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16 weeks and 6 days
With Jake, it took ages. Until weeks 22, if I recall correctly. This time, I've started feeling the little one's movements at 16 and a half weeks. I only feel it when I'm lying flat on my back and if feels like a poke here and there, as well as a side-to-side sweeping motion.
Last night, at 16 weeks and 5 days pregnant, I lay on my back and watched my tummy slightly jump and move. I love it! It is such an amazing feeling to be growing a new life.
I have another appointment with my midwife tomorrow. With Ruth off school for the summer, we've enlisted her help with Jake so that Stephen can join me. He has yet to hear our baby's heartbeat for himself and I'd so love for him to be involved. I'll write more about that visit tomorrow afternoon.
In unrelated news, my Mum, stepfather, sister and sister's boyfriend just stopped by for a few minutes. They were on their way back from a Canada Day wedding in Toronto and decided to stop in for a quick cuddle from Jake. When I went outside to wave them off, a bird pooped on my foot!
Oh well, I hear that it's considered good luck.
17 weeks
I saw my midwife, V, today at 1:45. Stephen was able to come with me this time, while Ruth stayed home and watched Jake. This time, at 17 weeks pregnant, finding the heartbeat was no problem. We listened to it thump away at 150 beats a minute. I even recorded the sound with my handheld computer.
I told V how I'd been feeling the baby move for about a week now and about how long it had taken me to feel Jake move. She suggested that perhaps the difference had to do with the position of the placenta. It's possible, she said, that with Jake, the placenta was against the front of my belly, making it harder to feel his movements. Likewise, for this pregnancy, it's possible that the placenta is placed more toward my back or toward the top of the uterus. Seems like a good enough explanation to me! Also, of course, I recognize what I'm feeling this time as I've felt it all before.
V said that I should get the call any day now to book my ultrasound scan, which is VERY exciting. I'm dying to know the gender of this little one. I wasn't at first; instead, I wanted the surprise at birth. "It's a...!" Now, I realize that I'm just not that patient. And Stephen wants to know anyway. We can't have one of us knowing without the other!
Here's the recording of the heartbeat (46kb):
http://media.putfile.com/Babys-Heart---060703
Speak of the devil...
The day after my midwife told me to expect the call about the ultrasound appointment "any day now", I get the call. I'm booked in at the local hospital on July 17th. I'll be exactly 19 weeks by then, so telling us the baby's gender should be easier by that stage.
So roll on July 17th! I'm excited!!
That's about 12 days away... Too long to wait!
Scans and Worries
We went for our first ultrasound scan this morning. It was scheduled for 8am, so I was up and drinking glass after glass of apple juice from about 6:30. They want a full bladder for the scan and my midwife suggested fruit juice as it gives the baby a sugar kick, making him or her more active.
And Baby sure was active. Loads of squirming around, kicking and waving limbs. It was amazing to see, once again, and like with Jake, I found it to be very emotional.
So the guy doing the scan, who I assume was a radiologist or sonographer or whatever, spent a good 15 or 20 minutes looking at Baby and taking measurements. Thigh bone, heart, head, etc, then tells us that he has to go and show the ultrasound pictures to the radiologist and then he'll be back.
"What?" I said. "Is something wrong??"
"I can't discuss that with you. The radiologist will come and see you."
And he disappeared.
Stephen stood while I just lay there with jelly all over my tummy and we waited. And worried. How strange. Something must be wrong! If the Big Guy has to come and talk to us, something must be wrong.
Abour 10 minutes later, the guy returns and tells us that the radiologist is busy with a patient and that I can go empty my bladder if I'm uncomfortable. That wasn't my immediate concern so Stephen and I explained to the guy that we were worried by his hasty exit and that we'd like an explanation.
"It's standard procedure," he said. "We show the pictures to the radiologist and get his approval before we send you on your way."
Well, explaining that about 15 minutes ago would have saved us a lot of worry!!!
Finally, the radiologist saw the images. The outcome is that Baby was in a difficult position and that he had a hard time measuring everything he needed to measure. We have another appointment on July 24th, one week from today, to get the missing measurements. Everything that he could see, he was satisfied with. So we'll assume that all is well for now.
But what an agonizing 10 minutes!!
The other outcome was that he's pretty sure we're having a girl. Yipee! That will be verified in a week's time at the second scan.
Here's Baby Girl:
Lookit me!
19 weeks and 4 days...
Scan #2 / 20 weeks
