Our Anatomy Scan AKA the Best Medical Procedure EVER!

Posted on February 12, 2014 by playinghousewi

So I have to be honest, my day yesterday did not start off as I had hoped. In fact, it was pretty shitty. Leading into the day, I was feeling super anxious and nervous. I had started to worry that I hadn’t felt the baby for a day or two and was just totally freaking myself out. Any excitement I had about learning the sex and seeing our baby had been completely converted into stress about the health and well being of our sweet baby.

In the morning, I was running late for work and feeling really chaotic. I had finally gotten into the car to leave and made it down the block when I realized that I had forgotten to grab my little pretzel gift bags for my nurse and doc. Obviously, I had to turn around and grab them. THEN, as I was backing out of the driveway for the second time, I was a bit too far over to the right and felt my car roll onto a bit of snow (aka: off the driveway). I tried to adjust, but being that our driveway is a steep 45 degree angle and was a bit of a slippery mess, I just rolled backwards and got nice and wedged in the snow. Needless to say, I was frustrated and crabby and had to call to have my car pushed out of the snow bank. Simultaneously, I was sharing my stress and anxiety with my husband by giving him shit for not shoveling the driveway from the weekend’s 1″ snowfall.

The husband was also feeling stress and anxiety about our upcoming appointment, so what was really a nothing situation turned into a fight… over the phone… before 10 am. We ended our conversation with a, “this is not a big deal… no worries… see you this afternoon,” but I think we were both still feeling crappy about it. Anyway, then it was finally appointment time and Mark was 15 minutes late to pick me up. When he arrived, things were kinda normal and kinda tense and by about halfway through our drive to the hospital, we were back in our stupid argument over nothing. It followed us into the hospital, where we sat in the waiting room in a whisper fight. And literally it was so stupid… but regardless, I freaked out. I didn’t want us to share this super exciting moment when it didn’t feel like we were on a team. So I told Mark I wanted to reschedule, got up and started balling my eyes out as I walked to the bathroom. When I got out of the bathroom, Mark was there and just held me as I gasped for breath, sobbing. We both acknowledged that the anxiety of the day was what was making us both crazy and that we loved each other and were just being crazy.

We held hands and walked back over to the waiting room together, as a team. That was when the best experience ever began.

As soon as I laid down on the ultrasound table, Mark was by my side, holding my hand again. The excitement was totally overwhelming and then all at once, there was our baby. Our ultrasound tech, Tracey, started at the head and then worked her way up and down and all around the baby. Some of the highlights…

The Heart! This actually made me quite nervous, because we had no idea what they were looking for or what “normal” would look like… and Tracey wasn’t giving any hints. But, regardless, it was pretty damn amazing. We saw all four chambers of the heart and the valves and everything. There is some sort of something that allows them to track the blood flow, so we saw red and blue patters that tracked blood flowing towards the ultrasound wand and blood flowing away… all moving within the heart and out to the rest of the body.
That little butt. Oh my goodness does she have such a cute, miniature baby butt. That was almost too much for me to handle.
Her tiny legs, crossed like the teeny lady that she is. What a princess, this baby is. Throughout the majority of the exam, she sat with her sweet little legs crossed at the ankles. Seeing the little legs and little feet. Oy. So much cuteness on one small monitor.
Her baby mitts. She was constantly moving her little hands around, but they stayed very close to her face the whole time. I’m thinking I need to invest in the onesies with the extra fabric to fold over the baby’s hands so she doesn’t scratch her face.
Have I mentioned how cute her little tush was?
Baby kicks… it was SO crazy to feel the baby kicking and be able to see what the movements I’ve been feeling actually look like. It makes everything WAY more imaginable and real and simply amazing.

Towards the end of the exam, Tracey told us she usually likes to see the baby “spine up” (aka with the baby’s spine facing upwards and their face facing towards the momma’s back), but since baby wouldn’t cooperate, she would move on to gender. I rolled on my side and she shimmied the ultrasound wand to try and get a good look at the baby’s lady parts, but our little nugget wouldn’t cooperate. Tracey told us she was going to give the pictures to the doctor to examine and would hopefully be back to to try to determine gender once the doc was done. I instantly got nervous and desperately asked, “but… you’re coming back right? You won’t make me leave without knowing, will you?” She said she’d do what she could and left us.

THANKFULLY, within minutes, she was back in with us. She told us that the doctor was reviewing the scans and that we’d try again. This time, the baby had flipped so she was able to get her spine photo AND, we were able to see what kind of parts the babe was sporting. Tracey explained that one thing they are looking for is the reflection in the genital area… the labia creates three little lines and the testicles create… well, honestly, I can’t remember! But, after she told us that she said, “As you can see, there are three lines here… you’re having a girl!”

It’s a GIRL!!!

