Race Schedule and Results

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Irondiva Momma

So most of you probably saw the Twitter and Facebook posts and if you know Tom and I all that well, have recovered from your jaws hitting the floor.  
Yep, we're having a baby!  After 7 years of going back and forth with whether or not we wanted to be parents (there was a time when we were pretty adamant that we didn't want to be parents), around July, we decided that things were right for us.  We are in our dream house, live in the 3rd best town to raise a child, have our careers (for the most part) figured out.  We've raced, and traveled and figured out the whole marriage thing and were finally ready to add a little creature into our lives.

As some of you might remember August sucked for us.  Big time.  My grandfather passed away.  My sister's (and kind of my) first dog passed away.  And two days after my grandfather's memorial service, I found out that I was miscarrying.  I didn't talk about it much at all, which is weird.  Women tend to do that.  But I come to find out that miscarrying is SUPER common... like way more common that you think.  I was only about 5 weeks along and the doctor said that I should have no problems getting pregnant again. 

Lo and behold, 4 weeks later I was staring at a positive pregnancy test.  Happy birthday Tom... we're going to be parents. :)

I decided to wait until my first trimester was over to announce it, in fear of miscarrying again.  That's the part that people couldn't explain to me... the constant fear that something is going to go wrong.  Every time I felt a twinge, my heart sank (and you feel a ton of them those first 13 weeks).  I was fearful I wasn't eating the right things.  Or drinking enough water.  Was the one diet coke doing damage?  How about running, biking and swimming?  I was in a world of the unknown.

At 8.5 weeks, we got to have our first ultrasound.  I sobbed.  I had a real live sour patch kid living inside of me.  And it's heart was beating 172 bpm (Tom and I joked that it was in zone 5 all the time).  This was really happening. 

We told my mom and dad (who are besides themselves to be grandparents).  We told my sister and John (who are going to be the world's most amazing aunt and uncle).  We told Tom's mom and dad.  We told my extended family.  And then a select few others.  But I did pretty good of keeping this to myself (that's hard for me.  I'm a babbler.)

Finally, yesterday, we had another ultrasound.  We were given the option for some early screening for birth defects and although we don't care of the results (we'll love this child no matter what), we knew that it involved another ultrasound and a chance for us to see Baby K again. 
Holy crap is that amazing.  As we sat there with this image of a little still baby... with two arms and two legs, a minute pasted and our minds were blown.  Baby K started moving like crazy.  Somersaults, pushups, waving.  The ultrasound tech just giggled as Tom and I gasped with excitement.

Because if it didn't feel real then, it sure did now!  We came home with the goofiest grins on our faces. From the outside no one would know that I'm pregnant.  But if you could see my heart, you'd know that I love this baby more than anything already!!!


We held off telling people until we knew we were in our second trimester.  We held off finishing our Christmas decorations, until we knew things were going well. 
And they are.  YAY!

Okay, so some of the things that people have been asking or you might be wondering...
  • I'm due June 4th.  I should hopefully escape the heat of the Georgia summer while I'm the size of a whale.
  • Yes, we want to know the sex of the baby.  And yes, we will tell people that.  We won't tell people what we are naming the baby though.  That will be our little secret.
  • I'm still running.  Kind of.  I will say that was the hardest part of my first trimester.  I ran a half marathon with Matt when I was about 6.5 weeks.  He knew at the time and we kept it really slow the whole time, finishing at 2:05.  At 8.5 weeks I ran 7 miles of the Atlanta marathon relay.  Other than that, I've maxed out around 5 miles. I don't wear a heart rate monitor when I'm running and truly go by feel.  If I can talk, I'm doing okay.  It's slow and fairly ugly. There are many days when it feels like a 300 pound man is sitting on my chest while I run. I'm hoping that the second trimester gets better.
  • Instead of running, I've been doing a lot of walking.  Charlie loves it.  I'm bringing biking back.  And swimming.  Soon.
  • First trimester fatigue is no joke.  I literally slept 12 hours a night and could nap at any time.  I never understood this until I was pregnant.  I mean, really, how bad could it be, right?  Holy hell, it's bad.  If I make it past 9pm, it's a good night and thankfully I work from home so I get up when I want.  Poor Tom only gets about 12 hours a day with me now. :)
  • I didn't get sick.  I had about 2 weeks where dinner was less than appealing, but I never puked.  I know that I'm super lucky.  As someone who recently miscarried though, this was kind of a curse, as I feared something was wrong because I wasn't sick.
  • Chicken is not appealing.  Meat in general isn't.  Veggies don't sit well with me.  I'm not doing very good with the healthy stuff.  But I'm trying.  
  • I've gained maybe 2 pounds and I will swear up and down I know exactly where those two pounds have gone.  I've already had to buy new bras.  Enough said.
  • Pregnant people are coming out of the woodwork when they hear that we are expecting.  I love it.  I think we have 10 couples now that are due between April and July, and then one due this week (yay Smith's!!!) and one due around Christmas.  Seems all but one couple is in the same boat as us... married a while and just waiting for the right time, between racing, traveling, etc. and now having their first.  It'll be fun to get all the kiddos together in the future!
  • I'm deathly afraid that my child will hate me.  That's totally normal though, right? :)
 




