stomach maladies!

boy, has baby McFadden gotten mommy's stomach all out of whack. first it was non-stop cramping (this was before I had taken a pregnancy test). the cramping still comes and goes, but it was pretty bad to begin with. then came the constipation, which I really didn't mind- I mean, not having to poop = awesome. then came the nausea and vomiting, which has lasted through my current week (week 18), but seems to be tapering off! with that I was finally unconstipated, but won't go into detail. if you are friends with me on facebook you may have seen that I flooded the basement of my in-laws house, not once, but twice (all in 1 week and 2 different toilets). now, part of this was the fact that their plumbing is really bad (this is according to the contractor who was remodeling their bathroom and saved me from the 2nd flooding by turning off the water in the entire house), and part of it was me (and probably his other pregnant sister who stays there a few nights a week). thanks to me though, there are 4 new toilets in the house, and they are fancy!

my latest problem is the inability to feel full sometimes. i really felt it last night. for dinner we had breakfast and I ate 3 pieces of bacon, a couple spoonfuls of eggs, a bowl of cheese grits, 1 blueberry pancake and 3 pecan pancakes (pancakes were small). Dave and I then went to Target to get our nephew a present for his 1st Birthday Party tomorrow, and on the way back home I wanted a hot fudge sundae from McDonald's (they have delicious sundae's). I ate all of that and then drank a glass of milk. needless to say I wasn't awake much longer after all that! I hope this calms down. I hate feeling gluttonous!

Update on my OCD Baby List.

There are now 34 women on my list. 8 have already given birth with 1 due any day now. 5 of the babies were girls, 4 boys.

7 people on the list are related to me (8 including myself). All are cousins, with the exception of my sister-in-law. 2 have been born (boy and girl). Of those on the way 2 are girls, 1 is a boy, 1 isn't finding out, and 2 aren't at 20 weeks yet.

The next 5 babies due are all boys. After that it's 7 girls, 3 boys and 1 mystery!

10 are at less than 20 weeks with me being the next to find out. 3 of those have announced their pregnancies THIS WEEK!

I made this list to keep up with names b\c I want to be safe on the baby name front- so far I am. This thing has turned more into a kind of math project!

Let's just say that baby fever is in the air. Every day at work I come into contact w\ at least 10 pregnant women + a few with newborns! Must be a good time to have a baby!! Does this mean the economy is turning around?!

Next Dr.'s appointment is on Monday!!

still "enjoying" morning sickness

so, i really thought i would be over the morning sickness by now, but obviously...

there has been no rhyme or reason to my sickness, no pattern, nothing. some people have it through the evening, some in the morning only, some all day. me? every 1-3 weeks depending... it started in week 8, then I was free and clear until week 11, then it came back again week 13, then week 14, and here again week 15 (although those both happened this week, they occured technically in 2 different "weeks" of my pregnancy). it strikes any time day or night, and doesn't care if i'm near a bathroom. ugh.

maybe morning sickness is a plague for McFadden or former McFadden girls. my sister-in-law April said she was sick through 6 months with both of her boys. and now, my sister-in-law Shannon, at 5 months is getting sick again after about a month of relief. luckily, i still have my Zofran, and I think I just need to take it daily, regardless of how I feel. Other than that, I've felt pretty good lately, the nausea, which i've had more of than the vomiting has slowed down since my visit to the Dr. on Monday. Morning sickness is a weird bird. According to Wikipedia, there is insufficient evidence to nail down one or multiple causes for why pregnant women suffer morning sickness. Some causes are basically a bunch of hooey, while others can't be proven b\c they are the same case for all pregnant women, and not all pregnant women get sick.

the worst part of morning sickness has been being alone when it happens. everyone wants comfort when they're sick, and I have, the majority of the time, been here alone.

there hasn't been a particular food cause either, random things, mostly healthy seem to have set it off- fruit, cereal, apple pie, potato chips, and mostly an empty stomach. Dr. Uma says I should be feeling better by week 16 though b\c I have no signs of a thyroid problem. so i'm holding out until Tuesday praying for the relief to come!

i'm hoping my blog doesn't lead people to think that pregnancy is just this big downer... I know morning sickness can have a sharp effect on the way a woman feels, and almost in a way, it still doesn't feel "real." I know things are really going to be coming along in the next few weeks though- feeling the baby move, knowing the sex, wearning actual maternity clothes! I should be coming upon the time where I feel the best in my pregnancy, and I can't wait to share it all!!

week 8 = not so great

So, week 8 came and went and it was the worst week so far. I finally threw up Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights followed by Saturday morning. I say finally b\c although it's not fun when it happens, throwing up beats the constant nausea, gagging & dry heaves. Beautiful, huh? I also have my 2 other companions: heartburn and indigestion. Yay. I really felt like I was going to die most of the week... Friday was probably the best story of all. I threw up in the grass walking to Dave's car. It was right in front of his neighbors. I'm sure they thought I was enjoying a night of drinking. I just wanted to wave them off and say, "it's ok, it's only morning sickness." I have taken the liberty of taking myself off my prenatal vitamins and replacing them with Flinstone's gummies 2x a day, as my CNM in Conyers had told me I could do. My sister in law also gave me the leftovers from her Zofran Rx (is that legal) for her sickness. I took one last night with the onset of nausea and it was awesome. Other than that I have been sucking down a lot of gingerale- yummy!

In 2 days I am flying home for the rest of the week(end). Hopefully I will be ok for the flight- i'm a little nervous about not feeling well. Sunday we will probably drive back and I'm more nervous about that- constantly having to stop for bathroom breaks and eating! So far I have been fine, and tomorrow begins week 9- so hopefully things will be better. Tomorrow is also my 28th (GASP) birthday- so I hope I feel well- b\c I'm probably going to be spending most of it getting my Illinois drivers license and license plate. Boo. Did you know that I have to retake the driver's test and provide 461 forms of ID. True Story.