My Pregnancy Blog

Month 1 (Weeks 1-4)= November 5th- December 3rd 2020

Most Likely, my husband and I conceived near November 5th, which is his mom’s birthday. However, we did not find out we were pregnant until November 26, 2020. During this time period, my husband and I celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary on November 18th. We also went to San Francisco to celebrate our anniversary November 22nd-25th. I did not have any symptoms at this time, except not having my period. We were surprised, yet not surprised. We were “trying” because I was off birth control and we knew somewhat when I was ovulating, but we weren’t trying hard. I was definitely surprised when I got pregnant because I thought we missed the optimum ovulating time that month. I took multiple tests to be sure before calling our parents. I also went to our first doctor’s appointment to confirm I was pregnant.

Month 2 (Weeks 4-8)= December 3rd- December 31st 2020

During this month, I did not have any real pregnancy symptoms. I worked like normal and participated in our school’s Christmas Program. This month ended with the beginning of my pregnancy struggles. I was fine until right before Christmas Eve. I was having a lot of gas pain and constipation. I made it through the holidays, but I spent a lot of time in pain. The pain got worse and worse, to the point where we chose to take me to the hospital. I went to the Placentia Yorba Linda Hospital on December 26th, and thankfully Quincy was perfectly safe. I had my first ultrasound and heard the heartbeat in the hospital. However, I had an ovarian cyst the size of a grapefruit. This was the reason for my pain and discomfort. They told me to go home and take Tylenol for the pain, so I did. I saw my doctor, and he said the same thing as well.

Month 3 (Weeks 9-12)= December 31st- January 21st 2020

I continued having minimal pain and discomfort. Also, I was still having gas and constipation issues, and to make matters worse, I had a cough. These factors probably put pressure on my cyst. On January 2nd, I was in so much pain, and I threw up due to the pain. My mom picked me up, and this time my doctor said to go to his hospital, Orange County Global. I was in this hospital for about 3 days. I was in such bad pain that they gave me a tiny bit of morphine to help me sleep, despite the small risk to the baby. They were worried I might have an appendicitis, but I couldn’t get an x-Ray, so they had me get an MRI. I had never had one before. The appendicitis came back negative, and they said it was just the cyst once again. I was so defeated because I wanted the pain to go away. If it was an appendicitis, at least they could take it out and I wouldn’t have anymore pain. However, it was just the cyst, and there was nothing they could do without risking the baby. I went to stay at my parents house, and I could not move for a week and a half after leaving the hospital due to the pain. I had to crawl or bend over to get to the bathroom. My doctor said I was not allowed to do any strenuous activity except walking, that we would need to see a specialist, and that the doctors would watch the cyst because it may have to be surgically removed before I gave birth. After the week and a half, I returned to work, but told them I had to sit a majority of the time. I still had pain, but it was manageable when sitting.

Month 4 (Weeks 13-16)= January 21st- February 18th 2020

After a stressful first trimester full of hospital visits and pain, I started my second trimester. I was nervous that the pain would return, or that I might lose the baby. I was also nervous that I would be a bad mom because I never felt I was “good” with kids. I teach Middle School and High School for a reason. I still had occasional pain while working, but as long as I didn’t move too much, I could handle it. My second trimester turned out to be my easiest trimester with the least amount of pregnancy symptoms. I enjoyed going to work and spending time with my husband. For Valentine’s Day, we went to Pei Wei. We got our Chinese food and I got a caffeine free soda. He also bought me flowers, chocolate, and a pretty heart shaped necklace from Kay’s jewelers.

Month 5 (Weeks 17-20)= February 18th- March 17th 2020

At the end of this time period, we were supposed to learn the sex of our baby. We were also going to have our gender reveal. However, all these things were put on hold because of the pandemic. The numbers were getting worse, and a stay-at home order was on the horizons. I was still not having too many pregnancy symptoms. My cyst pain was pretty much abated, and I went to work like normal. During this ultrasound, week 20, we could have known the gender, but we kept it a secret and I gave it to my brother. He was the keeper of the gender.

