Pages

Lilypie First Birthday tickers

Monday, April 26, 2010

2nd attempt at NT scan was a success!

I went back to the doctor's office on Friday so they could try the NT scan again. This time we had a cooperative baby and the tech could get the measurements she needed.

Crown-Rump Length: 7.43cm (was told under 8 is good)
NT measurement: 1.5mm (under 3 is good)
Heart rate: 159bpm

I also had more blood drawn and should get our risk assessment at the next appointment on May 13. I got the blood work results back from my first appointment. Not that I was surprised, but it's always good to hear you don't have HIV, syphilis, herpes, and every other STD out there. I'm also not a carrier for Cystic Fibrosis. This is a relief to Patrick because he's very concerned he's going to have to get blood drawn for something baby-related!

My reward for getting blood drawn was a trip to Prime Outlets afterwards. I kept my promise to the ultrasound tech and did not go into the baby outlets, but I did hit up Motherhood Maternity. I bought a pair of black work pants, black capri pants, a skirt, a black shirt to go with the skirt, and 2 collared work shirts. Not too bad!

Now for the fun part - 3 more ultrasound pictures! I got to see the baby flip over, swallow, and wave. Pretty neat!

***Pictures removed 9/1/10 for privacy***

How far along: 13 weeks 5 days

Next appointment: May 13. 16 week appointment is standard weight, blood pressure, pee in the cup. I'll get more blood work done too.

Any new aches/pains: Nausea seems to be gone for good! (Let's hope I didn't just jinx myself.) I have occasional heartburn and some back pain.

Maternity clothes: I'm wearing maternity pants at work for the first time. I have no shame.

Sleep: Still waking up to pee in the middle of the night and having vivid dreams, but I wake up feeling rested. I can feel the 2nd trimester energy building!

Best moment this week: The 2 ultrasounds last week were fantastic! I also found out that 2 very close friends are pregnant and we're all due before the end of the year. Baby Fest 2010!!!

Movement: Not yet, but I've heard it can start at Week 14. I'm not holding my breath.

Food cravings: Mexican food. I've been good about not giving in to cravings as much.

Belly button: Still in.

What I miss: Right now, nothing.

What I'm looking forward to this week: Hitting 14 weeks on Wednesday. Making plans to visit Rebecca in Hawaii.

Weekly wisdom: TBD

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

First ultrasound!

We had our first ultrasound yesterday! I really expected to cry when I saw the baby and heard the heartbeat, but I must admit that my first reaction was that it looks like an alien. The baby was slightly uncooperative and was facing the screen the whole time, so it was hard to get a good profile shot. We got to see the little guy for a good 15-20 minutes and it really was the most amazing experience. He was flipping all over the place and kicking up a storm!

Baby is measuring a week ahead of where I thought I was, so the due date changed to October 27. We're hoping for a Halloween baby at this point!

The sonographer guessed that it's a boy, but made us promise not to run out and buy anything. I'm excited about that, and also interested to see if it changes at our anatomy scan.

Since the baby was not cooperating she couldn't take the NT scan measurements, so I'm going back on Friday for one more try. Oh darn, I have to see my baby again. :)

All in all, it was a great day. My blood pressure was way down from the previous appointments which makes me very happy. I think they key is to have them take it after I've been there awhile and not when I first walk through the door.

Can't wait to go back on Friday!!

Monday, April 19, 2010

24 hours and random musings.

24 hours until our first ultrasound? If you didn't know by now that I'm excited, well.... :)

Assuming all goes well we'll be going public tomorrow afternoon. My plan is to call my mom after the appointment, scan the ultrasound pictures when I get to work and email them to my parents and sister, and then call my SAHM friend who will answer her phone during the day. She's going to be so excited!! I'll call 3 other close friends after work to let them know before I put anything on Facebook. I haven't decided if I'm going to tell work tomorrow afternoon or hold off until Wednesday. I'm really nervous about telling them because I'll immediately have to start avoiding the question of "Are you coming back after maternity leave?".

On a completely different note, I've started thinking about certain activities differently than in the past now that I consider what it will be like with a child. One example is the circus which is in town right now. I remember going to the circus once as a child (I may have gone other times but just don't remember). At a fairly young age I decided for myself that I didn't agree with animals being forced to perform and would not go to the circus with the rest of my family. I was concerned with where they lived and how they were transported all over the country. I always hoped the tiger would eat a trainer or that an elephant would step on a clown. Looking back, was it strange for a child to value the well-being of an animal over a human? Weird as it may be, my views haven't changed in the past 20 years. I don't understand friends who watch bull riding on tv (I don't care how "hot" the guys are) because I secretly wish the bull will trample the rider, or perhaps gore him. When it happens I think "Well, he got what he deserved for making the animal do that."

