21w4d--ob appt

will update soon

21w3d--spotting

I began having some spotting tonight. Didn't make a big deal out of it since tomorrow is my appointment with OB. It was mostly brownish but only when I wiped with TP. Hopefully it will go away. This always scares me! I didn't tell DH anything. We checked HB with doppler and everything was fine. HB was 144 bpm.

21w2d--Daddy Felt First Kick

It was amazing! I was lying down on the bed and felt the baby kicking continously. I called DH to come and feel and put his hand over the area where I felt her and for the first time he felt her kick. I didn't know if he would feel her yet, but he did! He was so excited.

Belly bump: 20w3d

Okay, I woke up this morning and found a little belly bump. Out of the blue, it's not much, but with the blouse I was wearing you could really see it.

We are going on Saturday to pick up her crib. I am so excited and can't wait to start getting her room ready. I think it's about time to buy her a little something. I have held off and bought absolutely nothing. Maybe just one little cutsie thing!

baby movements confirmed: 20w0d

I came home from work today and lied down to talk to the baby. It was so amazing. She seemed to respond to my voice and I could feel her moving around. It was the best experience.

20w0d

Your baby:
Your baby weighs about 10.5 ounces (300g) and measures about 7.2 inches (18cm) from crown to rump. He still moves about freely in amniotic fluid.
Your baby may respond to external sounds, such as the music you are listening to or your voice.
Your baby has developed some red blood cells already. The white blood cells that your baby needs to fight infections are being manufactured.
He is developing taste buds on his tongue.
His digestive system is sufficiently advanced to absorb water and sugar from the amniotic fluid that he swallows and pass it to his large bowel.
Your baby has lanugo hair on his forehead and upper lip and his eyebrows are thickening.
Vernix (the waxy substance that covers and protects your baby's skin) accumulates on your baby's eyebrows.
Your baby's eyes are still sealed shut.
Your baby continues to grow and develop and his kicking is getting stronger now.

Your body:
In the next ten weeks your weight gain will increase more rapidly as your baby grows and develops layers of fat. This is when you will gain about half of your total pregnancy weight.
You need to eat about 500 more calories per day now to support you and your baby. You will probably notice an increase in appetite during this time to keep pace with your increased needs and metabolism.
Try to avoid unhealthy snacks and try to choose snacks with the most nutritional value for you and your baby. You may experience uncommon cravings. A pregnancy condition known as pica, causes some women crave eating things that are not even edible (such as soil).
Your skin may itch. This is because it has stretched to accommodate your growing abdomen.
The top of your uterus has risen further and is now parallel with your belly button, probably making your belly button flat.
Your lower legs may be swelling somewhat, though this is improved when you are able to stay off your feet for part of the day.
You may experience heartburn or indigestion. Many antacid tablets are safe to take during pregnancy, but check with your doctor or pharmacist first.

Quickening: 19w6d

I do believe what I am feeling is the baby moving. Again I felt her move. I was lying down after we came back from my parent's house and it was the same feeling as on Friday.

Quickening: 19w4d

I do believe I have begun to feel the baby move. It was like gas bubbles but they were weird. They moved across my abdomen a little and then stopped. I felt them a couple of time, but not sure if it was from just having had dinner.

OB Appointment: 19w2d

Everything is looking good except for one little thing: OB says I have a gap between my amniotic sac and the uterus. She said it's nothing of concern and she will just keep an eye on it to see what happens. It could possibly disappear. Worst case: baby would not grow appropriately, but as of today she is at perfect size.

After measuring her head, stomach and femur bone lenght, she is weighing at 10 ounces and 19w5d. Just a couple of days ahead of schedule. Length is not measured anymore. Her heartrate it perfect at 132 bpm and she looks beautiful. She put on a show for us today. She turned and twisted, kicked and waved, crossed her legs and even moved and opened her mouth.

I should begin to be feeling her move around now at about 20-21 weeks. Not sure what it feels like. Nurse said it's like gas/bubbles and that I will know when it happens more often.

My blood pressure was at 110/70 and I gained one whole pound bringing me to a total of 5 pounds gained. My belly measured 22 cm, which is right on schedule. Strangely, my cervix is now measuring 3.2 cm (after cerclage). OB says this can happen.

I asked the following questions today:

1. I've been told lifting up and/or stretching could cause the umbilical cord to wrap around the baby. Is this true? OB says it's nothing but a wive's tale. I do recal, though, that my acupuncturist would always tell me the same thing. I guess it's better safe than sorry.
2. Should I continue to take Zantac daily? Yes, continue it (150mg qd) as it will help my acid reflux, which is killing me, allowing me to eat a wider variety of foods without nausea.
3. I haven't gained much weight. Is that okay? The baby is measuring on schedule so it is not a problem. I should now begin to gain about 1 pound per week.
4. We applied for life insurance and my blood work came back with high cholesterol. Should I be concerned? No, all pregnant women have some type of high cholesterol.
5. When I sneeze or cough my lower abdomen hurts. Is this normal? Yes, as my uterus is stretching.
6. I want to begin walking. Is it okay to walk about 2 miles per day? Yes, just make sure I don't over do it and that I keep hydrated especially with the warm weather coming.
7. I am concerned about the baby having hydrocephalus. I know there is a 1 in 2000 chance at week 19 for them to develop this. Should I be worried? No, baby's head measurement is perfect.
8. Should I begin to take extra calcium for the upcoming leg cramps and for the baby's well being? Yes, I can take 500-600 mg every day. Just make sure I take it at a different time than my other vitamins and prenatals.

