Week 13 -- The End of an Era

Ok, not an era, but a trimester. In two days, I'll officially be in my second trimester. Yay Bagel! The best part of this trimester coming to an end is that I popped last week, so I'm really starting to look pregnant, rather than just weirdly bloated.

I got my NT scan results back today and the Bagel is "within the normal risk range." That means the chances of Bagel having Down Syndrome or Trisomy 18 or 13 are less than 1 in 10,000. The test is 85% accurate. So that puts my mind 85% at ease.

My morning sickness is basically gone (woohoo!) at this point. Unfortunately, my allergies have been KILLING me this week. Thankfully, it started raining today and will continue for the next few days, which should make me feel somewhat better. I never thought I'd want it to rain this badly.

I started my first prenatal yoga class yesterday, which was wonderful. It's interesting to see women in different stages of pregnancy and hear what all they're going through at the time. The instructor was really knowledgeable about poses that are helpful for labor and for aches and pains now. She did a bunch of stuff that was great for my sciatica.

And how big is the Bagel this week? A peach! Great, now I want a peach. The Bagel is forming teeth and vocal cords. I read that the intestines originally form in the umbilical cord, and this week, they're moving up into Bagel's stomach. Ewwww.

Week 12 -- Perfectly Average

Well, I had my NT scan this morning, and all went well. I got to gaze adoringly at my imminent offspring for a good 20 minutes or so, while the Bagel moved all around and generally was uncooperative. I think the sonogram technician was getting a little frustrated that Diana Jr. wouldn't stay still long enough to check out the spine.

So the NT scan consists of 2 parts: 1) blood work and 2) an ultrasound. The ultrasound we did today and everything came out great. They measure the thickness of the spine to the back and then compare that to the length of the baby. They want that ratio to fall between two lines on a chart, and the Bagel fell smack dab in the middle. I happily told him/her that s/he is "perfectly average." They still need to test proteins in my blood, and that should take about a week.

I got to see all kinds of things on the ultrasound. They have a nice flat screen set up so I can watch everything that's going on. I saw the Bagel kicking its legs all around, and s/he kept moving around. I got to hear the heartbeat again. Going strong at 155 bpm. I could see its cute little nose (hopefully Rob's and not mine). I'll post pictures from the ultrasound hopefully later tonight. I got one picture of the hand and you can see the little bones! Pretty cool.

Bagel is measuring 12 weeks and 6 days, which is 3 days ahead of schedule. We have a prodigy on our hands.

I asked about finding out about the sex, but the technician said it's too early, so I guess some doctors/technicians are just wizards and can divine into the future and others, like mine, are just not that talented. Oh, well. Maybe we'll see at my next OB appointment in a few weeks. I just read that this week, reproductive organs are "distinctly male or female" so a good ultrasound should be able to detect the sex.

This week, the Bagel is the size of a plum. We've moved on from garnishes and into afternoon snacks. That's good because I'm getting hungrier. In keeping with that, the Bagel can now open and close his/her mouth and is chugging the amniotic fluid. The Bagel also now has eyelids.

In mama news, I now have a distinct pooch, although Rob swears I don't (I know better). About two or three days ago it just popped right out. Seems a little early to me, but whatever. The sooner I get past the "Is she getting fat or pregnant?" stage and into the "oh, she's totally pregnant" stage, the better.

Update: I scanned in the ultrasound pictures they gave me, but I seem to have accidentally saved them as pdfs rather than jpegs (oops) and so I can't upload them til I get home and fix it. Hopefully tonight. Sorry.


UpUpdate: Here they are. I couldn't get them bigger. My jpegs are being jerks. There's a cool pic of the hand and you can see all the little bones, but I can't get it uploaded it so it's big enough to see. LAME.

Week 11 -- A Fist of Justice

I just got back from an appointment with my OB and I heard the heartbeat! It sounded like this funny whop whop whop sound, going strong at 165 bpm. Katherine was with me to witness the awesomeness.

The doctor also did an external ultrasound and I got to see the Bagel again (no picture this time, sorry). The Bagel is finally starting to look like a person! We could see the big head and little body, and the Bagel was sticking one arm up in the air. It was amazing. Katherine called it the fist of justice, and thought it might have been a Black Panthers' salute.*

The doctor said my platelets were low and so they're doing some more bloodwork to see what's up with that. Also, we got Rob's blood type back and it looks like I'll have to get some shots later on in the pregnancy, so the Bagel's Rh positive blood doesn't mess with my A negative blood.

