Week 17 -- I Definitely FEEL Bigger!

But I don't look much bigger, do I? Please note that this is pre-dinner. After dinner, the belly was about twice this size. I keep feeling like my belly is getting so HUGE, and then everyone tells me, "but you're so tiny!" Our cleaning woman asked, "One month? Two?" She was shocked when I told her four. C'mon Bagel, grow!

Sorry for the late in the week posting, but I've had a lovely, and incredibly busy, week in Louisville. Everyone now knows all about Bagel. There were lots of smiles and hugs and "congratulations!" It's great to work for such supportive and caring people.

This week, Bagel is the size of an onion. It's because s/he's got so many layers. Parfaits also have layers, and who doesn't love a parfait? I have a very complex baby. Bagel's skeleton is hardening from cartilage into bone, and is putting on some fat, so s/he can be a cute little butterball. Bagel can now be startled by loud noises and his/her eyes can perceive some light. Bagel's fingerprints are now uniquely his/her own.

In other news, we bought our crib! It's crazy early, but it's only sold at Babies 'R Us and had been out of stock online and the manufacturer didn't even show the crib on its website, so I was worried they were discontinuing it. It was just about the only crib I found that wasn't either (a) a huge convertible or (b) a dropside. It's awesome. If you care, you can check it out here.

Week 16 -- Holy Heartburn Batman!

The intention of this blog is to inform, rather than whine and complain, but apparently this kid has pushed my intestines up into my throat. Every time I lay down to go to sleep, I feel like I swallowed a two liter of acid. The upside is that I've been eating better. Though I crave sweets like crazy, it's all the sugar that's giving me the heartburn, so I've laid off a bit.

Other than that, I'm feeling pretty fabulous. I've got a good amount of energy and really no aches and pains except the relaxin is giving me hip trouble when I run. So I'm trying to run less and bike and swim more. Given the now gorgeous weather, and the new Four Mile Run bike trail connector under 395, I'm having a blast on the bike. Don't worry Dad, I'm loading on the sunscreen. SPF 85. That's right. 85. But I'm already the color of caramel. Mmmmm...caramel....

This week we get to move onto vegetables. Bagel is the size of an avocado. This is perfect for the spawn of two lawyers because, as anyone on the infamous Tuscany Adventure of 2003 knows, "avvocato" means lawyer in Italian (and if either of my parental units could clue us in on how one would pronounce two v's, that'd be swell). Tiny bones forming in Bagel's ears mean s/he can now hear my voice. Taste buds are forming, which I believe are the most important part of the developing body. Bagel already has its own unique fingerprint pattern! So the time to commit gloveless crimes without leaving any evidence behind is now in the past, my friend.

The most amazing part of this week? I think I'm feeling the baby moving. It's veeeeeery faint, kind of a fluttery feeling. So awesome.

I thought I'd give you guys another belly pic. It's not much different from the last one. It looks more like a spare tire than a baby bump, though my clothes are starting to not fit. Grow Bagel, grow!

Week 15 -- Waiting is the Hardest Part

So I have news! Ok, not really. My news is that I went to the doctor today and she had me schedule my BIG ultrasound that's super specially detailed and we get to find out the sex! At week 19. So my news is that I have a set date for when I'll have some news. June 8th. We have to go to a radiology clinic for it, and it's downtown, so Rob should be able to give all those lame attorneys the slip and come see Bagel's nether region with me.

My doctor's visit went well. She didn't do an ultrasound this time, just listened to the heartbeat with the doppler. It was chugging along, whop, whop, whop, THUMP! The thump was apparently Bagel kicking me. S/he's gonna be a soccah playah! I can't feel the kicks yet, but I probably will in a few weeks.

My platelets were still low at last month's check up, although they were better than in March. So I got blood drawn again and we'll see the best out of three. It's obviously not a huge issue, or we wouldn't be waiting a month between each blood draw. I asked the doc if it might be because I was so sick in March and she said it's possible. I guess we'll see what happens at my next appointment, which is on June 10th. She also took some blood to test for spina bifida. She said she normally wouldn't even bother, but since they were sticking me anyway, we might as well. And the doc also said I'm right on track for my weight gain, so that made me feel good.

Drum roll please....

This week, Bagel is the size of a naval orange. We're into handheld fruits! This week, the legs are now longer than the arms, and the ears are properly positioned on the sides of the head (they used to be in the neck). The eyes are moving from the side of the head to the front of the face. Bagel may already be sucking his/her thumb, especially if it tastes like chocolate.

I feel great. Nausea is completely gone and, thanks to my prenatal yoga class, my sciatica is gone, as well. The only problem I'm really having is allergies, and that I can only blame on Mother Nature.

Week 14 -- This Week is Kinda Boring

Zzzzzzzz.... There is NOTHING interesting going on this week. Bagel even seems to have shrunk, as this week s/he is the size of a lemon and last week was, allegedly, the size of a peach (although the picture on the website is of a nectarine -- methinks someone doesn't know their fruits). This week, the Bagel is wiggling its toes and sucking its thumb and is growing downy hair all over to keep warm. It's like a little lemon-sized monkey.

I have my next doctor's appointment on Wednesday, so maybe I'll have some interesting news then. I think it'll still be too early for my doc to tell me the sex. I don't think I'll learn that until my next appointment, which will be around 19 weeks. Sigh.

Oh, well. To save you all from boredom, I've finally taken a belly shot. This is me today in front of my dirty bathroom mirror.




I know, I know. I keep telling everyone how HUGE I am. And I swear, I feel a lot bigger than this. It really pops out after I eat. I should do a before and after.

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.