Sunday, November 29, 2009

I've made it to 2nd Tri!

Today I am 13 weeks and 3 days. That means I am officially in my 2nd Trimester. If you divide 40 weeks by 3 trimesters you get 13.3. I am so excited to be out of the dreaded 1st Trimester. It is such a stressful time.

We had our 12 week checkup on Wednesday, Nov. 25 (I was actually one day shy of 13 weeks)and everything is fine. All they did was have me pee in a cup, take my blood pressure and listen for the baby's heartbeat with the doppler. She warned me that it may be too early to hear it and that the nurse that listened for it last time at 8 weeks 6 days probably found my own heartbeat thinking it was the babys (since she says it is unusual to find it at that gestational age). I think that is rediculous since it was in the 160s and very quiet. Whatever. So she puts the doppler on my stomach and right away you can hear the heartbeat. What a relief! I had planned to ask to record it with my cell phone but was so excited to listen to it I didn't want to interupt. Mike was able to make the appointment so he got to hear it for the first time. He was smiling from ear to ear.

My next appt. is on Dec. 16 and they will be drawing more blood for my quad screen. The quad screen determines if a woman is at higher or lower risk of carrying a baby with a birth defect. This test is not 100% but it can bring forth markers that would then allow us to decide whether we want to do further testing such an an amniocentesis. I'm not too worried about this test.

A little about baby this week from Baby Center. Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long and weighs nearly an ounce.



I took my first belly picture on Thanksgiving (13 weeks) and will post it soon.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Is it possible that time might actually be flying by?

I just noticed my ticker shows I'm under 200 days! Woop woop!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Week 12: Plum

All I can say about the past two weeks is "I'm exhausted". I have no trouble being in bed and asleep by 8pm.


Today's e-mail from Baby Center:
The most dramatic development this week: Reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over two inches long and weighs half an ounce.



Thursday, November 12, 2009

What does a fig, peanut and a lime have in common?

According to the sites I follow, they each say something different about the size of the baby this week. Baby Center says the baby is the size of a fig, The Bump says the baby is the size of a lime and the book I have "Great Expectations: Your All-in-One Resource for Pregnancy & Childbirth" says the baby is the size of a peanut. But they all say the baby is about 1 1/2 inches long.

Here is the information I get from Baby Center via e-mail every week:
Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden.

She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

Sorry for anyone who isn't a fan of these types of photos (I wont post them often) but I find them interesting. This is 11 weeks:





Friday, November 6, 2009

Thursday, November 5, 2009

10 Weeks

I seriously can't believe I am 10 weeks today. I'm just 3 weeks away from saying goodbye to the 1st Trimester. I can't wait. My next appointment in November 25.

Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.

He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.

If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

In this picture baby is being compared to the size of a prune.


Tuesday, November 3, 2009

The results are in!

I passed the 3 hour glucose tolerance test with flying colors.

I also got my H1N1 shot today.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Yumm Yumm Glucola!

It was 6:30am, I had fasted all night and I was ready to get the 3 hour glucose tolerance test out of the way. As I believe I mentiioned in my previous post, I didn't pass the 1 hour test I took in the doctors office last Wednesday. So today's test took 4 hours and 15 minutes and I had to stay there the whole time. They took my blood right when I arrived and then 45 minutes later I was given a bottle of glucola (which contains 50 grams of glucose). Once I was finished drinking it, they drew my blood once an hour for 3 hours. I'd like to say I'm pretty good with having blood drawn but having to prick your arm twice in the same vain is not so fun. Especially when the nurse is so close to a nerve that you feel it. I'm glad it's over and I finally got out of the office at 10:45am.

Now I sit and wait for the results. I'm praying that I pass.