13 to 16 weeks - Let the "training" begin

Wahoo, finally made it to the 2nd trimester. Truthfully, being pregnant is changing me as a person. Each day is part of this amazing journey that has completely shifted the focus of my life and made me reevaluate my personal and professional goals. 

Not going to lie, when I say I have been struggling with my running. This has been such a huge part of my life for the past few years and to not be training for a "big race" and keeping my heart rate at an average of 150 has gotten me all out of whack. But shifting my focus on to being healthy for myself and the baby has changed that perspective. I have to realize that this not the time to train for me, but the time to train for two. 

Back to the good stuff! We purchased the nursery furniture. I knew exactly what I wanted, and surprisingly found it at Target. Dan just trusted my judgement on it and we ordered it online. Talk about being proactive. It took the entire weekend to put it all together, the dresser alone came in 672 pieces! Yikes! 

Let the fun begin! 

My contribution haha!

The dogs are totally loving the glider! 

Dan getting a feel for the glider. 

Actually reading the directions ;)

Finished product! 

Also, Dan made the first purchase for the baby on his own, adorable Michigan State onesie. 

On Feb 6th, we had our 14 week appointment and everything was great. Baby's heart rate still at 168, I have gained 1 pound since the last appointment, and my blood pressure was good as well. 

We actually got some snow last week!

February 16th, Nicole and I ran the Frostbite 5K in Fletcher. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and on this same day I got my worst 5K time, 28.57! ha! But I was focusing on my heart rate rather than pace and speed! Believe me, "Dr. Ferrell" checked my heart rate watch as I crossed the finish line. While it was high there at the finish the average was still at 153. Even though it was my worst 5K time, it was the most enjoyable, and I was actually smiling across the finish line and not about to die. Plus, let's face it I am 16 weeks pregnant and was out there running being healthy, so time doesn't matter like it did in the past. Even with that time I still placed 3rd in my age group and received an adorable piece of pottery that I fully plan on putting in the nursery. Super proud of Nicole for placing 3rd in her age group as well, she has been training so hard and is getting faster! 

So far while being pregnant I have ran:
Savannah Marathon
Jingle Bell 5K
Charleston Half Marathon 
Frostbite 5K 

I will be doing a few more races before I am too pregnant, but now it's training to the finish line of having the baby :)



Next doctors appointment in March 3rd and this is the big ultrasound day, where we will find out if it is a boy or girl! ekkkkk!!!!! We have set the gender reveal party to be on Saturday March 8th (the day before Dan and I leave for the Dominican Republic). So it will be an exciting weekend! 

Racing with a baby on board - 12 weeks

To commence 2014, I had already signed up (before knowing about baby dananda) for the Charleston Half Marathon with 2 of my friends, Sandy and Rachel (who are by the way running their first marathon in March). Unfortunately due to an injury, Rachel had to take some time off from running and couldn't do the race, therefore, Dan stepped in to be "team Rachel". 

For those who know me, I am a huge advocate of wearing my Garmin watch for every training run and race that I do to know my pace and mileage. "Dr. Ferrell" prescribed that I should just wear my heart rate monitor instead of the Garmin to ensure that I keep my heart rate lower than normal since I am running for 2 now. 

There I was toeing the line 12 weeks pregnant, I was so happy to be there! Clearly Mother Nature not so much because she let the cold wind whisk so rapidly. I do have to say despite the cold windy weather, it was the most enjoyable race I have ever experienced just because I wasn't worried about time, pace, walking, or mileage. I even sent a few "snap chats" along the way haha. Here's the one thing that I thought about most while doing this race: when you're running a race pregnant, you better get used to people passing you. And they will, all sorts of people. Running pregnant is really about running your own race rather than "racing". 

The post race festivities included getting to celebrate (without beers ha) with Sandy, John and Dan as we cheered on some other friends ours that ran the full marathon! My cousin Makayla goes to Charleston Southern University and it was so refreshing to see her and her boyfriend Atley for lunch. Later that evening, Dan and I had a great dinner with Sandy and John, lots of shirley temples since no alcohol for me! 

12 weeks Day 4, almost through the first trimester! yay! Only 193 more days! 

11 weeks 6 days - Time 2:02:59

"Team Rachel" - Time 1:59:53

Pretty views along the race course. 

So happy for this girl getting at PR at the half! 

Dinner in downtown Charleston - Shirley Temples for me :) 

Lunch time with my cousin Makayla - love her!!! 

OMG, A BABY - Recap of the past few months

To commence this blog, I must give credit to Nicole and Rachel for coming up with the oh so clever name... "baby Dananda"! The trend may now begin ladies #babydananda :)

OMG, A BABY! Yes, that is right Dan and I are expecting a little bundle of joy on August 3, 2014. We found out right after our weekend getaway in Banner Elk (shortly after Thanksgiving). We only told a few people about the pregnancy because we wanted to wait until after my first doctor's appointment. I called and made the appointment the next day after taking the multiple (10) at home pregnancy tests, yes I called as soon as the office opened because I was so anxious, only for them to tell my that my appointment wasn't until January 3rd! Of course I asked a million questions about if it was normal for them to wait what seemed like an eternity to see me. They assured me that this was completely normal.

My first thought to this whole situation was, good thing I had a great racing year and got my marathon in! haha! 

Needless to say, I had to stay busy the month of December which was easy to do with the holidays approaching quickly. It was extremely hard to keep this big secret from friends and family. Here are a few memories captured before the big moment of truth... 
                                                    

Beech Mountain - November 2013

Jingle Bell 5K (5 Weeks) - December 2013, last 5K/race of the year. These ladies are absolutely amazing and could not ask for better friends and training partners! 















The whole gang at the Jingle Bell 5K - all the girls plus Dan placed in our age groups, great way to wrap up an awesome year! 

Nutcracker Ballet - December 2013, this girl right here is amazing! 

Christmas 2013 (8 Weeks)

New Year's Eve 2013 (9 weeks) - Daytona Beach, FL

On January 3, 2014, I had my first official appointment. Ok for those who know me when I get extremely nervous/upset (or drink cheap vodka or wine, ha) I break out into hives on my chest so on this day they were fully vibrant on my chest, needless to say I am so glad I wore a scarf that day! I had already printed the paper work offline (the day I made the appointment) and had it filled out when I arrived at the doctor's office, talk about being proactive. I patiently waited (hives out of control). They took me back did all the routine stuff (boring) and then it was time for the doctor to come in so I could hear the heartbeat. That is when it all became real to me that Dan and I were having a baby... there it was just beating away at 168! I was overwhelmed with joy that I was feeling with this blessing. Later that day we broke the news to our families and friends and they are so excited to start spoiling this baby! Also, I have (thankfully) not had any morning sickness, just certain foods (chicken tacos of all things) make me want to vomit. I have had lots of headaches but this is probably because I have been reducing the caffeine intake but other than that feeling pretty normal even though there is a little peanut growing inside of me. 

Today, January 9, 2014, I went in for another appointment and this one so exciting because we were going to have an ultrasound. From the moment I saw it on the screen, my eyes filled with tears thinking how much of a blessing this truly is and how excited I am to share this journey with my best friend! 

Debuting "Baby Dananda" 

Next Appointment - February 6th... stay tuned for upcoming adventures!