Race PRs

As a runner when I find another running blog or meet someone who runs I'm always curious about their times and I get excited when I find someone whose times are comparable to mine. I really enjoy pages on blogs where the writer lists out her fastest times. I was recently looking at one such post and felt inclined to write one of my own, listing out PRs overall as well as pregnant and after having children. I feel it will show my progress and change as a runner through huge life events as well as help me track my times. Some of my pre-pregnancy PRs I know I will never touch so it's nice to have post-baby PRs to focus on. Here are my fastest times pre-baby, pregnant, and post-baby listed out by distance.  There's something about the 10k distance.  For some reason I never run it.  I've run so many 5ks and half-marathons I couldn't even guess the number, but I've only ever run maybe five 10k races.  I had a hard time even finding race times for that distance, so I think the time listed is my PR.

5k

Pre-baby:

18:27 (2007 MSSU Stampede)

Pregnant 1st Trimester:

23:11 (2014 Zoo Run at 13 Weeks)

Pregnant 2nd Trimester:

23:05 (2014 Jingle Bell Run at 23 Weeks)

Pregnant 3rd Trimester:

23:54 (2015 Runway Run at 28 Weeks)

Post-baby:

20:59 (2014 Get Busy Livin 5k)

2007 MSSU Stampede last quarter-mile.

Finishing the 2014 Get Busy Livin 5k.

Finishing the 2014 Jingle Bell 5k pregnant with Elise.

10k
Pre-baby:
42:something (I haven't run very many 10k's and unfortunately the only ones I've run were small and didn't have online results.  So I'm going off running notes I took years ago that don't have much detail.)
Post-baby:
49:52 (2013 Aquarium Run, my 4th race back after Carter was born and the only 10k I've run since)

Posing with Carter after the race.

Half-Marathon

Pre-baby:

1:31:35 (2007 Mighty Mo Half)

Pregnant 1st Trimester:

None Completed

Pregnant 2nd Trimester:

1:56:44 (2014 Prairie Fire at 14 Weeks)

Pregnant 3rd Trimester:

2:19:57 (2012 Route 66 at 32 Weeks)

Post-Baby:

1:36:51 (2013 Jenks Half)

Running the 2012 Route 66 Half Marathon pregnant with Carter.

Finishing the 2013 Jenks Half Marathon.

Finishing the 2014 Prairie Fire Half Marathon pregnant with Elise.

Marathon

Pre-baby:
3:40:05 (2008 Route 66 Marathon)

Running the 2008 Route 66 Marathon (my first and fastest marathon).

Other Favorite Races

Wedding Day 5k:
My mom came up with the idea of running a 5k the morning of our wedding.  We ran the race out at the trails where Ty proposed to me.  I ran the race with Ty and it was the most time we had alone during the entire day.  The race ended up being one of my favorite memories from the day.

Gorilla Dash:
This was my first obstacle course race.  Ty wanted to sign up for it after running a race that morning.  At first I thought he was crazy, but he talked me into it along with my mom and dad.  We all ran together as a 4 person team and it was a blast!

 
Tough Mudder: 
Another race Ty wanted to do that I thought he was crazy for doing!  This one was an 11 mile obstacle course race.  Jeremy and Thomas also ran it and it was a blast running all together!  The most memorable moment for me was making it across the monkey bars!

Running During the First Trimester With #2

Now that the first trimester has come to a close I find myself reflecting on how running was different this time around than when I was pregnant with Carter.  There were some similarities but this pregnancy has also been a completely new experience, read my 1st trimester comparison here.  You can read about running during the first trimester when I was pregnant with Carter here.  I slowed down quite a bit during the first trimester just like I did before.  I went from running 8:00-9:00 minute pace on an average day to 9:00-10:00 minute pace.  This time around I was running with Carter in the stroller so that slowed me down compared to what I ran during my last pregnancy, but my pace slowed by about a minute per mile on average which was the same as my pregnancy with Carter.  The slowing down of my pace seems to be where the similarities end.  Most everything else about running during pregnancy was different this time around.

Getting a break from pushing the stroller, thanks to running with dad!

When I was pregnant with Carter I first became suspicious because my running suffered dramatically.  I was struggling to hit times and my legs burned during runs.  Sometimes the burning sensation got a little bit better toward the end of the run, but most the time it didn't.  This time I had no clue I was pregnant.  We were on a trip to Virginia during the first few weeks and I got the chance to run with Jeremy.  I was able to maintain an 8:00 minute mile relatively comfortably and didn't feel off with my running other than that I was in a different place and I'd spent 6 hours in the car so my legs felt weird.  Once we found out we were pregnant I waited for the burning sensation to return, but it never did.  I was very thankful for that!

Surprisingly I was much calmer about running this time around too.  You would think after having a miscarriage I would be worried and guarded about running, but having the miscarriage made me realize that some things are just out of my control.  I did the exact same thing running-wise during those first weeks with the miscarriage as I had during my pregnancy with Carter.  So I decided this time around I would do whatever seemed right and felt the best.  I had signed up for an October half-marathon last year after completing it.  That was before we had decided I would stay at home, so we still thought we'd have to have a 3-4 year age difference between Carter and Baby #2 because we couldn't afford 2 children in daycare.  At the time there was no question that I'd be able to run the race because there was no way I'd be pregnant.  But then we decided I'd stay home and everything changed.  After really thinking things over and considering the timing, I decided to go ahead and train for the half-marathon.  During the week I typically ran 3 miles a day with a few 4 milers thrown in and on the weekend I'd get in a long run.  My weekly mileage was usually around 20 miles compared to the 12 miles per week I did with Carter.  I also ran what felt comfortable and didn't worry about trying to talk to myself to make sure I was at conversational pace.  I trusted my body to tell me what was right and made sure not to run out of my comfort zone.  I always ran with a water in the stroller cup holder so I drank quite a bit on runs.

