I still cannot believe I am pregnant – let alone 17 weeks pregnant – and I can honestly say it was such a hard secret to keep over the course of these past 4+ months.
I know you guys have a bunch of questions about our special news and since I’ve already received a handful, I figured the best way to address them was a giant Q&A post. I do not plan to morph Peanut Butter Fingers into a pregnancy/mommy blog, but since this blog has always followed my life more than anything else, I am definitely planning to share a bit about my pregnancy and our little one moving forward.
Now let’s dive right in!!
Pregnancy Details // Finding Out
- How did you find out you were pregnant?
Okay, this story is a little ridiculous. In November, right after Ryan and I decided to start trying for a baby, I bought a ton of cheapo (but highly rated!) pregnancy tests on Amazon (25 for $14) because I knew the cost of pregnancy tests can add up quickly and figured buying a bunch to save some money would be a good idea. A few days after the time I figured I should’ve had my period, I took a test, but I took it incorrectly.
The test strips I bought were dip strips that require you to pee in a cup and dip the pregnancy test, but I figured that was mostly “advised” and that I’d see a result from simply peeing on the strip like a normal pregnancy test. (Um, no.) Anyway, I peed on the strip, saw nothing and figured I wasn’t pregnant. I did the same thing a week later when I still didn’t get my period, saw nothing and assumed I wasn’t pregnant. A few days later, when I still didn’t get my period, I figured I should actually take the time to dip the dang strip and do the test correctly. The positive line showed up immediately and I was shocked. I had absolutely no inclination that I was pregnant, let alone 6 weeks pregnant at this point. I truly could not believe it!!
- How did you tell Ryan?
I took the pregnancy test right before Ryan and I were about to go to bed. He was already in bed and when I took the test and saw the positive line show up so strong, I gasped and said, “Oh my gosh.” Ryan heard me and asked what was up and I said, “I think I’m pregnant.” We were both so surprised and when I showed Ryan the positive pregnancy test, he laughed because it was such a cheapo little strip and said we should really wait to get too excited until we could buy a more legit-looking pregnancy test in the morning. We went to sleep both sort of in this limbo mode of “Are we or aren’t we… I think we are…” which made sleeping rather difficult, as I am sure you an imagine.
I bought a pregnancy test at CVS the next morning, took the test (okay, two tests) in the CVS bathroom and our exciting news was officially confirmed. We were both so, so excited!
(The lighting in that pic is kind of weird, but the + sign was quite clear in person!)
- What were your first pregnancy symptoms?
At first nothing. I actually felt very nervous and anxious during the first week or so after we found out because I felt 100 percent normal and everything I read talked about how awful the first few weeks of pregnancy can be – lots of nausea, fatigue, etc. I actually Googled “pregnant without morning sickness” around week 7 and was relieved to see something like 20 percent of women feel fine and never experience nausea. I figured I was just one of the lucky ones.
HA. HA. HA.
Well, during the week of Christmas, about three days later, I was hit with my first round of nausea and it was pretty brutal. Ryan and I arrived in Jacksonville five days before Christmas and weren’t planning to share the news with my family until Christmas morning. This meant I had to hide daily nausea and puking for five days which was definitely not easy to do… especially when I went to the bathroom to throw up in the middle of a Jazzercise class I took with my mom and sister. Thankfully, right after puking, I almost always felt instantly better and eating all the time helped keep nausea at bay a little bit. It still blows my mind that I’ll find myself downing a sandwich 2.5 seconds after I throw up. Pregnancy nausea is so weird.
- What was your first reaction to your pregnancy?
Disbelief. Even though we “tried” that month, I still hadn’t really wrapped my head around the whole idea had absolutely no intuition that told me I was pregnant. I was so shocked and that feeling of surprise was quickly accompanied by a feeling I can only describe as nervous excitement. I’m still feeling quite anxious, but my nerves have mostly moved away from “oh my gosh we’re having a baby” to “please, God, protect our baby and keep our little one safe and healthy.”
- How far along were you when you found out?
Six weeks.
- How did your parents/family react?
On Christmas morning, we wrapped up ornaments I decorated for my parents, Leslie and Ross that said Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt and Uncle and had them all open them simultaneously once we were done eating breakfast.
It took them all a second to register what they were seeing (My mom thought the ornament was from Sadie at first! Ha!), but about five seconds later, we were greeted with excited screams, tears and hugs!
We told Ryan’s family when I next saw them in person during my trip to Sarasota at the end of January. I gave them the same ornaments and said they were belated Christmas gifts. Ryan’s mom hugged me, cried immediately and was so, so thrilled. It was such a special moment.
