Oh, Baby!!!
/Big news! We’re having a baaaaaby! A real-life human baby!
To anyone struggling with infertility, loss, adoption challenges, or any other heartache in the parenthood journey, I’m here for you. Below, I’m sharing my pregnancy and the highs/lows of our journey so far. If any of this is triggering for you, I’m sorry and completely understand you not reading further. Know that I have lots of non-baby-related blog content coming soon, too. <3
Yep, a real-life human baby! Complete with two little feet seen in the ultrasound above.
I’m excited to finally share this with you all! I’m going to tell you more about baby, pregnancy, and our experience with planning for a baby during a pandemic in an FAQ format below.
When are you due?
Baby is due in early July! I’m currently 21 weeks along and starting to really feel like we’re having a baby in just a matter of months. It took a long time for it to feel “real” but it is definitely feeling real now. In the photo directly above, I think you can see the shock/amazement/terror/excitement in my eyes right after our first appointment.
How are you feeling?
I’m finally feeling better. The first trimester was dreadful and I felt terrible all day long for weeks on end. I mention this not for pity but rather to share that this early time in pregnancy is really rough and I wish more pregnant people had support during this time. I think it’s such a shame that pregnant people spend their first trimester in isolation when the pregnancy is a secret. Please support those that share with you early on, because it’s so helpful to have emotional and physical help. I didn’t realize how bad it could be - the movies make it look so breezy, and that certainly isn’t the case for everyone.
Is this why you took a long break from the blog and Instagram?
Yep! I started feeling super tired at week five, then undeniably sick at week six. I barely left my bedroom for two months, so I didn’t get much blogging or home renovations done. Thanks for your patience with me during this time. I luckily have my energy back and I’m anxious to share home renovation projects with you now!
What’s pregnancy like in the pandemic?
Not great. We wanted to get pregnant at the end of 2019, but stopped trying when the pandemic hit. Things were really scary, Ross’ work was completely obliterated, our futures and our health were uncertain, it felt way too isolating of a time to go through a major life change, and I felt guilty putting a strain on the medical system. But, as the pandemic went on, as we got used to how to live with masks and distance from loved ones, as we realized this is basically our new normal, as we saw how much of our lives we put on hold, and as we saw a positive future with vaccines, we decided to not keep our life on hold forever. So, here we are today! Things are still scary, we’re still isolating from loved ones, and we’re taking every precaution, but we’re feeling hopeful that our communities are being vaccinated and we’re looking forward to nesting at home with baby while Ross’ work is still slow.
The pandemic is also affecting the way we’re experiencing the pregnancy medically. I wasn’t able to go in for my first appointment until 11 weeks which felt like forever since getting a positive pregnancy test at week 5. Ross isn’t allowed to come inside so we had to FaceTime for him to see the first ultrasound. He also had to listen to a recording of the heartbeat after I heard it at my 15-week appointment. And he had to anxiously wait for over an hour in the car while I got the 20-week anatomy scan. I hate that he’s missing out on these things because he’s so involved and we work as a team, but this is the sacrifice to keep our community safe. My doctor also schedules telephone appointments whenever an in-person isn’t necessary, which is nice for the safety of everyone involved.
The exciting news is that I’m eligible to get the vaccine as early as March 15! I’m enthusiastic about this because all reliable research on previous vaccines, effects of COVID in pregnancy on baby immunity, and the placental antibody transfer, say that once my body gets the vaccine and builds antibodies, it will pass these on to baby and therefore baby will be born with my same level of immunity from COVID. I truly can’t think of a better gift to my child than this safety, and what peace of mind we will have as new parents! And I feel comfortable with the vaccine in pregnancy due to the latest data and understanding of the speed in which the vaccine breaks down in the body. I know people have strong opinions on vaccines. I have carefully made my decision, and if you feel differently, I respectfully ask that you please keep it to yourself.
Which room will be the nursery?
We’re already in the process of converting the den to the nursery! I mentioned on Instagram Stories that we were getting rid of the couch with the pull-out bed, and I think that was a clue for some folks. You got me! But baby needs aside, this room was in need of a change because we don’t even use that space now that the TV is in our bedroom, we don’t plan on hosting guests anytime soon due to COVID, and we rarely ever hosted guests at all. The den is right next to our room and will make for perfect nighttime baby access. I already have some design elements picked out and will be sure to share those with you soon.
Do you have names picked out?
In my typical fashion, I’ve had a spreadsheet of baby names for over a decade and I add to it whenever I hear a new name I like. We’ve narrowed the list down from 257 names to three favorites. But, we’re keeping these names a secret. I will say that my goal for a name is for it to sound like baby could host an NPR show - a cool, somewhat unique, not too trendy nor too dated name that sounds like baby could do some serious investigative journalism. We’ve also started placing food pick-up orders under our favorite names to see how well understood the name is through a phone call or through a mask. Let’s just say some names work better than others, but I’m not ready to give up on them just yet.
I think that’s about it for the FAQs that I’ve been getting from friends and family! I’ll be sharing nursery planning and a few baby things here and there along the way (such as my favorite pregnancy education book), but don’t expect this to become a parenting blog nor will I fill my Instagram feed with baby photos. I’m still me, I’ll just have a small human by my side.
When I was hunting for a song to set my Instagram video announcement to, I ended up making a playlist of good (non-cheesy) songs with the word “baby” in the chorus. Thought you might enjoy the tunes, too.