When I was pregnant with Carter running perked me up and gave me more energy.  That has not been the case this time around.  I'm so much more tired on days that I run and I usually feel ready for a nap after I get home.  I don't feel exhausted or tired during the runs though.  During my runs I feel awesome and in-shape and strong.  With Carter I would barely make it a mile out before turning around simply because I was soooo tired!  Strange how those feelings have flip flopped, but I prefer it how it is now.  I've been way less tired and exhausted in general this time around which makes me not mind runs making me sleepy.

The timing of this pregnancy worked out to where I was only signed up for one race during the first trimester.  When we got pregnant with Carter I was already signed up for quite a few spring races that fell during the first trimester.  Then I only had a couple races during the 2nd trimester in the summer.  Since the first trimester this time around fell almost entirely in the summer I wasn't registered for any races until the fall.  My only race during the first trimester fell at the very end of the trimester when I was 13 weeks, 5 days pregnant, so nearly in the 2nd trimester.  I was already starting to feel a bit better by that point and didn't worry about my pace during the race like I had the races when I was pregnant with Carter.

After the Zoo Run, my only 5k during the 1st trimester this time.

I entered this pregnancy in better running shape than I did our pregnancy with Carter.  I ran a 20:59 5k in April, took some time for just easy running, and then ran a 21:25 5k in July just weeks before finding out we were pregnant.  I had worked up to a 10 mile long run in preparation for our fall half-marathon in October and was feeling strong.  Going into the pregnancy with Carter my fastest recent 5k was a 23:18 and my long run was built up to 8 miles.  Add in the exhaustion aspect from our pregnancy with Carter and the not being as exhausted this time around and my running has been much faster and stronger than it was with Carter.

Luckily with Carter my pregnancy was low-risk all the way across the board with no complications.  With Baby #2 I found out at 12 weeks that I had placenta previa so I was a little bit paranoid about that, always checking to make sure I wasn't bleeding and afraid running too far or too fast would cause bleeding.  I had no bleeding during the entire 1st trimester and hope that continues on for the rest of the pregnancy!  Even with that considered running this time around has been easier and more enjoyable and I am very thankful for that!

I was looking through my mom's pictures for ones of me running and found this one from the first trimester and couldn't resist!

The First Trimester Comparison

As the 1st trimester of this pregnancy is wrapping up and the 2nd trimester is very welcomed as it rolls in, I find myself reflecting on how it has been different than when I was pregnant with Carter.  At my first doctor's appointment I mentioned some cramping I was feeling and freaking out a little bit about and he responded with something along the lines of: "Subsequent pregnancies are just harder.  They are harder on your body, on you, it will be different."  In the very beginning I felt that was so true.  I was cramping when I hadn't with Carter.  I was miserably sick starting at 5 weeks when I didn't get nauseous until around 8 weeks with Carter.  I had 3 migraines in one week soon after we had a positive pregnancy test.  But then that was it, 3 migraines in one week and I haven't had one since.  When I was pregnant with Carter I had 2-4 migraines every week for most of the 1st trimester.  It was rough.  Along with migraines always comes nausea for me.  So I was also nauseous, but not the morning sickness nausea.

I don't know why, but I feel like I looked so cute with Carter and just look pudgy this time.  Not sure if it's because I came into this one with a softer midsection than with Carter or if I'm carrying differently or something.

When I was pregnant with Carter people would tell me I was so lucky to not have morning sickness, but I wasn't sure what was worse morning sickness or migraines.  Now that I've struggled with morning sickness this time I can hands down declare that migraines are worse.  At least the kinds of migraines I have compared to the severity of morning sickness I had.  I only actually threw up twice, so I definitely didn't have severe morning sickness whereas my migraines were debilitating.  I distinctly remember one day at school sitting on the floor wracked with a migraine and severe nausea, rocking back and forth and hoping I wouldn't randomly throw up on one of the children sitting in my little circle for a guided reading small group.  The most frustrating thing about morning sickness to me was that I couldn't eat and when I was able to eat it wasn't healthy and I could only think of a select few things that didn't sound totally disgusting.  There were days where I felt so bad, Carter and I didn't leave the house.  One day I gave up trying to keep Carter engaged physically and mentally in productive learning activities and we sat and watched half of Frozen because I still hadn't seen it and neither had Carter, but I didn't plan on him watching a movie.  Lucky for me I felt sick earlier on this time, but I also started to feel better earlier too.  With Carter I didn't start feeling better until the start of the 2nd trimester around 14 weeks.  This time I started feeling better at week 9 and really got my energy back as the 2nd trimester began.

This little guy has been so tolerant of my exhaustion and nausea!