36 comments:

misszippy said...

A big, huge congrats to you! There's really nothing better in life, trust me. I think you'll make a great mama and you'll both be such positive, healthy role models for your kid(s). I hope all goes smoothly for the entire 9 months.

I can relate to this post on so many levels--I wasn't sure for many years if I'd ever want kids. But I'm so, so thankful I made the choice to do it. And I also miscarried before my first full-term, and then again before my second. It all seems to work out in the end.

Very excited for you!

Christi said...

This is so exciting! Y'all will brme great parents and yes fearing your child will hate you is normal. Of course when they are teenagers they will hate you.

Congrats!

Kacie Darden said...

SO excited for you! I think I might be the ONE couple not in the same boat as you :-) See--I am letting you figure it all out for me...yeah...that's it. Seriously, I am SO excited to follow you along. Baby kingery is going to have a great sense of humor!!

Matty O said...

WooHOO!!!

Congrats to you guys! This is huge!

Heather told me last night and I thought she was joking, I go... uhhhhh no. They didn't want kids AT ALL LOL.

Prepare for a fun adventure :)

Alisa said...

Yay for Baby Kingery!

So glad your first trimester went smoothly (for the most part). I'm excited to see pics of your growing belly.

DRog said...

BIG news Colleen!!
Congratulations to you and Tom!
very exciting...you guys will be awesome parents

Derek

Matthew Smith said...

YAY!!!!!! I was thinking about you guys yesterday and that you got to see that little baby in there. I'm glad it was active which I'm sure made it even more real. You guys are going to be incredible parents, and I'm just so excited that our kids will get to hang out together! How awesome is that? I loved that little stocking on the fire place! :) It's perfect! I'm so glad we live close, and be sure to let us know if there is ANYTHING we can do to help you. I can't wait to meet little Kingery!

Kim said...

:) xoxo

Anonymous said...

Congrats and all the best!

TMB @ RACING WITH BABES said...

Seriously, how did I miss this? I totally saw that picture of your decorations and didn't think twice. Congrats to you and Tom! So very exciting.

Allison said...

Congratulations again!!! So very happy for you guys!

I don't have the history of a m/c and still freaked out when I wasn't puking. Ugh. I'm so very sorry for the loss of your first baby and wish you a happy and healthy 27ish more weeks! :)

Anonymous said...

Congratulations to you!!! Being a mom is the best and so amazing. And yes, what you're feeling is totally normal - I still freak out and my daughter is 3 1/2! Enjoy this time and best wishes to you!!

Beth said...

AMAZING!! Such great news, I am excited for you two. Maybe, one day I will be in your shoes. All the best to you and little k

Unknown said...

YAYAYAYA! I literally just squealed out loud. Super excited for you two and honestly, I had an inkling when the talk of training seemed to slow . Well maybe I was just hoping since you two will make ONE SUPER MEGA CUTE BABY! :)

Carolina John said...

I am soooooo excited for you! You're going to love being a mom. Which also means that you're going to hate it every day.

and just think. Right now you could be growing a very small penis!

