10 weeks pregnant update:
My next appointment is next week so I geared up for that by researching the testing options I have. My first trimester pre-natal screening options are either a NT Scan (Nuchal Translucency Scan) or a Genetic Test (noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT)). NT Scan is a specialized ultrasound where they take measurements and the Genetic Test is a blood test that looks at the baby’s DNA. While it seems weird, a mom’s blood has fragments of baby’s DNA in it from dying placenta and fetal cells. We have decided on the genetic test because it has a much lower false positive rate.
In addition to telling us the gender, the genetic test will tell us baby’s risk of chromosomal abnormalities for Down syndrome (trisomy 21), Edwards syndrome (trisomy 18) and Patau syndrome (trisomy 13).
Besides that, I still have manageable morning sickness. At 10 weeks pregnant I am super tired and really excited for a bump. I keep googling pictures to see when that change happens. It seems like most women “pop” at the start of the second trimester.
Recap of last week:
Last week, I started our pre-baby project list, which includes everything we want to tackle before baby arrives. My first big project on that list is going to be a major declutter of the house to have storage space for all of the baby gear and clothing. I’m sure as the weeks go by this list will get longer and not shorter as I add things.
I also compiled all of the parenting books I want to try to read before baby arrives. Since I have the time now, I want to get through as many parenting books as possible before baby so that I feel prepared. I know being on the same page about parenting is a challenge, so another bonus to reading now is that my other half and I can start having more meaningful parenting conversations.
What I am focusing on this week?
I have started to think about our lives (specifically our financial plan) for after baby arrives. I will have a 3-month maternity leave but I don’t know what I want to do after that. I want to be prepared for going back and also for making a change and becoming a work from home/stay at home mom. Honestly, even if I decide being a stay at home mom isn’t for me, I just want to have the flexibility to be there for my baby if there are complications and I really need to be home longer than 3 months.
So I started this process by first seeing how long we could go on just one income. This told us how long I could take off before I would need to start working again.
I then looked into different daycare options. I compared costs of each option. I then looked at how much my take home would be after I accounted for daycare costs. I wanted this information specifically to decide does it even make sense for me to go back.
My next step was to then look into all of the side hustles/work at home jobs I could do. Here was the list that I came up with. I have a teaching background and think these would fit my skill set or I could learn the necessary skillset.
- Teach English online
- Graphic Designer
- Tutor
- Writer (freelance)
- Photographer
- Virtual assistant
- Home daycare
- Bookkeeper
For each of these options, I looked into what requirements/certificates I would need to get, classes or courses I would need to take, and the investment of money I would need to make. I also looked at what the potential salary I would get from doing one of these work at home options.
Now I can compare the finances of each option and decide what makes most sense. We are also starting the discussion of what makes most sense for our new family. Having a flexible parent who can be home has a lot of benefits and not just for the little years.
As they get older, you have to find care for after school, sick days and summers. If I can start working on a side hustle now, then you have more options once baby arrives on doing the best option for our family.
Honestly, I will probably start a side hustle now even if I decide to go back to work because working a few hours from home and having that fall back is worth it to me. Plus having the extra income when baby arrives will be nice too. So I will keep you updated on how this works out.
I am going to follow up with this next week on creating a baby budget giving us even more of an idea of what our finances will look like that first year with baby.
What are my action items this week?
My action items this week started with finding the details of my maternity plan and to see if my other half gets any time off also. My next item on the to-do list was to decide when and how to tell my boss I am pregnant.
Since my maternity leave is very clear, I do not feel in a rush yet to share but if I needed clarification, I would probably be having that conversation sooner than later. I plan to send an email at the end of the first trimester informing them of the due date.
My other action items all centered around having multiple plans for after baby’s arrival which included
- Determining how long we can go on one income
- Looking up daycare costs (we also booked tours and asked about waitlists at each place)
- Looking up possible work-at-home jobs that fit my skill set
- Thoroughly researching these potential jobs so you could ideally start it at any time
My favorite maternity find this week:
This week I grabbed a new bra. I finally needed to upgrade. While I know everyone says to grab a maternity bra that will double up as a postpartum breastfeeding bra, I didn’t do that yet. I really think I will need a new size by then, so I didn’t want to worry about that. Honestly, maternity/breastfeeding bras can be really expensive so I want to make sure I only have to buy one set.
I am a really big fan of comfortable and so that was my main goal in picking out a new bra. I grabbed this one off amazon in color toasted almond. It fits well, good support and meets my level of comfort.
My favorite baby find this week:
While I haven’t even started thinking about baby’s going home outfit, I know exactly what I am going to do with that outfit. On Etsy, you can send in the outfit with your baby’s weight and height and they will turn the outfit into a teddy bear. Some shops will even add Baby’s name and their birthday on the bear.
Also, Etsy has the cutest baby outfits and blankets!
I love to keep things that have meaning to me and that outfit will for sure be something I want to keep. However, I am trying really hard to avoid having boxes upon boxes of baby items I can’t part with. One of my big goals is to find creative ways to turn items that have a special memory into something more useful.
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I am a wife, teacher, and mother to two awesome girls. I write about what I am passionate about, which includes being a mom, house projects, beauty and skincare. I love to share my experiences, failures, and successes with my readers. Let this space be a resource for you to pursue your very best day.