The exhaustion has been another huge difference.  With Carter I was constantly so exhausted.  When I vacuumed I got out of breath and light headed.  When I ran I barely made it to a mile before turning around because I was so tired.  It was the most tired I had ever been in my life.  I thanked all my lucky stars that most of my 1st trimester was during the summer so I just had summer school and tutoring rather than a full school day.  Even then one time I fell asleep sitting up at tutoring for a few seconds before realizing I'd fallen asleep and freaking out that such a thing could even happen!  Sure I've been tired this time too, but nothing like what I remembered from before.  I was so worried that I wouldn't be able to do much with Carter and he would be bored.  I was really dreading the 1st trimester exhaustion.  Thankfully my exhaustion was nothing compared to when I was pregnant with Carter.  Yes, I was tired.  Yes, I needed a nap.  But I could function and relatively well.  Occasionally I got out of breath walking up stairs, vacuuming, and other every day activities but I could still carry Carter around the aquarium, climb through tunnels at the park, and chase the dogs with Carter in the backyard.  I'm not sure what I can thank for the more energetic 1st trimester.  It could be that I am at home and am able to take a nap when needed.  With Carter I only had time for about a 30 minute nap between summer school and tutoring, so I didn't get as much rest.  I also get to sleep in until Carter wakes up around 7:00 am.  With Carter I had to wake up early around 5:30-6:00 am so I could run before summer school.  It could be that I've gone through this before and my body isn't in as much shock.  It could be that I've experienced the kind of tired where I started to begin to wonder how much longer I could go without sleep before I died.  The first couple of weeks Carter was home he ate every hour.  Between nursing him, changing his diaper, swaddling him, laying him back down, and falling back to sleep myself I was sleeping in 15 minute increments at night.  It was the most exhausted I'd ever been in my life.  Now that I've experienced that, did the 1st trimester exhaustion just not seem as bad in comparison?  Whatever it was, I am so thankful.  I've been able to keep up with Carter and enjoy our time together.  Now I'm hoping for as nice of a 2nd and 3rd trimester as I had with Carter.  I'm hoping this easier 1st trimester hasn't jinxed me! 

He makes everything so much more fun!

Week 13 Bumpdate

 

I was bummed this morning because right after Ty left for work I realized I'd forgotten to have him take our weekly belly picture.  I tried setting the camera up with a self timer so I could take it, but I couldn't get it to work.  So the pictures this week were taken right after dinner.  We were going to take them before dinner, but Carter and I were too hungry.  We won't have a good comparison to what my belly looked like in the pictures from last week, but it will give us a better comparison to the belly pictures from when I was pregnant with Carter.  Back then I took all my belly pictures after work right before going out for a run and then eating dinner and sometimes forgot until after dinner, so that's about right with this week.  I'm really more bummed that Carter's not in pajamas.  There's something so adorable about him in pajamas for the pictures.  The timing also didn't work as well for him cooperation-wise.  He didn't want to stop playing to take a picture so we lured him into the frame with a book.

September 30, 2014

Baby's Size: Baby is the size of a peach and should be measuring just under 3 inches, wow, one whole inch of growth in just one week!  Baby has fingerprints and is forming vocal cords and teeth!

Weight Gain: I'm up a pound, but with how my weight has been fluctuating I could be back down to my starting weight next week.

Maternity Clothes: When I'm standing or walking around my pants fit great and I can button them.  If I'm sitting down, especially in the evening, I get really sore in my lower pelvis where my pants are tight and hit where I assume my fundus is just starting to poke out over my pelvic bone.  I feel like I'm constantly playing with my pants, but when I'm sitting down I need a hair tie to loosen my pants and when I'm standing I need them buttoned.  If I leave the hair tie in my pants while standing or walking around they slide down and irritate me.

Sleep: This week has been rough with sleep.  I skipped my naps all week because I would rather get things done and then took a 2 hour nap on Saturday because I was so tired.  I'm not sleeping very well at night.  It takes me a long time to fall asleep and then I wake up itching or really hot.  Skippy has been messing with me a lot at night.  Last night I got so frustrated I went to push him down because he was walking around right by my head and he laid down right as I did, so I accidentally hit Ty in the face.  Poor Ty is getting battered during the night this pregnancy.  Skippy is seriously driving me crazy!  Ty can sleep through a lot of the shenanigans, but I can't

Symptoms: No more cramps and I'm so thankful I have had no bleeding due to my low placenta.  I've been really worried about bleeding and probably look like a weirdo checking during my runs.  I had a really sore throat on Tuesday so I skipped out on my run and continued to feel awful Wednesday through Friday.  It turned out Carter and I both had colds.  Let me tell you, it's true what they say, being sick when you're pregnant sucks so much more!  Pretty much every morning I woke up and had dry heaves.  I also had dry heaves on a couple of runs.  I think it is due to drainage from the cold and also because my allergies are in full force right now.  Carter and I are both sneezing a lot!

Running: My weekly mileage this week was piddly at 7 miles.  I had a cold and opted out of running Tuesday through Friday with my first run back on Saturday.  That really hurt my weekly mileage, but I think it definitely led to me feeling better sooner so it was worth it!  I finally got in gear with planks and did 3 sets of 30 second planks.  I do forward facing and each side.  After starting it I forgot for a few days.  I need to get into a good routine of doing them every day.  They really helped alleviate back pain for me during my pregnancy with Carter.

Food Cravings: Mustard is still my food love right now.  I finally had a strange food combination during pregnancy when I dipped broccoli in mustard.  Maybe it's normal for some people, but not for me!  I've also been craving fish, specifically tilapia, all week long.  Unfortunately Ty won't touch fish, so nothing has come of that craving.  That makes me want it even more!

