13 Weeks

Today was one of the most amazing days in my life. We had an appointment with the midwives this morning and I went in not really knowing what to expect. At our last appointment we had talked about doing some of the early genetic testing but nothing was set in stone...which was driving me crazy! The appointment was a peek into what future appointments were going to be...very quick and painless. They checked my weight (down 6 lbs from 5 weeks ago), felt my tummy to check uterus growth, asked how everything was going and if I had any questions. And then we got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. As soon I heard that wonderful, rapid beating I burst into tears. It was such a relief and the most amazing sound I have EVER heard. Makes me tear up just thinking about it. That made it real for me...

And then my day got even better! The midwife said I would have to go to the perinatal department in the hospital for the 1st trimester screening and luckily they were able to squeeze me in an hour later. The test consisted of a blood draw (luckily I'm starting to get used to this part) and an ultrasound. The test primarily checks for Downs syndrome but also other chromosomal abnormalities (for more info feel free to check out this link http://www.americanpregnancy.org/prenataltesting/firstscreen.html ). I am trying to remain positive about the outcome of the tests. I don't want to stress myself out worrying about 'what ifs', I'll cross that bridge if I need too.

I will have the results of my blood work back in 5 days. During the u/s, they measure the back of the baby's neck to determine the amount of fluid present. I'm not a doctor so I'm not going to get too technical explaining why. But the doctor said that everything in the u/s looked good so we are hoping for a good results in the blood work too. I'll keep you updated.

The baby was in a bad position for the test and apparently also sleeping. They did a external and an internal sonogram to get a better view and after some poking to my belly Baby V finally woke up and started to move. In the last u/s, the baby was just a little bean but this time around was a different story. Baby V looked a little alien (as you can see from the u/s pictures) but we could see eyes and a tiny nose and chin in the profile. We saw little feet, the heart beating, and the baby was waving it's hands around....seeing it move it's arms was the most incredible thing I have ever experienced.

So I went out on a limb and asked if they could maybe determine the baby's sex. It is still early but I have read that it is possible for them to tell just not with 100% certainty. And the woman doing the u/s said it shouldn't be a problem!!! So after a few seconds...it's a...BOY!!! I asked how sure of the that she was and she said 90%. She made the comment that generally girls are a little swollen down there but they are never THAT swollen and she would be "very surprised if it was not a boy." I'm going to hold off going crazy buying blue until our 20 week appointment (October 19th) when the sex can be seen more clearly BUT it felt amazing to get this bit of information today. Justin and I were both hoping for a boy (I have just always felt that it was going to be a boy) and a lot of our family members were predicting and/or hoping for a girl. Sorry to disappoint but I'm THRILLED!!! What an awesome experience I am going to have...with my son.

Today has been such an emotional day and I am exhausted. Getting to hear HIS heartbeat, seeing him move his beautiful little hands, and finding out that my intuition of it being a him (with 90% accuracy ;)) has made this a very, very memorable day. As I said before, today's excitement made it real for me. I am looking forward to the weeks, months, and years of watching my blond haired, blue eyed, kind hearted little boy grow up (I'm guessing on the blond hair and blue eyes but J and my dad were toe heads so I'm thinking there is a good chance Baby V will be too.)



In the above picture, Baby V's body is on the left and head on the right (he's looking to the left) with his hands up by his head.



This photo is the same straight on picture as shown above...yes he totally looks like an alien but he is all ours :)



And in this one, his back is towards us but you can see his hand and tiny fingers at the top of the photo.

Sorry to go on and on but I want to have the memories of this day. Now on to your weekly update...

Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.



(Is it just me or does the shrimp seem smaller than last weeks lime??? We go back to fruit next week ;))

Love you all!

Lindsey