Bump Updates: Week 10

Here is the bump update at 10 weeks...How far along? 10 weeks and 3 days (Saturday, July 30, 2011)

How big is the baby? The size of a prune

Sleep? Well since this was my first week back to work, the naps are marked out of the equation all together. I still manage to get to bed pretty early and get in a full 8 hours of sleep each night.

Food Cravings? It's hard to tell these days. I've found that it helps me not get sick if I eat about every 2 hours. Salty food is definitely the only thing my taste buds recognize as yummy!

Gender? Still too early to tell

Best moment this week? Texting/calling each of the grandparents to let them know the baby is a new fruit/veggie size. Talking to my mom and hearing all the adorable things that she is getting the baby.

Development? The baby is about 1 1/2 inches long and is growing like a weed with each passing week. Bones and cartilage are forming, as well as small indentations on the legs for knees and ankles. The organs formed and are starting to work...the stomach is producing digestive juices, the kidneys are producing urine and (if it's a boy, his testes are producing testosterone). Soft nails on the fingers and the toes are also beginning to form.

Milestones? The baby has working elbows and is beginning to move around and become more active.

Noteables? This week was my first full week of work while pregnant and it was MUCH more difficult on my physically than I thought it would be. I already have an established and growing snack drawer...must keep food within an arms reach at all times at this point in my pregnancy. I also feel like I have a small pooch that is starting to poke out. I'm definitely in that questionable "is she pregnant or just chunky?" stage but I'm expanding!

Business Trip To Philadelphia

Yesterday, we took a work related trip to Philadelphia to get acquainted with another one of our campuses. Philadelphia is about 90 miles away and it's all turnpike driving so before we knew it we were parking in downtown and walking to our destination. After we went over some business, we spent the rest of the time walking through the area and sight seeing.

First on the agenda...eat an original Philly Cheesesteak sandwich. Eating a Cheesesteak sandwich in Philly made the sandwich so much better!! I decided to go with Provolone cheese instead of the classic cheese whiz that is normally found on the steak sandwiches. I was nervous that I wouldn't like it...next time I'm in Philly, I'm going all out! William Penn is the statue on the top of the tall building. The buildings and the architecture downtown was amazing! Our group headed through LOVE park and tried to fit in as much sight seeing as we possibly could before we had to head back home. We had such an awesome day in the city. It was a great way to end my first week at work...
Philadelphia has so much history that is part of the city so another trip will be planned for the near future with Jason. We would have so much fun exploring the city!!

New Job And New Shift

Since yesterday I was beyond thrilled to be heading out of the house and to work, I decided to give it a second day before I posted about my new job...ya know, just in case the second day was a total pit compared to the first day. Well, the second day was exactly like the first and I couldn't be more thrilled!! I'm loving my new job, my position and my co-workers.

My schedule is super flexible...I usually get to the office before everyone else and get the building opened up and ready for the day. I enjoy the quiet time for myself so I can get organized and prepared for the day. As long as I get in my 40 hours a week, then it doesn't matter what time I get to work and what time I leave. Some nights I'll be working later than others and that just means I get to set the alarm clock a little bit later on those days.

Because I will be working in admissions, the amount of paperwork and the number of Excel spreadsheets that need to be organized is crazy. I love organizing paperwork and updating data so I feel like I will really enjoy that aspect of the position. Right now, I'm being slowly introduced into my new position (which I appreciate) but I want to show them that I am perfectly capable of handling any task they throw my way.

Jason started back on day shift on Monday and the transition was pretty rough. He still hasn't fully recovered from night shift and he is pretty much a zombie when he walks in the door in the evenings. This is his last week in trauma surgery and then next month he'll be doing acute pain, a division off anesthesiology, and he is beyond ready for that! On top of working crazy hours, he has been studying his booty off. He just signed up to take STEP 3, the final general board exam before he takes his anesthesiology boards at the end of residency. The test is a two day long exam and he is scheduled to take the test August 23rd and August 24th. Both days are 8 hour long time slots...yuck!! Because the exam is in one month, any free time that he has is spent studying. I'm hoping his new schedule next month is a little better than this month so he can get in a little more study time.

God has been so good to our family and we both couldn't be more thankful for all the new things in our lives.

Hot And Sticky

It seems like certain parts of the country are experiencing a heat wave and Pennsylvania is no different. The weather has been so hot and humid the past few weeks but the last few days have been the worst! The weather on Thursday and Friday was 103 degrees with a heat index of 115-too hot to do anything! Well, I guess our air conditioning unit didn't care that the weather was setting all-time heat records because the air conditioner went out on Friday. No working air conditioner=No cool air being blowed out of the air conditioner=very cranky woman.