Food Aversions: I ate scrambled eggs this weekend and it went over really well!  Then I bravely put some spinach on my sandwich today with no problems!  I'm so excited, but even with those 2 aversions conquered I'm still not interested in trying BBQ.  Just the smell of it makes me queasy still.

Movement: Only 3 more weeks until our next doctor's appointment.  The weekend of our gender reveal with Carter was the weekend I felt him move for the first time.  Knowing I'm potentially close to feeling this baby move is soooo exciting!

Best Moment of the Week: Feeling better on Saturday and being able to run again!  A cold when you are pregnant with a toddler who is also sick is just a bum deal.  Also watching Carter play with the other kids at the weenie roast was so much fun.  Seeing siblings play so nicely was so cute and gets me excited every time!  

Currently Loving: Thinking of ideas for baby's gender reveal in a few weeks.  I'm definitely reusing the stuff I saved from Carter's party.  It's exciting to think in just a few short weeks I'll be able to refer to the baby as he or she rather than he/she or it!

Miss Anything: I saw pumpkin beer at the store and I was a little bit sad I couldn't have one.  And I really do mean one.  When we got those last year I only drank one, but it was so much fun to sit outside in the cool autumn breeze with our orange Halloween lights glowing while sipping on a pumpkin beer.  It felt so festive.

What Big Brother is Up to This Week: Carter enjoyed his first hayrack ride.  He's also been a stool bandit, carrying a stool around to reach high places.  Two of his canine teeth have popped through and now we're just waiting on those other 2 to make their appearance.  He had a cold along with momma and was snotty and sneezing, but is feeling much better now!  My Week 13 Bumpdate with Carter.

 

Week 12 Bumpdate

Carter says, "What's going on in here?!!?"

We had our 2nd doctor's appointment Monday.  We had another ultrasound and the doctor found that the placenta is covering my cervix which is called placenta previa.  He said it is very likely that it will shift away from my cervix as my uterus expands and my placenta grows.  I really hope that is what happens!  He said if it stays where it is I will be on exercise restriction later on and will have to have a c-section.  I had such the perfect delivery with Carter and every ounce of my being hopes that I am able to again deliver naturally.  When I made it out to the car I sat and cried for a little bit and then I realized how silly that was.  Here I was 12 weeks pregnant with a healthy baby and I was crying that I might need a c-section.  In the end it doesn't matter how the baby gets out, just that (s)he arrives safely.  Our doctor had also said the baby is measuring a bit on the big side which is totally different from Carter Man who always measured small to average at our appointments.  Baby's heart beat was 175 bpm and the doctor said we'll be able to find out the sex at our next appointment.  Just for fun, comparatively Carter's heart rate was 10 bpm slower at both appointments.  When I got home I looked up more information on placenta previa and I probably shouldn't have.  I found out that you can have heavy bleeding later on in pregnancy which could lead to an emergency preterm c-section and that I could also end up on bed rest.  Totally not ideal with a 2 year old running around.  Please pray, cross your fingers, or do a placenta dance for me, whatever you're into, that the placenta will be a sweetie like we know that baby is and go ahead and move it's hiney to where it should be.

September 23, 2014

Baby's Size: Baby is the size of a plum, (s)he measured in right at 2 inches.  Baby is entering the growth and maturation stage.

Weight Gain: Still hanging out at my starting weight for no weight gain overall.

Maternity Clothes: I'm still wearing regular clothes, but I'm at that stage where I look like I have a little bit of a beer belly.  My mom took me maternity clothes shopping, but none of the stores in their town had maternity clothes.  We ended up going through shirts on clearance and she bought me 4 shirts in bigger sizes than I'd normally wear.  They should last me through until I get really big and will make me feel less fat and frumpy now and after Baby is born and I still have a belly.

Wearing one of my new shirts mom bought me.

Sleep: For some reason I'm having a hard time falling asleep.  We'll go to bed and once Ty falls asleep I read for a while to help me fall asleep.  I'm still taking a 30 minute nap during Carter's nap time.  I'm hoping soon I'll be able to go without and get a bit more done while he's sleeping.  I had a dream I went into labor at 26 weeks which of course made me a bit more nervous about preterm delivery.  Now that I know I have placenta previa I'm a bit more worried about it, but I know it is very likely that the placenta will move on it's own.

Symptoms: I've been feeling a lot better this week.  I'm starting to get my energy back and am getting a taste of the 2nd trimester surge.  The craziest part is that I didn't realize how poorly I actually felt until I started feeling better.  I had some light cramping throughout the week.  On Saturday I had a few really strong cramps that felt like contractions.  They stopped me dead in my tracks and I couldn't talk.  Of course I totally freaked out, but after 2 cramps they went away and they were not accompanied by any bleeding.  I was thankful we had a doctor's appointment on Monday so I would be reassured everything was okay.  I keep forgetting to list that when I get really hungry I feel like I'm going to sneeze once I start eating, but I never sneeze.  It's so strange.

Running: My weekly mileage this week was 21 miles.  On Saturday I ran my 11 mile long run.  It went well, but wasn't amazing like my 10 mile run a couple weeks ago.  I was a bit slower, but hit 9:25 pace which I was pleased with.  I had no hip or round ligament pain during or after the run.  At our doctor's appointment we found out baby's placenta is covering my cervix.  The doctor said it is still safe for me to run and I can even do long runs.  He freaked me out a bit when he said his only concern is that I'll get out 6 miles somewhere and start bleeding and have no way to get to the hospital.  I think he was referring to later on if I still have placenta previa, but I decided to nix the 12 mile long run I had planned for this weekend.  I'll stick with this past weekend's 11 mile long run as my last long run and then be very careful during the half-marathon.  After that I'll scrap long runs until we find out whether the placenta has shifted or not.

