Q & A

I do realize that I sort of left you hanging with that bombshell I dropped in my last post. I thought I'd try to answer some general questions, I know there are lots! So, here's my Q & A session with Oprah. Just kidding... but gosh, that would be something, wouldn't it???

Q: How did it happen?

A: Well, ahem, clearly we know how it happened, although between being told on multiple occasions that my fertility would most likely be compromised after the type of chemo I had AND using birth control, getting pregnant was not anywhere on my radar. In fact, when I missed my period, I assumed that I had gone into early menopause - I was told that early menopause was "likely" after my treatments.

Q: How will your history of cancer impact this pregnancy and baby?

A: I wish that I had an easy answer, but the truth is that we just don't know. I do have several factors playing into my favor at this point. Most importantly, my cancer was NOT hormone receptor positive, which is great news. My cancer was Her 2 + which is not hormone fed. The other positive aspect, is that I have been cancer free for over two years. I am actually more at risk for "normal" pregnancy issues this pregnancy as opposed to cancer. Of course, this is a high risk pregnancy for me - my gestational age alone throws me into this category. I'm ancient in maternal years, awesome, right? Also, given that I had pre eclampsia with both Stella and Simon, I have an over 80% chance of having it again this time around. Yay! But, I'm being monitored closely and so is the baby.

Q: How do Stella and Simon feel about the new addition?

A: Currently, they enjoy talking to the baby, aka my stomach. It's entertaining and pretty cute. Stella has a list of names, in case you were wondering. She's decided that if the baby is a boy, we will be calling him "Cinnamon" (what the hell???) and if it's a girl, we will call her Grayson Hinman. Not really sure where that came from or why only the girl option has the last name Hinman? Simon doesn't really have an opinion, but his vote as to whether it's a boy or girl changes with the wind. Not that I blame him, I really have no intuition one way or the other this time.

Q: Will you be trading in your SUV for a minivan?

A: H-E-L-L no.

Q: How are you feeling these days?

A: I'm still feeling pretty lousy, but I'm hanging in there. The all day nausea is frustrating, but manageable. I have drugs for it, but try to only take them when things are really bad. While the anti-nausea drugs are great, they have their own lovely side effects. Mostly, I'm just exhausted. I'm struggling to keep up with the house, kids, dogs, life, etc. Although, let's be honest, that's a struggle even when not pregnant... My doctor was kind enough to inform me that I will most likely feel this way until the baby arrives. I could barely contain my joy at that statement.

The next few weeks are insane for us (as for all of you, I'm sure). We will be travelling quite a bit to see family for the holiday. I will update when I can. The next peek at Baby Hinman will be on December 2, yay!!