My grandma found out last week – that’s the real reason I drove to Raleigh! I was planning to tell her in person in Sanibel but when she was not able to join us on our vacation, my mom and I made plans to tell her in person soon after. Mimi’s reaction may have been my favorite! I wrapped up an ornament for her that said Great Grandma and she thought I was telling her she was a wonderful grandma (which she is)! When I asked her, “Do you know what that means?” She shrieked and threw her hands up in the air!!
It was so amazing and my mom, aunt and I could not stop laughing and hugging her!
- How did you tell your friends?
For the most part, I was lucky enough to be able to tell most of my very best friends in person! Since I traveled to Sarasota at the end of January and saw a bunch of my college best friends, I told them all that weekend – one by one, which was so much fun!
I told my best friends from high school about our news when I saw them in Chicago this past weekend. I wrapped up baby-themed candy bars and Hershey Kisses and gave them to them one at a time as well.
It was really hard to wait to tell my friends for so long, but knowing I could share the news in person served as great motivation to hold off. It was totally worth the wait!
Some of my girlfriends in Charlotte were the first to find out since it became a little obvious when I was no longer drinking at all! I also told a bunch of my close blogging buddies early on, too.
Baby Details
- Due date?
August 10, 2015.
- Will you find out the sex ahead of time?
YES. We actually already know!!!
- Do you have any feelings about whether you’re having a boy or a girl?
Ryan and I did a 3D ultrasound at 14 1/2 weeks where they were able to tell us the sex of our baby. I’ll be sure to give more details about all of this when I share this information on the blog soon! We still have a few more people we want to share the sex with in person/over the phone before I announce it on the blog, but I’ll share everything with you guys soon! We have our official 18-week anatomy scan next week where it will be confirmed again since 14 weeks is technically a bit early to tell, so I’m planning to share after that!
In the meantime, I’d love to hear your guesses!
- Any names?
We have one name that’s a current frontrunner, but since we’re not 100 percent sure, we’re keeping it quiet for a while.
- How long were you trying?
I feel very, very fortunate that we were able to get pregnant the first month we tried. I know this is a truly wonderful thing and it’s something I feel grateful for every single day. I went off birth control several months before we had a baby on the brain because I hated the way it made me feel. We were still actively preventing pregnancy up until November, but I think going off my birth control a while before we decided to start trying may have helped a bit.
- How many ultrasounds have you had?
Three! We had our very first ultrasound at 8 weeks and also heard the heartbeat which was incredible. I must say, before I got pregnant, I never really understood why people thought the fuzzy, gray pictures were so amazing, but the minute we saw our little one on the screen during our first ultrasound, I could not believe it and was so overwhelmed with emotion. Ryan and I were both blown away. He actually gave me a high five right after we saw the baby for the first time which is one of my favorite pregnancy memories so far!
We had additional ultrasounds at 11 1/2 weeks (the first time I saw the baby MOVE totally BLEW MY MIND) and our first 3D ultrasound at 14 1/2 weeks.
- Who do you think the baby will look like?
Ryan and I looked so similar as kids. We both had light eyes and almost white-blonde hair, so I picture us with a light-eyed blonde-haired little one!
- Do you want more than one?
Yes… eventually! Right now we are simply focusing on this baby and praying for a healthy little one in August.
- Have you felt the baby move?
I don’t think so. A week ago, I felt a weird fluttering feeling that was more intense than stomach gurgling. It was pretty noticeable but could also have been absolutely nothing. My pregnant/mom friends said that once I am sure I feel the baby move, I’ll likely know whether that was really the baby moving early on or not!
***
I’ll share Part Two of this post this afternoon that will address the following questions:
- Will you be sharing weekly pregnancy updates on the blog?
- How have you been feeling?
- Do you have morning sickness?
- Do you have any cravings?
- Do you have any food aversions?
- Weight gain so far?
- Have you experienced any crazy pregnancy-related emotions?
- Any mood swings?
- Any unexpected feelings or symptoms?
- How far along are you now?
- How has work/teaching been going?
- How do you think Sadie will react to having a little brother or sister?
Let me know if I am missing anything or if you have any additional questions you’d like addressed this afternoon!
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This is all so exciting!! I’m so happy for you! I’m 15 weeks pregnant with my first (due 8/26), so it’ll be exciting to follow along with you on this journey!!
Loved this post! I just am so happy for you and Ryan. Thanks for mentioning that you went off of BC several months before trying. I’m now trying, and have learned the hard way that it can take so many months for a cycle to regulate itself post-BC. So I feel like this is something people should know for whenever they are ready :-). PSA, people!
Congrats to you all for getting pregnant on your first cycle — it’s so exciting! I can’t wait to read all about your journey through pregnancy and motherhood!!
Oh, and my guess for the sex is GIRL. Mainly just because I think that a mini-Julie would be so ridiculously adorable!
