28 Week Ultrasound

I had a great appointment today. My ultrasound was done to check on the growth of the little one and to check on the placenta. Well, she's growing perfectly! As of today, she weighs 2 pounds, 14 ounces. Things looked so good that I was told I don't even have to do the 34 week check-up. I'm very pleased with the news.

I thought Baby Girl had flipped already because I'd started to feel some movement high up in my belly instead of really low, as I had been. Turns out, I was wrong. She's still breech! Her butt is down, but her legs are bent up completely in front of her. During the ultrasound, she kept playing with her feet and toes. She still has a few weeks to flip. If she hasn't flipped by my next midwife appointment in a couple weeks, I think she might do some techniques to get her to move head down. In the meantime, I'm told it's totally normal for this stage of the pregnancy.

Here's a shot of her face, which was hard to get since it was obstructed with her legs and hands:

And here's a shot of her long, stretched-out legs:

Twenty Week Ultrasound

Sometime this week, I turn 20 weeks. Conservatively, I don't hit 20 weeks until Friday, but according to the hospital, I'm 20 weeks and 3 days today. So, I had my 20 week ultrasound! It went very well.

According the ultrasound, our little one is about 19 weeks, 6 days along. She's about 11 ounces. Her brain, heart and spine look great, and I got to see images in 3D.

Also good: my bleed is mostly resolved. The tech told me there is a very small amount of blood left in the uterus. She said I might pass it or reabsorb it, but that there's not much left at all. Hurray!!!!

Here are some images from today:

Ultrasound Check (16 Weeks)

Another small bleed this morning. I'd say it was about as heavy (or light, as it were) as yesterday morning and the morning before.

I went in to Pediatrix for my scheduled ultrasound at Swedish today. Based on my cycles, I'm exactly 16 weeks (although according to ultrasounds, the baby is older and will be 17 weeks on Monday).

I heard a lot of good news as well as some bad news. The good news is that the little one is thriving. She's definitely a girl, and she weighs about 5 ounces and is over four inches long from head to butt. They were able to get good views of her back, heart, diaphram and brain. Everything looked great!

They were also able to see some clotting near the cervix. The tech told me to expect a little more bleeding as that works itself out (she said it can also cause cramping). Later, the doctor came in and took a closer look at an area. She said that some blood has pooled between the amniotic sac and the uterine wall. Doing some research on the internet at home, I later determined that she was probably talking about a subchorionic hematoma. She told me that this puts me at increased risk of my water breaking early (thus going into pre-term labor). She said, "Hopefully, that won't happen too early."

After I got home, I started to think more about what she said and really wondered if it was actually likely that this would happen, based on what she said. I mean, why didn't she say, "Hopefully, that won't be a problem," instead of, "Hopefully, that won't happen too early?" Is it almost a certainty that it will break? If I don't absorb or pass the blood, then is it almost a certainty? Am I going to have my water break at any time? At this point, should I just be hoping that I can make it to 24 weeks? With these questions nagging me, I decided to call to get some clarification. A nurse is supposed to call back today, so hopefully that will happen shortly.

On the internet, there's a decent amount of information and even support groups for people with subchorionic hematomas. Apparently, if they occur in the first trimester, they can result in 40-50% chance of miscarriages (depending on the size of the hematoma). If they develop (or are found) late in the first trimester or in the second trimester, there are other concerns. I guess they can keep the placenta from implanting into the uterine wall, and they can irritate the amniotic sac, causing it to rupture. Based on what the doctor said to me, I'm guessing the placement of the hematoma in my body is in a position where it can irritate the amniotic sac (but hopefully not placenta implantation). Many women pass the clot or reabsorb it. One support group that I was reading had women commenting that it seems people who are diagnosed with this in the second trimester don't reabsorb it as often as women do early in the pregnancy.

