12 Weeks

My 12th week of pregnancy had a dramatic start. Monday morning was hot and humid. The weather, combined with a walk up the stairs from the subway platform proved to be too much for me that day. I was about 2 blocks from work, and started to feel like I was going to faint. I wanted to cross over 6th avenue and sit down in Bryant Park, but the light was red and I knew I would not make it across the street in time. I looked around and found a nice looking lady, and I told her that I thought I was going to faint. The next thing I remember is waking up in her arms while lying on the corner 6th and 40th. Thank god for that woman. She was pouring water on me to help me wake up, so there I was soaked, on the ground, with a crowd of tourists and commuters staring down at me. So embarrassing. As if that wasn’t bad enough, 6 cops and 2 ambulances showed up within 2 minutes of me waking up. It was such a scene. I have fainted before, mostly in the privacy of my own home. I usually just get my blood flowing again, have something to eat, and I’m good to go in about a half hour.

When the cops and EMT’s found out I was pregnant, they strongly encouraged me to go to the ER to make sure me and the baby were ok. I called VJ, and he met me at an area hospital. Not the greatest experience. I am sure this is normally a quality hospital, but I wasn't thrilled with the services provided that day. To sum it up, I was fine before I went in there. I had a bruise on my knee from when I fainted, and I was a little woozy, but that was all. By the time I walked out of there 6 hours later, I had 4 bruises on my arms from where the intern tried to run an IV on me. It took her 6 tries and burst 2 veins. There was blood everywhere, I have never seen anything like it. I had to look away, or I would have fainted again. On top of that, they didn’t let me eat or drink the entire time I was there. By the time we left there around 4:00, I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast 8 hours earlier. Not good for a pregnant lady!

The silver lining of all of this was that I got to see our little baby dancing and bouncing around like crazy inside of me. We could clearly see its arms and legs moving all around. This baby definitely gets its dance moves from VJ! It knows how to cut a rug, and it isn’t shy about it! If anyone has seen VJ at a wedding when Bruce Springsteen comes on, you know what I’m talking about! The beginning of the ultrasound was pretty hilarious (after the fact). They did a ton of tests on me before they checked on the baby, so I was already there for a few hours by the time we they did the ultrasound. I told the tech that I was dying to see if the baby was ok. She just kind of nodded and started moving the wand over my abdomen. She looked kind of worried, and didn’t say anything for a couple of minutes. I looked at VJ to see if he could see anything, but I don’t think he really knew what he was looking for. Finally the tech looked down at me concerned, and said ‘did you know you’re pregnant?’ seriously?! Uh, yeah, remember that baby I was just talking about 3 minutes ago?? Coincidentally, that is the baby I was talking about! So I told her ‘yes, I know I’m pregnant, is the baby ok???’ Looking unfazed she said ‘oh, yeah, its fine.’ VJ asked her to show me the baby on the screen because he knew I was totally freaking out. So she turned the screen towards me and there was our little baby, dancing around inside of me. Ok, and I can breathe again.

The rest of the week was relatively uneventful. We go in for another (planned) ultrasound on Friday, and I can’t wait for that! VJ thinks that I orchestrated the whole fainting incident just to score an extra ultrasound. I LOVE seeing our baby.

Week 12 of Pregnancy:



How far along? 12 Weeks, 2 days

Weight gain/loss: I am up 2 lbs

Maternity clothes? Nope, but I avoid wearing anything with a waistband, dresses are preferable right now.

Stretch marks? Nope, not yet.

Sleep? All day, every day. Too bad a little thing called work gets in the way of this.

Best moment this week? Seeing our baby! We also started telling more people after seeing the baby, and that was a lot of fun, too!

Food cravings: Ice cream cones. I had 2 last night and 1 tonight already. I’m sure I’ll be having a second before the night is over.

Gender: 8 weeks til we find out. I am curious if the tech will see anything on Friday, I hear it is possible for them to make an educated guess at this time.

Belly button in or out? Still in.

Movement? Dancing like it’s daddy, I just can’t feel it yet!

What I miss? Energy and wine!!

What I'm looking forward to: Our ultrasound on Friday (I am addicted)

Milestones: Our baby can now clench and unclench its hand. He/she is now 2 inches tall – almost as tall as its parents! As for me, people at work who don’t know have started calling me out because they are noticing my bump… I guess that means I’m getting bigger!

11 Weeks

3 weeks since my last blog entry. Yikes. I have been brought down by first trimester symptoms and an untimely cold. But here I am, just past the 11 week mark, and almost into my second trimester. Good stuff, I can’t wait. I have a loooong 'to-do' list waiting for me when I feel better!

