Hello all :) We are getting super close to the end now! Only a couple of weeks to go! I really don't know if mister RCA is going to wait that long, but we will see. At our appointment last Thursday, we got to see our little guy and found out that he is getting pretty big! He was already 7 lbs 10 oz! His head was measuring about a week bigger than his gestational age, and his feet were already 2.95 inches long! That's why I've been receiving some pretty power blows to the rib cage :) He was poised head-down and ready for whenever God has him planned to make his grand entrance!
Average babies around this week weigh about 6.8 pounds and are over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). Ryder now has a firm grasp, which we'll soon be able to test when we hold his hand for the first time! His organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.
I hadn't really thought about it much until my mom asked me what I thought his eye color might be. We may not be able to tell right away. If he's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If he's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time he's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises may gain more pigment in the months after he's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. I can't wait to see what kind of a little person he turns into :)
At our sono he actually let us see his face a little bit and his cheeks are so chubby! I can't wait until I can give them great big kisses. He kept making a face where he would purse and push out his lips and kind of scrunch his forehead. Already making little faces :) This might be my last post until he's here, but we shall see! I have an appointment on the 22nd to see if I'm dilating any more.
This week, on average, most babies now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Ryder was just under that about 3 weeks ago, so I wonder how much he weighs now. We will get to have another sonogram after 37 weeks and see if he's turned head-down and how big he is. His fat layers — which will help regulate his body temperature once he's born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. His central nervous system is maturing and his lungs are continuing to mature as well. The need to worry about preterm labor has pretty much diminished; babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.
As for me, I've still got a decent amount of energy, but these hot days are kind of getting to me during car rides and things like that. Russell always used to freeze me out every where we were, but now I'm the one freezing him out. I never thought I'd live to see that day! My bladder is also taking a major beating lately. I think Ryder is starting to drop and use it as a punching bag. Not too much longer to go!
I'm really excited about our baby shower coming up next week! My mom is coming up with so many cute ideas for it :) Can't wait!
The biggest news of this week is that we had our 3D/4D sonogram! It was so neat to see Ryder in 3D :) He was hiding his face for most of it, but the ultrasound tech was awesomely diligent about trying to get Ryder to move his arms out of the way so we could get a face shot. Here are some of the better pictures that we got:
You can see where he was holding onto his feet in a breech jack-knife sort of position. He really didn't want to move out of that position at all...little stinker. I'm still so excited that we got to see his little face, even if it was only for a few seconds. He even gave us a little smile once :)
The doctor told us that he is measuring about a week ahead of "average" and was over 4 lbs. He's also on target for a growth spurt here pretty soon, so I hope he doesn't get toooooo big! Of course, I hope he grows according to God's plan for him and comes out nice and healthy and strong. I can definitely tell that he is getting bigger, because I can see my whole belly shift around when he moves. It's not the occasional jump or flick of motion anymore. He's really getting big! Also as of this week, Ryder can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin.
Here is what little man might look like right about now:
I cannot believe there are only TEN WEEKS LEFT (give or take) until Ryder is here! It seems crazy to think that 30 whole weeks ago we found out that we were about to go on this incredible journey to parenthood :)
We've made some progress on the nursery. All of the tan walls are painted and Heather has made some good progress on the "wood" wall. Here are a couple pictures of what it is starting to look like:
Also this week, I scheduled classes up at the hospital where I'll be delivering (Medical Center of Arlington) for our child birth prep, breastfeeding and infant safety info. Those will all be coming up the first week of August. I've started getting more and more Braxton Hicks contractions, but my doctor told me they are nothing to worry about unless they are about 5 minutes apart for one to two hours straight. They aren't really painful, but more like pressure. Everything in my belly gets really hard and I just feel pressure all over and on my lungs. Not the most fun thing to ever experience, but not as bad as I thought they'd be.
If he is growing at an average pace, Ryder is now about 15.7 inches long now, and he weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds him, but that volume will decrease as he gets bigger and takes up more room in my uterus. His eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after he's born, he'll keep his eyes closed for a good part of the day. When he does open them, he'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means he can only make out objects a few inches from his face (Normal adult vision is 20/20).
I am sooo excited that I finally scheduled a 3D/4D sonogram for next Friday! We will finally get to see what our little guy looks like (if he cooperates). I can't wait a whole week for that! But I guess I'll have to :)
Here is a picture of what Ryder might look like now:
A TON has happened since I posted last. We found out the sex of little Tiddle finally!