I have a follow-up appointment scheduled in about four weeks to check to see how the blood is doing. Now that I know I'm not having any new bleeds, I'm actually hoping I can bleed this away. I've set a few goals. Although I know there is little I can do to help, I'm mentally shooting for the 24 week mark. That's July 22 (based on my cycle date, which is a little more conservative than my ultrasound date). Babies can survive as early as 18 weeks, but they usually have a rough life of infections, complications, chronic illness, surgeries, etc. Twenty-four weeks is my goal. September 2 will be when I hit 30 weeks. That is my second goal. My midwife told me, if a woman can't make it to full-term, they at least want women to make it to 30 weeks and for the fetus to reach three pounds. Full-term (38 weeks) would be October 28--two days before Oliver's second birthday. That will be my third goal. For now, though, I'm focusing on July 22. In my mind, I want my body to make it to July 22. That's what it'll take for me to have a good chance at having a baby girl who will have a good chance at being healthy. July 22.

Update: More good news! The nurse called back and said she'd spoken to the doctor. The doctor estimates my risk of "something bad happening" to be about 6%. Six percent! Those odds are about 1/16. I prefer to be an optimist and say there's a 15/16 (94%) chance that things are going to be just fine.

I'd also left a message asking about travel. She said the doctor says it is just fine for me to travel to Chicago next month. However, she said traveling later in pregnancy is probably not a good idea but to discuss it with my midwife. Apparently, women are advised not to travel at all after 36 weeks but especially if they're considered "at risk." This is not good, as I'm supposed to drive to Texas for my brother-in-law's Texas-ranch-destination wedding in mid-October. Of course, I would choose a healthy baby over travel anywhere for any reason, but it would be sad to miss the big event. I guess I'll wait and see.

Health Scare

This morning, I woke up and found that I was bleeding. I had passed a decent amount of bright red blood. It was only one episode, and the blood stopped. Terrified for my pregnancy, Andrew took me to the urgent care a few miles from our house.

The doctor spoke to me for a while and then ordered an ultrasound. I was glad she'd ordered it because I wanted to see that the baby was moving and had a heart beat. I was also terrified of what it could show.

When the ultrasound tech wheeled me into the ultrasound room, I could feel my stomach do a flip-flop. I felt so afraid of what I was about to see. It turns out, I didn't have to be afraid. The little one was wiggling all around, doing flips and rolls and moving all about! The tech also checked the heart rate, which read 154. That's a healthy rate!

After checking other parts of my body, from the cervix to the ovaries, the tech announced to me that my first ultrasound tech was right. We are having a girl! I was trying not to have ugly cries at that point. Our baby was OK, I was OK, and our baby's a girl!

The doctor later let me know that it looked like there was a very small separation of the placenta from the wall. She said it can heal if I take it easy, and it's important I don't make it worse. She told me I shouldn't bend over too much, and I shouldn't lift heavy things. She said I need to carry Oliver as little as possible and try not to pick up objects heavier than five pounds. She said I shouldn't do a lot of housework and shouldn't do strenuous exercise. She said I don't need to be on complete bed rest, but I do need to rest and try to heal.

My mom came and spent the rest of the day with me, helping Oliver adjust to a life of not being carried all the time. Thankfully, the little man has done quite well for himself. He looked so proud holding my hand and crossing the parking lot to the car to go home! It's going to be a rough few months for him, but I'm going to do everything I can to have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby girl.

First Ultrasound

I opted out of the early ultrasound this pregnancy. So, at nearly 12 weeks, I had my first ultrasound today! My midwife scheduled me with a group at Swedish Hospital, where I'll deliver this fall. It was an amazing experience!

I was far along enough for a topical ultrasound (is that the right word for it?). They just got new equipment in, and the ultrasound tech helping me hadn't used it before. She didn't know how to set it to a "first trimester" setting, so she messed around with the equipment while I got to watch my little bean for about fifteen minutes! Then, she went to get another tech to help out. Well, this tech took another 10 or fifteen minutes showing her all the features, and the whole time, I got to enjoy watching my future babe tumbling about. At one point, she even put on the 3D ultrasound! It was so amazing.

This appointment is to screen for some basic genetic defects. Specifically, they look for Trisomy 18, Down's Syndrome, and neural tube defects like spina bifida. It's a very nerve-wracking appointment! Anyway, the tech told me that the measurements appeared normal, but that I could expect a call in a week with the final results.