I instantly squeezed my husband’s hand so hard and was literally speechless. I couldn’t do anything but smile and fight back my tears. And honestly, at that moment, I was so excited, but also realized that it wouldn’t have mattered either way. It was just so amazing to know which flavor baby we were having!

The better news came next… Dr… something came in to let us know that everything looked perfect! Baby is 13 oz and the scan looks great! PHEW!!!

We walked out of the appointment with a ton of photos totally glowing! We had our 20-week appointment next, which I’ll tell you about tomorrow. But, all in all, it was just amazing. I have literally never had a more amazing and miraculous experience EVER. We got to see our sweet little baby GIRL and she’s beautiful and perfect and tiny and lovely.

Here are the pics…

It’s crazy what can happen in 11 weeks! Check out the growth since our last ultrasound!

Here’s a shot of the little one’s lady parts from underneath. Notice the two legs, tush and three little labia reflection lines.

Mini hand by the sweet face profile.

Another profile shot!

3D Ultrasound Face Pic! This one is my second fave. Smooshy pout face.

My favorite little face pic. She’s just so precious with her little hand up by her face. I can’t wait to kiss that little face.

This one is a big blur… but there’s that little hand again.

The sweet baby showing her tush just like her puppy brother did later that afternoon. They’re going to be best friends!

Symptoms

I’m feeling great and excited and overwhelmed with love and happiness. Also, I’m starting to get the feeling like these next 20 weeks are going to FLY! Time to start planning the nursery 🙂

I’ll See YOU in One Short Week

Posted on February 4, 2014 by playinghousewi

In exactly one week from today, Mark and I will get to see our sweet little baby on the 4D ultrasound screen. For anyone who’s gone through this, I’m sure no explanation is needed regarding the anxiety, excitement, obsession, impatience and a little bit of fear that I’m feeling. For those of you who haven’t gone through it, here’s my explanation…

Anxiety I have stupidly answered everyone’s question of, “What would you prefer, a boy or a girl” with the answer, “Girl!” Now, with just one week until the big gender reveal, I can’t help but feel guilty and foolish for this comment. Here are my reasons for gravitating towards a girl: a) I eventually would like to have a girl and fear I might end up with 10 boys in my desperate attempt to get a girl. A girl first would eliminate that. b) There has been a girl’s name that we’ve talked about for quite some time and have had no idea on a boy’s name. This is stressful. c) Baby girl accessories are so cute. As you can see, none of these reasons are a big deal, which is why I feel guilty. Are people not going to believe how excited I am/would be if we find out we’re having a mini man? I mean, my hubs was one cute kid… I’d be stupid not to want one of those little guys on our team. Also, I feel anxious about my reaction when they tell us the sex. Despite the fact that I will be overjoyed either way, will I feel a bit of disappointment my intuition was wrong if it is a boy? Ughh.

Excitement We have not seen our baby since 8ish weeks, and at that time, the little nugget literally looked like a blurry blob… AND, even that was totally amazing. I cannot even imagine how special and amazing it’s going to be to see our sweet love’s face and hands and feet. I’m overwhelmed with excitement. Not-to-mention the fact that I’m excited to finally stop guessing if the babe is a boy or girl.

Obsession All I’ve thought about for the past 4 months, 3 weeks and 5 days has been this little baby. So, I’m pretty sure that’s the definition of obsession. I know there will be other things to obsess about after we find out the sex (ie: nursery decor, registering, delivery, etc), but it’ll be nice to not have gender as one of those things.

Impatience To say that I’m impatient is a TOTAL understatement. I don’t like waiting at all and this wait has, at moments, felt torturous. I’m ready to see this sweet face for what could be the first and last time before we meet face-to-face.

Fear Of course, there is always that looming fear that the doctors are going to see or hear something that isn’t good. I’m trying to ignore that feeling, but sometimes it creeps up on me.

And in other news, I have the cutest animals around. Check out last night’s snuggle fest…

Toby & Ollie sharing a little love.

Symptoms

I’m still struggling from the weekend. I’ve been SO tired these past couple of days and feeling sore and uncomfortable. I’m hoping a few good night’s rests will really improve that, but we’ll see! Maybe a chiropractor visit and the weekend are required? Otherwise, all is well. Trying to get back to healthy eating, which now includes vegetable smoothies. More on that later in the week!

Our Little Babe’s Heartbeat!

Posted on January 10, 2014 by playinghousewi

Sounds like he or she really loves us!

Video from today’s appointment at 16 weeks!

