#2

We found out we were expecting Baby Martin #2 on July 20th! It took us a little longer to get pregnant this time than it did with Brooklyn, so we were pretty excited to see those two lines show up! I'm probably the most impatient person around so I already had taken a couple tests "before my missed period" and both were negative. I kinda just had a feeling that I was pregnant this month though and so I waited a couple more days till I couldn't take the suspense anymore and took one more...and there was a VERY subtle line! In fact I had to really stare at it to tell and had to ask for Scott's second opinion, but we both concluded it was there! I took one more a couple days later, just to be sure, and this time there was no question, it was positive! (seriously, I waste too much money on pregnancy tests when we're trying - thank goodness for the dollar store!) We felt like the timing was perfect. I had just finished all my training for my new job and was feeling fairly comfortable about it at that point. I have debated on even recording the events of my first trimester because a large part of me wants to forget it ever happened. But I decided one day I'll probably wish I had recorded it. I felt pretty good the next couple weeks and was REALLY hoping I would feel better during my first trimester than I did with Brooklyn. Well, right around 6 weeks (just like with Brooklyn) those hopes quickly dwindled. It was different this time though and I was having some major anxiety/insomnia issues, which I have never had any issues with. I literally COULD NOT sleep at night. My heart felt like it was pounding out of it's chest and it was hard to breathe sometimes. It was worse around the couple nights that I had to work and there were a couple nights where I only got 1-2 hrs of sleep, one night I didn't get any, and had to go to work the next day. Seriously, I was MISERABLE and had no clue what was going on. One night I felt like I had what I would suspect a panic attack felt like and seriously couldn't breathe. Scott was amazing and just bear-hugged me and coached me to breathe till I could finally relax. I went to see the Dr. the next day to see if he had any insight, it was seriously so bizarre. First he did an ultrasound to see how the pregnancy was and everything looked great and we could even see the heart beating already (6 1/2 weeks). He told me that these symptoms can happen at the beginning of pregnancy b/c all the surging hormones can act as stimulants. Since it seemed to be worse around the times I had to work, he suggested I take a medical leave from work till it settled down. I was all on-board for that plan! Taking a break from work and really trying to simplify my life seemed to help with that issue and I was able to sleep a little better. Then about a week or two later, the all-day sickness hit me pretty hard. Mornings were the best time of the day for me, but I always woke up gagging, dry-heaving, and sometimes throwing up. But right around when I laid Brooklyn for her nap is when it would hit me hard, everyday. From around 1 pm on, I didn't really make it out of my bed or off the couch, unless I had to pee, puke, or grab more crackers. I threw up pretty much daily, right around dinnertime and into the evening. Zofran did nothing to help this time and the side effects seemed way worse than the benefits so I stopped taking it. I would get a day or two here and there of puking relief but the nausea was always very strong. In a way it was a blessing that my worst time was while Brooklyn was sleeping and Scott was home to help, but it really depressed me that I could never do anything fun with my family. I was really hard on myself and had a really hard time feeling like a good mom and wife b/c I was pretty useless most of the day. Scott always went the extra mile to help out and wipe away all my tears (and trust me, there were lots). Overall, I just felt like a complete mess all the time and really struggled with keeping my spirits up. I felt so blessed to bring another baby into this world but wanted so desperately to just feel like myself again. My work was really accommodating though and let me have work off till around my 13th week which is when I started to feel a little better. My throwing up decreased around my 13th/14th week but then I started getting splitting headaches a ton. That lasted a couple more weeks and I finally felt more like myself around my 18th week. I am 20 1/2 weeks right now and am feeling pretty good overall!! 

We found out we were expecting another little GIRL at 15 weeks. I paid for a gender check with Brooklyn, so I was pretty sure I didn't want to wait to find out with this one either. We originally were going to find out at 16 weeks, but then my parents and little sister came into town a week prior, so I thought it would be fun to find out while they were here. I called the ultrasound place to see if they would do it and it was no problem! My mom, mother-in-law, and sister came to the ultrasound with us and my Dad watched Brooklyn. It was pretty obvious that she was a girl. Right when he did the "from the bum up" view, I just started laughing and said, "that is totally a girl!" He said, "You're absolutely right, that is definitely a girl." I really didn't have a preference this time around b/c I had reasons for wanting each but I think Scotty was a little disappointed at first, only because he's 100% convinced that we are going to have all girls, and so I think he was hoping to prove himself wrong. But a couple days before we went to the ultrasound, he got into bed one night and just started talking about how much he loved Brooklyn and would be really happy if it was a girl, which made me feel a lot less pressure! lol. He is seriously the best dad for girls, Brooklyn totally melts his heart, and he seems really excited for another little girl. I'm really excited that I hardly have to buy anything this time around and that I have another little doll to dress up! I have started to feel her kick a lot more recently and we have our in-depth ultrasound this Friday. I'm always really nervous about that ultrasound - being a nurse makes me super pessimistic sometimes - but am praying she is growing healthy and strong. It still doesn't seem real that we are having another baby, so I'm just waiting for it to hit me one day! Sorry this is so long, I guess that's what happens when you don't record anything for months!!

I am very grateful for the TV in our room that bought me an extra hour in bed every morning while she watched Curious George or Bubble Guppies. 

Our little "dot" at 6 1/2 weeks...

We always had to do our night-time routine in my bed, since that was usually the only place you could find me...

My diet...

Scotty, super husband to the rescue...

Starting to look chubby at 11 weeks...

I announced our pregnancy to the social media world at 14 weeks...

Our little girl at 15 weeks...

20 weeks...

 Now, if one of you would just go ahead and name her that would be great! Because at this point, she will be nameless.