18 Weeks----We found out the sex of our baby 18 Weeks
This past week was the best week yet of this pregnancy with the
exception of one scare. I had some spotting last Wednesday and called
the doctor that morning. They asked me to come in so they could do an
ultrasound and see the location of the placenta. Cliff met me there that
morning and we got to see a picture of our baby for the very first time.
It was amazing. Not only did we get to see a picture of our baby we also
got to find out the sex. We weren’t scheduled for another week and half
to find out but we had the option then and Cliff was adamant to know. As
most of you already know….were expecting a little boy. Were so
excited…..however it wouldn’t have mattered to me either way. I just
want a healthy baby. After our ultrasound we met with my doctor and
there were a couple things on my ultrasound that raised some concern and
my doctor requested I have a high def ultrasound done to get a closer
look at things. They found a pocket of blood on my placenta which
could’ve been the reason for my spotting and corpus plexus cysts on the
baby’s brain. My doctor informed me and Cliff the cysts could mean an
indication of Trisomy 18 which is much worse than Down syndrome. It’s
deadly and most babies do not make it to full term and if they do they
usually don’t survive more than 2 months after birth. She reassured us
it was probably nothing to be concerned about since only 1 in 1400
births does this occur and my blood screening I had done a couple weeks
prior all came back normal which tested for Down’s and other disorders.
However this didn’t really ease my mind too much at the time. At that
moment I felt a rush of fear come over me and instantly started crying.
My doctor was able to get me in that very same day for the other
ultrasound at a hospital nearby. As I left the hospital I have never
been so scared in all my life. It’s amazing the love you have for
someone you have never even met before and how you want to protect them
with everything you have. Cliff was definitely my support system that
day…he was the calm one reassuring me everything was going to be ok. I
called my mom on our way to the hospital to let her know what was going
on and I don’t think she could understand anything I was saying to her.
I was crying so uncontrollably I thought I would hyperventilate. At that
point I needed her more than ever but unfortunately that just wasn’t
feasible. As me and Cliff were sitting in the waiting room waiting to be
called a thousand different things were running through my mind…it felt
like the longest wait in my life. Finally we were called back and we
received another ultrasound. The tech measured everything on the baby
and after she was finished one of the doctors came back to go over the
results with us. The doctor informed me and Cliff that what was detected
on the first ultrasound she wasn’t even 100% that’s what it was and said
she wouldn’t have even brought it to our attention because of that
factor. She said thousands of babies are born all the time with these
type of cysts and are normal and healthy. They raise concern when they
look abnormal and she reassured me and Cliff a million times over we had
nothing to be concerned about especially with the fact too that my blood
screening came back normal weeks before. She said the baby was also
measuring above average (approximately 9oz) which was a good sign as
well and he was very active during both ultrasounds moving his hands and
feet. They also look for these things as a determinant in Trisomy 18
when corpus plexus cysts are found. She also said the pocket of blood on
my placenta was of no concern. It’s just an area where the blood is
flowing to and building up. I never felt more relieved in all my life at
that moment. I think me and Cliff stood there and hugged for what seemed
like the longest period ever. Finally we could celebrate seeing our baby
and knowing what we were going to have with everyone. We had decided we
still weren’t going to tell anyone the sex until Thanksgiving but my
family was dying to know so we decided we’d break the news. Plus I was
finding it very difficult to talk to anyone about the baby without
saying he or him now that we knew. My mom was the first person I told
and she was so excited. I think she was shocked by the tone in her
voice. Her and my dad had been thinking all along it was going to be a
boy and to her surprise it was. It was funny getting the responses back
from everyone after we sent out a picture of him…..my sister sent a text
back saying it looks like a girl and my mother in law was still
insistent it was girl because he was hiding his face in the picture and
she said girls are shy and tend to hide their faces. I think my sister
was a little surprised once I called her and told her and my mother in
law sent me a text to apologize for all the times she had been calling
him a princess and wanted to make sure Baby Greene knew he was now a
prince. Other than the excitement of our first ultrasound I have felt
pretty good this past week. I have felt Baby Greene moving around quite
a bit in the past week. The sensation is not only a bubbly feeling I
wrote about last week but now faint kicks which I’m sure will be able to
be felt by Cliff very soon. I’ve started noticing some headaches that
wake me in the night now. I’ll have a throbbing pain on one side of my
head and have to switch positions. Sometimes I end up waking up with
these headaches and other times I don’t. If I do wake up with them they
usually last all day and become pretty severe. My cravings lately have
consisted of Eggo waffles, cookie dough ice-cream, Oreos, and pizza.