Anyway, the other night another commercial for the circus came on tv. I turned to P and said, "Have I ever told you that I won't take our future children to the circus? If you want to, that's fine, but I won't." He thought about it for a minute and said he wasn't sure he would either. So now I have to ask myself if it's fair to not let our children make up their minds like I did. Can I explain why I don't like the circus to a 4 year old who wants to know why his/her preschool friends have seen the clowns but he/she has not? Will I be able to explain how I consider zoos and aquariums to be different because the animals are often born into captivity and the experience of seeing them is a learning tool (how can you want to protect something you've never seen?)? Oh the things I think about these days!

Saturday, April 17, 2010

3 days!

3 days until our first ultrasound! I can barely contain myself. Haha, never have I wished so much for the next work-week to start!

I've seen this on other blogs and decided I should start doing it:

How far along: 11 weeks 4 days

Next appointment: April 20! First ultrasound and then a follow-up with one of the OBs. I never got a call after my 7 vials of blood were drawn at my 8 week appointment, so I'm assuming all is good. The general trend from asking around seems to be that no news is good news.

Any new aches/pains: Nausea has gone away for the most part. I still feel icky on occasion but it's nothing like it was. I'm very thirsty all the time, especially when I first wake up in the morning. My newest symptoms are heartburn and lower back pain. My back hurts right above my tailbone. It doesn't seem to be getting any worse, but if it does I might have my dad ask his chiropractor if she takes pregnant patients.

Maternity clothes: I wore maternity jeans for the first time last night when P and I went to dinner. I was feeling pretty bloated and gassy yesterday and didn't want to deal with my jeans digging into me. Other than that, I haven't needed anything yet. I've gone through my closet and weeded out the pants that definitely won't fit this spring/summer. I think I'll be wearing the Bella Band a lot more in the near future. It's just not worth it to be uncomfortable!

Sleep: I generally wake up around 2:30 to pee, but other than that am sleeping ok. My lower back hurts when I roll over, but not enough to wake me up. I'm still having crazy dreams, but they're not waking me up any longer.

Best moment this week: Today I have 199 days to go! Being under 200 days is exciting.

Movement: Nope, not unless you count gas. Yes, TMI.

Food cravings: Sometimes I'll see something on tv and think "I have to have that!". Most recently it was Pizza Hut breadsticks, but I haven't given in yet. I'm a big fan of Subway tuna subs right now. I still don't love veggies, but can get them down. I'm getting in lots of fruit these days. The thought of ground beef and ground turkey still makes me want to gag. I feel like I can eat more like a normal person these days which is nice.

Belly button: Still in and hoping it stays that way.

What I miss: I had a bad day at work yesterday and really could have used a beer or glass of wine when I came home. I missed it, but really not that much.

What I'm looking forward to this week: Tuesday and finally getting to see our baby!!! If all goes well, I'll be going public with our news.

Weekly wisdom: There's no shame in putting on maternity clothes sooner than people seem to think you should. Some people don't show until 20 weeks. Being 5 feet tall, there's really not a lot of room for this baby, so I have a feeling I'll start to show much sooner than someone who is 5'8". Right now I just look fat though. Oh well!

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Nursery Inspiration

Sometimes I think part of the "mommy gene" is missing from me because I find that my ideas about babies and all their "stuff" is not typical. I do not like matchy-matchy nurseries or nurseries that are overly cutesy. I also don't see the point in bedding sets because babies don't use quilts. Luckily, I have a very crafty mother! She made all the bedding for my sister and me, and she's offered to make me whatever I want for our nursery.

I want a beachy nursery that is obviously for a baby, not overly cutesy. I also want it to be gender neutral. My mom is going to make the crib skirt, bumpers, and a wall hanging. We've looked at fabric and patterns, but haven't seen anything I love yet. My mom decided to do some looking around online and found Sea Creature Appliques from www.youcanmakethis.com. This is exactly what I'm thinking of for our nursery! Lots of colors in the wall hanging and my mom will make a crib skirt and bumpers in whatever green we incorporate in it.


My mom downloaded the patterns for each of these sea creatures for a total of $3.99! Now that we have something to look at and know what I want, maybe the fabric search will be a little easier.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Time is slowly ticking by.

Nothing much to report here. My first ultrasound is scheduled for April 20. I'll be exactly 12 weeks and will have the NT scan done. I'm sooo nervous to finally see the baby and confirm that he/she is growing.

I had a 2nd appointment last week which was a physical exam and pap with one of the OBs. He agreed with my chart and ovulation date, and changed my EDD back to what I think it is rather than having me be 2 weeks ahead. Glad that got straightened out!

My symptoms have faded a bit, except for the exhaustion. I'm generally only nauseous in the evenings now rather than all day, which is fine with me. If only I could sleep 12 hours every night I'd probably be feeling great!

I'll be 10 weeks on Tuesday. Double digits! I hope week 12 hurries up and gets here so we can finally tell people!