Last time I left you, we were getting ready to meet our little one in Hi-Def and finally find out if Tiddle is a boy or a girl. Tuesday morning, April 12, bright and early we made our way up to Arlington Perinatal Associates (which is in the same hospital where I'll be delivering) for our appointment. We anxiously waited to be called in and then were brought into a large room with a huge flatscreen on the wall where we would get to see the ultrasound. The technician came in got me all ready to go. It was weird, because they put that jelly stuff on your belly which is normally freezing, but she said, "Okay, now this might be kind of warm." Haha and it was! That was refreshing :)
She placed the wand thing on my stomach and immediately found the little face and head. She showed us the brain and all of the different chambers, then moved to the face where we saw some amazing views of the eyes and nose (the baby TOTALLY has by nose by the way), then down to a view of an arm that was held up and kind of cradling the head. She then moved down to the chest and the beating heart, pumping away. She zoomed in on the heart beat and we could heart it pulsing along at about 150bpm. Then the tech showed us the back and all of the little ribs and spine that are now in place. It is so surreal to see all of that when last time we had an ultrasound all we could see was a little blob on the screen. Then it was down to the tummy where we saw a black spot that, the tech explained, is full of fluid that the baby has began to swallow and process thru its body. Then she moved down and crossed over the bottom area. She didn't stop there for long, but Russell and I both caught a glimpse of what we knew were little boy parts! Russell sqeezed my hand with excitement, but the tech kept going down the rest of the body to the legs and feet. This baby has exact replicas of Russell's feet :) The tech had a hard time keeping the camera on them because they were so wiggly. She finally got a shot of them where we could see little toes and then they went back to wiggling.
She moved back around again and stopped between the legs. Sure enough, what we thought we saw was there. Plain as day. Little boy parts!! She asked us if we wanted to guess at what it was, and we both laughed and said together, "boy!" She then proceeded to show us more of the body and turned on a view of the body where we could see the blood flowing from the umbilical cord thru the baby's body. That was so crazy. And it made me think how incredible it is that my blood is flowing thru me, then thru this little life growing inside of me.
Here is the video that we got from the doctor. There was no sound on it, so I kind of gave commentary throughout the whole thing:
After all of that, the doctor came in and told us that our little boy looked great and had no signs of any diseases or anything like that. He said that the heart was beating just fine and he looked healthy as could be :)
Here are a few pictures that the ultrasound tech took for us:
The one of the face from straight on is kind of creepy looking! haha. I love this little guy so much already and I can't wait to meet him!
So a few days after the ultrasound we hit the 20 week point. At our appointment, he weighed in at 11 ounces. The tech didn't tell us how long he was, but the average length right about now is around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.)
He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).
As for how I'm developing, at the 20 week mark I'm officially half way! My uterus is about at the top of my belly button and I've gained around 10 lbs.
Here's about what the baby looks like at this week:
Hello all :) I have been really busy and just plain pooped the past couple of weeks, so I've been kind of behind on my posting, but I finally have some time to catch up!
As of the 18th week (April 1), Tiddle was about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and weighed almost 7 ounces. At that time, he/she was busy flexing its arms and legs — movements that I'm pretty sure I've started to notice more and more. I have felt little flutters here and there, but I'm not totally sure if that's the baby moving or not. His/her blood vessels are visible through thin skin, and the ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from its head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around the nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he/she's born. If we're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If we're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from us during an ultrasound. I sure hope the little one isn't shy when we go in for our ultrasound!
Our appointment to see the doctor and find out what we are having is THIS TUESDAY! I am soooo excited I can hardly stand it :) In a couple of days, Tiddle will have a real name hehe. The first appointment (when we will have our ultrasound) is going to be at 7:45 am in Arlington at the hospital where I'll be delivering, then it's over to the Mansfield office for a follow up with my doctor at 1:15 pm. They said that we can bring a DVD and they'll put the whole sono on it for us, I can't wait!
As of yesterday, I was 19 weeks along and can tell I've grown significantly since last week. If you look at the difference in my belly pics from last week to this week (below), you can definitely tell. About this time, our baby's sensory development is exploding! His/Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that he/she may be able to hear my voice now, so I might turn into one of those crazy pregnant ladies you see talking to her belly :) Tiddle now weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. His/Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of the body now. The kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on the scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on its skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.
In the past week I've also realized that I'm hungry WAY more often than I normally have been. I still haven't had any weird cravings I guess, other than when I had to leave work yesterday to go satisfy my need for a lunchable! haha. And for all of you moms out there, gotta love that round ligament pain. There are ligaments that stretch to support the growing weight of the uterus, and they sometimes cause shooting pain in my stomach when I move really sharply. The other day I was lying in bed and Russell made me laugh at something, which made my stomach instantly hurt due to the jabbing pain, which caused a loud "OUCH!" from me, which made me laugh harder, which confused Russell, which made me laugh EVEN harder! It was definitely funny, but I was glad when I finally quit laughing and hurting haha. So here are my pics for this week. The first two are what the baby is looking like over the past couple of weeks (you can tell it's getting cramped in there):
Week 18:
Week 19: And here are my latest belly pics. Starting to really grow now!
