11 Weeks

Baby's now the size of a lime!

Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through it. But fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds, and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future. Her hands will soon open and close into fists and some of her bones are beginning to harden. She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

How far along? 11 weeks 3 days
Pregnancy Symptoms: I get aggravated, irritated, and in a bad mood very easily now. (If you've been on my warpath i'm very sorry! It's Peanut's fault) I'm almost done with the first trimester and have made it through with practically no morning sickness! I would do a happy dance but i'll probably fall asleep in the process of standing up...i'm really that worn out all the time.
Sleep: For some reason i'm just exhausted and tired *all* the time, even when i get more than enough sleep. Those pregnancy books that say I should be more energetic now *LIE*
Best moment this week: going to Born Again Blessings and All 4 Kids and getting some awesome deals on baby gear! (A special thanks to Ally for showing me the pros and cons of certain equipment...i had NO clue)
Worst moment this week: Monday when i got up at 6:30am to get to jury duty first so i could be first pick and get it over with....only to find out it doesn't work that way, i was on Panel 6, and we were there until almost 6pm. I came home and passed out
Movement: My exercise routine is almost nonexistent...my tummy is getting a workout from the carrot cake i just ate though
Food cravings: lots of dairy...i'm drinking a ton more milk than i used to
Gender: seriously, everybody thinks Peanut is a girl! Either she has a very strong personality already or y'all are really jinking him! (A repeat ring-on-a-string test still shows girl)
What I miss: my phone not ringing. A collections company is calling sometimes 10+ times a day for someone who is NOT us. I've told them this many times and to stop calling but they don't...
What I am looking forward to: a quick checkup on Tuesday and then out for Grandmom's 79th birthday!
In Other News:
1) My cat is terrified of laundry baskets. I guess she thought it was her cat carrier (it does look somewhat similar) because she ran as fast as she could to hide under the bed and wouldn't come out for anything.
2) Dala clearly believes she is Queen of the household. She gets whatever she wants and she knows it. I'm worried she'll be jealous if Peanut is a girl so i was thinking about naming the baby Padme.
3) Born Again Blessings was awesome! Ally, Jake and I went to the preview event tonight and i got a playmat, a 6-speed swing, a jumparoo, a bouncer, a bathtub and a couple of books for $82.42! Ally bought a baby tent that she can put Lucas in and zip him up so that he can't get out. I used to looove my little red and blue tent though so maybe he won't mind.

10 Weeks

Baby's now the size of a prune! 

With bones and cartilage starting to form and vital organs beginning to function, baby is making major progress. Body length will almost double in the next three weeks, and arm joints are now working. (Soon, legs will start working too.) Baby's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

How far along? 10 weeks 4 days
Pregnancy Symptoms: more of the same, plus i'm having some crazy mood swings. I can't stop eating! It's making me fat :(
Sleep: The extreme fatigue has kicked in with a vengeance. I'm just completely exhausted all the time and can't stay up very late anymore.
Best moment this week: my ultrasound! It was amazing being able to see little arms and legs and to hear the heartbeat loud and clear!
Worst moment this week: realizing i'm "working" 7 days straight (jury duty all week and working all weekend)
Movement: Jake and i went for our first walk around the neighborhood since the cold weather hit last November....it felt great even though i'm *completely* out of shape, but i came home and fell asleep in the floor because i was too tired to make it to the bed
Food cravings: everything...it's something new every day
Gender: take the poll at the top of the page! Post your guess in the comments section also so we'll know who was right and who was wrong :P
What I miss: having the energy to do things
What I am looking forward to: the end of next week when i'll be done with hell week
In Other News:
1) I'm addicted to the fetal doppler, it's an awesome tool
2) Grandmom is officially 2 years cancer-free!
3) We've decided to do the NT scan at 12 weeks because insurance covers it and it'll be the last time i get to see Peanut for a couple months. The NT scan is done by a specialist and is a special ultrasound that measures the skin fold and fluid at the back of the baby's neck and compares it with some bloodwork from me. This provides an assesment of whether Peanut is at high risk for chromosal problems such as Down Syndrome or heart problems. Since they won't be able to test for neural tube defects this early they'll do another round of bloodwork/ultrasound around 18 weeks. I'm a little nervous because the way they interpret the results is based on the exact age of the baby....they know exactly what size the neck measurements should be for every day of the 12th week of pregnancy. Since i still disagree with how far along Peanut is, this could mean a false positive result. It's not a diagnosis, just a risk assesment so I'll worry about that later...i get to see Peanut again soon!

9w6d Ultrasound

Here's Peanut's ultrasound! You can hear the heartbeat around the 1:50 mark, it's 162bpm!

9 Weeks

Baby's now the size of a green olive!

Your little embryo has now officially graduated to fetus-hood. Adding to the excitement, a Doppler ultrasound device might be able to pick up the beating heart. With basic physical structures in place and increasingly distinct facial features, baby is kind of starting to look like...well...a baby! Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones.

How far along? 9 weeks 1 day
Pregnancy Symptoms: boobs are still sore, i'm feeling the nausea a little more (i almost had to walk out of the pharmacy yesterday when some idiot sprayed axe body spray), i'm always always hungry and always tired....and my new favorite is acne worse than when i was a teenager
Sleep: I go to bed earlier and get up earlier, but i'm still waking up 3+ times a night
Best moment this week: the Bachelor gals got to hear the heartbeat too!
Worst moment this week: discovering pregnancy doesn't actually get me out of jury duty
Movement: i did Wii Fit twice this week and my legs *hurt*
Food cravings: cereal and fruit, neither of which i ate much before
Gender: the majority of people seem to be guessing it's a girl, maybe i'll set up a poll and we can take bets
What I miss: not feeling fat, lazy, and sick
What I am looking forward to: ultrasound on Monday, i get to record it on DVD!!
My best kept secret this week: i used to loooove snow, but now i find myself wishing it wouldn't because it always happens when i'm working and will have to drive home on icy roads....this makes me feel old :(

8 Weeks

Baby's now the size of a raspberry!

