Our Stubborn Baby... Just Like Daddy!

I went a week or so prior to have the blood work done for my nuchal translucency in advance.  This allowed us to get the results on the spot! This was the optional test to find out our risk factor for Down Syndrome and other chromosomal defects. We thought of it as another excuse to see the baby instead of a reason to worry. 

I worked that morning and had a meeting run late, so I was rushing to get to the metro. All would have been fine, but I missed my changeover and that delayed me an extra 10 minutes. Doug called and let them know we were running late and picked me up at the metro. Then the parking garage was completely full which delayed us another 5-10 minutes. Although our regular OB does have an ultrasound machine in her office, she sends her patients to the facility that specializes in the advanced tests for things like a nuchal. So, we finally arrived and waited to be called back.  We talked to 2 other couples in the waiting room much further along in their pregnancy than us.  They both talked about how bad their babies kick them.  One of the girls had bruised ribs for several weeks because the baby kept kicking the same spot.  Yea... I'm a wimp, that definitely scared me!  I can't wait to feel the baby moving, so I guess all wonderful things have their consequences!

We got called back and right away our baby was on the screen! The first shots were mostly of the baby's bottom.  It's really early to try and identify gender at this point, so although we were looking in that area, we could barely tell what we were even looking at.  We tried to persuade the tech to take a guess with no success.  The tech then switched to the profile of the baby, and we were stunned by how much the baby had grown in just a few weeks (as shown in the picture above)!  So many people told us that we would be surprised at the growth and we read about the baby's growth all the time. Plus, we even looked at ultrasound pictures for 12 weeks online and STILL we were astonished when our child appeared on the screen so much bigger than a few weeks ago!

Our baby was curled up napping during the whole ultrasound.  The baby would kick or move its hand to its face now and again.  At one point it bounced around out of nowhere and Doug jumped :)  I'm not sure if I was more thrilled to see the baby or see Doug's reaction.  Doug was beyond thrilled.  The level of his excitement kind of caught be by surprise.  I don't know why, it just did.  At one point he put his hand on my belly on the other side from where the tech was so he wouldn't be in the way.  He told me later he just felt compelled to reach out and try to touch the baby!

The tech needed the baby to wake up from its little nap and turn just a bit, but he/she was being very stubborn, just like their daddy (Doug would probably say just like their mommy).  So, as some of you already know, you're supposed to have a full bladder for the ultrasound.  In order to try and get baby to move she was rapidly thumping the ultrasound wand into my belly saying, "Wake up baby".  Over and over and over again!  Turns out baby is a heavy sleeper like its mommy and daddy too :)  At one point the baby got annoyed with her shaking things around and turned away as if to say, "Leave me alone!" and then rolled over!  I guess we're lucky the baby was being a sleepyhead, because I think the ultrasound took a lot longer than it should have, because it took so long for her to get the pictures she needed for the test!

Given that I'm such a big worrier, you would've thought I would have been a wreck about this test for weeks, but I really just thought of it as another ultrasound... right up until the moment they called us back for the results.  The lady introduced herself as a genetic counselor and right away my mind started to race... wait a second, the tech said we would get our results from the DOCTOR, why do we need a genetic counselor?  I don't know if she saw my expression or if she is just very good at her job because she VERY quickly got us into her office and before the door could close all the way she did not make us wait a second longer to say the nuchal results were fantastic and we got the best results you can get from this test.  The test is not 100%, but our risk is now 1 in 10,000 - which is the best you're going to get unless you do a more invasive test.  So as Doug put it... our baby got its first A+ :)

I miss the baby when I don't see it for awhile.  I don't feel anything yet, so I get a little sad from one ultrasound to the next.  Our next ultrasound is October 3rd, so hopefully these 3 weeks fly right by so I can see my baby.  Then we'll have another ultrasound a few days later on October 7th to hopefully find out if it's a girl or a boy!  Early October will be filled with excitement!  I can't wait!