Month 6 (Weeks 21-24)= March 17th- April 14th 2020

On March 19th, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom issued the stay-at- home order. I was devastated because I wanted to know my baby’s gender and throw my gender reveal party. However, this was put on hold. I thought once April came, I could have my reveal, but that was put on hold too, so I scheduled for after Easter. I continued to have my monthly check ups and ultra-sounds to check on the cyst. I also was starting to show during this month, but not enough that anyone else would notice. I was glad to be working from home because the anxiety of teaching with the cyst or during pregnancy was relieved. I continued to not have any cyst related pain. It was a quarantined life with my husband, my fur babies, and the little one growing inside me.

Month 7 (Weeks 25-28)= April 14th- May 12th 2020

Easter was April 19th, but the stay-at-home order was still not looking like it was being lifted. At this point, I was frustrated. I wanted to throw my gender reveal that I had planned so thoroughly and spent so much time and money on. I decided to schedule it in May and no matter what not change it. The end of this month marked the end of the second trimester. I continued to get my monthly checkups and ultrasounds to check on the cyst. I started having the pregnancy symptom of acid reflux. I tried tums, but they were not cutting it. My doctor advised Pepcid complete. I began eating these as often as I could. They helped, but I basically always had acid reflux. I also feel like I was somewhat starting to show during these months, but I was not really sticking out much, and I was getting wider.

Month 8 (Weeks 29-32)= May 12th- June 9th 2020

On May 16th, I finally had my Gender Reveal. We had a Harry Potter themed gender reveal. I wanted a boy, but my husband wanted a girl. To reveal the gender, we put smoke bombs in a pumpkin. When they started igniting, they let off a grey smoke that I thought was blue, so I started jumping for joy. However, it then changed to pink and I fell over in despair. I felt like I wouldn’t know how to care for a girl and that it would be much more difficult than having a boy. Although I was upset for a few weeks, I began to get excited for having a girl. Here is the link to my gender reveal: Harry Potter Gender Reveal. My pregnancy symptoms were worsening and the acid reflux and heartburn was terrible. My doctor advised to double the amount of Pepcid Complete I was taking. This definitely helped, but the acid reflux was a constant battle. Also, I started getting headaches in the mornings and at nights. During these months, I started seeing the doctor every 2 weeks instead of every 4 weeks. I also received news that it seemed like my cyst was getting smaller. I was showing and growing, but I was definitely wide and not as much outwards like normal pregnant women.

Month 9 (Weeks 33-36)= June 9th- July 7th 2020

During this month, my acid reflux and headaches continued to bother me and my feet were so swollen it was ridiculous. This was also when sleep began being an issue and I felt like I could never get comfortable. My Baby Shower was on June 20th. It was Alice in Wonderland themed, and we had a tea party. To see my baby shower click here: Alice in Wonderland Baby Shower. I loved being able to celebrate Baby Quincy, and enjoying the company of my friends and family. During this month, I began nesting and trying to prepare as much as possible for this baby.

Month 10 (Weeks 37-40)- July 7th- Aug 4th 2020

On July 9th, I was starting the first of my weekly visits leading up to giving birth. However, this visit ended up being my last visit. At this visit, the doctor noticed I had very high blood pressure. She said I needed to go to the hospital and act like it was time to give birth. At the time, I was staying in a hotel because the night before my husband was having Covid symptoms. He had a fever and was feeling terrible. I picked up my stuff at the hotel, and I asked my mother in law who was helping her son while he was sick to prepare a bag for Quincy and I in case I wasn’t allowed to leave the hospital. The hospital told me I wasn’t going to be leaving. They said I was hypertensive and had preeclampsia. Therefore, they were going to induce my labor. I called my husband, he said he was feeling better and that his fever was gone, so I urged him to get a same day Covid test. It turns out he was negative, but the hospital would still not risk him be present with me in the hospital. Therefore, my mom was my labor partner and helped me give birth.

To be continued… (I will post my entire birth story soon!)