This past Friday I hit the 4 month mark. Only 5 more to go! I'm pleased to announce that we finally have our appointment set to find out if Tiddle is a boy or a girl! I've got the sonogram at 7:45 am on April 12 in Arlington, then it's over to Mansfield at 1:15 pm for an appointment with my OB. Can't wait!
Here is the latest as of week 16:
It's time to get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, Tiddle baby will double his/her weight and add inches to his/her length. Right now, he/she's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. The legs are much more developed, its head is more erect than it has been, and the eyes have moved closer to the front of its head. His/her ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of its scalp has begun, though its locks aren't recognizable yet. Tiddle's little toes have even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, the heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as our baby continues to develop.
I was looking at the image below (what the baby looks like right about now) and it's crazy to think that is's a teenie tiny little human being with all of the working parts! And it's inside of my body right now! So unbelievable and amazing :) Hold your hand out flat and (depending on your hand's size) imagine a little bitty human laying in it. It's kind of a lot to take in! And here is one of me getting pudgy :)
It's amazing to believe that I'm just a few short weeks shy of being half-way through my pregnancy! It is really flying by fast now that I'm feeling better. As of today, I'm 15 weeks 3 days and it feels great to be a couple weeks into my second trimester! Last Friday and Saturday I switched to a different sample of prenatal vitamin that I got from the doctor, and they caused some pretty crazy dreams. I know that around this time, dreams are a normal side-effect of pregnancy, but it was only on the nights that I took the new vitamin that I experienced some pretty violent dreams. I switched back to my normal (but crazy expensive) vitamin Sunday night and voila! No more crazy dreams!
I had a doctor appointment back on the 8th and everything was great :). We got to hear Tiddle's heart beating away in the 140s where it should be. He/she didn't want to cooperate tho and kept running away from the heartbeat monitor. Once the nurse got him/her to calm down we got to hear the little thump for an exciting few seconds. I really want to go get one of those heart rate monitors so that I can listen in whenever I want! Our next appointment with the doctor isn't for about a month, and shortly after we will have our gender-identification ultrasound! Eeee! I can't wait!
Here's where we are at with the developments of week 15:
Our growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). He/She's busy moving amniotic fluid through its nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in the lungs begin to develop. Legs are growing longer than the arms now, and it can move all of its joints and limbs. Although the eyelids are still fused shut, our little bean can sense light. If I were to shine a flashlight at my tummy, for instance, it's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for Tiddle to taste at this point, but he/she is forming taste buds. Finally, if we were to have our ultrasound this week, we may be able to find out whether Tiddle is a boy or a girl. Although I'm super anxious/excited to find out, I'm glad we will be waiting just a little longer to give it a little more development time to make sure we get the sex right. Hopefully he or she isn't modestly curled up or turned in such a way as to "hide the goods" :)
Here's a picture of what the baby might look like at around this time:
And here's what I look like at around this time (super flattering outfit, I know):
I know I'm behind, but here is what you would have heard from me a couple weeks ago if I were on top of things :)
Week 14's big developments: Our baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his/her thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, facial muscles are getting a workout as its tiny features form one expression after another. Its kidneys are producing urine, which he/she releases into the amniotic fluid around itself — a process it'll keep up until birth (As Amanda pointed out to me, "Your baby is peeing in you!" haha. Indeed). It can grasp, too, and if we were to have an ultrasound now, we may even catch Tiddle sucking its thumb. Our next sono won't be for a while tho.
In other news, the little one is stretching out. At week 14 from head to bottom, it measured 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighed 1 1/2 ounces. Tiddle's body is growing faster than its head (no more alien baby!), which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of the 14th week, arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of the body. (The legs still have some lengthening to do.) It's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over its body. Our baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and the spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though I can't feel any tiny punches and kicks yet, our little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.
Only about a week until I am allowed to get that wonderful massage Russell got me for my birthday, can't wait!!
Hi everyone! I'm super excited to post again on my blog! You know what that means...Russell and I are going to have another baby!
We actually found out on Christmas eve that I was pregnant, but wanted to keep it to ourselves and our parents until things made it a little further along this go-round. So far so good though! I've had four doctor appointments, two of which were just blood work, and two sonograms. Everything looks really good now; my blood pregnancy levels and hormones are all increasing like they should, and we got to see our little baby for the first time this past Thursday!
It was so cool to be able to look up at the monitor and see that little blob growing inside of me and to see its tiny heart beating away. The nurse was able to put this little computer tool thing around the heart and it started playing the heart beat so we could hear it. It was beating at about 140 bpm, so crazy to see and hear!
My mom was there with us too, and the nurse printed us out some pictures of the baby saying "Hi Mom", "Hi Dad" and "Hi Grandma" hehe :) I've posted some pictures below of what we've got so far.
