Little Saka Sugar #2: The First Trimester

Little Saka Sugar by Woody Guthrie has become one of my favorite children's songs and now we are expecting our second! I haven't documented this pregnancy like I did with Eloise because it seems to be flying by much more quickly, and it's a very similar experience. I am, however, cherishing it just as much as I did the first time. We only want two kids so this is the last time I will have the opportunity to experience pregnancy.

We got this positive pregnancy test on September 6, 2014. Unlike with Eloise, I had been tracking my cycle for a month prior to starting to try for a second kid by taking my basal body temperature daily and also taking daily ovulation predictor tests, so I knew exactly when I ovulated. As a result, and with good fortune, we were able to conceive the very first month of trying. Not what I was expecting but certainly a wonderful outcome! According to the date of ovulation, that makes the due date May 20. According to the first day of my last period, the due date is May 17. And according to the first measurement ultrasound, the due date is May 16. So, take your pick. I'm not invested in any particular date knowing that he'll arrive when it's his time to arrive, probably sometime in the first half of May.

We really liked the midwife that delivered Eloise, Jodi Arnoff Farerra, so we chose her for prenatal care this pregnancy. She is competent, respectful, and calm under pressure. She also has a lighthearted bedside manner that I appreciate. Per policy, our first prenatal appointment had to be between 8-10 weeks, so there was a period of a few weeks of holding our breath and hoping I didn't miscarry. Once you see a heartbeat on ultrasound after 8 weeks then chances of miscarriage are less than 5%. So, our first prenatal appointment was at 8 weeks and 3 days, and thankfully we saw a heartbeat! Here's the first ultrasound picture, and also a picture of what I looked like at that time.

I started showing about a month earlier this time around, and have continued to look about a month ahead of what I did before. Apparently your uterus never shrinks all the way back and your abs, joints, and ligaments give way more easily. All the body changes have been much easier to handle this time around because they're familiar. Likewise, the symphysis pubis dysfunction I developed during the third trimester last pregnancy due to a running injury returned very early in this pregnancy, as my OB predicted. I was able to run one race, the Volcano Race PDX on Mt. Tabor around 8 weeks, before the pain returned and I was benched. No big deal to me this time, pregnancy is temporary and the sacrifice is so worth it. Here's our first family of four photo, but no one knew except us and a few family members.

We announced our pregnancy more broadly at the end of the first trimester during a vacation to Maui. Evan appropriately drew this heart in the sand on Baby Beach.

My morning sickness and fatigue this pregnancy started earlier and lasted longer, however, it wasn't as intense as last time. And since I opened a private practice after Eloise was born, my work/life balance is better and I have been able to take much better care of myself so it was all around easier. After we returned from Hawaii, I had some of the genetic testing available to mothers of "advanced maternal age" (called Elderly Multi Gravida since it's my second, by the way). Technology has advanced since Eloise and the blood test I took, MaterniT21, had 99% accuracy. Thankfully, this kid has a <1% chance of having Down Syndrome and some of the trisomies. As before, we wouldn't have terminated the pregnancy, however we wanted to know in order to have time to prepare.