Another Picture of the Baby Boo & a Weekend Recap

Posted on November 25, 2013 by playinghousewi

Baby “Blob” Lang! Ultrasound #2

Today was our second ultrasound appointment, and my doctor’s way of appeasing my stubborn mind. As I’ve mentioned before, I was not convinced by the due date given at our last ultrasound appointment, so my doctor had suggested we do another one. Well, turns out the ultrasound tech and the fancy machinery is staying pretty consistent. My most recent due date was June 30th and today it was adjusted to June 27th. As I stated before, I am totally prepared to accept June 27th as the day and begin tracking the baby’s growth accordingly.

So, here’s where we’re at… I’m officially 9 weeks and 3 days pregnant, our baby is just over an inch from head to rump, and the heartbeat was 174 beats per minute.

Ultrasound 1 vs Ultrasound 2

It must be mentioned, that my mom is now convinced it’s going to be a girl! Only 10 more weeks until we find out! Also, I didn’t really see the heart beat last time, although my hubs did. This time, it was so clear and amazing to see. That little heart is working hard and was totally crazy and wonderful to be able to watch.

I’m not 100% sure, but I think we might have another ultrasound at 12 weeks for the nuchal screening. Can’t wait until the babe looks a little less like a blob and a little more like a sweet baby.

Weekend Recap

It was, once again, a pretty busy weekend. We were still furiously working to get my grandparents set up in their new place. Here’s some progress…

The desk is actually standing now, but this is the most updated photo I have…

Despite all the work, we got to spend a little time together and the grandparents got to enjoy some quality time with their great grand pup!

Gramps, Toby & Grammy

We also had time for a visit with Mark’s momma… she made the most amazing Philly cheese steaks. Mmmm…

Mark and his Ma cooking up lunch!

My husband getting goofy.

Symptoms

Enough said.

A blueberry? A grape? I’m so confused.

Posted on November 13, 2013 by playinghousewi

In my explanation of my first ultrasound experience, I kind of glazed over my latest predicament, which is the fact that I do not know how far along I am. I’m not sure that it’s actually crucial for me to know to the day at this point, but it’s kind of frustrating not knowing if I’m 7 weeks, or almost 8 weeks, or even 9 weeks as we originally thought. So much happens with the little nugget in such a short amount of time, it feels like I’m missing out a bit by not being able to know where we’re at on our little journey.

Based on the ultrasound, I am anywhere from 7 weeks, 2 days pregnant to 7 weeks, 6 days pregnant. AND, based on my schedule, I’m 9 weeks pregnant. The first option seems like a pretty big stretch, because I swear I was already feeling symptoms prior to what my ovulation date would be if I were only 7 weeks, 2 days. SO, for my own sanity’s sake, I am going to say that tomorrow I am 8 weeks pregnant. That seems like a good in-between, right? And really, it probably doesn’t matter either way, because the baby is going to show up when he or she is ready. Also, I’m pretty sure that at 12 weeks, they will be able to get a better idea as to where I’m at and it will only improve from there.

So, little baby, tomorrow is your 8-weeks of life day in the world according to mommy. It’s probably fitting that you get used to this little world I live in, as to prepare yourself for your future. Sometimes, I refuse to accept what I don’t feel makes sense or what the world won’t let me control, and I make up my own rules. I apologize in advance for any confusion this might create. xo

Wait, what? My First Ultrasound Experience.

Posted on November 11, 2013 by playinghousewi

Wait, what?

That’s the best way to describe my ultrasound appointment this past Friday. First of all, I had to drink my weight in water to fill up my bladder, which was absolutely horrible. I could barely walk and when I laid down on the table, you could visibly see my bladder bulging out of my body. Anyway, the tech explained that since I wasn’t very far along, they would have to do an internal ultrasound anyway, as that’s what they always do this early in a pregnancy, but took some measurements of my uterus and ovaries externally first. (My first, “wait, what?” moment.) Why the heck would they put me through the water torture if they were going to stab me with the internal ultrasound wand anyway? That seems cruel.

Anyway, they finally allowed me to pee, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that I must have been peeing for 3 minutes straight.

When I got back into the room, the tech had wheeled in the internal ultrasound machine (“wait, what” moment # 2). My reaction only got worse when the tech explained that I would have to insert the ultrasound… wand… into my lady part myself and then she would take over. Uhhh… what? That made for an interesting little experience for the tech, my husband and I to share. I wish I could have gotten a picture of Mark’s face. But, mine will have to suffice (note the scary wand)…

Wait, you want me to do what with that?

Honestly though, it wasn’t that bad. After I got over the whole awkwardness of the request and the appearance of the “wand,” I didn’t really notice.

Then came the good part… seeing our baby and seeing her little heartbeat (124 beats per minute)!

First glimpse of our tiny little baby!

