Another Day, Another Doctor

I had a checkup today with Dr. Graham (my regular OB/GYN, who will deliver the baby). I had to give about 8 vials of blood for different tests. No ultrasound today, but I did get to hear the heartbeat again (166 today!).
I'll go back to Dr. Graham in 3 1/2 weeks (on the 26th). It gets a little exhausting keeping up with all the appointments--I'll be glad when I'm down to seeing just one doctor, although all the extra ultrasounds have been great!

Growing Right Along!

We had a checkup today with Dr. Gomez, and everything looks great! Wigglerina is measuring at 13 weeks, 2 days (I'm 13 weeks, 3 days, but they said the measurements are never exact). The heartbeat is about 153, which is right where it should be. And the name still fits...there was lots of wiggling around, curling up and stretching.

We asked Dr. Gomez if it was too early to tell if it's a boy or a girl, and he said he could take a guess, but we couldn't go buy anything! So he took another look and said if he had to guess, he'd say it's a girl. I know we can't get excited yet, but it's a little too late! My next appointment with Dr. Gomez is in 4 weeks, which also happens to be the day after my birthday--he said we'll be able to tell then with more certainty.

So the bottom picture here is a profile--hopefully you can make out the head and face. You can't see much in the top one except for a little hand, waving at everybody! We thought that was really cool. There are 10 other pictures they gave us, but some are very hard to distinguish, so I picked out the best two.

Week 13: What's Happening

Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head -- which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce. As you start your second trimester, most of your baby's critical development will be completed!

First Belly Pic

I'm not in maternity clothes yet, but I can't deny the fact that all of my pants are tighter, so I decided to take the first belly pic. I'm 12 1/2 weeks along here.

The most wonderful invention I've discovered is called the Bella Band (http://www.ingridandisabel.com/). It lets me keep wearing my regular clothes, but smooths out the lines so I don't have to button my pants, which is fabulous.

Week 12: What's Happening

The most dramatic development this week: reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder.Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over 2 inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce.

Week 11: What's Happening

Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, 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.

Looks Like a Puppy!

Just a few days after Wigglerina was named, we had an appointment with Dr. Gomez from Atlanta Perinatal Consultants (http://www.apc.med.pro/), a high risk doctor we were referred to from RBA. I had another ultrasound, and when I sent the pictures out, Julie told me the baby looked like a puppy! If it turns out as sweet as the two we already have, I'll be fine with that.

Wigglerina's First Closeup

It was after this ultrasound that we started the nickname Wigglerina--the baby was kicking and moving around so much and actually looked like a little person! It was the first time we saw arms and legs, which was pretty amazing.

Week 10: What's Happening

Though only a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature. He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy. Tiny nails are forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair is beginning to grow on tender skin. In other developments: your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.