11w5d - NT Scan complete

Not much to update today, but I do have some new photos to share. :)

Baby was quite active at the beginning of the scan, but then decided to take a nap when it was time for the most important measurement. We tried a few tricks, but baby wasn't budging and wouldn't get into position for the neck measurement. We gave baby about 15 minutes and a small bottle of cold water to try to wake them. It worked in that baby woke up, but it was still a challenge to get that little stinker into position.

By measurement, baby was actually measuring a couple of days ahead this time. 12wks exactly. Heart rate was just about the same as last time at 168. It was really cool to see the 4 working chambers of the heart and also the brain.

Seeing baby again today was the reassurance I needed before we start telling everyone later this week. Based on u/s, everything looks good. The u/s tech said she can't say normal or abnormal. Ultimately, we'll know more when the blood work comes back. Speaking of blood work, since when did a finger prick hurt so bad? Ouch! Actually, it was more of a finger slice than a finger prick.

Anyways, as promised, new pics! Look at the 2nd one, it looks like baby could be sucking its thumb.

11w4d - Thanksgiving week

It's almost here! Thanksgiving and our big reveal. While plans have not gone exactly as we had hoped, both families will be here (individually) this week so we can tell them in-person. It was looking like both families would be here for pre-Thanksgiving dinner on Wednesday, but that just isn't going to work out. At least we'll be able to tell both sets of parents in-person within 24 hours of each other. That still beats a phone call any day!

I'm getting really excited for our appointment this week. Can't wait to see how much baby has changed in the last 3.5 weeks. It's going to be a busy week, but I'll try to get on to post updates after our appointment. But for now...

What's happening with baby: Week 11 LimeYour fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through. 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.

10w4d

It's been another quiet week with little to report. I'm still feeling really good. I think I've felt some of those stretching pains in the last few days I also often feel something when I'm in bed switching positions. We went and worked out for a while yesterday. First time in I don't know how long! I did 30 minutes on the treadmill keeping my heart rate under 120.

We have family photos on Saturday and our next appointment is next week already, so I have those things to look forward to this week. Hopefully this week goes by fast!

We're down to 10 days before the big reveal. Our Thanksgiving Day plans haven't completely come together yet, so that's a bit of a stress point. How are we gonna do this? We are ready to host dinner if everything falls into place. I even 'won' a 14.6 lb turkey at a meat/turkey raffle on Saturday!

What's happening with baby: Week 10 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 too.)

9w - 1st day in maternity pants

And boy is my belly happy. My poor stomach has been getting so sore when I sit for a while and after meals. Yesterday I went out and got a couple pairs of jeans that actually fit and are super comfy. My belly is so much happier today.

Us IVF'ers have so much bloat to start with from all the stim meds that the belly just sort of keeps expanding instead of a natural conception without any of the drugs where you might actually lose a little bloat before the belly actually starts to pop.

It's been an uneventful week. I'm still feeling like a million bucks..beside the belly issue that has now been resolved. Still getting tired in the afternoons, still no nausea or morning sickness to speak of.

This is our little secret for 3 more weeks. The big reveal will be on Thanksgiving, and honestly, at the rate I'm going, the belly will reveal itself without us having to say anything.

What's going on with baby this week: Week 9 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!

8w1d - Peace of Mind

It's only been 9 days since we first saw the baby, but already today we could see how much it's grown in just over a week. The spine was so clearly visible this time, and the baby kept moving around. Moving and twisting around so much, already giving the tech a hard time in getting measurements. I think it might have even waved. ;) Baby has grown from 8mm to 1.4cm (give or take, different machine, different tech). We didn't get to hear the heartbeat, but we got to see that wonderful flicker again. She mapped it on the ultrasound at 168 bpm.


Hopefully this will help ease my mind until we have our next appointment. Somehow having little to no symptoms is really messing with my mind. I should just be glad that I feel as good as I do and hope it lasts for as long as possible.

And now for the weekly update: Week 8: Raspberry
Your 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.

1st OB Appointment

7w6d - Yesterday was my first OB appointment.

Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed. They specifically got me in sooner rather than later given my history of losses. Had I not seen the heartbeat the week before, I would have been really frustrated. They didn't do an ultrasound. Heck, this office doesn't even have an ultrasound machine on the premises. You have to go to one of several different offices when you have ultrasound appointments.

I know I was released from the RE, and he said I'd basically be treated like a regular pregnant person from there on out, but don't most regular pregnant people get to see their baby at the first appointment?

It was just all the basic stuff. I had to give blood, 3 vials worth. My poor arms still haven't returned to normal after all the blood draws during the IVF cycle that the poor girl had a hard time getting a good bleed. There was also a urine test, and the regular Pap and full exam.

We talked a bit about the different screenings they recommend. The NT or Nuchal translucency screening will be the first one we do. That's scheduled between 11-14 weeks, so I have about a month before that will take place.

Before I left, I did get scheduled for an ultrasound. It'll be tomorrow afternoon. Now I'm not sure what I want to do about clinics. How important is it to have ultrasound on site? Most of the important ultrasound appointments are going to be booked ahead of time. Do I stay at the convenient close to home location or make a permanent switch to one of the offices with the ultrasound machine? I guess this is something I need to think about a little more.

Tomorrow afternoon can't get here soon enough. I just want another peek at the baby and to see the flickering heartbeat again.

7w1d - 1st OB appointment scheduled

Not a whole lot to update since our appointment just 2 days ago. Yesterday I called and made my first OB appointment. Our RE thought they'd probably want to see me around 10 weeks, but since I have a history of loss, I'm getting in next week!

Having never had an OB/GYN before, I picked a clinic super close to home, but didn't really have a specific doctor in mind. When the receptionist was telling me which doctors had openings next week, it just worked out that it was the one that I kind of "wanted" to see. Her areas of interest are Infertility and High Risk. Not that I consider myself to be high risk (yet), but I am 35 now, and do have those losses under my belt. I don't know, maybe I'm hoping she sort of "gets it" when it comes to being pregnant after infertility. I'm also kind of excited because apparently the 1st appointment is usually just with a nurse practitioner, and I get to see the doctor right away.

Here's what's going on with baby. Week 7: Blueberry

Baby's brain -- both hemispheres! -- is growing fast, generating about 100 new cells every minute. Arms and legs are emerging as joints start to form, and a permanent set of kidneys (baby's third!) is now in place.