A Healthy Obsession

The First Appointment

It's a two weeks after I found out I'm pregnant. Today Arny is coming with me to my first appointment.

"Hey love, it's ok. You got this. We got this." He reaches over and squeezes my hand as he drives.

At the appointment Arny checks me in for me.
After what feels like hours, a nurse comes to call us back.
"Mrs. Parsons?"

"Here." I stood up and Arny grabbed my hand.

"You can come on back!" The nurse smiled at me, I returned it tightly and turned to Arny.

"Seriously? We're not married!" I fussed at my boyfriend after hearing he put his last name on the forms.
"Hey, that little guy is mine no matter what." He said, gently poking my stomach. I wasn't showing yet, but the sentiment got me.

I started to tear up. "It might not be a boy." I grumble at him. "Either way, that's my baby too. I'm with you all the way." He said and gave my head a kiss.

In the room the nurse took my temperature, blood pressure, some blood and asked for a urine sample.
Once all that was out of the way, I sat in the uncomfortable chair on crinkle paper and waited for the doctor.

The doctor knocked on the door before opening it.
"Mrs. Parsons?"
"Y/n is fine." I said with a tight smile.
The doctor looked over the forms I'd filled out and typed on her computer for a moment.

Doctor Parker was a fairly tall woman with blonde hair and glasses. She asked a few questions, do you know when you conceived? Do you have a history of medical issues? Is this your first pregnancy? When was your last period?

After what felt like a million questions she finally pulled out the ultrasound machine.

"Let's stop all this chatter and take a look at what's going on inside of your tummy."

Doctor Parker pulled the ultrasound machine next to the exam table. "Go ahead and lie back, roll your leggings down and pull your shirt up please."

I obliged, feeling more nervous than ever. What if I wasn't actually pregnant and all thirty tests that I'd taken had been wrong? Or worse, what if something was wrong with the baby? I had grown attached to my little bean over the past few weeks...

"Don't be nervous, y/n. I'm just going to put some gel on your stomach and feel around with my wand, ok?" Dr. Parker said as she squeezed some surprisingly warm, clear gel onto my stomach.

At first, as she moved the wand around, the screen just showed shifting shadows and the speakers just made small gurgling sounds which I was trying not to be embarrassed about. Then I heard it, the thud, thud, thud, thud of a heartbeat.

"There it is," Dr. Parker smiled at me and shifted the wand so that I could see the tiny dot that was my baby.

"Healthy sounding heartbeat," she said as she pressed buttons to screen-grab the image on the computer.

"Is that the baby?" Arny asks, squeezing my hand tighter.
"Yes it is. It's too early to tell the sex, but that's the little one." She smiles at me as she wipes the gel off my stomach. "It looks like you're about 10 weeks along. I'll happily keep monitoring the baby's progress and help you with everything." She wiped the gel off of my stomach.

"Do you have any questions for me?"
"Can we still have sex?" Arny blurted.
"Yes, you can still have intercourse." The doctor said with a smile.
"Just don't be too rough with mom, but yes sex during pregnancy is perfectly fine. In fact, it is encouraged, it's good exercise for mom and actually, some women have an elevated sex drive during pregnancy."

Arny visibly relaxes at the news. I silently laugh at his reaction. I asked a few questions before we left. About foods should I avoid and when I'll start to show.
"And here are some pictures and a pamphlet about the food you should avoid. I know I threw a lot of stuff at you, but call if you have any concerns." She hands me some pictures of the little bean. I look at them lovingly, tracing the outline with my finger.

"I'll get y'all set up with a checkup 2 weeks! Again, call if you have any concerns!" She chirped as we left.

When we got to the car Arny was smiling wider than I've seen in a few days. "Do you want coffee? I really want coffee?"
"I would love a scone. But remember, no caffeine for the baby." I said pointedly.

"You're... you're not going to ask me to not have coffee. Right?" He asked with wide eyes. The pleading in his voice was hilarious.
"No," I said with a laugh, "you and your coffee are safe."

"Phew, but how will YOU survive without coffee?" He asks teasingly.
"I'll survive." I laughed, "That's what de-caf coffee is for, right?"
"And tea! I'll get the best fucking tea." He mutters the second part to himself.

"Now, let's get home. I'm going to do just what the doctor said to." Arny said, his hand on my thigh.
"What did she say?"
Arny smirks and looks over at me with hooded eyes.
"She said mommy needs to exercise."