12 Week Ultrasound

We had our 12 week ultrasound today. This one was to test for any genetic disorders, etc. Things like spina bifida and chromosome abnormalities I believe is what we tested for. We decided to go through with these tests since my insurance covers them and so that we would be aware if there was any type of problem.

I didn't know but the ultrasound was a 3D one. You can sort of see the face shape. I posted a picture. It is a little dark since I couldn't use the flash or there would be a reflection. The technician commented on how active the little thing was. She said I would probably be feeling a lot of movement after the next few weeks. She was having trouble getting the pictures she needed because of all the moving around Vegas Baby was doing and had to tap on my stomach to get him/her to get into a good position for a picture.

We also got a goodie bag at the doctor's office today. It had a bag with bottles and formula which was a big wake-up call. Although a little early - it expires about 2 weeks after the baby is due. We also got a run down of what we need to do to get registered with the hospital. It seems like such a long ways off but I'm sure it will fly by.

My next appointment is with the perinatologist on the 23rd. I'm not sure what they will do, I am guessing a physical exam. Ultrasounds are so much more fun!

Almost 12 Weeks

I am really excited that I will have made it through the first trimester as of this Thursday. I had another doctor appointment today. No sonogram but we did listen to the heartbeat and it sounded great. The doctor appointments so far always make me feel much better. I found out that I need to be drinking a lot more water. It helps with infection now and my nurse told me to get used to it because labor will be much easier if I am really hydrated (less painful, etc.). That's enough to convince me!

I also get to stop taking one medication which is awesome. I take progesterone twice a day and it is hard to remember. Plus, it has to be refrigerated so I almost always get to bed or ready to head out the door then realize I need to take it (and it is not fun to take). I also get to stop taking Metformin in two weeks. That one is three giant pills that I have to take with my evening meal. It is a pain when we are not at home or if I am not feeling like I can keep my food down. The downside is that two weeks later I have to take a diabetes test (this medicine is due to me having low blood sugar which throws off my hormones, a side effect of PCOS).

The most interesting thing I found out at the appointment was that the doctor thinks people will be able to tell by looking at my stomach that the baby is more to the right. It won't be terribly obvious but I should expect people asking if it is always sitting on the right. It will be interesting to see if we can tell.

Is it bad that I am already sort of going through a nesting stage? I think it is more that I am such a planner. We decided to furnish our basement. I wanted to get a huge comfy couch down there for a nice place to relax when I am huge and miserable in the spring and when we are trying to get some rest next summer. So we bought a big sectional, a 46" LCD TV, and a TV stand. It will be nice for the New Year's party too... which is still on pregnant or not! We are also going to have fully-furnished guest rooms so lots of beds for guests to stay in. I have planned out where I want each piece of furniture. Now if I just had some extra cash to redo my kitchen, put drywall in my living room, and remodel the garage entryway so that my car actually fits. That is probably asking a bit too much!

The other thing I have been trying to get done is scrapbooking. I have sooo much to do but I want to get caught up before I have another person's life to document. I got a ton of pictures developed and picked up supplies this weekend so I need to get to it.

Next on the agenda is another appointment on Monday. We will be doing some prenatal testing just to see if the baby is likely to have any genetic/chromosome disorders, etc. Insurance covers it so we decided to go through with it just so we are aware of anything that may be a challenge when the baby gets here. After that I have an appointment with a perinatologist (a specialist) on November 23 just to see if there is anything else we should be doing as a result of my condition. Then I have another appointment with my doctor on December 7 to check for diabetes and do a sonogram. My doctor said that I will have around 10 sonograms throughout the pregnancy... one of the positive effects of having to get out of work to go to an appointment every couple of weeks.

Sorry this post is so long... I guess I should post more frequently!

2nd Ultrasound

We had our second ultrasound today. It was so amazing... we were able to see the baby moving around! Vegas Baby was kicking and punching like crazy. We might have our hands full with this one. Also, everything was measuring well and looked good. I am much more confident now that I know that the little one is growing and alive and kicking! Even though we had already heard the heartbeat, this ultrasound with all the movements really made me feel like there is a baby.

 And you can actually tell that it is a baby at 9 weeks... not just a blob!

We really wanted to wait until Christmas to tell anyone but we were just dying to break the news to someone. Plus, I thought it would be nice to be able to talk to someone who had been through this before.

The first people we told were my parents. It seemed like a great time since it was my dad's 50th birthday. My mom had called a day or two earlier saying that this milestone birthday was bothering him. We were throwing a surprise birthday party for him but she was still worried that he might not be real happy. So I told her I had a homemade gift for him that would cheer him up but I had to give it to him when it was just the four of us. When Brett got into town I pulled my parents away from the party and handed my dad a quick handmade card and grabbed my camera. I told him to read it out loud. "Just in case 50 didn't make you feel old... you are going to be a GRANDPA!"

I snapped a picture to capture the moment. My mom's mouth was so wide open. She gave me a big, long hug and had tears in her eyes. Dad was just as excited. We had prepared ourselves and everyone around us that it could take a long time for this to happen so it is shocking and exciting that we are actually expecting a baby in May. Now the true test is to see if the secret can remain a secret until Christmas when we are planning to tell the rest of our families. Don't let me down Mom & Dad... I convinced your son-in-law that you guys were secret-safe!

Beginning & First Ultrasound

I am still in shock and cannot stop thinking about being pregnant. I sort of hope that I "get over it" (to an extent of course) so that time goes by faster and I can focus on things like work or cleaning my house instead of spending every free minute learning everything I can about pregnancy. In the past few weeks, I had been complaining about weird things like my stomach feeling yuck, the "twins" hurting, and other random things. I thought it was nothing since my cycles are often long and we thought it to be pretty much impossible to get pregnant on our own. But Brett thought it was funny and kept saying things like "maybe I knocked you up" or "are you pregnant?". I took my first pregnancy test when I was around 4 weeks pregnant. It came back inconclusive... even though I had bought the kind that says "pregnant" or "not pregnant." I didn't think much of it at the time except that it was a waste of money. The next couple of weeks I continued to feel really nauseous and still no period so I picked up a cheap-o pregnancy test at the grocery store. I took that test on Monday (Sept. 28) in the morning and it was pretty clear that it was positive. I called my nurse and was told to come in for a blood test. My numbers were really good and we had an ultrasound scheduled.

Today (Oct. 1) was my first doctor appointment and ultrasound. It was really neat and sort of made it set in that there really is a baby growing inside me. Brett perked up from the Consumer Reports magazine when he heard the heartbeat. Wow! I had no idea we would hear the heartbeat that early. We also got ultrasound pictures to take home.

Going into the appointment, we thought I was around 8 weeks pregnant based on my last cycle. So we would have conceived around Aug. 15. However, the ultrasound showed that the size of the baby was consistent with someone 6 weeks pregnant. This makes sense due to the fact that my normal cycle had been around 45 days without medication (rather than the regular 28 day cycle). So, conception would have occurred around the end of August. When the doctor told us that we were actually 6 weeks, Brett had a "shit-eating grin," if you will, on his face. He was doing the math out loud and I realized what he was thinking. We were in Vegas at the end of August and he had been wanting to be able to tell people that what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas. The doctor got a kick out of that story.

So now we are just waiting for my next scan which will confirm whether our "Vegas Baby" is growing at an appropriate rate. We are also trying not to tell anyone until we are well into the pregnancy due to all the risks. I can already tell that this is going to be difficult. Our goal is to wait until Christmas and I will be four months along.