Food Cravings: Still loving macaroni and cheese.  I've been all about broccoli cheddar soup and yellow mustard.  I look forward to sandwiches for lunch just so I can slather them with mustard.  I typically don't like mustard and I'm talking slather them.  To the point where my eyes twitch a little bit from the sourness of it all.  It's strange, but delicious.

Food Aversions: Same things: barbeque, eggs, spinach.  I can still eat fried eggs.  Scrambled eggs are what get me.  It's mostly seeing them.  I had fried eggs while Ty ate scrambled eggs and I couldn't look at them.

Movement: We didn't see the baby move during our ultrasound like I was hoping we would because our doctor moved so quickly.  I think part of it was the angle as well.  With Carter we had a transabdominal ultrasound at 12 weeks and this time we had a transvaginal ultrasound.  It appeared that baby was sucking his/her thumb which was adorable.  Baby is already like his/her brother!

Our little thumb sucker.

 

Best Moment of the Week: Seeing the baby on the ultrasound was so exciting even though partway through the ultrasound we were shocked by the news that I have placenta previa.  My 10 year high school reunion was on Saturday.  There was a picnic for families in the afternoon and a dinner reception in the evening.  At the picnic I got to hold a sweet, little 2 month old.  It was the best feeling to hold such a tiny baby.  It made me so excited for our baby to come.  

Currently Loving: Looking at the ultrasound pictures of our sweet baby sucking his/her thumb!  Up until now I haven't felt the baby was a boy or girl either way.  Typing this post I keep almost typing she and her.  I'm starting to lean toward baby being a girl.  It will be fun to see what we are having in 4 weeks!

Miss Anything: Nothing really.  Most everyone was drinking at the dinner/reception for our reunion and I didn't wish I could at all.

What Big Brother is Up to This Week: When I showed Carter the ultrasound pictures after our appointment he pointed at the baby and said "baby!"  When I asked him where the baby was he took off running and brought me a picture of himself as a baby that I have framed and out in the kitchen.  My Week 12 Bumpdate with Carter.  I keep looking back at my bumpdates from Carter and feeling bummed that I don't look as pregnant as I did with him.  But then I remembered that back then I was working and didn't have time to do them in the morning so we did them in the evening right before dinner and sometimes forgot until after dinner.  My belly is definitely much bigger in the evening!

 

 

Week 11 Bumpdate

Harper photo bombing.

 

September 16, 2014

Baby's Size: Baby is the size of a lime, about 1.6 inches long.  Tooth buds, hair follicles and nail beds are forming.

Weight Gain: I'm back down to my starting weight again.  That's after time at the beach indulging in ice cream and delicious food.  My weight has been fluctuating so much this whole first trimester!

Maternity Clothes: Loving my stretchy jean shorts.  I'm wearing pants that I typically wear with a belt and they fit nicely.  I haven't worn any of my tighter fitting shorts lately, but I have a feeling I would have to pull out the hair tie trick in order to get them to fit.

Sleep: I typically wake up around 3:30 am to use the restroom.  I haven't been quite as exhausted and even skipped a nap 4 different days, not by choice, but I made it through the day okay.  I had a dream one night that I went for my 12 week appointment and when the doctor did the ultrasound I looked over and thought, the baby is so adorable.  But then did a second look and realized the baby looked like a dog.  The doctor then said, "Congratulations, you are having a dog!"  I was so disappointed and told the doctor I didn't want another dog.  I hated that I would have to wait another 9 months to try and have a baby again.  It was a weird dream, but pregnancy dreams typically are!

Symptoms: We spent most of the week in Florida and I felt really good during the trip.  I was a little bit worried because I felt so good during week 10.  So far when I've had a good week, it's followed by a rough one.  Lucky for me this week was another good week.  I didn't feel nauseous until the day we flew back and started to worry I was going to throw up on the plane.  Thankfully I didn't.  Our first day home I was miserably nauseous and threw up first thing in the morning.  Carter was in our bedroom, heard me, yelled "mommy, mommy!", and came running with cars for me to play with while I threw up.  When I was finished he spit in the toilet, silly little guy!  I was also exhausted and Thomas suggested that I felt so terrible from the traveling because as he said, "I feel really tired after traveling when I'm not pregnant."

Running: I ran 10 miles last week so I could skip out on a long run while in Florida.  I didn't run further than 3 miles all week and it was nice.  I got the chance to run on the beach 3 days during our trip and it was amazing.  It was so freeing and wonderful.  There's something about running barefoot on a surface other than pavement that makes you feel one with nature.  My weekly mileage was 15 miles.  I also had the chance to go to a Barre class Amanda taught the day before we left for Medeira Beach.  I was a bit nervous I would be super sore and struggle with running for a few days, but I wasn't.  There definitely was a bit of soreness, but it wasn't anything more than when I first start back on planks.  Which I need to get my booty in gear and start back up this week!

Food Cravings: Macaroni and cheese.  I don't care what kind.  It can be fancy restaurant style mac and cheese or nasty boxed mac and cheese.  I want it all.  On our trip I suddenly had to have some mac and cheese and there were those little containers you just add water and stick in the microwave left in the beach house from the previous renters.  I made one and it was the most delicious thing!