As of my appointment on Thursday the 20th, my due date is between August 27th and September 2. That puts me at a little over 8 weeks now, and I'm feeling all of the symptoms that go along with it this time. I haven't really had a day where I've felt top-notch in about 3 weeks, but that's okay. I'm just thankful to be experiencing it all this time.
While I was waiting for the week to pass until my next blood work, we hit a little bump in the road. I had a miscarriage last Saturday the 20th. We were at the Supercross at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington (way cool facility by the way) when I started to get really really bad cramps. They were so bad that I couldn't hold back the tears anymore. They went away after a while, and shortly after I realized that something might be really wrong. The paramedics at the Stadium suggested that I get to the hospital to get checked out because they were pretty sure I had experienced a miscarriage.
On the way out of the stadium we went down thru this special elevator and saw Ralph Sheheen and Jeff Emig (the announcers for the Supercross when it's on TV, usually SPEED). Jeff Emig was also a Supercross champion in the 90's, so that was pretty neat to see. Anyway, they got me out of there quick, and after making an interesting drive out to a nearby gas station in the snow in a golf cart (that's as far as they could take us to get to the car which was parked about a half mile away), we were off to the hospital (by the way, Randy and Russell were awesome for getting out in the snow and getting the car super quick to get back to the gas station to get Patti and me).
So at the hospital, they did some blood work, a couple of different exams, and two sonograms to see if there was anything to see. There was nothing to see on the sonograms anymore, and the blood work came back with my levels being back down around 400 again. They pretty much confirmed the miscarriage and told me to stay on bed rest until I could get to my normal doctor. I went in and they did another pregnancy test to see if I had anymore hormones to detect anything. It came back negative, so my body pretty much took care of everything itself.
I was super down about everything at first, but I've had time to accept it. We know that everything happens for a reason, and God has a plan for us. Personally, I've come to believe that He gave me a second chance to get into shape before I get pregnant again (I definitely needed the motivation hehe). Any who, although we weren't really trying for babies at first, we definitely want to now. We can start trying in a couple of months, and can't wait for more good news! :)
Thanks for reading along, and hopefully it won't be too long before the next update.
My nurse called me with my second blood work results and said that my blood pregnancy level had not gone up like it should have. It was only at 750 and should have been well above 3,000 if things were going up as planned. Since they weren't, she wanted me to come in for a sonogram so that they could look and see what was going on. They were thinking that it could be an ectopic pregnancy (not inside my uterus/inside one of my fallopian tubes), which would be very bad news. The baby cannot survive under those circumstances and if it ruptures, it can kill me.
I went to my sonogram at 3:30 yesterday afternoon and first, they tried out the normal sonogram where they put the little probe thing on my stomach to try and see the baby. They couldn't find anything on top, so they had to do an internal sono to try and see it. There, they saw the little sack, but could not see anything developing in it yet. My nurse previously told me that we wouldn't be able to see any baby on the sono until my blood levels were over 2,000. The good news is that the sono tech saw the sack inside my uterus, and not inside one of my tubes. So yay for that! :)
They told me that they'd like for me to get more blood work in a week to see where my levels are as of then and we will go from there. They told me to stay positive, and that I just may be really early in my pregnancy still. If you catch your pregnancy too early, sometimes you are kind of in limbo and waiting on all of this information. I still feel great and am not experiencing any bad symptoms, so everything should be fine.
Keep us in your prayers and I'll update again soon!
My nurse called today and told me that she got my blood work back from my last appointment on the 11th. She told me that my blood pregnancy level was only at 486, which means I could be earlier in my pregnancy than they thought. It could also mean early signs of a miscarriage, but she said that if I'm not experiencing any other symptoms of that nature, that I should be fine and not to worry. I feel great for the most part, except for a few stomach aches here and there, so I'm not going to worry about it. Going to stay positive!
I made another appointment for this Wednesday morning to redo my blood work to see where my blood pregnancy level is after that. It needs to be over 2,000 in order to see anything on a sonogram, which I have scheduled for next Tuesday. The nurse told me that the number is supposed to double every 48 hours in a perfectly normal situation, but our bodies don't always do exactly what they are supposed to do. If mine is doing exactly what it's supposed to, by Wednesday it should be well over the 2,000 mark and I should be on schedule for my sono. I hope so because I already think I have to wait too long to get one :)
I'm 26, happily married to my high school sweetheart, Russell. Our 3rd anniversary is coming up on April 25th. First and foremost, I am a mommy of one sweet little boy and have another on the way. I am also a systems analyst and webmaster for Networking Results, Inc in Arlington, TX.
And here are my latest belly pics. Starting to really grow now!
And here is one of me getting pudgy :)
