Thought’s of a First Time Mom

If you have been around here awhile, most of you know that getting pregnant was not the easiest thing for Justin and me. It was a lot of long months, a lot of tests, and a lot of medication to figure out what was going on. But now that we are pregnant, there are a lot of things running through my head, like any first-time mom. 

How will the dogs handle the new baby?

Right now, our dogs are our fur-babies. They do everything with us, and are constantly getting belly rubs from both of us! Bringing the baby home will be a big transition for both the dogs! It will be an interesting transition for all of us! Any tips on how you introduced your dogs to your new one? 

How will we get on a schedule?

Most of you know my husband is a Deputy Sherriff and doesn’t have the normal 9-5, Monday- Friday schedule. He has the opposite of that. Getting on a good schedule while I am on maternity leave, and then when I get back to work worries me a little. He could be working thirds (11 pm – 8 am), or even seconds (3 pm- 11 pm). I know we will just have to roll with the punches as they come!

Read about my second shift Blues Here.

How will Breastfeeding Go?

As a first time mom, we all know no one can answer that question, but it sure would be nice if someone could give us some idea on how it will be. I told myself, I will try as hard as I can, but also not be mad at myself, if it does not work out. I think it is important to put a little pressure on yourself. But then also to remind yourself, it is okay if it does not work out. It will not be the end of the world, and your little baby will be just perfectly fine either way!

How Can I Help Prepare for the Future?

This answer is easier than I thought it would be to find, after looking into cord blood banking with Cord Blood Registry (CBR) Your baby’s umbilical cord is made of tissue and contains blood, both of which are rich sources of powerful stem cells. Preserving your newborn’s stem cells may give your child or an immediate family member, depending on the condition and other factors, the opportunity to use this resource for current cord blood therapies and potential future applications, like regenerative medicine.*

(Source is from https://www.cordblood.com/stem-cell-research/cord-blood-uses-and-research ) 

During this crazy time of preparing for the baby, CBR makes it super easy to get started, with 5 simple steps:

1. Enroll with CBR online at cordblood.com/enroll or call 1-888-240-1996
2. CBR ships you a collection kit
3. Bring your kit to the hospital on your big day
4. Call the medical courier after your baby is born and the cord blood has been collected by your healthcare professional
5. Relax. CBR handles the rest and will notify you when the kit has been received.

If you are pregnant, know someone who is expecting, or just want more information for the future I suggest watching this video that helps break down how it all works or head on over to www.cordblood.com. You can also receive a promo code for, $200 off of the initial fees by filling out your information here!

It is so hard to believe Baby Knight will be here in less than 3 months! We are so excited, to bring this baby into the world!

What are some of your thought’s when you were becoming a first-time mom?

It is hard to believe that January is almost over! Where did the month go? Since I was pregnant bringing in the new year, I couldn’t really make any new year’s resolutions connected to my weight or health, since growing a human takes a lot of work. Even though I may be 22 weeks pregnant, my ultimate goal to have a healthy pregnancy for baby

Tips To A Healthy Pregnancy

Stay Hydrated:

Before I got pregnant, I stopped drinking all pop which made me drink more water. So increasing my water intake was easier for me than I thought it would be. Of course, some days I do struggle to keep drinking enough water, but on the days I drink water, it is amazing how much better I feel!

Enjoy the Extra Sleep:

During the early stages of my pregnancy, I always felt bad for sleeping so much. Now that I am almost 23 weeks pregnant, I know I need my sleep, and do not feel bad for sleeping a little extra these weeks! I guess it is the one good thing about being married to a man on third shift.. getting the bed to myself!

(Read my post-Goodbye Second Shift Blues to find out all about our transition!)

Take Notice of Your Weight:

Let’s be honest here… I am one to gain weight pretty easy, so gaining a lot of excess weight during my pregnancy always worried me a little. I knew I wanted to have a healthy pregnancy, but I also knew I did not want to gain excessive weight!

The Nokia Body+ Smart Scale is such an easy way to keep track of your weight! It has special modes for momma’s who are pregnant just like me! I know it will also keep track of the postpartum weight loss! Currently, I am weighing my self-weekly, or really whenever I feel up to it!

Also, the Nokia Body+ Smart Scale can track up to 8 different people, all from the free Health Mate app, which makes it even easier to see your weight loss progress! The sleek style of the Nokia Body+ Smart Scale, let’s me keep it out in the bathroom, and the batteries will last up to 18 months which is great because I know after having this baby changing my scales batteries is the last thing that will be on my mind!

