) of the Week: Honestly, just being with John at Disneyland and enjoying ourselves, because last time we went a year ago we did not enjoy ourselves. We had fun just going on the kiddie rides, and then going on one ride that I maybe shouldn't have gone on--Grizzly River Rapids. But I figured it couldn't be less turbulent and sickening as our bus ride to Anaheim, so I went on in. It was 8:00 by the time we got to the ride and there was only a 5 minute wait. Uh-awesome! It was maybe a little cold but not that bad at all. We got on with a group of kids from a choir in the bay area. They saw my, "I'm Celebrating" pin that I got from Disneyland City Hall, and one kid said, "Happy Birthday, by the way." I was a little confused and then said, "Oh! I'm pregnant!" That kind of startled them, then we all talked about awesome names we might name our little one. Also, meeting Mickey. I was super super nervous to meet Mickey. They make you walk through his house. We had met Minnie the day before and her house isn't all that big, but Mickey's just kept going and going. I was wondering if we actually going to meet him. Finally we got to the end and saw a line to meet him. My heart was pounding. I told him I was expecting but I don't think he heard. But we still got a pretty good picture with him. Here's the result:

Our Little Caterpie is the size of a peach...mmm...peaches sound good right now. 

• Can you believe our little one is forming vocal cords and teeth?! Wonder if he or she will be able to sing well.
• And even though he/she's still teeny, they already have fingerprints.
• Their intestines are moving from the umbilical cord to their more permanent place, in their tummy. I just think this is the craziest thing. 

Week 12

Symptoms: I am living day to day and during week 12 I have been living minute by minute most days. It's been a stressful several weeks preparing the music department to go to Disneyland plus 2 concerts (1 being the big high school music department concert which was 2 hours). It's no help that the kids just want a break, too. I can maybe count 2 days that I did not throw up in the morning. I'm just super tired all the time and I feel like crying or just whimpering for no reason. On Monday I received a nasty email from one of colleagues that made me cry and my girls in women's choir were super supportive as I just blubbered my way through a half-baked lesson even though our concert was the next day. I feel like a big baby when it happens. AND the secretary happened to walk in my room AGAIN while I was crying. I just felt pathetic.  On Friday, I came home exhausted and could barely move. On Saturday, though, I had energy to clean the entire house with John's help, and go out shopping for over 4 hours. I felt awesome!! I bought 2 pretty new dresses from Ross that will work well with my growing belly. But what I was really looking for were some nice Chacos for the upcoming Disneyland trip this next week. I told myself, "Hey, you're pregnant! You're not going to be able to enjoy most of the rides, and you're going to be there from 8am-12am against your will....you're going to buy yourself some nice comfortable shoes." I finally did find some after searching and searching and I have them on hold until Monday. I've never spent so much money on one pair of shoes before but I feel like they will be a good investment and will be my go to shoe in the coming months.

Cravings/Aversions: mmmm Jelly Beans...short lived though..fruits, tuna fish sandwiches (I haven't had them in over a year and suddenly they sound amazing! They are packed with protein!), Great Harvest pumpkin chocolate chip bread.

Best Moment(s) of the Weeks: Hearing our little caterpie's heartbeat at my 12 week appointment on Wednesday. I so wanted an ultrasound but I guess you don't get those until 20 weeks. But it was amazing to hear life in me and this huge wave of love rushed over me.

Our Little Caterpie is the size of a plum, or

• Most of Caterpie's critical systems are fully formed!
• He or she is about to enter the growth and maturation stage, in which her organs and tissues will grow and develop rapidly.
• He or she is now developing her reflexes — if you poke her body, she'll likely move.
• He or she is opening and closing her fingers and curling her toes, too.
• His or her brain is developing fast!

Week 11

Symptoms: Mood swings and I am sure my husband would agree to this--I am Mrs. Crankybutt. I know there are mothers-to-be out there that have it way worse than I do and I count my blessings but I am so cranky all the time because I hate feeling like crap. I have personal space issues, too. Sure there are moments of happiness and laughs where I want to cuddle with my husband but...then 5 minutes later everything changes. This is the week of throwing up--a total of 3 times. Yippeeeeee...but I've heard that's a good sign because everything is going as it should. It's hard to stay motivated and moving but it does make me feel better for a brief period.

Cravings/Aversions: fruits, Arby's (are roast beef sandwiches ok??? I hope so.......), bagels with cream cheese, Pop Tarts which I later regretted. We had chopped onions in the fridge and they stunk up the entire fridge...I didn't last long after that smelling that..I can finally drink more water but it has to be cold through a straw...sure that creates more burping but I am finally getting some much needed fluids

Best Moment(s) of the Week: Having Friday off. I took a sick day on an inservice day...good thing, too! I really did feel sick all day and slept from 10am-3pm. 

There is a brother in my ward, Eric Wenstrom, who conducts the Teton Chamber Orchestra and he invited me to play with them this weekend with LDS pianist William Joseph. It was a great concert filled with fun music and great musicians. I enjoyed meeting new people and playing in a more relaxed atmosphere. The concert was amazing, too, although I was trying not to throw up during the whole thing. 

Our Littler Caterpie is the size of a lime or about 1.6 inches

• Our little baby is moving a lot even though I can't feel it
• His or her skin is actually see-through
• No more webbed fingers and toes (I can't wait to touch and kiss those little fingers and toes)
• Tooth buds, hair follicles, and nail beds are forming