I woke up this morning and it was close to 90 degrees in the apartment so I called the emergency maintenance line. I explained to them that it wasn't working and that my husband works nights so he needs to sleep during the day...he needs it to be cool, or at least cooler than 90 degrees, to sleep.

Maintenance was in the apartment 15 minutes later trying to find out what was going on. Well, the good news is they found out what was going on but the bad news is that the whole motor blew up! Fixing the air conditioner took longer than we anticipated but as long as the manintenance crew was taking steps in the right direction to getting it fixed, then you would hear no complaining on my end. After about an hour, we had cold air blowing out of our vents. Hallelujah!! I am so thankful for a nice, cool apartment during hot, summer days.

Now I'm off to go take a nap by my hubby...

Bump Updates: Week 9

Bump update picture for Week 9.....How far along? 9 weeks and 3 days (Saturday, July 23, 2011)

How big is the baby? The size of an olive

Sleep? About the same. I'm still struggling to keep my eyes open during the day. Naps and early bed times are still occurring.

Food Cravings? Cheez-Its and pretty much anything salty. I feel like it helps combat my nausea so I always have something salty nearby.

Gender? Still too early to tell

Best moment this week? Getting my quilting blocks in the mail...now the baby quilt making can begin. I also got a pregnancy journal that I love documenting all the details of the pregnancy in.

Development? Tiny baby muscles are developing this week, which is allowing the baby to move its arms and legs. The baby is getting buds in his/her mouth where future teeth will appear. The intestines are forming and the baby's head is taking on a more 'human-like' appearance.

Milestones? The baby has graduated from the embryo stage and is officially a fetus.

Noteables? This week I can officially say I'm employed. I'm extremely nervous about how my work will take the pregnancy news. I hope that they don't get disappointed or upset with me about not telling them during the interview process. I'm still going to wait until I'm through the first trimester before making the announcement but I'm still a little nervous...

Raw And Unedited

• The past few weeks, I've been hit with the nausea bug. Not just any nausea bug but a bad nausea bug!! I've had a few episodes of violent puking, which in some instances resulted in some blood. I feel like I don't have 'morning' sickness but 'evening' sickness because I feel like as the day progresses, the nausea continues getting worse. My doctor put me on some medicine to help but I haven't noticed much of a change.
• I wasn't a thin person before I got pregnant (probably 15 pounds overweight if I'm honest with myself) so I'm extremely nervous about gaining a lot of weight and turning into one of those pregnant women that 'let themselves go'. Because I've been so sick, nothing healthy sounds good. I've been living on pretzels, frozen grapes and gas station nachos. I know, I know...doesn't sound too promising for keeping the weight gain low but my stomach can only handle the salty, carb-type foods.
• I went shopping this week for a few outfits to wear at the new job. Usually, I just walk in to a store, grab my size and head to the check out counter. Well, some areas have chosen to grow larger than they should this early in the game so shopping is a bit more of a struggle. I'm not showing in the belly area so the maternity shops are out of the question this early in the game. I'm officially in the awkward, bloated, fat looking stage.

When reading other blogs, I would think pregnancy looked so easy. They would post weekly updates and I loved looking at the bump updates but I must have skipped all the parts that talked about all the unflattering areas of pregnancy. I love that I'm growing a baby and I can't wait to meet the little Conway in February but it's hard work. So this is a 9 week baby update...raw and unedited.

Where We've Been

This week has been full of busy spurts with a lot of down time. Nothing too exciting has been going on so the blog has suffered a bit...sorry!

Since we moved here, I've been mailing out resumes and looking for a job. After a few interviews, I am proud to annouce that I am now employeed!! I accepted an offer at a private university in Harrisburg and I couldn't be more thrilled. I feel like I will mesh well with my new co-workers and that is super exciting!

Jason is now halfway through his first month of residency. He started his night shift work on Monday and it started out pretty rough. Changing sleeping patterns is difficult in general but especially for my husband who isn't a good sleeper at night, much less during the day. The trash bags taped on the windows are doing a good job...it makes it so hard to get out of bed in the morning. He has Saturday and Sunday off (thank the Lord) and we're excited to see each other for more than ten minutes!!

The pups are doing great adjusting to their new home. It's been so warm here that their time outside is limited but we still try to get out in the evenings for a good walk.

I struggle to keep their leashes straight...they run around like crazy boys when we get outside and get all tangled in each other.