I’m actually tearing up! the way you surprised your family, and told everyone was so sweet! your grandmother is precious! Question: are you going to keep teaching your exercise classes while pregnant?
So happy for you! I can’t wait to hear more!
Congrats again!
So so exciting! Thank you for sharing with all of us! I love how you told everyone and especially in person! While I had to laugh at the creative way a friend and my sister told me via text (the friend asked to hire me for newborn pictures and my sister “brought me a souvenir” from her honeymoon and sent a picture of her pregnancy test), but was still via text, and I can only imagine how much greater it would have been in person.
O my gosh! Haha, your grandma is adorable!
I think it’s a girl!! We found out the sex of our baby at our NT scan at 14 weeks! It was amazing! Everyone kept telling me that it’s not even possible to know that early, but it’s actually pretty common nowadays with a good ultrasound technician! Congratulations again Julie!!
Congrats! Sounds like you have been really blessed thus far! What are your plans for working out while you are pregnant?
I am just so incredibly happy for you three (Sadie too!) I have been following your blog for so long now (you are actually the first blog I started reading, and the reason I still read others!) and I am just thrilled for you. It seems so strange to be so excited for someone you don’t actually know, but I can’t help it!
Congratulations again! Oh, yes, and I think it’s a girl!
I feel the exact same way as this commenter!! Your grandmas reaction made me laugh out loud, I’m incredibly over the moon for you all!! <3
Have you limited your workouts since finding out? How has the pregnancy effected your workouts? When do you think you’ll stop? I am so happy for you guys!!! Congrats again.
Congratulations! Being a mommy is an amazing experience 🙂
What is your workout plan for your pregnancy?
Ahhhh….i am such a jerk!! I asked a question and didn’t even say congrats. CONGRATS!!!
Hi Julie! Looks like a lot of us longtime readers are coming out of the woodwork all teary eyed to congratulate you (; I’m so happy for you both! You and Ryan will make such wonderful parents.
I am curious- would you mind sharing your experience of getting off birth control? I’m on the pill now and feel the same about how it makes me feel…but it’s a big decision to make and I want to hear as many personal experiences as I can!
Again- congratulations <3
I’ve been a reader so years and years, and just had to tell you congratulations!!!
Congrats again, this post made me teary-eyed! You did an impressive job of hiding the pregnancy up until now, especially with all your traveling and fitness class teaching! As a long-time reader (3 years or so) I’m so excited for you as I would be for a friend….and I can definitely see you and Ryan having a little girl as your first 🙂
P.S. you’ve got that mama’s glow in your recent pics!
I love hearing all about your pregnancy so far! Such an exciting time! I would just be curious, how do you think your blog will change? Will you still be blogging and working like you do now when the baby is here?
Congrats again!!
Aw, your grandma’s reaction was adorable! Especially her first interpretation of great grandma and her excitement when she realized what it really meant. 🙂 Congratulations again, I like many others have followed your blog for years now and I’m very happy for you guys.
Oh goodness gracious, this is all so exciting! Your grandma’s reaction is beyond adorable 🙂
Congratulations Julie! I’ve been reading your blog since 2012 and am so happy for you! My husband and I are expecting our third (a boy) in June, so it’s fun for me to read of your journey! Again, congratulations to all of you! xo
So happy for you Julie! I’ve been reading your blog since right before you got engaged. You and Ryan will make fantastic parents!
I am just so excited for you! I have been reading your blog since 2010ish, and I have been waiting for this day 🙂 Like I commented yesterday, I have a 4 month old baby girl. My husband and I, like you, were able to get pregnant extremely fast, so we were surprised as well to learn we were pregnant already LOL Morning sickness was not fun; I never threw up, but I was nauseous like all day. I was basically the same as you in that constantly snacking on stuff helped keep it at bay. My nausea lasted from weeks 6 to about 13/14. Has yours gone away?? I am so excited to read about your journey, and I will be praying for a happy and healthy pregnancy for you 🙂
I’ve been reading your blog since you were dating, and the reason I visit EVERY single day is because you write the best, most informative, inclusive, fun posts. You make us readers feel welcomed. Thanks for that! And I congratulated you yesterday, with written confetti and all, but big time congrats again today!
I think the high five from Ryan might be my favorite pregnancy reaction ever. lol Even though I’m a girl, I think that would be MY reaction. lol (Note: I’m a big time high-fiver.)
from – Kim from MN (I usually just sign Kim, but maybe I should differentiate myself from all the Kims – there are bazillions of us!)
this comment made me smile so big!! THANK YOU, kim! <3
Yay! I’m happy. You entertain us daily. Thank you! 🙂
Incredibly exciting – started reading your blog way way back and you are still the only blog i really follow. This is going to be exciting for you all and probably slightly shocking for Sadie!!!!
