Monday, September 27, 2010

Mid-point Ultrasound

On Thursday morning I went to my first OB appointment on my own. It was a bummer that the big ultrasound was the first appointment Mike couldn't make, but it was good because it meant that he was doing a landscaping job. And because my doctor rocks he said that he'd do another ultrasound the next time Mike was able to be there with me.

First, to answer the question many of you are wondering - we did not find out if it is a boy or a girl. The doctor knows, but I looked away from the screen worried I would be able to tell. He said it was pretty obvious so I guess I'm glad I looked away. That said, if we decide we want to find out after all, then we can. Second, (which probably should have been first) everything looks great. The best picture from the day is this one:You'll see it looks like we have a thumb sucker on our hands. I guess that's just appropriate considering Mike and I both sucked our thumbs but goodness help me if I'm going to have to pry it out of his or her mouth when he or she is way too old to be sucking their thumb like happened with me (and apparently my husband, but maybe he's just saying that to make me feel better). Or maybe the baby is just a thumb sucker en utero and will find many more fascinating things to fill his or her time with once it's born! It was really cool to see though because you could actually see the tongue moving in and out!

Some of the things they look for are cleft palate, intestines and spinal cord inside the body with skin closed over each, an intact diaphragm, a heart with 4 chambers, a bladder that's full, and a stomach that's full. The bladder and the stomach being full are indications that the baby can swallow and the kidneys are working and most everything else is structural but it would be problematic if they weren't formed correctly. I'm sure there are other things that he told me during the ultrasound but I was too entranced with the screen to hear everything.

The little one loves to move around and the doctor said once I do start feeling movement I'll probably feel a lot. For now though my placenta is between the baby and the wall of the uterus so I'm not feeling anything. Every once in a while I think I may have felt something, but it's nothing I am ready to classify as feeling it move for the first time. He said the baby will probably be kicking my bladder soon though! All the measurements put the baby right on target for just about 20 weeks and he said that if I go to term and the baby keeps growing at this rate, it will be around 8 pounds when it's born. Again, based on Mike and I, I guess that's about right since we both were big. And my sister's boy was almost 8 pounds, too, and baby size is hereditary.

Anytime I look at the pictures I always call it a boy but when I talk about it otherwise, it's a girl. So I guess I don't have any idea what I think it is. We joke around here that maybe we should find out because Mike says he needs 20 weeks to get used to the idea of a girl and I think I need 20 weeks to get used to the idea of a boy. I then amended my comment after being reminded of crazy stories of Mike growing up and said I think I need 20 years to get used to the idea of having a boy!

All in all, everything is like it should be at this point. My weight gain is just where it should be, my symptoms are pretty much non-existent right now, and things are coming together with Mike getting a new job that he really enjoys at Izakay Den (YUM! I can't wait until I can eat real sushi again, not just California Rolls) and still getting landscaping here and there as well. I feel very blessed to have a healthy baby and I'm not as worried as I thought I would be, seeing what I see every day.

Now comes the fun of trying to figure out what to do with the nursery and little things like that! Mike's parents are coming to visit in a few weeks and we are building a guest room out of the enormous room in the basement so we'll have a place to host anyone who wants to come visit. And Mike and I got a new bed so you won't have to sleep on the awful full size mattress I got for free when I was a poor AmeriCorps member!

3 comments:

  1. How wonderful to see the little munchkin sucking his or her thumb. It reminds me so much of when you were a baby!!

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  2. What a cutie! My guess is a boy. I know you are so excited!

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  3. This is such an amazing picture, I find myself coming back over and over again to look at it!!

    Love ya!!

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