16 weeks 6 days...where did the time go?

I have no idea where all the time has gone, but I woke up one day and realized that I was 16 weeks! I guess I am so busy trying to survive morning sickness as well as work a 50-60 hour week that I just don't realize how much time has passed.

I had my 16 week appointment last Wednesday. I did the usual pee in the cup, step on the scale, and blood pressure taken. All was good. The doctor found the baby's heartbeat...it was in the 140s. All is looking good.

I asked about hubby's blood work. About a month before, he went and got his blood drawn so that it could be typed. Since I am B negative, we need to know what his blood type is to determine if I need to get a shot at 24 weeks and at the birth. Apparently, the lab did the WRONG blood test, so he has to go and get the blood work done again! (Needless to say, he is none to pleased at the prospect, but he'll do whatever he has to for me and the baby.) Apparently the lab checked his red and white blood cell count instead of actually typing his blood.

Additionally, hubby has gone off the Hcg shots (with the permission of his doctor.) He is going through MAJOR withdrawal symptoms right now including dizziness, migraines, and irritability. You can tell he just feels like poop. I truly wish that there was something I could do to make him feel better. (Although he says the same to me when I am puking in the mornings.) The doctor is having him go for blood draws 1x month for the next few months to see what his body does on its own. And if (and when) hubby begins to feel tired again, then he is to call and the doctor will put him on a low dose of androgel to help him maintain a healthy testosterone level. Hopefully hubby will be through the worst of it soon. As he says, it was worth it to be on that medication because now we're having a baby!

I am still experiencing morning sickness although it is not every day anymore. Sometimes I wonder if I am going to have morning sickness through the whole pregnancy (like my grandmother.) Even if I do, it will be totally worth it if this baby comes out healthy. This morning was pretty rough. I will spare you the details, but it involved lots of vomit and a nose bleed.

It's starting to be uncomfortable when I sleep now. I wake up multiple times a night to switch positions. My arms and legs sometimes feel a bit restless as well. Sleeping on my tummy and back aren't really an option anymore...it hurts too much. I just sleep on my side now.

I had a lot of cramping yesterday, but it seemed to go away. I read that the baby is hitting a growth spurt right now...I think all the cramping was everything growing to make some room for the baby! I read that this coming week the baby will be 5 inches long and weight 5 ozs (the same as a turnip.) It is so hard to believe that our little speck has turned into a 5 inch long baby!

I cannot wait until our next ultrasound. I have it at 20 weeks exactly (June 8th.) Hubby is able to come with me to this one. I cannot wait to see how big the baby is now and what the baby is capable of doing (ie sucking its thumb, making facial gestures, etc.)I love watching the baby move! I also just need the reassurance that the baby is growing well in there. This morning sickness has made it hard to eat anything all that healthy. I try to when I can, but on the days when I am really sick, I am just happy to get anything down at all. Even though I am almost 17 weeks, my weight is still only up 3 lbs. I know its okay and that I will gain it through the rest of the second and third trimesters but I still worry that the baby isn't getting everything it needs.

We're still on Team Green, so we don't plan on finding out the sex at the 20 week ultrasound (much to the dismay of our family and friends). We're just hoping that the baby isn't an exhibitionist. We don't want to accidentally find out. In my purely evil mind, I have thought about sending out an email after our ultrasound with the subject of "We're having a..." with the text continuing on to say "a healthy baby!" with a picture or two from the ultrasound. I know a couple people who would be so excited when they see that subject...it's evil I know, but sometimes it is fun to just mess with people!

NT Scan & a busy weekend

Last week I had my NT scan. It was great to see our little one again. The baby was kicking its little legs all over the place. We even watched it turn. We saw a nose, hands and feet! I am so in love with this little one. Everyone keeps telling me they are sorry that I am so sick. Quite frankly the throwing up/nausea just don't bother me. I am so happy to be carrying this little one. I can deal with anything if it means that this baby will come out healthy!

This weekend was quite busy. My brother and future sister-in-law were in for wedding meetings (flowers, etc.) I had (or at least attempted to eat) dinner with my brother on Friday night. Saturday I went clothes shopping with my mother-in-law as my birthday gift. Saturday night I worked from 4 until 11:30. Sunday I got up, had breakfast with my brother and future sister-in-law and then threw the bridal shower for my future SIL! Everything turned out great for the shower, but after this weekend, I am exhausted.

On top of that, my grandfather is quite ill. They are doing surgery this afternoon for a bowel obstruction. I am praying that all goes well.

Pomp and Circumstance

Treasure these few words till we're together
Keep all my love forever
P.S. I love you
You, you, you

We had our last appointment with Dr. Castelbaum's office on Monday. It was bitter sweet. The nurses and doctors there are SO nice...I am going to miss them. The good thing is that the baby is doing great. We didn't get great photos this week, but the baby is looking MUCH bigger...you can actually see arms and legs and feet! The heart rate was 173.9 so we still have a nice strong heart beat. Hubby and I brought brownies to the nurses as a goodbye gift. They all told me that they want to see pictures of the baby...so we'll have to send a birth announcement to them! So, I have officially graduated...break out the cap and gown! I am now just a regular ob patient...in fact my first ob appointment is late next week.