Congratulations and enjoy this time! Every time I read your blog I wondered when you would announce this. It became very obvious when the pictures you would post of yourself had something strategically placed in front of your belly:) but I totally understand not wanting to announce too early. As a mom of two, I look forward to reading along and following your journey. I hope that the comments section does not become a “mommy wars” forum as it has on other blogs.
Although challenging at times, pregnancy and motherhood is a wonderful gift! Enjoy!
Your grandma’s reaction is too sweet! What a fun expression and exciting moment to capture! Beautiful job on the ornaments too. Congrats again to you, Ryan, Sadie and the rest of your family!
sweet friend, congrats! i cannot wait to follow you along this new journey. Hugs!
I was really excited when I heard your news in the last post, but this post is the one that got me emotional. 19 years ago, this month, I had my first child. It all came flooding back to me as I read. I am so happy for you and Ryan to be entering this amazing adventure. There is truly nothing like it on the face of the earth. Blessings to all THREE of you. Oh, and Sadie too…she’s getting a little sister (my guess).
<3 thank you!!
SOOO excited for you! Can’t wait to follow you on this journey! I have been reading your blog for a few years now so this is very exciting news! 🙂 Congratulations!
The pictures of your Grandma Mimi’s reaction to your baby news are just so adorable!
Congrats! The picture of your sister’s ornament is so cute and reminded me of my sister telling my family 2 years ago that a birth mother had picked her and my bro-in-law to be the adoptive parents. The pictures of your grandmother made me cry! What a neat thing to have captured her emotions like that!
that picture of your grandmother had me tearing up. so sweet. congrats again!!
So, so, SO excited and happy for you guys!! <3
My friend Dana is a fan of your blog, too, and we happened to have a dinner date scheduled last night… we toasted you, Ryan & the baby!
My husband and I were also able to get pregnant right away, and it was such a blessing! And like you, I had been off birth control for a few months and had been using other preventative methods before we started trying 🙂 I am must so excited for you and can’t wait to hear the gender!!! 🙂 I have a little girl, and she is so much fun!!!! She is 13 months
I’ve been a reader for some time but have never commented. Congratulations!! I’m so happy for you and wish all the best to you and your growing family. The photos of your grandmother brought tears to my eyes!!
Ok, the story where you told your grandmother made me tear up!! The story, and picture that captures her reaction = priceless!! Congratulations:)
You are SO having a girl…I can tell from the u/s… 🙂
Congratulations by the way….you look adoriable and your excitement and joy totally comes through in your posts. Very happy for you.
Oh my goodness Julie! I am so excited for the two of you! What an exciting time in your lives. I can’t wait to hear all about it.
Ah so exciting– your grandma is the cutest!!!
Oh my gosh, your grandma is the cutest!!! Congratulations to you and your family!!
Ohmigosh! This is so exciting! I’m so happy for you guys!
And…I’m thinking girl… a perfect little girl named Emmy. 🙂
Ahhh! LONG time reader here and I am soooo excited for you!! Also, because we are THREE days apart! I am preg with my first – a girl! I can’t wait to read your journey!!!! Xoxo
congrats!! i’ve heard that if the tech offers to tell you the sex early it is typically because they “saw something”….so i’m guessing boy despite the fact that the picture in my mind has you holding hands with a little girl wearing matching dresses and her hair in pigtails.
Congratulations again!!! 🙂 And that picture of your Mimi’s reaction is so heartwarming and beautiful!!!!! Also too cute that your mom thought it was an ornament from Sadie! 😀
Congratulations!!! I’ve been following your blog for a while and have been waiting for you and Ryan to create a sibling for Sadie 🙂 So exciting!
Your grandma’s reaction = priceless!!! I’ve been a long time reader and so, so happy for you both. Even though I don’t know you personally I think you are going to be excellent parents. The love you have for one another shines through in every post and that is one lucky baby to be born into a family with so much love to give. Congratulations!
Congrats, Julie! That is so funny about the tests that weren’t working right. Silly things!
We also got pregnant on our first month trying and it was a bit of a surprise even though we wanted it. It was like, wait… this actually happens like that? lol. I’m excited to see you into motherhood!
the ornaments were the cutest and your grandmother’s reaction made my heart melt. congrats again.
Congratulations!! The picture of your mimi is priceless!
On a side note, I made her sugar cookie recipe for Valentine’s Day and they were amazing!
Congrats!! An exciting journey for you, Ryan and the whole family. I especially loved your grandmas reaction. Looking forward to all the blog updates.
Congrats and your story sounds just like ours. We prevented for 6 years, decided we wanted to be pregnant by January and started trying in middle August and got pregnant the first try then were kinda freaking out! 🙂 I also had no symptoms until after week 7. I hope your pregnancy goes well, and I can’t wait to hear if you are having a boy or a girl!