My Year 2 Change just got bigger!

I started off this year with a big Year 2 Change challenge from my friend Cris. She challenged everyone to think about what we really needed to change in our lives. For me, it was pretty simple to figure that out. My challenge was to become a morning person!

I started off pretty well, and was proud of myself at the one-month mark. I had gone down to one snooze hit in the mornings, and had made 10 days in a row and was feeling pretty good.

Then I realized I was absolutely exhausted in the afternoons! I mean seriously beat-down tired. I would head to the recliner, cozy up with a big blanket, and nap. For hours.

Seriously? What was the deal?

Turns out, there were two (related) deals. The first inkling I had of one deal was on Superbowl Sunday. I was watching the Budweiser commercial – you know the one with the Clydesdale horse who was raised from a foal by the same guy, gets sold to be a Bud Clydesdale, and then goes running down the city street straight into his owner’s arms?

Yeah. I started to cry.

What the heck? I love animals (and horses) as much as the next girl, but this was a little silly. We had just gotten home after being gone for 6 days, so I chalked it up to being over-tired from the travel and meetings.

But I wondered….

And a week and a half later, I had my answer.

Yep. Pregnant! Surprise! (And no one was more surprised than my parents!)

So… the first deal is that I’m pregnant. Hello, exhaustion!

The second deal is that my thyroid levels have gone low again. Partly because of the pregnancy. Thyroid hormones can be a tricky thing to manage in the first place, but then throw a baby in the mix (along with all the hormone and weight fluctuations that come along with that), and things get even more challenging. It’s manageable, but it means keeping close tabs on my levels, and adjusting my dose as we need to.

And the funniest part? This comes almost exactly a year after I wrote about my completely overwhelming experience at a Babies ‘R Us store… Guess I’m going to have to get used to that!
To be honest, with all this craziness, I put the alarm clock Year 2 Change on hold, and started focusing on my baby Year 2 Change. Sleeping in (a little), napping in the afternoons when I needed to, and trying to get plenty of rest otherwise.

As I head into my second trimester, things are starting to look up. I’ve had my thyroid dose adjusted twice already. I’m starting to feel a little less tired and a little more like a real person. I still have that 6:00am lecture coming up in June, so I am going to have to get back on the alarm clock bandwagon. But I know I can do it.

We’ve already made some big changes around here… I’ve given up caffeine (gasp!). We’ve picked which room will be the baby’s – the treadmill needs to find another home, and so does John’s office. (Don’t worry, we barely used either of them.) And I’m scheduling lots more time for doctor’s appointments. Turns out my OB and my endocrinologist both want to see me a lot more over the next 6 months. (I wonder why?)

Who knew that making a person was this exhausting? I have a feeling this is just the beginning…