Stay Active For A Healthy Pregnancy:

For me, this one was easy! We are going through a whole house remodel and doing a lot of the work ourselves, it was easy to stay active. I actually overdid it a couple days and had to remind myself that I growing a little baby, and that baby needs me to take it easy! But, I do believe that staying active, and not letting yourself to use the excuse of “I’m Pregnant” to get out of things, helps a lot! I think this is one of the main reasons my weight gain has been minimal, now I know the bigger I get, the harder it will be for me to stay active, but while I can be active, I am trying!

Don’t Stress Over Gaining Weight:

Trust me, I really miss wearing my non-maternity pants, but I know time will fly by, and before I know it our little one will be here, and be a year old! I am trying to enjoy it all, the weight gain and the heartburn since it was a struggle to get to this point!

Actually, let’s be real.. The only maternity pants I own are leggings… I bought 4 pairs, and wear them all the time! I really need to find some good maternity jeans soon!

Ready a little about our infertility & pregnancy announcement here.

What are your tips for a healthy pregnancy?

There are some things that many people don’t talk about. Infertility. Many choose to keep their infertility struggle a secret, to make it easier on them. ( I was one of the people), at the time, I didn’t want people to know. I didn’t want them to ask what was going on, what was the next step, I only wanted to talk about our process when I was ready. Then after many months of trying, you get what you have been wishing a praying for, you’re pregnant. All those months of infertility are in the past, people don’t tell their stories. They are looking to the future, and not in the past anymore.

That is why I have collected some women that have gone through infertility, in case you are going through this and you feel alone, please know you are not.

Know you are not alone if you are going through infertility.

Because I like to think I’ve overcome in other ways. I’m stronger for it and I’m not ashamed of it- so many women feel like it’s something they did and they’re to blame…but that’s just NOT the case. I lost my first pregnancy, my daughter, at 18 weeks. She’s now my guardian angel and has taught me so much about a condition I never even knew existed until it happen to me and I lost her. I’ve educated SO many Drs (Yes, I’ve educated them!) on my condition and the steps I’ve taken to beat my condition. So, although I don’t have my rainbow miracle yet, I’m hopeful it’ll happen someday…but I do believe my husband and I have overcome infertility but not allowing it to overcome Us. -Meghan

We got married at 23 and immediately knew we wanted a large family. However, after months of trying and nothing happening I visited my OBGYN. She put me on birth control for a few months to regulate my cycles. During those few months, my weight ballooned up. Pregnancy announcement after pregnancy announcement had me depressed and wondering why not me? I was eventually diagnosed with PCOS. The struggle to lose weight became a mountain. I used to be a dancer and now I could barely tie my own shoes. I was embarrassed and knew that if I didn’t control my weight I’d probably never become a mother. Months turned into years. Finally four years into our marriage the doctor said I was in a healthy weight range and that we shouldn’t have any issues conceiving. But those months turned into a year. Finally, I decided on a whim to call a fertility center. They got us in quickly and a whirlwind of testing ensued. Not only did I have issues ovulating, my husband had low morphology which meant getting pregnant on our own was very unlikely. Our doctor sat us down and I was expecting the worst. However, just like that, we decided on IUI. I was prescribed Clomid and ovidrel. We went in knowing the odds weren’t necessarily in our favor. The two-week wait was the worst. Finally, after over five years of trying we are expecting our first in May of 2018. No journey with infertility is the same. No outcome will be the same, but when you can find others who have lived a similar story it makes your journey not seem so scary. Never stop seeking answers. Never stop being your family’s advocate. If we can climb this mountain. You can too!- Samantha

So it has been almost a year since I have been back in the blogging world, life got busy. It’s hard to believe that 2017 is almost over and 2018 will be here before we know it!

The Big News?

Justin & I are so excited to announce that we are expecting a little one come May 2018!  This has been a long time “in the making” and I hope to explain it a little more, and to bring awareness to Infertility that a lot of young women don’t talk about. I was one of those women, I did not talk about what we went through, while we were going through the process. Looking back, I am still glad that we didn’t tell everyone, trying to get pregnant is enough stress alone, without everyone else wondering, and asking what is the next step.

I am so grateful and blessed that we are having a baby. I know there are a lot of families out there waiting for their month to see those two lines, just know it will happen. The months can be long, and the weeks seem like they go on forever, just don’t give up! Find an infertility specialist that you love, and pray for all the right things to happen! 

It is hard to believe that I will be 13 weeks already tomorrow! Justin and I are so grateful to be having a healthy pregnancy, and can not wait to enjoy the holidays with our families!