BUT, then came my next surprising moment. Our little baby who we thought was measuring over a half inch was actually less than a centimeter! This led the tech to estimate my progress at 6.5-7 weeks, versus the 8+ we had been told before. I know it’s only a week or so off, but I guess I feel a little disappointed because I was really looking forward to the relief of hitting the 8 week mark with a solid heartbeat. From what I’ve heard, though, just hearing the heartbeat is already a very good sign. So I should probably just feel grateful for that and stop over thinking it. Although, for a controlling person like myself, it drives me a little nuts to not really know how far along I am… hopefully when I see the doctor this Thursday, she’ll provide me with a little clarity.

Anyway, more importantly, I’d like to introduce our little baby blob… meet Baby Lang:

Baby (Blob) Lang!

Symptoms

The latest and greatest is getting super nauseous before and as I get hungry. It’s so annoying. First I’m sick to my stomach, then I’m hungry and also want to throw up… so lovely! The trick seems to be powering through it and eating. Once I get a decent base of food in me, the nausea goes away. Other than that, I’m still quite sleepy. BUT, feeling happy and excited.

Have I Mentioned I’m Impatient?

Posted on November 1, 2013 by playinghousewi

Yesterday afternoon I called my doctor’s clinic to find out a little bit more about what to expect from my first visit. The reality is that all I wanted to know was whether or not I’d get an ultrasound. So, I’m sure you could imagine my surprised / frustrated / angered / upset / crabby response when the nurse explained that I would not have an ultrasound until 19-20 weeks. The conversation went something like this…

Receptionist: No mam, you won’t have an ultrasound until 19-20 weeks…

Me: I’m sorry, what? How will you know there’s a heartbeat?

Receptionist: Oh, if you took a pregnancy test, you’re definitely pregnant. Those things are like 99% accurate.

Me: I understand that I’m pregnant. But what about miscarriage? How will we know that the baby is okay?

Receptionist: Oh, you’d probably know.

Me: But I read that sometimes there is no heartbeat, but you don’t have signs of miscarriage for weeks or months even.

Receptionist: Yeah, I wouldn’t worry.

Me: Uhhh. I guess thanks?

Needless to say, I got off the phone and was irritated. I’ve never heard of that! I can’t even list the number of first trimester ultrasounds I’ve seen posted to Facebook, not-to-mention all the blogs I’ve read. I decided I needed a second opinion… so I called the other clinic where my doctor sees patients. This conversation started out in a similar way with the receptionist explaining that ultrasounds are not given until 20 weeks; however, some lovely woman (receptionist or nurse) who overheard our conversation set the record straight. Turns out they can do a first trimester ultrasound and my nurse, Debbie, can place the order for it at my appointment next week. This means that I likely will not get my ultrasound that day, but at least I’ll have one coming! Instant smile.

So, what are the takeaways?

1) While the first receptionist was quite annoying, her lack of worry and concern actually made me feel a little better. I’m comfortable with the idea that I’ll know if something happens, but since I haven’t noticed anything, I should assume everything is great.

2) Our little baby will have his or her first glamour shot soon AND, hopefully we’ll get to hear the heartbeat.

3) I’m glad I called. I like knowing what I’m walking into.

As for what to expect at the first appointment… this is a bit unclear, but it seems as if we will review my husband and my medical histories, I might get some blood tests, she’ll tell me “what to expect when I’m expecting,” answer my many questions, talk diet and exercise, and other informational items. So, being that I’m a pre-planner, I also have been working to fill out a form I found on the March of Dimes website.

Family History Form from March of Dimes

I already went through it with my parents and we will be going through it with Mark’s parents this weekend. I think that by having all of this information collected at our first appointment, we’ll be better prepared to ask questions. Here’s the link to the form.

Symptoms

I’m feeling pretty good today. Definitely more chipper! I mean, it is Friday after all. I’ve still been getting pretty tired, but it helps that I’ve been in bed by around 9 or 9:30 every night this week. I think my husband – a true sleep lover – is enjoying that side effect. Yesterday he said to me, “If there is a positive to you feeling kind of crappy… not that I’m glad that you don’t feel well or anything… but if there was a positive, it’d be that we’re getting to bed so early.” We’re the type that spends most of our non-working, waking hours together and goes to bed at the same time. So, I guess he’s right! It does feel nice to get a good night’s rest.

We also worked out again last night. I was a bit sluggish during the workout, but all-in-all, it felt good! I’m going to go again tonight to ensure at least 3 workouts this week. Gotta make sure I’m staying healthy. Which reminds me, I’m not sure if it’s possible that I’m showing already or if I’m just absurdly bloated, but either way, my tum is sticking out more than normal. My clothes still fit, although that tum of mine seems to be hanging over or out of some outfits a touch. Also, my scale shows that I’ve gained 2 pounds. I refuse to accept that just yet. Every day I feel totally inflated, so maybe I’ll wait until I’m 12 weeks to accept my “first trimester gain” amount.

Until then, I’m going to continue to eat healthy and workout!