She also told me fetuses show little variation this early, and that ours is measuring at 12 weeks and 3 days instead of 11 weeks and 5 days. She said that when the variance is five days or less, they usually don't bother to tell the doctor/midwife to change the due date, but she told me a more accurate due date for our little one is November 8. I know our baby will come late anyway, so the due date doesn't really matter to me, but it was comforting knowing that it's less likely that I'll be in the hospital over Thanksgiving. She asked me if I was certain about the first date of my last period. I told her I couldn't remember it anymore, but I was certain of it at the time because I was keeping track since we would be trying to have a baby. She didn't seem to totally grasp what I said, and I tried to explain it a different way. I told her, "Whatever I told my midwife was correct, but I can't remember it any more." I don't think she really understood that I'd forgotten, but whatever!

The tech also asked me if I was interested in knowing the sex of the fetus. I was surprised. I answered with, "Can you tell? Really? I'd love to know!" She told me to "save my receipt" on this one because it's hard to be definitive this early in the pregnancy. Then, she told me. Exactly like when I was told Oliver was a boy, I teared up instantly. It's such an emotional moment to hear what you're having! I tried so hard not to cry because I didn't want her to regret having told me when she can't be certain. I asked how often she's right on these early ultrasounds, and she said about 80%. That's way better than 50/50! She reminded me again that I won't know for certain until the 20 week ultrasound, and I told her I understood.

As soon as I left, I called Andrew with the news. He was excited, of course, but asked me not to tell anyone until we know for sure. I agreed, and so know we have a little secret for two months!

After my ultrasound appointment, I headed to my midwife appointment. She went over my labs with me. I kind of liked seeing all the cool tests she'd ordered. For example, she ordered a test that showed I am, in fact, immune to rubella (hurray, MMR!). We listened to the fetus's heart beat (160), and she took my blood pressure. My systolic is now at 100 even, so I've crossed the 100 barrier! When I was pregnant with Oliver, my systolic blood pressure climbed from about 90 to close to 140. Thankfully, it leveled off there. I hope my blood pressure doesn't climb that high this time!

It's a Boy!

It's a boy! Boy, oh boy! Andrew and I went to the OB, where we met our parents (Andrew's dad had to go out of town for work unfortunately). Dr. Oster was called away to deliver a baby, so we waited (and waited). I didn't mind so much, but I wasn't supposed to pee before the ultrasound. Wooie.

We got into the ultrasound room, and she started looking for the baby. She first thing she found was his butt. Its butt was definitely more like Andrew's. Then she went down the legs and commented, "Those are really long legs." Haha, that's not exactly from my gene pool.

I was pretty sure I saw some boy parts when she went down the legs. She asked me if I had any idea what I was having. I said, "I was pretty sure it was a girl until you started the ultrasound. Now I think I saw a ball sack." She told me I was right and took some photos of the baby's boy parts for proof.

She then scanned over the baby and showed us his heart (all 4 chambers, sweet), and looked at his brain and spine. She checked out the umbilical cord and said everything looks perfect. Also, she said our baby has a stomach and has learned to swallow. Hurray! I'm glad all my tiredness has paid off so far into creating a beautiful baby boy.
From the waist down, the baby certainly takes after Andrew. It has his legs and butt, and I told him, "He sure didn't get a penis from me." It'll be fun to see our little boy in person after he's born to check out all of his other traits.

I'm so happy. So's Andrew, and so are our families. We started calling people almost right away. Andrew called his dad, and Colleen called Grandma Jackie. After Andrew and I got to talk a bit in the car, I called my brother and sister, and he called his brother.

Most people were just as sure as I was that we were having a girl. The only two who seemed confident that it was a boy? Julie and Colleen's good buddy, Jean.

Now it's time to work on names :)

Today is Here!

We've been counting down the weeks and finally the days, but today is here! My ultrasound is scheduled for 4:15pm, and we're going to find out if we're expecting a little boy or a little girl. I'm so excited!

