June 2014

June 2, 2014

Jeremy and I booked a 7-night Caribbean cruise!  The perfect babymoon :) We'll be setting sail on July 20th.  I can already taste the (virgin) pina coladas.

June 17, 2014

My monthly prenatal appointment with Dr. T.  She examined my breast, and the lump was still palpable (though I still don't like calling it a "lump" because that's not how I'd describe it).  I told her that at times, I was starting to feel some minor discomfort, like if I were laying on the couch and my breast was pushed up against the cushion.  I wouldn't say it was "painful," but it'd definitely get my attention. I also started noticing that my nipple was becoming more flat.  She decided to refer me to a breast specialist, and gave me some general pamphlets on dealing with breast lumps/pain. I went home and began googling information (more on the pros/cons of this habit later) and read that changes in the breast are incredibly common and almost always benign.  And of course, all kinds of changes take place during pregnancy that are completely normal, so again, no huge red flags have been flown.  Yet.

Late June 2014

Now that I was referred to a specialist, it was up to me to actually call and make the appointment.  Looking back, I wish I'd called ASAP.  But, hindsight is 20/20 as they say and at the time, I'll admit I put it off for a little while.  Honestly, it was pure laziness on my part; having to make an appointment, rearrange my work schedule, drive to an office, pay another co-pay, blah blah blah.  Not to mention dealing with all of the first trimester pregnancy symptoms (I was nauseous a lot but only vomited once, hooray!). 

I finally called around the end of June.  This doctor has two offices:  one office is 45 minutes away and the other is 5 minutes away.  I despise driving, so naturally I asked for the next appointment at the nearby office.  The doctor only works there once a week, so the next opening was on July 17.  This was over 3 weeks away, but I patted myself on the back for finally making the call.  Around this time, I started to notice at least one smaller, more pronounced "lump,"  best described as pea/marble sized in an area between my breast and armpit.  And, my nipple continued to stay flat. But, the appointment was set, so I had some peace of mind that everything would be addressed then.

May 2014

Several things happened this month, so I'll try to break it down by each day.

May 7, 2014

Finally, time for my first prenatal appointment!  Dr. T gave me a hug and said, "Wow, that was quick!"  I asked her to check my breast.  She agreed that she could feel something, and referred me for a breast ultrasound. She didn't seem too concerned, which put my mind at ease.  However, I did make sure to mention to her that I felt the change before learning I was pregnant. She also scheduled me for the first ultrasound to check on the baby and sent us on our way.  Now that the pregnancy was "official," it was time to tell our family :)

May 16, 2014

I went to a local imaging center for a breast ultrasound.  This involved going into a nice, relaxing room with the lights dimmed and soft music playing.  The tech came in and asked me to point out exactly where I felt a lump.  I explained that there isn't a specific "lump" but rather referred her to an entire area that felt thicker, on the outer right side and kinda sorta near the armpit.  I wish I could have been more specific with her, but I really couldn't explain it any better.  So, she moved the wand all around, and noted that there was "dense tissue" not only in the area I pointed out, but elsewhere.  I later learned that this is actually very typical for people my age, which is why mammograms and ultrasound imaging might not find things as easily in younger women. The tech leaves the room for a minute and returns with a doctor, who was basically Guy Fieri in a labcoat.  He looked at the images and knowing that I was about 8 weeks pregnant, stated that changes in the breast are very common during pregnancy.  I vividly remember him saying, "I wouldn't lose any sleep over it."  So, I didn't.  It actually felt good to have some confirmation that this didn't seem like a big deal. And, for additional reassurance, they suggested a follow-up ultrasound in 3 months to check on it again.  So, I called Jeremy at work and went on with my day.  At this point, I still hadn't mentioned any of this to my family, because I figured it would worry them for no reason. 

May 19, 2014

Our first ultrasound to see the baby!  At this point, it looked like a fuzzy gummy bear, but we could see him/her moving all around and could hear the heartbeat (163 bpm!). Amazing.  My due date was confirmed for December 20, 2014.  December babies are the best!  I joke with Jeremy that this is going to add to what I call the TRIFECTA.  You see, my birthday, wedding anniversary, and Christmas all land within 3 weeks of each other.   Needless to say, Jeremy has a lot of planning/shopping to do around that time of year.  So adding a baby into the mix bumped things up to a Quadfecta (Fourfecta?).  Either way, it's my favorite time of the year, so it made perfect sense that we'd have a December baby on our hands.

May 20, 2014

Back to the OB/GYN to meet the nurse midwife who collaborates with Dr. T.  I figured that since I'd been having a pretty typical pregnancy so far, I'd be seen by the midwife for most of my prenatal appointments.  We discussed my lab results, which were normal, and discussed general do's and dont's of pregnancy.  We briefly discussed the outcome of my breast ultrasound from 4 days prior, and she made note that it'd continue to be monitored monthly by Dr. T.

April 2014: A Trip to the Drug Store

My period was late, again.  This time, after taking several home pregnancy tests that faintly came up as "positive," I decided to get a digital test to confirm it.  So, one quick trip to CVS and case closed:  Pregnant!  Say what???  We couldn't believe that it happened so fast, as so many people struggle with this, and it certainly doesn't get any easier when you enter the 30+ age range.  But, I will admit that Jeremy and I exchanged some high-fives and considered ourselves very blessed.  I called Dr. T to make an appointment, only to discover that I had to wait almost another month for my first prenatal appointment! This is totally the norm, apparently, that patients aren't seen until at least 8 weeks pregnant, sometimes more.  So, the slow countdown began and Jeremy and I kept our exciting news to ourselves.  And, since I now had an appointment set for May 7, I figured I would just mention the issue with my breast then.  No big deal.

March 2014

Sometime this month (I didn't take note of the exact day or even week), I began to feel some changes in my right breast.  It wasn't so much a lump, but rather a general thickening/hardening on the outer side.  It wasn't causing any pain, and I didn't mention it to anyone, but quietly kept it in the back of my mind.  My period was a few days late, which caused some anticipation.  We really didn't think it could be that easy?! We enjoyed a long weekend in St. Augustine and excitedly considered the possibilities.  But alas, my period arrived, so better luck next month...

January 2014: Green light, go!

It all started in January 2014.  My husband Jeremy and I decided that this would be "the year" that we wanted to start a family.  I know people say that you're never actually ready for this, but we really did have a feeling that the time was right to start our next adventure. We spent the last 11 years doing pretty much whatever we wanted, which mostly involved traveling:  Canada/Alaska, New England, Europe (twice!), and two of our most "happy places," New Orleans and Disney World.  Heck, we got engaged and later married at Disney World in 2007, so it definitely holds a lot of wonderful memories for us. 2014 would be the year of the baby.  But first, I needed to find some good insurance.

I work as an independent contractor, so I pay for my own health insurance.  With the new Affordable Care Act going into effect, I was excited to choose a plan from the new "marketplace."  Because we wanted to start a family, I decided that it would be worth the extra money to purchase one of the Platinum plans.  First wise decision of the year: check!

January 31, 2014

I went for my annual wellness exam at my OB/GYN, Dr. T.  Pap smear and breast exam, fine.  No issues whatsoever.  I mentioned that we wanted to start a family, so she gave me a little speech about taking prenatal vitamins, wished me luck, and sent me on my way.  Green light, go!