So, to answer a few questions:

1)      How am I feeling?

Actually, I am feeling so much better this time around than I have previously.  I’m not sure if it’s just because I am earlier in the pregnancy than I think (more on that later) or because of the routine I have been doing to minimize sickness. 

The routine includes:

~Eating breakfast in bed and then waiting as long as possible before getting up (which is hard to do when I have to get myself and all the kids out of the house by 6:45)

~Wearing these bands around my wrists:

They REALLY help, and I'll do anything I can to avoid taking drugs while pregnant.

~Eating all day long, a mix of carbs, protein and fats (I know it’s not the healthiest, but fatty foods make me feel better – think muffins, cheeseburgers, and croissants)

~Sleeping as much as possible (usually falling asleep on the couch around 8)

~Continuing to exercise.  Some days all I can muster up the energy for is a 45 minute walk on my lunch break, but when I feel great I run or elliptical or bike.

~Changing to a new prenatal vitamin.   I’ve never had a problem taking pre-natals, but I ran out of my old ones and picked up some new ones, and they seem great.

2)      How will this affect my new job?

That is undecided at the moment.  I just told my boss today and she took it very well.  It probably helped that I was crying when I told her...makes for a more sympathetic ear!  I do not want to be working full-time after the baby comes, so it’s probably a matter of when I can afford to leave and when they want me to leave.

3)      What is the exact due date?

We’re not sure.  We’re going to have an ultrasound done on December 29^th to find out.  I was so stressed about leaving my old jobs and starting this new job that things were a bit off-kilter.  Of course, that was good news for the conception of this baby!  I’m most excited about finding out how many babies are in there because everyone keeps talking about twins around us, and is it possible that I’m already showing???

4)      How are the kids taking the news?

They are beyond excited!  After they got over the initial shock and disbelief (Andrew kept saying we were just trickin’ them!) they moved right into celebratory mode.  They talk about how “We’re having a baby in July” and they’ve already picked out names:  Sarah for a girl and Patrick for a boy.  They keep saying that we are going to have SEVEN people in our family, and that is so big and so fun!  I love how kids are just instinctively pro-life J