Two weeks ago we had our 10 week doctor appointment. The most exciting part was when we heard the baby's strong heartbeat of 172bpm. That beautiful woosh woosh woosh sound has let me breathe much easier these past couple of weeks.

Besides the doctor appointment, I haven’t done much of anything. I go to work, come home exhausted, eat dinner, and go to bed. Weekends lately have been for getting even more sleep, I can’t seem to get enough! This second trimester energy surge cannot come soon enough!!

When I am not sleeping, eating, or working, I have been reading up a storm, here is what I’ve been reading… lots of crazy stuff goes into making a baby!


Our little one already has quite a collection of toys and pajamas for when it arrives, thanks to generous gifts it has already received from family! It is so crazy to see baby stuff in our apartment, and know it is not a gift for someone else. It is a fun reminder about what is going on! Here is what the little one has waiting for him/her:

And while I'm doing pictures, here is the shirt we got for my nice. It is a size 2T, since I hear she is growing like crazy!

Week 11 of Pregnancy:

How far along? 11 Weeks, 2 days

Weight gain/loss: As of two weeks ago, I had gained a pound. I am sure I have gained another one by now (at least). I am always hungry!

Maternity clothes? Nope, but I have broken out the belly band my sister-in-law Heather lent me. Soooo comfortable, thanks!

Stretch marks? Nope, not yet.

Sleep? Cannot. Get. Enough.

Best moment this week? I noticed a little bump for the first time, a coworker actually pointed it out to me. I swear it wasn’t there when I got dressed in the morning, and all of a sudden, that same afternoon, there it was.

Food cravings: VJ mentioned these donuts from the farmers market by where he works – ever since he did, I NEEDED them. He didn’t think I was serious, but I made it clear that it was in his best interest to bring some home from me. He did, and they were SO good.

Gender: Not sure yet, we should find out in about 9 weeks.

Belly button in or out? Still in.

Movement? According to the books, the baby is moving like crazy in there. I can’t feel it yet, though.

What I miss? For the first time, it isn’t wine. I miss that, of course, but I miss feeling human more! I feel useless these days, and can’t wait to have some energy!

What I'm looking forward to: Taking a nap after I post this entry!!

Milestones: Our baby’s is the size of a lime now, and all of its major organs are formed! So crazy…

Week 8, and Our First Ultrasound

Alright, so I am only 8 weeks in and I already missed a week. Sorry mom. I am back on the wagon. VJ and I had our first ultrasound on Wednesday. We saw and heard our little baby’s heartbeat, and we both fell in love. I took a deep breath for the first time since we first learned I was pregnant. Our baby is in there, its heart is beating, and it is measuring as expected. I couldn’t ask for more than that!

While I was taking a deep breath, VJ was coming to the realization that we are having a baby! I realized that this pregnancy is much easier for me to comprehend, since I am feeling tired and sick. I don’t think that VJ had been able to wrap his mind around the idea until he saw our baby. It was pretty funny to see him come to this realization. He looked so happy, and his jaw hung open the whole way home. He kept looking at the ultrasound pictures, I think he was in awe.

I took the day off because I knew that it would be impossible to do anything but stare at the first pictures of our baby all day. I was right. I called my family to tell them about our appointment. That’s the good thing about having a big family, I got to keep reliving that amazing moment over and over again. I compared notes with my older brother, since he just went through this 2 short years ago. I realized as we were talking that this was the first of many, many times that we will be comparing stories about our children. I am excited to see my nice with our baby, and I just bought her a t-shirt that says ‘I’m the older cousin’. I hope she wears it proudly!

Week 8 of Pregnancy:

How far along? 8 Weeks

Weight gain/loss: Not sure, I’ll find out next Wednesday. I have been eating like a champ, so I’m guessing I put on a pound or two.

Maternity clothes? Nope

Stretch marks? Nope

Sleep? I am still constantly tired. I go to bed really early, and that helps a lot.

Best moment this week? Hearing our baby’s heartbeat!

Food cravings: Still not many cravings. I have been trying to eat a lot of fruit and vegetables, and smoothies usually hit the spot.

Gender: Not sure yet, but everyone seems to think it is a boy.

Belly button in or out? In, but VJ thinks it is starting to ‘untie’ and starting to become an outie – how is this possible?!

Movement? Nope

What I miss? Wine!!! Yes, I know this my thing every week, I still really miss it!!

What I'm looking forward to: Relaxing on the couch all day today and not feeling guilty about it!

Milestones: Our baby’s is the size of a raspberry, and is starting to look more and more like a baby!

