6 weeks pregnant! :D

Woohoo, six weeks pregnant! So exciting!

I have to be quick because it's really late and Samuel is stirring a bit, which means he could wake any moment (and I should be in bed!). Just wanted to update about my doctor's appointment today.

It went fine! Things have changed a bit apparently, and now everything goes from the GP to the hospital, which then acts as a sorting base, and gets me set up with the midwifery team, and arranges scan appointments, sends me info, etc. The GP no longer sends me for an early scan, I have to go through the hospital antenatal department for that. So, we spent a fair amount of time filling in the appropriate information! ;) This is because I have to give all the information on my previous babies (gestation, normal pregnancy/birth?, birth weight, location, gender, etc), and there are a few of them now, lol! LOVE going through all of that every time. Their stats are always right on the tip of my tongue, I never forget any of the details, and I love to review it when I book in for a new pregnancy! Especially with all of the said babies milling around me happily, playing with toys as I chat to the doctor! :)

My blood pressure was 109/68, typical low-ish blood pressure for me, nice and normal :) She did not weigh me (they never do here, but usually the doctor weighs me at book-in for a base weight for the notes). BUT I weighed myself last week when I was fully dressed, feeling annoyed with none of my jeans fitting me properly any more, and my skirts hanging off my hips and thus being a bit too long for my short legs! ;) I knew I was 9 stone something (a few lbs over 9st but can't remember exactly now) a couple of weeks before that, so I wondered if I had made it down to 9 stone or something? I don't do anything to lose weight but it does come off around this stage all the same, so it's worth keeping track of.

I seriously nearly fell off the scales when I saw 8 stone 7lbs!!!!! I haven't been as light as that since between Arthur and Matthew's pregnancies!!! I have no idea why, except that I do know the kidney stone and tummy bug both shifted a lot of weight off me in the stage where I normally do NOT lose any weight even if I try. So I guess it gave me a head start or something?! I don't know! Anyway I am pleased because it's a much better weight to start a pregnancy with (knowing I will pile on a LOT of weight pretty soon!), but also a little bit unsure about having lost this much so far, because I usually lose a fair bit more during the morning sickness stage. I was 7 stone 10lbs before having children, and my optimum weight was supposedly 8 stone 8lbs. I could NEVER make it to that, even on a dietitian-supervised high calorie diet, and after having Arthur I decided that I did not want to go back down below 8.5 stone ever again. I think I don't have the energy I need when I don't weigh enough, especially if I am parenting many small boys and breastfeeding at least one or two of them! ;) So in that sense I am a little insecure about having dropped quickly down to 8st 7lbs already. Hopefully I won't lose much more before I gain again with the pregnancy.

My GP highlighted in her report to the hospital the fact that I am bleeding. She hopes that they'll see it and arrange an early scan appointment, but if I haven't heard from them for a while (?!) then I can ring the antenatal clinic and they will put me through to the Early Pregnancy Unit where I can arrange myself a scan. I am only spotting brown, and it's definitely lighter now, but I do want to have a scan if I am allowed to, because it always brings me great peace of mind after a bleed. I am not particularly wanting to wait "a while" to see if they get in touch with me! I asked if the bleeding turns red again (it has, on and off, but not for a week maybe, now) what should I do? She said to call them and arrange a scan, not to go back to the GP like I used to be able to. So I will do that. I think I will call the hospital about it early next week, or maybe even Friday if I am impatient enough, haha! ;)

On arriving at the doctor's surgery, we met a mother pushing her baby in a pram coming out. She stopped and asked me if the boys were all mine, and I said yes (proudly!)! :) She said, "Oh well done! That's great!" So lovely! :) Once inside, we were early (I KNOW!!!!! ME!! EARLY!!! :D ) so we sat for a while near the entrance where the water cooler was, and I got the boys some water to drink. I was just organising them with their drinks when a lady with a baby sat down next to us and stared and smiled. After a minute an elderly man came in and straight off he asked me if they were all mine. I said yes. The lady gasped, haha! He asked me if they were all boys, and I said yes. The lady gasped again! ;) Then Arthur loudly proclaimed, "And number six is in her tummy!" with a huge smile, bless his heart! :) More gasps from the lady, and the sweet gentleman made the oft-mentioned comment about football teams, wished me luck, and smiled at us and went on his way.

Sitting in the waiting area at last, there were lots of people waiting, many with babies because it was a vaccination clinic at the same time. People STARED at us, but ever so kindly, with smiles and wide-eyed nods at me when I caught their looks, so it was nice :) For some reason, Arthur took off his shoes and socks while we were in with the doctor, and so we paused in the waiting area on the way out for him to put them back on. PACKED waiting room by then! Two ladies who looked like mother (elderly) and daughter (maybe 50s) sat smiling at us while he put his shoes on. Finally the younger lady suddenly said, "Excuse me, but have you got FIVE little boys?!" and I said yes (proudly again! I'm so proud of them and so happy that, yes, they're all mine!). She and her mother said, "Woowww!" and then Arthur stood up, ready to go, and in a very loud voice said again, "And number six is in her tummy!" The whole waiting room gasped, hahaha! The elderly lady said, "Ohh, shhh!" as though you shouldn't say about something like that, and her daughter said, "I see you don't have any secrets!" with a smile. ;) A lot of attention was directed towards us, and that used to make me squirm, but I am enjoying it now. I love my many small boys, and am so excited that God has chosen to bless me this way, and this MUCH! :) There's no much hiding away now, lol! So it's fun, especially when everybody is so nice about it. I know that not everybody is nice about it, but hopefully I will not meet many of them - I haven't yet, thankfully!

So it went well!

In other news, I am queasy today (a little here and there in the morning, but not much until lunchtime like the other days so far), but never really getting as far as full-on NAUSEA. I hope that's okay... In all my other pregnancies I felt pretty grim by the time I turned 6 weeks. I mean, I feel yucky, but not always, and it seems ever so mild. It does sometimes take a few days to really pick up strength, going by my pregnancy diary for my other pregnancies, but still, by 6 weeks it's usually at that point - maybe 6 weeks and a couple of days at the latest, but still it's worse than this at 6 weeks exactly all the same. Not sure what to make of that. I am eating protein in all my meals, and protein if I feel a bit yeurghy, but I don't know that I can put it all down to protein management! I mean, surely there were zillions of occasions that I ate protein when feeling grim in other pregnancies (think of all the gallons of cottage cheese I've consumed in early pregnancy, lol!) and it made no difference. I am VERY GLAD to be feeling only mildly sick. It's very manageable and the days are basically normal. I'm busier than I ever was before, but again I don't think I can put the easier nausea down to just being busy. There are many busy homeschooling mothers of many children who are still rendered horizontal for months by morning sickness, no matter how busy or distracted they may be!

I just hope it's okay. Because it's different from the other 5 times, it makes me a little bit uneasy, especially with the bleeding, but anyway. Hopefully I will get a scan and it will be good news, and reassuring. Tomorrow I am going for a scan of a different sort - a follow-up ultrasound on my kidney after the kidney stone, just to see if it's fine. I have had some aches and pains there pretty consistently since then, and it was completely obstructed for some time so I want to be sure it's okay.

Too tired to think straight now (been a really tired day today!) so I will go to bed now! :) Back soon though! Must take a "before" belly picture soon! :D