Bump Updates: Week 8

I didn't get a bump picture this week...opps!
How far along? 8 weeks and 3 days (Saturday, July 15, 2011)

How big is the baby? The size of a raspberry

Sleep? I slept more this week than I ever thought humanly possible. Jason is working nights for a few weeks and he sleeps during the day. Well, instead of trying to be quiet when he's home, I just join him! Making a baby is hard work

Food Cravings? This week everything seemed to change. I'm craving avocado/cucumber rolls (since I can't have any uncooked fish), soft pretzels, toast and gas station cheese nachos. Sounds healthy, huh? Salsa and raw chicken have me gagging at the thought of them.

Gender? Still too early to tell

Best moment this week? We got to see the baby!! We went to the doctor and were surprised when the doctor told us we would be able to see the baby. The baby was so tiny, yet so perfect. It actually started squirmming around, which was pretty neat to see. It was so amazing!

Development? This week the baby's major organs and body systems have begun to develop. Tubes are linking the lungs to the throat and brain cells are branching out and connecting with one another.

Milestones? The baby is only a few days away from being out of the embryonic stage and entering the fetus stage.

Noteables? I'm still feeling pretty nausous throughout the day, which makes my food selection a little more thought out. My tops, unless they are super stretchy, look like they got shrunk in the dryer a time or two. I'm wearing a lot of flowy dresses because I don't want anything that's going to be tight on me or make me hot.

I love how when we pray at night Jason always prays for our baby. My husband truly cares about his family. Not only does he just pray for the pregnancy but he prays that the baby will grow up to follow Christ and be given all the many blessings and opportunities that we have been given.

I began wondering this week if the pups know there is a baby in my belly. Bazzle is usually content with laying on my legs or nearby but here lately, he wants to be right on my belly. His paw, his head or his whole body wants to be right there. Baby Conway is already so loved!

Sunday Confessionals

I confess that this week we have been watching Elf when we go to bed. I'm not sure either one of us have made it past the first twenty minutes. Christmas is closer than what we think so why not get a little excited in July with Elf!

I confess that I spent my Saturday evening eating frozen grapes, watching Harry and the Hendersons and lounging around in my pajamas. The hospital is getting to see my husband more than I am this month!

I confess that I have already seriously considered buying flights back home. I always have major withdrawals during the beginning of a new move and this time is no different. Some days I just want my mama.

I confess that after one month in our apartment, I'm already looking for us a house. A list of realtors has been made and they will be called first thing Monday morning. The place is nice but definitely not what we expected. I'm ready to relocate to a place that is ours...all ours!

I confess that on more than one occasion this week I've loaded up the boys in the car and we drove around the block a few times in place of their daily walk. It's been so hot and humid here that the last thing I want to do is get out and walk the boys. Don't worry...they still go outside multiple times to run around and do their duty.

I confess that I taped black trash bags on our bedroom windows (behind the blinds) to darken the room. Jason starts working the night shift on Monday and he'll need to sleep during the day so instead of buying curtains for our apartment windows, I just improvised and saved us some money. In my defense, I didn't want to buy curtains for a window when we might not be living here too much longer. From the inside, you can't tell at all. From the outside, it looks like madness.

Pay Day Proud!

This morning when I woke up, I went through my morning computer ritual (Gmail, Facebook, Bank Account). Well today was just like any other morning except when I got to the bank account part. We had some money deposited into our account from HERSHEY MEDICAL CENTER! Of course it was for only a few days of work versus the two week time period that it will be from now but the bigger picture is that INCOME was ADDED to our account from JASON'S residency program. Wooo Hooo! This is his first pay day since we started the medical school journey and it sure does feel good. Unfortunately, I won't get to tell him the good news until he gets off tonight but I can imagine his smile already!

In other news, definitely not to take away from Jason's first payday, but I have THREE job interviews this week. I keep throwing resumes out and I keep hear positive responses so I'm trying to stay positive and encouraged this week as I interview. Hopefully soon we can have two paydays instead of one!!

First Doctors Visit

Today, at 7 weeks and 1 day, I went to the doctor for my first visit mama/baby visit! Since this is my first pregnancy, I'm new to all the appointments but today was my visit with the nurse, no doctor, just a nurse. I walked into the office and I must have had 'first-time patient' wrote on my forehead because the front desk made sure to make me feel comfortable from the very beginning. I signed in, found a seat and then my eyes began to wander. I wasn't the only lost looking, first-time patient in the room...there were a mix of women in different stages of their pregnancy.
The nurse called me back and started all the paperwork. Tons of family history questions were asked, some food aversions were given and then I was given a lot of information. After our meeting session, I was sent to the laboratory to get some necessary 1st time tests run. My blood work didn't take five minutes once I was called back and it will be evaluated and shared with me and my next appointment, which will be with a doctor, next week. An ultrasound is scheduled to be done next week so we can hear the heartbeat and make sure that the baby is growing healthy!
God is so good to our family! God is so good to our growing family!!