Baby is growing like mad, putting on about a millimeter every day and continuing to straighten out in the trunk. Though you can't feel it yet, baby is moving those little arms, legs, and (now only slightly) webbed fingers and toes like crazy.

How far along? 8 weeks 3 days
Pregnancy Symptoms: sore boobs, exhaustion, stuffy nose, extreme thirst, occasional heartburn and nausea, ravenous hunger, sore feet, tire easily.... and so glad i'm not throwing up!
Sleep: If i have to get up in the morning then i pretty much never get enough rest, so on my days off i nap a bunch
Best moment this week: hearing Peanut's heartbeat for the very first time!
Worst moment this week: finding out i can't eat or do *anything*. The nurse gave me a long list of restrictions. Jake is on a ski trip on 2 feet of fresh powder and i can't go :(
Movement: as little as possible, i really need to get going on the Wii Fit again
Food cravings: the opposite, certain things make me cringe at the thought
Gender: it's a fast heartbeat....does that mean girl or boy?
What I miss: sleep and being able to do and eat whatever i want
What I am looking forward to: ultrasound on the 15th
My best kept secret this week: I know who wins the Bachelor! (what? not *everything* is about Peanut)

We Heard Peanut's Heartbeat!!!

Even though the doctor didn't hear a heartbeat with his fancy doppler on Thursday, i'm nothing if not persistent. I decided to check again today. Dr. Webb had shown me whereabouts to listen and i also now know that ocean sounds are really Peanut sounds. Still, i searched for half an hour and didn't hear any baby beats, just my own. I was about to give up for the day and made one last pass.....and i heard Peanut! It was the most amazing sound!! I screamed for Jake to come listen but by the time he got there i had lost it. I had only heard it for maybe 5 seconds, so i didn't think i'd be able to find it again. Yet less than a minute later i found it again!! We were able to listen to it for several minutes and we both counted the beats and timed it. By our estimates the heartbeat is 160-175! (My doppler has a screen that tells you how many beats per minute but it wasn't loud enough for it to register it correctly) I'm so so happy. Now that i've heard the heartbeat and it's nice and strong i'm not so freaked out by my lack of symptoms. No morning sickness is ok by me!

P.S. I just discovered how to set up my blog to send an email whenever i create a new entry. If you're interested in getting an email every time i post, just let me know what email address to send it to! You can email me at wildkittn3@aol.com

First OB Appointment

Today was my first OB appointment with the new doctor. It was (hopefully) the longest appointment i'll have...i was there almost 2 hours! They asked me all kinds of questions about us and our family medical history and things. Then i had to pee in a cup. I'm not really sure why, but i'm sure they had their reasons. That part was easy since i have to pee all the time anyway.

Next they ushered me into an exam room. This is the part where i get to wear a paper gown like it's in style. Jake said it looked like i was wearing a roll of paper towels. Unlike my GYN's office, at least this gown reached my knees so i wasn't walking around mooning everyone. They told Jake he could just stay in the room with me, which was slightly awkward, but he was sitting by my head so he didn't get to see any of the good stuff. The doctor did a quick exam and said everything looked good and that my uterus is properly enlarged. So that's my new excuse for why i've got a pudgy belly already...it's my uterus' fault. (I need to save the Peanut excuse for later.) Anyway, he decided to try the fetal doppler even though he said it'd really be a miracle if we heard anything this early. It looked almost identical to mine! It was definitely a little more powerful, i could hear the ocean a lot clearer. Dr. Webb said that the ocean i keep hearing is actually the baby moving. So we didn't hear a heartbeat but he said he heard baby-moving sounds, and that's something at least.

After the exam i got to put on real clothes again and we went to the doctor's office to talk. I wasn't exactly forthright in describing the ultrasound i had at my GYN's office. I told him we didn't hear a heartbeat, but i might have left off the part where we *saw* it beginning to flicker. So he scheduled me for an ultrasound on February 15th! With this one they should be able to take Peanut's measurements and determine exactly how far along i am and when my due date is. PLUS i'll finally get to hear a heartbeat! Jake and i were going to go out of town for Valentine's day but i guess we'll just have to come home late Sunday night or something.

When we finished talking to Dr. Webb he sent me for blood work. I suspect there might be vampires on his staff because they took about half my blood. They're testing my blood type, Rh type, complete blood count, to make sure i don't have HIV, HepB, or syphilis, and to make sure i'm immune to Rubella. I should get these results Monday or Tuesday. I wish i had asked them to go ahead and check my HepB immunity. I'm at-risk to get it because my Grandmom has it and we didn't know about it for awhile and therefore weren't being extra careful about cuts and stuff, but i did get the vaccine before starting pharmacy school so hopefully i have immunity anyway. I think the only HepB test they're doing in this batch is just whether or not i'm infected.

I received a lot of pamphlets and information. I discovered i'm not allowed to eat deli meat, and i had to get my steak *well* done when we went out for Jenn's birthday dinner. It also says i'm not allowed to have "mexican-style" cheese, but i had Amanda call the mexican restaurant and confirm that the cheese they use is pasteurized. Whew! That would have been bad news if i couldn't have mexican for 9 months. I really like the new doctor's office so far. Everyone was very nice and helpful. I liked Dr. Webb a lot but since this is a group practice i'll be rotating between the four doctors on staff so i won't get to see him every time.