Food Aversions: Smoked meat/barbeque in general just isn't going to happen at all this pregnancy, I get the feeling.  I was able to eat eggs in a breakfast burrito during our trip.  The thought of eggs and seeing them still makes me nauseous, but I poured a bunch of salsa on top of them and rolled them up in a tortilla.  As long as I couldn't see them, they were fine.  I've figured out that sandwich meat just grosses me out when it's heated up because it smells so strongly.  So I heat it and walk away until it cools and stops having such a strong odor.  I've only been able to make it through half a sandwich, but that's fine with me.  Spinach is one of my favorite foods.  I absolutely love throwing it in all kinds of things.  Spinach in grilled cheese sandwiches, spinach on pizza, spinach instead of lettuce, spinach in tomato soup, spinach in mac and cheese.  I'll put it in anything.  So I've been in denial for weeks that I just can't eat it.  It turns my stomach and makes me sick.  I keep hoping it's temporary and try it each week.  Finally I'm accepting the fact that it's a no-go food for me right now.  Every time I try it chunks rise into my throat, so I'm over it.  I won't be trying it again for a while, or a week, who knows!

Movement: So excited to see movement during our ultrasound on Monday.  It will be even better when I can feel it and then when Ty and Carter can feel it!

Best Moment of the Week: Our trip to Florida was amazing!  Leina bought Carter a souvenir shirt and then said we should get a onesie for the baby because the baby was on the trip too.  It was so cute and made me giggle.  We didn't actually get a onesie, but picturing our future baby wearing it made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  Every time I feed Jake a bottle when he's at our house I get so excited to nurse a baby again.  I keep picturing a little newborn in my arms and I get giddy.  I still can't quite believe we're pregnant.  Come on belly, start showing so this feels real!  

Currently Loving: That we have an appointment on Monday and we'll get to see the baby again.  With Carter our doctor told us we were safe to share the news after our 12 week appointment, so I'm also looking forward to finally spilling the beans!  Although I haven't been as antsy to share the news this time around.

Miss Anything: I had a day where I was really emotional and was sure I had harmed the baby by eating Eggs Benedict for breakfast.  I didn't realize until after I ate it that there were eggs in the Hollandaise Sauce (because someone told me) and I panicked that the eggs may not have been heated up enough.  That made me miss being able to eat things without panicking and worrying that I caused my baby harm.

What Big Brother is Up to This Week: Carter saw the ocean for the first time and it was a hit!  He enjoyed all the extra attention with 6 adults to 1 child.  Today he was saying "Baby... Mommy" and I'd say, "Yes, mommy has a baby in her belly."  It's fun to see him start to understand a little bit more and/or verbalize what he hears us say.  My Week 11 Bumpdate with Carter.

Harper was determined to be in a picture.

Carter woke up late and Ty needed to leave.  Carter still wanted to be held so he threw himself down and held my foot!

This is a cool picture and I feel like you can tell the size of my belly really well.

Week 10 Bumpdate

September 9, 2014

I can't believe we're already a quarter of the way through this pregnancy! It is flying by! It is so true when people say the 2nd one goes by faster because you're busy with your 1st baby.

Baby's Size: The size of a prune, a little over an inch long.  Nails are beginning to form on fingers and toes.  Peach-fuzz hair is beginning to grow.

Weight Gain: I'm up a pound from my starting weight. Not too bad, but I don't think I gained any weight with Carter until the 2nd trimester. My mom said she gained weight differently with each of us, so we'll see.

Maternity Clothes: I'm still able to button all my pants and haven't been having trouble at the end of the day like last week.  Every once in a while I feel a bit sore down low and I've had a little bit of cramping here and there, usually when I wait too long to use the restroom. It's worse when I'm wearing certain shorts. I have a pair of jean shorts that are stretchy and they are serving me well!

Sleep: This week I've been having a bit of a harder time falling asleep at night.  I haven't felt quite as exhausted and even skipped an afternoon nap one day.  Still waking up to use the restroom and Skippy has been messing with me hardcore and sleeping on the small of my back which makes it really sore! I've also been having weird dreams. Lately they've been about flying.

Symptoms: This week has been a really good week.  I've only been nauseous a couple days and don't wake up feeling as sick.  I've been able to eat lots of fruits and vegetables.  I've even been able to eat at dinner without a problem most nights which is a huge improvement. Officially up a cup size and upgraded to bras my friend, Ang, gave me. Woke up this morning with a lot of discharge which freaked me out a little bit until I was reading my 10 week update from The Bump and it was listed as a symptom, whew!

Running: I bumped my long run up to 10 miles because I didn't want to get off schedule with my long runs and I knew I wouldn't want to do one in Florida.  The run was one of those surprise runs which you expect to go poorly and actually goes really well.  The day before my long run my legs burned and I was absolutely exhausted.  I headed out for my run planning to turn around early if needed.  I half expected to only make it 3 or 4 miles.  The weather was perfect with a light drizzle and a temperature in the mid-60's.  I felt great and even ran just under 9:00 minute pace for the entire run.  My hips were a bit sore toward the end and started to burn the last couple miles.  My round ligaments didn't get sore at all after the run.  I think part of that may have been because I took the day after my long run off running.  Weekly mileage total was 23 miles.