Happy 4th!

Happy Birthday, America!
The 4th of July this year was a little different than previous years....it was our first holiday in Hershey and Jason had to work a 12-hour day shift. It was our first holiday in a long time that we've spent a holiday with just us--no family and no friends. Since it was just us, I made sure to make it feel like any other holiday. A BBQ dinner, a festive dessert and fireworks was a must!! The town was having a concert and a firework show but since Jason didn't get much time to sleep before his next shift, we decided to just hang out and have our own firework display.Gotta love all the sparklers and the smoke they make...we had so much fun running through the open yard spelling out words and having the other try and guess. You would have thought we were two little kids playing with sparklers...we had such a great time.
I would say that our first holiday in Hershey was different than what we are used to but that we made sure to enjoy the moment. How can you go wrong with sparklers?!

Bump Updates: Week 7

Here is the 7 week bump update....

How far along? 7 weeks and 3 days (Saturday, July 9, 2011)

How big is the baby? The size of a blueberry

Sleep? I'm still sleeping a lot. Naps during the day are still a must and I'm averaging about 10-12 hours of sleep through the night. I feel exhausted and drained throughout most of the day.

Food Cravings? This week was a little different for me. Nothing sounded good because the nausea has set in but I did make a run for some Taco Bell this week because everything else I thought of made me feel like I would get sick.

Gender? Still too early to tell but this week the external private parts are being formed!!

Best moment this week? Going to the doctor, getting all the necessary lab work and making this pregnancy seem a little more real.
Movement? Nothing so far

Milestones? The baby is 10,000 times the size it was at conception...the baby is growing!!

Development? The baby's having new brain cells generate this week at around 100 cells per minute. The baby's mouth and tongue are forming, along with its arm and leg buds. Fingers and toes are present but they look more like paddles. Eyelids are forming but will remain closed. The baby's bones are forming but they won't harden for another few weeks. The kidneys are in place and they are actually managing the baby's waste.
Notables: This week I felt bloated and hot pretty much throughout each day. I know I'm still early in the pregnancy but tight clothes, especially jeans, have been pushed to the back of the closet and looser fitting clothes have been moved to the front.

We Found The Golden Ticket

Jason had a day off today so we decided to head to Hershey Chocolate World during one of his study breaks so we could tour the chocolate factory. The smell of chocolate is constantly in the air here so I'm actually a little surprised that it took us two weeks before we stopped into the factory for a visit. The first thing on the agenda was to go through the free tour. I had read some reviews that the tour didn't actually go through the real factory, which was disappointing, but they set up the tour like a real, operating factory. We walked our way through the Cocoa Plantation and then we were given little buggies to ride around in as a commentator explained the chocolate making process. It was very interesting...so much work goes into making the yummy chocolate!

Some interesting facts that we learned on the tour were:
It takes the milk of 50,000 cows A DAY to produce enough milk for Hershey's milk chocolate production for ONE DAY of chocolate!
The factory makes 25 Hershey chocolate bars a second!
Hershey's chocolate factory is the largest chocolate factory in the WORLD!

After the tour, we headed to the bakery. We were so overwhelmed with Hershey goodies. The cookies were fresh out of the oven so we went with a Reese's Blossom Cookie. YUM!We grabbed our cookie and made our way to the trolley tour. The trolley tour took us all over Hershey and showed us the historic buildings that were mixed along with the other buildings of Hershey.

The side of the Hershey chocolate factory had wrote out "Hershey Cocoa" in their bushes. Milton S. Hershey's home was built on a hillside overlooking the factory so he could keep an eye on it.
In this view, the famous Hershey smokestacks can be seen on the left side and then Hershey Park, the amusement park, can be seen. The tour around Hershey was pretty interesting...so much history in such a small town.

Here are some fun facts we learned on the trolley ride:
Mr. Hershey didn't get married until he was 41. He married Kitty and they bought the plantation home for $53,400.
Originally, Hershey specialized in caramels. He was in England for a meeting and during an evening party he noticed his caramels were coated in chocolates and the kids were going crazy for them. They would take handfuls, run outside and then come back in for more. He eventually went out to see what they were doing and noticed that they were sucking all the chocolate off and spitting the caramels out. He decided to make a change to chocolate.
During the Great Depression, Mr. Hershey made sure that no one working at his factories (wherever they might work) lost their jobs. Pretty amazing!We had such a fun day learning how Hershey operates and exploring the city. A lot of things at the factory are free, including the parking, so I have a feeling that we might be making a second trip in the future. If nothing else then we could make a quick run inside for another yummy cookie!