I felt kicks in Florida We're back from our Disney World trip and all is well. I felt for the first time what I would describe as kicks as we were landing in Orlando. We hit some turbulence and it was a rough landing and the bean became very active. There were many more kicks throughout the trip when I was swimming, and during the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. It was fun but very hot and tiring. I managed to stay hydrated while walking around in the heat and took short naps every afternoon so that helped.
Now I'm just focusing on relaxing. Hubby and I are going out to dinner Friday to celebrate 20 weeks with the bean - we'll be halfway there! I honestly can't believe how well this pregnancy has gone so far, and I just hope it continues to be so worry-free.
2006-07-12 (18 weeks)
18 Week Ultrasound We just got back from the ultrasound and all is well! All major organs are in place and appear to be functioning properly and everything measures well. The baby is right on track growth wise for my expected due date, and it was so cool to see the little bugger in there! The technician did some 3-D scanning at the end, but the little guy or girl had turned its back to the camera so we didn't get a good view of the face. I'm going back in 4 weeks for another though, so maybe we'll get lucky then!
The doctors now know the gender, but it's still a surprise for us. The technician turned the screen away when she was scanning and it was SO hard not to ask. John really wants it to be a surprise though, so I'm going along with that. If it wasn't for him I'd definitely find out - I can't take the suspense! It will be a nice surprise come December though.
I'm updating the photo album with the 2 pics of the little alien's head that we got. One other thing they noted, which I'm hoping won't be a problem, is that I have a fibroid on one side of my uterus. I had had an ultrasound for it several years ago and it was fine. Since it has never hurt or bothered me we just left it alone and I'd actually forgotten about it. It shouldn't be a problem for the pregnancy, but they're going to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't get any larger and take nutrients from the placenta.
We're off to Florida for our Disney vacation tomorrow morning, so yay! Today will be pretty busy but I'm hoping it will fly by. I'll update when I return next week.
2006-07-10 (18 weeks)
Busy and Exciting Week We have a lot going on this week so I'm hoping it will fly by. Today is just work and laundry in preparation for our trip to Disney World. We leave on Thursday morning! Tomorrow I'll see my rheumatologist and I'm sure he'll order a ton of bloodwork, then more work in the afternoon and evening. Wednesday we get the Level II ultrasound (yay!) but we decided not to find out the sex of the baby. So we have to make sure the technician knows that! Then we'll see the perinatologist afterwards and he'll go over everything with us. Then work, then we drop off the dog at the doggy camp and then we have to pack for the trip. Major excitement ;)
I also started a small baby registry at Target yesterday. I just added a few items to get feedback from my mother. When we get back from Florida my sister-in-law is going to take inventory of what she has for us and once we know what we're getting we can figure out what we'll still need in terms of big stuff like car seats, strollers, etc. I figure we'll have plenty of time to do all that and research it well.
I guess I'll be updating on Wednesday, hopefully with new pictures of our bean!
2006-07-05 (17 weeks)
Another Good Prenatal Exam I saw the OB for the 3rd time today and everything is going well. My weight and blood pressure are normal, and the blood test I had for spina bifida (part of the quad test, although I opted not get all the tests done) came back normal. We got to hear the baby's heartbeat again and it was much stronger this time, so cool! The doctor said he could tell the baby was moving around a lot while listening based on the noises.
I've been feeling plenty of movement lately so I'm not surprised. It's nice at this point, no sharp kicks yet. The doctor answered all of our questions and I inquired about natural childbirth, which I'd really like to aim for. He's completely supportive of that and I like the hospital's policies on everything.
I'll go for the Level II ultrasound next Wednesday and will see the perinatologist after that. I can't wait to see the not so little bean again! We'll begin getting ultrasounds every six weeks after that, and eventually every four weeks so they can monitor the amniotic fluid level and a number of other things to make sure the baby is developing correctly.
Then, next Thursday, we leave for 5 days at Disney World. It's going to be hot but I'll just take it slow and stay hydrated and I'm really looking forward to it.
I'll update again after the ultrasound, hopefully with pictures!