Food Cravings: Bagels with cream cheese!  It all started with wanting an everything bagel with cream cheese from Panera.  Then my mom got a dozen bagels from Panera and I had a cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese after I ate all the everything bagels.  It was delicious!  I've been eating half a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast every morning.

Food Aversions: Still eggs and smoked meat.  I thought it was just smoked meat, but I got honey barbeque buffalo wings and couldn't eat them.  Turns out it's also barbeque sauce.  I still can't eat anything I ate when I was really sick, thankfully most of it wasn't very healthy.  The only thing I can't eat that was healthy is my favorite smoothie at Tropical Smoothie.  Every once in a while I eat something and it just doesn't taste right.  One day I ate blueberry Greek yogurt and it tasted like metal.  It was so weird.

Movement: Looking forward to feeling those first kicks which baby is likely already doing. At Carter's 12 week appointment he was flipping around and kicking like crazy, I hope to see the same with this baby in 2 weeks!

Best Moment of the Week: Splashing in puddles with Carter on Saturday morning.  It has also been great to feel better this week.  I've felt better this week than I have the entire pregnancy.  It has been great!  That led to an awesome long run which was so enjoyable.  

Currently Loving: That my belly has just barely started to pop.  I can see it, Ty can see it, and my mom can see it.  After my long run on Saturday as I was walking to my mom she said I looked pregnant.  It must've been because my shirt was plastered to me due to the drizzling rain as well as the fact that I was wearing spandex shorts.  It's so much fun to have a belly and feel connected to the baby anytime I look at it.  I know it won't be long before I have a real bump!

Miss Anything: Really not missing anything this week.

What Big Brother is Up to This Week: Carter is obsessed with his rain boots and loves that he can put them on by himself.  I read to Carter from a magazine they gave us at the doctor's office about how the baby is developing right now and showed him pictures of what the baby looks like right now.  He excitedly pointed at the pictures saying "baby"!  When I asked him where our baby was he pointed at my chest and then looked around the room searching for a baby, haha!  He'll figure it out once my belly starts popping.  My Week 10 Bumpdate with Carter.

Carter loves posing for the weekly pictures!

 

Carter wanted to show off his belly too!

I joked this is his Hollister pose!

Week 9 Bumpdate

September 2, 2014

Baby's Size: Almost an inch long and the size of a grape!  All the essential body parts are accounted for and the tail is gone.  The baby is now considered a fetus rather than an embryo.

Weight Gain: I lost another half-pound and am down a pound from my starting weight.

Maternity Clothes: I've hit the point where my pants are uncomfortable at the end of the day when I'm sitting down.  Typically I just unbutton them, no big deal.  It won't be long until I'm pulling out the hair tie trick.

Sleep: I've been waking up at least once every night to use the restroom, most nights more.  Skippy has started messing with me more at night which doesn't help.  When I was pregnant with Carter, Skippy slept with me every night.  He hasn't started sleeping with me all night, every night, but he does spend at least some of the night with me.  I'm soaking up sleeping on my tummy while I still can!

Symptoms: I wake up fairly nauseous and have a hard time eating breakfast.  I'm able to eat lunch really well.  Then I'm nauseous again at dinnertime and have an extremely hard time eating.  Dinnertime is the hardest time of day for me and when I struggle the most to eat.  My hair seems to be growing faster.  I've gone from shaving my arm pits every other day to every day.  I swear I can feel it growing too because I'm itchy.

Running: I upped my long run to 8 miles.  We were at my parents' house so I was able to run without the stroller and ran 9:30 pace which I was pleased with as I've slowed down to 10:00 pace on long runs with the stroller.  My round ligaments were sore after running my long run, but felt much better the following day.  With Carter I didn't notice my round ligaments, it was my hips that just ached.  So far I've had no hip pain which has been nice, but I'm sure it's coming.  I recovered really quickly from my long run, but I'll be monitoring things very closely with my next few long runs.  If I don't seem to be recovering quickly, I will drop the half-marathon.  I didn't run longer than 4 miles during the first trimester with Carter and I strongly felt taking it easy during the first trimester when everything was first starting to stretch contributed to my last run being the night before Carter was born.  It's more important to me to be able to run for as long as possible during pregnancy than to run the half-marathon in October.  My weekly mileage for the week was 20 miles. 

Food Cravings: One day I just had to have tuna salad with grapes.  My mom makes the best tuna salad and happened to be visiting for the week to work on Thomas' house so she made it for me.  I ended up eating half a sleeve of saltines with each saltine packed high with tuna.  It was so good!

Food Aversions: Eggs, smoked meat, I haven't had Mexican since last time it made me sick so we'll see.  I got really sick eating tomato soup today which was sad because I have a really easy recipe that Ty loves and is in our weekly meal rotation on the regular.  Hopefully I'll be able to eat it again.

Movement: The baby is moving quite a bit according to what I've read, I can't wait to be able to feel it!

Best Moment of the Week: Watching Carter and Hayden play together.  They hid in the bathroom and when I opened the door and said "boo" they grabbed each other while laughing and hopping around.  It was the cutest thing and I can just picture that being Carter and Baby #2 playing like that together!  

Currently Loving: I have been so grateful to have strong pregnancy symptoms this entire time.  It has been such a relief to feel poorly so I don't have to worry about how things are going as I have a constant reminder that I'm still pregnant.  One day I didn't feel as tired as usual and I started to get worried, but then I got really nauseous.  It was like my body's way of reassuring me!

Miss Anything: I do miss being really productive during Carter's nap time.  Since I spend part of his nap time sleeping myself, I don't get quite as much done.

