Nuchal Translucency (BUN test)

Today I had the test for Downs Syndrome. I was very anxious prior to the test though confident that everything would be fine. Everything was in my favour, especially age.

The baby was not as active as the other week, though it was in the best position for the test.

First the babys nose is checked to see if there is sufficient bone the whole way down. Babys who have Downs only have a dot of bone at the end of their nose. In the first picture you can see that there is a white line down the whole length of the nose which is the bone.

The second test which is performed is a measurement is taken at the back of the neck to measure the nuchal fold. This should be less than 3.0mm. Anything between 3.0mm and 3.5mm is to be of concern. Our babys was measuring at 1.2mm, or perfect as the U/S technician said!

The babys heartbeat today was 156 bpm. I was meant to be 12 weeks and 3 days, though the baby was measuring slightly larger at 12 weeks and 6 days.

We got some great shots of the baby head on. There has been so much development in just the past 9 days with the bones. In the first picture the knuckles can be clearly seen on the raised hand. The U/S technician was able to show us the full spine with the vertebrae forming, clearer pictures of the legs and arms, and more bones of the skull.

Eventually the baby started moving more (I think we woke it up!) and like last week, it started spinning around - last picture.

Late night scare

On Friday March 19th, whilst at home, I suddenly noticed some bleeding. Even though its now such a habit for me to check each time I go to the bathroom, it was still a huge shock.

I phoned the on-call doctor who told me if it got a lot worse or became bright red, then I had to go straight to the ER. If there was no change by the morning, I had to come in to the doctors office and have an ultrasound done just to verify things were ok.

By the time I had gone to bed, everything was fine and I also checked in the middle of the night.

By the morning, I was having mild cramps and some back pain. We went to the doctors office at around 11am, both very nervous.

Everything was perfect. The doctor said it is probably still the placenta forming and it is just bursting a few blood vessels during the formation. The placenta, amniotic sack, amniotic fluid, and baby all looked perfect.

The baby was measuring at 4.3cm (11weeks and 1 day). We heard the heartbeat at 162bpm.

This baby was ACTIVE. It was kicking its little legs and waving its little arms and was constantly turning around. It was never still!! I dread to think how much sleep I am going to get in the last part of my pregnancy!

The first picture shows the baby waving its arms and legs around.
The second picture shows the baby laying belly first with its butt in the air!!
The third picture shows the top half of the baby front on, with its little alien looking head.
The fourth picture shows the baby giving the royal wave!!

9 Weeks

March 11th was my first scan at the OB clinic. It was nerve racking as I was so anxious to see what the baby now looked like. The last time we had seen it was when I was 6 weeks, 3 days.

The new Dr was very friendly. I thought it was going to be a little odd having a male OB, but he was so kind and was one of the best doctors around; we wanted the best for our baby.

He started by doing a few routine checks and asking a few questions, and then tried to find the baby's heartbeat using the Doppler Machine, though not able to detect any HB, jut static. He said not to worry as finding it using the small machine at such as early stage is rare, and also the baby is still very low.

We went into the Ultrasound room, where he did an U/S, and bingo! One perfect heartbeat. The baby's arms and legs were just starting to form, they were just tiny little buds. It all looked so different from just 3 weeks ago. The baby was measuring at 9 weeks 6 days.

Unfortunately I was unable to get a picture as it was so quick!

Not too keen on this Morning Sickness!

I started to feel sick very early on, around about 5 weeks, though things definitely got worse around 6 1/2 weeks.

Luckily I have not really been sick that often, though permanently feel like I have just stepped off a roller coaster!

There are definitely certain foods which make me feel nauseous more than others. Bananas and crackers have become my best friends, however any kind of Italian tomato oily rich sauce is enough to turn my stomach; the smell, the thought, anything! So long are my little pasta and sauce lunches I was taking to work - Josh is fed up with eating them!

Its all becoming reality

To start with it was all a little surreal and felt like a dream. This test could have been anyones. The following week, February 5th, I booked an appointment at the doctors office to have it all confirmed there, and of course it came back positive!!

The nurse presented me with a huge list of food which I can no longer eat/drink: Sushi, shrimps/prawns, lots of cheeses, soft centre eggs, canned tuna, caffinated drinks and of course wine!

My next appointment was booked for Feb 13th for a scan. The scan didn't show as much as we had hoped as I was about 5 days off the doctors estimation, so we had to come back for another.

My second scan was scheduled for Feb 22nd. This one was alot better. The baby was measuring just less than 7 weeks, and had a heartbeat of 150bpm. We could see the little tail that would eventually disappear and we saw the heart flickering. The best part of the whole examination was actually hearing the heartbeat. It even made me shed a tear. Finally I felt pregnant.

Result!!

January 30th 2010 was a great day. Finally a positive test! I did it really early in the morning. Unfortunately Josh had stayed downtown that night as he had a big project on at work, so I was alone, but of course I called him straight away!

It was a scary realisation, that something we had wanted for so long was finally coming true.

As this was a digital test, the result only stayed on the little screen for 24 hrs, so the following day I took a different type of test, one that I could keep, even though it is a little gross!

The preparation

Middle of January - The preparations were sad; end of a sushi era!! I certainly made the most of my last sushi meal.

I am certainly going to miss this more than the wine!