These last few weeks have been weeks of change. My body is getting quite large. I've gained 13 pounds so far, but it's all tummy. It's getting harder to sleep, and my hips are frequently sore. I still have no nausea or constipation, thankfully. But also, I don't feel the baby move. I'm pretty disappointed at that. All my books inform me that people typically feel their babies move at 16-20 weeks. Saturday, I'll hit 21 weeks and still nothing.

Andrew's been reading my What to Expect. I saw him reading the delivery chapters yesterday, and I wonder if he's as nervous as me. I find myself singing a lot to Baby, hoping it'll get to know my voice. Andrew introduced himself to Baby the other day, and when he referred to himself as "Daddy," I almost teared up.

But, yes, today's the day. My parents and Andrew's mom are coming with us to the doctor. Paul, unfortunately, was called out of town for work, so he won't be able to make it.

Me, I still think our baby's a girl, but if they tell me it's a boy, I'll be happy and surprised. They'll also look at all its organs again. I get nervous whenever they look for abnormalities. So, yeah, I'm nervous for the appointment, but also insanely excited.

Andrew's making me a breakfast burrito this morning. I do my best to eat eggs and cheese and such. Frankly, fruits sound better and better every day, and everything else pales in comparison. I even dreamed about fruit yesterday... yum.

April 1, Part 1: Good

Today, I went to my second appointment with my OB-GYN. First the nurse took me back and had me take a urine sample and checked my blood pressure and such. Then, she pulled out this funky instrument and said, "Let's try to hear its heart beat." I must have look surprised because she explained that there was a good chance we would not hear it at this visit. Apparently, from 9-12 weeks, luck has a lot to do with hearing the heart.

It took a few minutes, but the nurse finally found it. It sounded echo-y, like it was from a cave. Definitely very neat!

After that, I was taken to meet Dr. Susan. She was so nice! She discussed me going to an endocrinologist to make sure my thyroid levels stay perfect throughout the pregnancy. Then, she proceeded to do the ultrasound to make sure that everything was growing properly.

I couldn't believe it. My blob was replaced by a very definite human fetus. I could see a head and arms, and then it started to wiggle! It was so neat. It waved it's arms all about. I laughed and was surprised that I couldn't feel any of its crazy movements. She told me that it's a very, very good thing to see a fetus moving at this stage. Everything seems to be healthy!

Honestly, I was a bit disappointed that Dr. Oster had told me I didn't need to bring Andrew for this visit. Of course, she couldn't have known I'd get to hear the heart beat and see the fetus move and wiggle around, but if I'd known there was a chance for those, I would have definitely brought Andrew. I had to give him the play-by-play after the appointment, and he got pretty excited for me.

In other news, I can definitely see that the bottom of my belly is bigger. I'm certain it's no longer my imagination! Some of my panties are too tight for me to wear now, and I've stopped wearing all but my loosest pants, scrubs and maternity pants.

I'd gained 3 pounds. It doesn't seem like it'd be enough to make one switch pants, but it definitely is...

My 1st Baby Ultrasound

I went to the OB-GYN on Monday! Really, I had no idea how long the first appointment was going to take. It took quite a while! They had me pee in a cup, they drew four viles of blood, and asked me a bazillion questions on family history. I was given books and pamphlets and sample packs and ultrasound albums. Crazy!

I browsed through the pamplets while waiting for my turn to go in and meet the doctor (Heidi Oster) to have my ultrasound. I looked mostly at pictures of the fetus at 10 weeks, because that's how far along I thought I was after my visit to my regular doctor. I read a little about the embryo before that stage, and peeked at pictures of the undefined blob that was starting to form the shape of a head.

When it came time for the ultrasound, it took the doctor only a few moments to let me know that I was not 10 weeks along... I was only 7! And, sure enough, there was my blob on the ultrasound screen. She pointed to a flickering on the screen, in the middle of the blob, and told me it was the heart beat.

I was sent home with a picture of the ultrasound as well as bags of goodies, including books, information on breast feeding, coupons, and other important info. I'm still quite nervous, but looking forward to my next visit on April 1, when I'll have another ultrasound to make sure the baby's growing normally.