What Big Brother is Up to This Week: Carter had a blast learning about colors, playing with Hayden, and playing on inflatables and feeding animals at a petting zoo during Little Balkans Day.  He also had a blast walking different dogs in and out of the house.  He's also starting to pick up the whole "Where is our baby?".  When asked, he'll point to my chest or stomach, whatever is closest and easiest for him to point to.  My Week 9 Bumpdate with Carter.

Carter really wanted to be held, but it looks like he's pointing to the baby.

 

Week 8 Bumpdate

August 26, 2014

At our first prenatal appointment on Monday, August 25th, the baby measured in at 7 weeks, 6 days rather than the 7 weeks, 2 days we estimated.  The doctor changed our due date from April 11, 2015 to April 7, 2015 so I'm adjusting my weekly bumpdates from here on out to follow our new due date and the baby's actual size.  That's why I'm doing the week 8 post just a few days after the week 7 post.   This week I was challenged to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which will be funny to tell baby about later, and accepted the challenge.  Since I'm pregnant my brothers poured most of the ice water on my dad because we did it together.

Baby's Size: The size of a kidney bean!  The baby's tail is almost gone which I noticed during our ultrasound.  Carter still had a noticeable tail during his first appointment.  Baby also now has webbed fingers and toes.

Weight Gain: Let's just say my weight is fluctuating like crazy right now!  When I did my 7 week post on Saturday I was up a pound from my starting weight.  This morning I was down a half pound from my starting weight, meaning I lost a pound and a half in 3 days.  I think not!

Maternity Clothes: I will be steering clear of these for as long as I can.  Hopefully I can squeeze into my regular clothes even longer than I did with Carter.  Last time I was so excited to wear maternity clothes that I started wearing them before I really needed to.  I hadn't full on stretched my pants through the hair tie as far as I could have!

Sleep: I haven't felt quite as tired and have cut my naps down to 30 minutes most days.  I'm waking up a lot at night.  Usually multiple times to go to the bathroom and also due to weird and vivid dreams. 

Symptoms: I was back to being really nauseous and struggling to eat, but today has been much better.  I'm still hungry all the time and usually need a snack either right before bed or immediately when I wake up.  I had another migraine yesterday.

Running: Since this is a short week due to my doctor changing our due date, I'll post about running in my next weekly update.  I've only run a couple days since my last update.  Although I am a little bit faster than I was when pregnant with Carter and I don't feel quite as exhausted, at least not yet!

Food Cravings: Bread sticks from Olive Garden and their Ravioli di Portobello!  So far anything I've really wanted to eat, I've been so over once I had it.  Ty and I went for a little date night last night before he flew out for a business trip today and it's all I can think about.  I feel like I could eat it for every meal of every day right now.  The sauce, the mushrooms, the soft and delicious bread sticks!!!!

Food Aversions: Still eggs and smoked meat.  I'm starting to struggle with Mexican, but I'm hoping that's just a phase.

Movement: This is the hardest part to wait for!  Come on baby movements!

Best Moment of the Week: Our doctor's appointment!  When he shoved that lovely wand in and I immediately saw the gestational sac and then a baby inside I almost cried.  My first thought was, "the baby is so big!!!!"  I was expecting the baby to be the same size Carter was at our first appointment and to look similar.  Carter measured in at 6 weeks, 6 days and this baby measured in at 7 weeks, 6 days.  One week makes a huge difference in size, that's for sure!  Then we heard the heart beat and I whipped my head to stare at Ty and we were silently screaming over our excitement.  We knew if we heard the heart beat our chances of a miscarriage go down drastically and the doctor confirmed that after the ultrasound, telling us that our chances of a miscarriage after hearing the heart beat at this point in the pregnancy are very slim.  The heart was beating away at 165 bpm.  Just for fun I looked and Carter's first heart beat on an ultrasound was 152 bpm.  We had a good chat with the doctor and he okayed me to run the half-marathon I'm signed up for in October.  I will be 14 weeks. 

 

 

Currently Loving: Looking at the ultrasound pictures.  Now instead of sneaking into the bathroom to look at the word pregnant on a test, I'm constantly sneaking into the bedroom to look at our precious baby!  I can't get enough of that giant head and those tiny arm buds.  How is (s)he so cute already?!!?

Miss Anything: Honestly nothing other than the Braum's frozen yogurt soft serve and I'm slowly getting over it.  Pretty soon I won't even miss it anymore!

What Big Brother is Up to This Week: He went to our appointment with us and really wanted to touch the super expensive high-tech equipment!  While the doctor did the ultrasound he was all eyes for the screen.  Although I know he didn't understand what was going on, it was so sweet to see him looking at the baby!  One morning I was throwing up and he stood in the bathroom hanging on me and rubbing my back. I hadn't been able to find a hair tie so I just pulled my hair back with my hands. I felt like I was done throwing up so I sat up and let go of my hair. It suddenly hit me again and I hunched over the toilet before I had the chance to pull my hair back again. Carter reached up and tried to hold my hair back like he'd seen me do. I couldn't help but think, what an angel baby! What not even 2 year old child tries to hold his mom's hair back while she throws up? I sure am lucky! Carter has also been doing a lot better with Jake and hasn't been as jealous which is great practice for when baby arrives!

Cleaning his hands so he could hold the ultrasound strip.

 

He decided he didn't really want to hold it, so I did.

He's such a ham!