The baby also went to its first concert on Saturday night. He or she got to attend the Fab Faux concert (via my belly of course!) I was feeling under the weather, but we had wonderful seats (only 4 rows back from the stage) and the Fab Faux sounded wonderful as usual. My dad got tickets for the next show. I told him I might not be able to go...it's only 10 days before my due date, but he said they can always ask someone else to go with them if the baby makes an early arrival or I am not feeling up to it.

In other news, we have begun to clean a few things out of the baby's room. I want to continue the quest, but morning sickness is getting a little worse right now so I am on hold again. It's driving me crazy though...I really want to get things cleaned out so that we can start thinking about what crib/dresser to buy, etc. I know its crazy as I am not that far along, but I just can't help it. I also need to give the house a good cleaning, but that is going to have to wait until the vomiting stops.

I am still having morning sickness. It's just a part of my daily routine at this point. I know when I get up in the morning I have to pee and to vomit. It doesn't phase me too much. I am so grateful to have this baby in my body, that I will gladly suffer through the morning sickness. Hopefully in a few weeks it will ease up a bit.

7 weeks 3 days

Yeah, yeah, I've got a feeling, yeah.
All these years I've been wandering around,
Wondering how come nobody told me
All that I was looking for was somebody
Who looked like you.

We had another lovely appointment with Dr. C! Once again they drew blood and then we got to take a look at the little one. This time the baby is 1/2" long (double the size of last week) and the heartbeat is 166 beats per minute. As the doctor said, "it looks like a thick string bean." It feels so good to see the baby once a week. I don't know what I am going to do when I finally have to give up my weekly ultrasound. I think I will be going into withdrawal. Right now it feels like I have that window into my uterus that I wanted from the time we started trying to conceive.

The doctor told me that everything is looking good and he really has no concerns at how the baby is progressing. I think hubby and I both let out a sigh of relief. We are going to see him a few more times and then he is going to send us on the way. In fact, I have an appointment to see Dr. S (the ob/gyn) on April 8th per Dr. C's orders.

The last week has been a tough one physically. The zofran is helping the nausea. I have been nauseous since this kid was conceived, but I started throwing up a few times a day starting 2 weeks ago. Now with the zofran I only heave about once a day (before I get the zofran down or when it wears off). Unfortunately, the side effect from the zofran is constipation. I'm working on that issue! I am taking stool softeners, trying to eat more fiber, etc. I am tired, so I have just been going to be at 8pm. Honestly, none of it is anything I can't handle or wouldn't do if it means I get to have a healthy child! I am so grateful to God for answering our prayers.

Love you all the time...

Love you every day, girl [or boy]
Always on my mind
One thing I can say, girl [or boy]
Love you all the time

Hold me, love me
Hold me, love me
I ain't got nothing but love, girl [or boy]
Eight days a week

After 6 sunny days in Florida we are back. We had a wonderful time hanging out with Mickey and Minnie at Disney World. I can honestly say that I enjoyed myself despite morning sickness and my ride restrictions. If there is one thing I can say about the Disney parks, it is that they have TONS of rides for the pregnant woman!

Now we are back in cold PA, but we are still all aglow from the ultrasound appointment we had this morning. This morning we finally got to see Doctor Castelbaum again. It's the first time we've seen him since our initial appointment with him. He was SO excited that we not only are expecting, but also that we did it on our own! As he said "we beat the odds!" He gave me a big congratulatory hug! We of course teased him that if we knew all we had to do was walk through his door we would have done it sooner!

I got my blood drawn (Progesterone = 13 and HCG = 34,449) and then stepped into the ultrasound room. The doctor found the baby and right away, I could see a flickering. Yup, that's right...we saw a heartbeat! It was fantastic! The doctor said that our little blob is measuring perfectly. The heart rate was 133 beats per minute which he said was a good strong heartbeat. Hubby and I were both overjoyed with the news!

The doctor gave me a script for zofran (to help my morning sickness out!) He told us that he wants to keep us for a few more weeks for weekly ultrasound appointments and then he will release me to the care of Dr. S (my regular ob/gyn).

Oh, yeah...morning sickness. It has DEFINITELY increased over the last week. I am now throwing up daily. Last night I dry heaved/threw up about 3 or 4 times. The doctor told me it's a good sign that the pregnancy is going well and gave me a script for the zofran to help relieve the nausea!

Our new friend "spot"

I had another appointment this morning. It was for a blood work and my first ultrasound. Unfortunately, I had to move my original appointment to a later time so hubby couldn't come, but my mom came with me and seemed very happy to be able to see her grandchild. My hcg levels came back at a healthy 4810. My progesterone level is still 12.7, but they said it is okay since I am on progesterone.

The best part was the ultrasound. Although we can't really see anything other than a black spot, it is proof that there IS a baby in there! The doctor measured the baby and it seems to be right on track for its age. She also told me that the baby came from my right ovary. My mom thought it was so cool that the doctor could tell that. So, apparently, there IS something in that uterus of mine!!! Hopefully, it will keep on growing!I brought home "baby's first picture" for my hubby to see.

I go back on Friday March 4 for another ultrasound. We'll hopefully see a heartbeat then!