Cliff is so sick of eating pizza with me. I think we had pizza 4 times
last week.
Baby Greene is now the size of a sweet potato…approximately 5.6 inches
in length and weighs 6.7 ounces. However our little man weighed 9oz at
our last ultrasound a week ago. The baby has become amazingly mobile and
spends most of his time yawning, hiccupping, rolling, twisting, kicking,
punching, sucking, and swallowing. Blood vessels are visible through the
thin skin and his ears are now in their final position. A protective
covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves and is a
process that will continue a year after he’s born.
2009-11-12
17 Weeks-I feel our baby move for the 1st Time
11/9/09
Another week down which means were that much closer to our ultrasound appointment and finding out the sex of our baby….2 more weeks. YAY!!I’m so anxious to see a picture of our little one. This past week my doctor sent me to see a cardiologist for my heart palpitations. They did an EKG which came back normal but they scheduled me for another appt on the 17th to do an ultrasound on my heart and also to wear a box that monitors my heart rate for 24 hours. The cardiologist seemed to think everything was probably normal and okay but wants to monitor it a little more closely since I’m having palpitations so frequently and for long periods at a one time. The most EXCITING thing that has happened this past week is feeling our little one move for the very first time. I kept having this same sensation for a couple days but couldn’t really determine whether it was the baby or not. Thursday night I was sitting on the couch and that same feeling kept occurring but was a little stronger from the times before. It almost felt like a popping situation inside of my stomach and this particular feeling was very low where the baby is. I then determined it had to be the baby after texting several of my friends and sister that have all been pregnant before and confirmed that’s exactly what it was. The closest thing to compare it to is like popcorn popping in your stomach. After that night I’ve been noticing it pretty frequently in the evenings so the baby must do a lot of sleeping during the day and active in the evenings. Guess this is what we have to look forward to once he/she arrives. Saturday night Cliff took me to Olive Garden for dinner and during our dinner the baby was extremely active. I guess he/she really liked what I was eating or maybe it was the other way around. I’m so anxious now for Cliff to be able to feel these movements. I try to explain the way it feels the best that I can to him so he feels like a part of it but once he can experience it for himself it will be so much better. From what I’ve read and what others have told me it’s usually around 19-20 weeks before that will happen which really isn’t too much longer considering were going on week 18 this week. Every time I feel it now I just smile. There’s a lot to look forward to in the next couple of weeks. I packed up the majority
of our house over the weekend and we’ll move the weekend of the 20th. Cliff’s birthday is next Monday but were celebrating it this upcoming weekend. We have our 1st ultrasound in less than 2 weeks. My parents will now be here Thanksgiving day instead of the weekend following which is wonderful news. They’re going to help us finish up moving whatever we don’t get the weekend before and my mom is going to be a big help getting me unpacked and possibly even pick out the paint and paint the baby’s room while they’re here. I’m anxious to get into our apartment so we can start on the nursery. I have a feeling that after the holidays the time before the baby gets here is going to fly right by.
Baby Greene is now the size of an onion….approximately 5.1 inches long and weighs 5.9 ounces. At this stage the baby’s skeleton is starting to harden and change from rubbery cartilage to bone and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is also getting thicker and stronger.