First Dr Appointment and Week 6 Update

Yesterday marked the beginning of week 6. Our baby is the size of a sweet pea now, much bigger than the poppy seed it was 2 weeks ago! We went to our first Dr appointment on Thursday. I was pretty nervous all week, so I decided to make an Acupuncture appointment right before my OB appointment. What a great idea that was! Dr. Loh was incredible, he gave me a big hug when I gave him my news. I asked him what I should do over the next few months to ensure a healthy pregnancy. His advice was to keep it simple, to relax and focus on remaining calm. Good advice, let’s see if I can actually follow it.

After my relaxing acupuncture appointment, I headed over to my OB’s office. VJ was already there, much to my surprise. I figured he’d be on ‘Filipino Time’ or ’15 minutes late’. The appointment wasn’t very exciting. The Dr just examined me and answered questions VJ and I were shooting at her like a parents-to-be firing squad. She was great, so patient and upbeat. She officially got on my good side when she confirmed that the book ‘What to Eat When Expecting’ was incorrect, I am allowed to eat more than one piece of cake a month, and yes, I in fact can eat chocolate. She was already on my good side when she gave me another nugget of good news – I can drink my morning cup of coffee. Ok, this pregnancy just got a lot more pleasant for all involved! VJ and I excitedly took the script she gave us for an ultrasound in 2 weeks, made our next OB appointment, which is in 4 weeks, and headed off to dinner.

6th Week Update:
How far along? 6 Weeks

Weight gain/loss: None yet. I got my offical 'starting weight' of 97 lbs at the Dr appt, though.

Maternity clothes? Nope

Stretch marks? Nope

Sleep? I am constantly exhausted. It isn’t even a normal exhaustion, it is this dizzying, sleep walking feeling. I take naps at my desk over lunch, I can’t wait to go home, so I can sleep some more. I just hope I have a job at the end of this first trimester, since I am working at a snail’s pace. Throw in 4 – 5 pee breaks an hour, and I am not exactly the picture of efficiency.

Best moment this week? Hearing that we get to see our baby in 2 weeks!

Food cravings: Not many cravings, but honey nut cheerios are never further than an arm’s length away. Even at 3am when I wake up to my stomach growling.

Gender: Not sure yet.

Belly button in or out? In

Movement? Nope

What I miss? Wine!!! Yes, I know this was last week’s thing… but I still really miss my nightly glass of red wine!!

What I'm looking forward to: sleeping tonight!!

Weekly wisdom: I need to stay calm. My body knows how to make a baby, and all I have to do is relax.

Milestones: Our baby’s heart is beating!

I'm Pregnant!

Disclaimer: This is my first blog post for my very first blog ever. While I thoroughly enjoy reading other people’s blogs, I never thought I would be a blogger myself. So why start now? A few days ago, my husband and I found out that I am pregnant! We have been hanging out on cloud 9 ever since we saw those two beautiful pink lines on the test stick.

To add to our good fortune, we were two days away from seeing my entire family for our annual week at the beach. I am one of five, and my family is spread out across the US. I am in NJ, I have siblings in PA, SC, and my parents live in TX. So you can imagine my excitement to be able to tell them our wonderful news in person.

We had an incredible week with my family. It was so great to see everyone’s reactions when we told them our news. My mom cried, my dad looked proud, my older brother high-fived me, my sister-in-law gave me a big hug, my little brother had this wonderfully happy look on his face (I hope I never forget it), and my little sister was grinning ear to ear. I am so happy we got to see all of these reactions.

Like all good things, our week at the beach sadly came to an end. During a tearful goodbye with my mom, I promised to start a blog to keep her updated as my pregnancy progresses. I couldn’t imagine going through this without her knowing every detail, and seeing my belly grow. So mom, as promised, here is the first of many weekly updates (this is borrowed from a few ladies on the Bump). The belly picture isn’t anything exciting, but I want to have it to compare to in the weeks to come:

Week 5 of Pregnancy:

How far along? 5 Weeks

Weight gain/loss: None

Maternity clothes? Nope

Stretch marks? No, hopefully that is my answer for the next 35 weeks!

Sleep? Yes please! I could sleep all day, every day.

Best moment this week? Seeing everyone’s reactions to our news.

Food cravings: Hmm, not sure if I’d call it a craving, but fruit smoothies have been hitting the spot in this hot weather (102 degrees today!)

Gender: Not sure yet.

Belly button in or out? In

Movement? Nope

What I miss? Wine!!!

What I'm looking forward to: My first appointment on Thursday

Weekly wisdom: I am pregnant today and love my baby, I shouldn’t borrow tomorrow's worries

Milestones: Our baby is the size of an appleseed!