And what you've all been waiting for...

This week, the Bagel is the size of a lime. Yay! We're back into cocktail garnishes. The Bagel's head is the same size as his/her body. That means an enormous brain (no surprise there). Hair follicles are starting to form, as are fingernails and toenails.

I've got my NT scan next Wednesday, so look for the next update then.


Update: After some discussion, Katherine and I have decided that Bagel may have been rocking out to the sound of his/her heartbeat, and he/she may have been holding up a tiny lighter.

Week 10 -- Is it Really Week 10 Already?

I'm a quarter of the way done! It's hard to believe, but time is simultaneously flying by at a steady clip and crawling by one day at a time. I have learned some things this past week:

1. Waiting until I'm really hungry and then eating a ton of food is a bad, BAD idea and I will pay for it the rest of the day and into the night.

2. Fittingly, the Bagel loooooooves bagels and cream cheese. I have a sesame bagel just about every day at work. I've been eating the veggie cream cheese so I can trick myself into wanting to eat vegetables.

3. I should have bought more yarn for the baby blanket I'm knitting. I'm not running out yet, but I will before I'm finished. I'm working on getting more. Oops.

This week, the Bagel is now a fetus rather than an embryo and is the size of a prune (really? no comment). Bones and cartilage are forming and knees and ankles are forming. Tooth buds are forming under the gums. If Bagel is a boy, he's already producing testosterone. So if I have a beard at passover, we can probably safely guess the sex.

The placenta is now producing progesterone, so that means today is my last day taking my progesterone supplements. I'm a touch nervous about stopping the supplements, so wish me luck!

Week 9 -- I'm a Bloodhound

Seriously. My sense of smell is ridiculously fine tuned at this point. For the most part, it's just gross, especially on a crowded bus. I've decided which superpower I would not like to have.

This week the Bagel is the size of a green olive. It's fitting that we're into cocktail garnishes, because I just had a dream last night that I forgot I was pregnant and drank a bunch of beer. It's a common nightmare scenario for me. I'm sure it won't be the last time I have that dream.

The Bagel is also starting to form tiny muscles. I just hope s/he doesn't like to kick her/his mama too much.

In appointment updates, my next OB appointment is on April 14th. We might be able to hear the heartbeat! Also, I've got my NT scan scheduled for April 22nd. That's when we'll find out if there are any chromosomal abnormalities like Down Syndrome. I'll keep everyone updated on those.

Week 8 -- Bagel is Having a Ball

Two months in! I'm slowly but surely getting over my cold, and the Bagel is still not letting me enjoy a lot of food. But there are some things the Bagel enjoys greatly, such as jogging on the beach, gelato, and strawberries. Today, the Bagel took his/her first quick dip in the (cold!) ocean.

I had a wonderful weekend with family and friends. Julie and Chris and I had a great time with Kelcey and Delilah at the zoo and then Julie and I had an equally wonderful time at Sea World with Andrea, Garth, and the girls. I got to feed a bat ray! With such adorable and well-behaved children, no one need be concerned that I might have changed my mind. :)

This week, the Bagel is the size of a raspberry. We're still in fruit! This is great, because I can actually stomach fruit. Especially when it's blended up into a smoothie. The Bagel is starting to form facial features such as a nose and tiny eyelids and toes and fingers are starting to differentiate. All the major organs are formed and in place.

Also, I've had my first bout of pregnancy weepiness. I was listening to a really stupid and schmaltzy song from the 80s on the car radio this morning and I totally teared up. What a sucker.

Week 7 -- The Bagel Has its First Cold

I came down with a wicked cold at the end of last week and am just starting to get better. I haven't felt that sick in at least a decade. It was pretty nasty. But baby is fine!

I had my first prenatal appointment with my OB today and it went really well. I got to see Bagel on the ultrasound again, its little heart beating away. Looks like it's measuring .98 cm today, which is more than double last week. I read somewhere that it would be a blueberry this week, but that's pretty damn small for a blueberry. I don't think I'll post the picture. It's way more blurry than last week. You really can't see much.

I learned that, come May, my doctor won't be doing office appointments at Sibley anymore and will only do them out of the Bethesda office (where I went today). I was afraid that meant they don't deliver at Sibley anymore, but no cause for concern there. That will still be my hospital.

I finally started having some morning sickness last week. I'm not praying to the porcelain god at all, just very queasy and I have trouble wanting to eat anything but plain bread and almond butter. For the very first time in my life, I'm really not very hungry. :)