Only triathletes would think that the ultrasound heartrate was stuck in zone 5. You will enjoy swimming more the farther into the pregnancy you get. If nothing else, the water helps support the weight of the baby for a while. you'll get slow, but it will still feel really good.

When we had both of our kids, I was still smoking, kelley was still fat, and I gained just as much weight as she did during each pregnancy. So (A) I don't really know how to workout while pregnant, and (B) that shows how much the kid will overhaul your entire life. It's why I am the way I am today. Embrace it!

Michelle said...

So very, very exciting! I'm impressed you can make it to 9 p.m. I would fall asleep at 7 on the couch and then go to bed at 9. You might feel an energy boost in the second semester and then will be pooped again in the third.
Hang in there, enjoy it, and at some point, your kid will hate you. It means you are doing your job ;)

Jamie said...

I was scrolling through Twitter yesterday and almost didn't catch the news until I saw all the responses!

So happy for you two!

Unknown said...

Congrats! I saw your tweet yesterday, but love seeing the whole story. You guys will make great parents!

TriMOEngr said...

Couldn't be more pleased for you and Tom. And no worries, you have a few years before your child will tell you that they hate you for the first time or that you are "so mean" or "ruining their life". Oh wait - that is what I just heard this morning at breakfast after asking my son to comb his hair. I was terribly sick with both of mine and still worried all the time. I think it is just a fact of pg - worrying.

Beal88 said...

Congrats Colleen!!!!

Karen said...

So excited for you guys! You made me tear up a little there :) CONGRATULATIONS! Can't wait to meet Baby K!

Jason said...

Shit I better go to the Doctor because I might be pregnant too since I am always asleep on the couch before 9pm.

Congrats to you and Tom. Now I wonder if you guys were at IMAZ how well you would have done keeping your mouth shut. I am bummed we didn't get to meet but that just means that I will have to find my way down to GA (70.3 Augusta in Sept is a real possibility) and meet you and the new little addition to the family.

Caroline said...

congratulations!! I am so happy for you!! I have a June baby and he is the best...and Oh I am calling it right now: a boy is my guest. and he or she will LOVE you!

Heidi @BananaBuzzbomb said...

Congrats, congrats!

Meredith said...

I really wish you still lived here and we'd be going through this together!

So my advice on advice. You are going to start getting lots of advice now that you've made all this public. My advice, don't listen to any of it! This is YOUR pregnancy; YOUR baby. I try to be very selective about what I put online and yet I still get tons of unsolicited advice and things said like, "duh, you're life is never going to be the same." No shit Shirlock!

Anyway, this is going to be awesome!

Pharmie said...

Congrats again! June is a great month for babies! I won't offer any unsolicited advice, but if you have any questions before or after the munchkin comes, just shoot them my way!

Unknown said...

I love this post and am so happy for you! Congrats!

megan said...

So excited for you guys!! I was so shocked to see the FB post but think it's wonderful news! :) Can't wait to have another little athlete in the world!

Alili said...

Yay!!! Wishing you a wonderfully peaceful pregnancy. :)

Unknown said...

Congrats! I am so excited for you.I am looking forward to hear the good news.

resveratrol

Kristin Bradfield said...

Such exciting news! Congrats to you both, can't wait to follow along with the changes. And June is good, I'm a Gemini, should make for an interesting child for sure :)

Molly said...

I'm so happy for you! It's a truly life changing event, the greatest day of my life was when I had my son. You are going to be a wonderful mother : )

Anne-Marie said...

This is such exciting news! I think you and Tom will be awesome parents.
Congratulations! :)

..:danielle:.. said...

just found you from meredith at "this runner's world"... it sounds like you and i are living the very same pregnancy :) good luck to you, and i look forward to reading along with your journey! congrats :)

Big Daddy Diesel said...

Congrats, I am so happy for the both of you

Unknown said...

Congratulations! I am so excited for you. Parenting is awesome. It will be a nice break for you, and a great chance to rebuild again. It has been weird for me to be training for another marathon NOT starting from the ground, since for so long I would run a marathon, have a baby, start from scratch. Not sure I am going to go that route again, but I am happy for you!