I thought the morning sickness was supposed to start in the 6th week. Not mine. I apparently have a monster growing inside me because my hcg levels (i.e. pregnancy hormones, for the uninitiated) are freakishly high. High hcg levels contribute to morning sickness.

Whereas most women have hcg levels in the hundreds during the 4th week, mine were in the thousands. Gah!

We go for our second ultrasound tomorrow afternoon. The first one was done last week because I was experiencing sharp cramps in my lower left abdomen; a possible sign of ectopic pregnancy. But we saw the baby, shaped like a piece of rice only smaller, in the uterus where it should be. I spoke with my dad a few days later and he said, "I heard that your baby is Asian" and I was like, "Huh?" He clarified by saying, "I was told it looked like a grain of rice...." That Buzzer, always cracking jokes!

I'm hoping we will be able to see the heartbeat tomorrow.

My appetite is really wacko. In my constant state of nausea, I am surprising myself by wanting to eat things I normally would not. And the mere thought of things I normally love are curling my stomach. Chicken, green salad, and ice cream = no. Beans and chocolate = yes. It's totally bizarre yet fascinating.

I'm a little worried because I'm currently repulsed by vegetables. This is not a good thing to be repulsed by. Is our kid going to be a junk food junkie?

Another dilemma: what worked for my nausea just two days ago now turns my stomach. I bought a bag of Jolly Rancher candy because I'd been told they help with nausea. I admit; they worked for about two days before I couldn't stand the thought of them. Ginger was also really helpful at easing the queasiness up until today. Now I just want to gag when I take a tiny nibble.

The saltine crackers are continuing to be my best friend. Nevermind that I wouldn't touch them with a 10-foot pole if I weren't pregnant....

I don't understand. Please let me make it to the second trimester! I must survive.

Thanks to everyone who left a nice note in my guestbook. It really lifted my morning sickness spirits. All of you are so nice!

I will write again. I really need to record my sheer delight upon stumbling across the Duran Duran concert in the park last Sunday. I was in heaven!

Sidenote to Jocelyn: Thanks for posting that news article address on that wine/fertility study! I guess that explains it.... ;)