I don’t have a lot of pregnancy news to share, since it’s still so early.
Toward the middle of last week my waking several times a night to pee ceased, and thus I freaked. I’m telling myself my body is adjusting somewhat to the increased hormones… Feel free to reassure me this is the case!
The bloating has not subsided, and honest to God, I’m going to need maternity clothing soon! I tried the hair-band trick, but most of my dress pants for work don’t have buttons, but rather those stupid hook things, and for the life of me, I can’t figure out how to make those pants work with my bulging gut. (No laughing!) A few friends suggested the belly bands, so I think this weekend I need to invest in several of those. If I consider my weight on CD1 of this IVF cycle as my starting weight for this pregnancy, I’m only up 1.1 lbs., but I feel huge! I will need a larger bra soon, but I won’t complain about that!
I haven’t noticed any nausea yet, nor have I felt any more tired than usual. Part of me wants one or both of these to set in so this pregnancy feels more real, but I’ll be careful what I wish for… I will say I felt off this morning. Not sick to my stomach, but just different. A very strange feeling. Is this how it starts??
I still have some dull aches, almost cramp-like, but not entirely painful, more like twinges, every now and again. I used to stretch every morning before I got out of bed, but I noticed doing such caused sharp, shooting pains in my abdomen. What’s up with that??
My 7 week ultrasound is now only 12 days away, and my last progesterone injection is only 19 days. I picked up more of the 22 gauge, inch and a half needles yesterday, hopefully my last refill of those this pregnancy! I’m used to the shots by now, but they do dictate my schedule a bit. Last Friday night Eric and I went to a movie and had to do my shot early before we left, and then Sunday we were in Cedar Falls house shopping and were forced to do my shot in the car, at a gas station. Classy, I know!
Speaking of house hunting… I haven’t written much lately about our upcoming move to Cedar Falls. Not because it hasn’t been on my mind, but more because baby-making has taken precedence. Eric and I were in Cedar Falls this past Sunday though, and I’m pleased to say, it was a surprisingly productive visit!
If you remember, Eric and I have been working with an extremely pushy realtor since January. Not knowing if we wanted to build or purchase existing we’d asked our realtor to give us options for both. Well, long story short, that particular female realtor showed us several existing homes, one which we really, really liked (I think I shared some pictures of it on here) but she repeatedly told us building wasn’t an option as there were no suitable lots for the home we had in mind to build.
Annoyed with feeling as though we had few options, Eric and I decided to wait on making an offer on the existing house we liked, fearing one should never buy the first thing they see. Well, wouldn’t you know, another couple made an offer on it, and it appears to now be sold.
So what does one do when they need a lot and their realtor swears there aren’t any? Yes, you find a new realtor! Last Sunday our new, younger, male realtor showed us six lots, and offered to make calls on a few others if we wanted more to pick from. Which reminds me, that pushy realtor emailed me again yesterday, even though I’ve asked her several times to stop bothering us!
So the lots… There are two we really liked. One is more sensible… Oh, being sensible really sucks sometimes! The sensible lot is in a new development, this particular lot backs up to a pond, so nothing would be built behind us, which is great. There are already several beautiful homes on the street, with more to come soon. Aside from the pond though, it’s your typical new development, barren of any trees besides those which are brought in after construction. A fence for Kona would be allowed though, which is a huge plus! The not as sensible lot is twice the size, which is really way more land than we need, and twice the price. It’s in an older area of town, owned by a neighbor for years and years. It’s completely wooded. I mean completely. We’d to have clear a portion of the lot to build on. But wow, the scenery would be amazing, a truly unique lot. Of course, since it’s twice the price, and would cost perhaps $30k just to clear space to build, it doesn’t make as much sense to purchase. I assume we’ll forgo making an offer on it, but wow, it would make for an amazing setting.
Sunday evening we also met with a builder. He asked lots of questions regarding our tastes, what we picture for our home, the lot we had in mind, etc. He thinks having the home finished by next August is doable, but would mean we need to start digging the foundation around November 1st. Um, that’s only a month from now. How am I supposed to design my dream house in 30 days??? I’ve been looking on Pinterest, and I love almost everything I see. How does one pick one kitchen, one living room, one lower level bar, one outside sitting area, etc? I’m overwhelmed already. The builder was going to put together our ideas and get back to us in a few days… Hopefully Eric and I can meet with another builder soon so we can compare work and finalize the lot purchase.
Feeling overwhelmed I made a point to talk to Eric last weekend about possibly going part-time at work. I’ve been scared to bring it up to him, as in the past he’s made comments such as, ‘you like to eat, right’, whenever I mentioned cutting my hours. I know he was kidding, but still. I don’t him want to feel like I’m not pulling my weight from a financial standpoint in this family. During our drive to Cedar Falls last Sunday morning I forced the conversation, beginning with how bored I am at work lately since most of my duties have been transitioned to our new team member. To my surprise, Eric was very open to the idea, although curious what was in it for him. I pointed out how much happier I’ll be, less stressed, more time to take care of everything at home, since his time there is so limited… Now though, to convince my boss. I’ve drafted an email to her, but I’m not sure I like the wording, or maybe I’m just too scared to hear it’s not a possibility. Any suggestions on how to approach this conversation differently so it ends in my favor? The draft of my email is below…
Jill, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about a few things, but being you’ve been off enjoying Italy (I’m so jealous!), I thought it might be a good idea to write down my thoughts now and discuss them later when you have more time.
As you know, Eric and I just completed another IVF cycle and it was a success. My due date is June 1st. It’s still very early, and obviously a lot can happen, as I realized last time, but we’re really hoping for a good outcome. My test results look much better this time, leading us to believe the chances of a healthy baby are much more realistic now than with our previous IVF cycle.
That said, I expect more appointments and tests in the weeks and months to come. In fact, my first ultrasound is already scheduled for 8am on October 13th, just two weeks from now, when I’ll only be 7 weeks along.
In other exciting news, Eric and I went house hunting this past weekend in Cedar Falls and actually found a few lots we are considering for building. We had our eye on one particular existing home, but it sold in the past few weeks, so we’ve feeling as though building is now our only option, as surprisingly not much is for sale in that area. We met with one builder so far, but our realtor has advised us to interview at least one more before we finalize plans. And if we want to be able to move by next August when Eric is set to start work, we need to break ground before November, which actually only gives us a month to secure the lot and finalize floor plans. Doesn’t feel like much time!
All that said, I’ve been feeling quite overwhelmed with tasks in my personal life recently… and I’m wondering if me going part-time, even if only temporarily, would be an option. My first concern is still work, and making sure the team is supported. I was reviewing my tasks since Jaclyn’s arrival and I honestly think I could keep the vast majority of them, even if only working part-time. The majority of my tasks aren’t deadline based, and I realize month-end is a priority here, but if Nate is taking over A/R, that large task wouldn’t be affected by my absence. I envision me still being able to complete the expenses and 243 portions of the executive summary too, although since Nate hasn’t trained me yet, I don’t have a perfect grasp on the time involved.
Most of our department meetings are scheduled during the mornings, and I think it’s better I be present here daily, as to stay in the loop with the team, so ideally I was thinking Monday-Friday 8am-noon. But again, I realize this may not even be a possibility. If my hours did turn into just mornings, I’d make every effort to schedule other appointments in the afternoons, but my doctors here don’t always have afternoon openings, so I guess I can’t guarantee I’d never need to use sick or vacation time.
Please let me know your thoughts when you have time to discuss.