My next appointment is in two weeks to check on separation of sac from uterus. Praying everything will be just fine.

19w0d

Your baby:
Your baby weighs about 9 ounces (260g) and measures about 5.6 to 6.4 inches (14 to 16cm) from crown to rump.
Her skin is thickening and developing multiple layers- the epidermis and the dermis, the deeper layer where it will form fat. Your baby is now also developing a waxy protective coating for her skin called vernix caseosa. The vernix protects your baby's skin which is continuously submersed in amniotic fluid. Vernix, which is particularly thick around the eyebrows is held in place by tiny downy hairs called lanugo.
Your baby can now grip with her fists. Toenails and scalp hair are growing.
At this point, it may be possible to determine the baby's sex by ultrasound, if the baby cooperates, but the ultrasound technician will rarely guarantee the sex based on the ultrasound results as mistakes are sometimes made at an early ultrasound.
You can hear the baby's heartbeat with a Doppler ultrasound device or a stethoscope.

Your body:

Congratulations! You are now halfway through your pregnancy!
You may have a strong sense of well-being. You should be able to feel your baby moving in your uterus several times in a day.
Your bellybutton may become flat or may even actually pop outwards. It will probably continue to darken also, but will return to its usual pigmentation after birth. The top of your uterus (the fundus) is just below your navel.
As your uterus expands, you can expect it to put increased pressure on your lungs, kidneys and stomach. This increased pressure can result in breathlessness when you exert yourself physically. It may also cause indigestion and the need to urinate more often. Your expanding belly may also cause stretch marks on your belly. The stretch marks will probably fade considerably after your baby's birth and even more as time passes.
You may continue to have mood swings and anxiety, but this may begin to decrease. If you have been experiencing absentmindedness, it may continue.

18w0d

Your Baby:
Your baby measures about 5.2 to 6 inches (13-15cm) from crown to rump and weighs about 7 ounces (200g).
The buds for the permanent teeth are forming behind those that have already developed for the first teeth.
Your baby's nervous system and brain development continue at a spectacular pace. By this week, your baby's motor neurons, which connect muscle to the brain, have grown into place so that your baby can consciously direct her movements. Millions of neurons inside your baby's brain are growing and forming connections and the nerves in her body are being covered in a fatty substance called myelin.
Your baby's ears are now placed on the sides of her head and her limbs are now in proportion. Your baby's tiny foot is just one inch long, but is in perfect proportion to the rest of her leg.
Your baby can hear your voice and recognize it.

Your Body:
You have probably gained between 8 and 14 pounds by now, though your own experience may be different.
You may continue to feel fatigued and dizzy at times and you may continue to have a backache and round ligament pain.
People are probably beginning to comment on your pregnancy as it becomes more obvious.
You may have felt movement, or "quickening" as it is sometimes called at this point. You have probably heard your baby's heartbeat by now with an ultrasound device and you may have even seen your baby's heart beating on an ultrasound. Feeling, hearing and seeing your baby in your body can be an important bonding time for you and your baby as you begin to feel the reality that you are carrying a new tiny person inside of you. You may already be feeling strong maternal attachment to your baby. You may enjoy talking to your baby (who can hear and recognize your voice and may even be stimulated by it) and encouraging your partner to do the same (if he is comfortable with doing so) as a way of connecting with him.

17w6d--Was that the baby?

It was a really weird feeling that I had today. I kept feeling a sharp pain under my left rib cage. It happened several time throughout the day, but it was not consistent. DM said it was possibly the baby moving and that when she was preggo she felt a pain under her left rib where the baby was getting her. I will be looking for this to happen again, otherwise, I'm guessing, it was just air or something.

17w5d

Today was my follow up appointment with OB after cerclage. She checked baby's h/b and everything seemed to be perfect. I gained 1/2 a pound since my last visit for a total of 4 pounds. I told her I've been having some difficulty eating since when I take a bite of anything I feel nauseous and don't eat it. If it's the only thing I have, I just don't eat. She told me to take Zantac 150 mg every day because it probably has to do with the indigestion and/or heartburn and my stomach needs something to coat it and make it easier for me to eat.

She said she didn't want to go in and check the cervix in order to minimize the risk of infection to it. Since I have had no sign or bleeding or spotting, then it looks like everything is moving along just fine. Otherwise, I will return in 2 weeks at which point she will check my cervix and double check the baby to confirm the sex.

Other than that, she said everything is looking great! I will not have to do the progesterone shots at this point since my cervix was shortened due to cone biopsy and not dilated at time of cerclage.