NT Scan & First Trimester Screening

So on 2/14/2012, we went to UNC Chapel Hill Women's Center at Rex Hospital and had our NT (Nuchal Translucency) Scan and our First Trimester Screening done.  This test screens for a few Trisomy diseases as well as Down Syndrome.  The measure the pocket of fluid on the back of the baby's neck and if it's under a certain measurement then you are considered less at risk to have a baby with one of those genetic diseases then if the measurement is higher.  After about 30 minutes of watching our little one, the doctor said that we are under the measurement and he doesn't expect any problems.  Of course, they will now run my blood work and put that together with the measurement that was taken and verify, but he said things looked really good so we aren't expecting any problems!

We did get to see our little one for a long time though! Baby was flipping all around, dancing, squirming everywhere.  It was really cool to see! Baby had the left arm up constantly at his/her face..... I'm pretty sure there was some thumb sucking going on there! I sure hope not, that's a terrible habit to start when you aren't even born yet lol! Jason was very excited to see the little one moving all around in there too! He said it is so much more real now that we've seen what actually looks like a baby in there. The last picture we saw looked like a little gummy bear or peanut as Jason says so seeing a video of the baby - that looks like a baby - was awesome! We also got to see/hear the heartbeat.  It was at 151 bpm which the tech said was pretty perfect! So basically - everything is perfect for the little one right now :)

Now for a little more updates on Baby Holland since today we are 13 WEEKS & GROWING :) !!

• First of all.... it's the last week of the 1st Trimester and I made it out with NO morning sickness! Woohoo! Thank you Baby Holland for not making me sick!
• Secondly.... we are 1/3 of the pregnancy down!! And the hardest one at that! So yay! Only 2/3 more to go!

About Baby Holland:

• ...Has vocal cords now and I'm sure we will wish differently once baby is here ;) Also has fingerprints now and teeth!!
• Baby is about 3 inches long (book says 2.9in. but our tech at the NT scan said 3 inches!) and weighs about .81 ounces.  Annnnd baby's head is now only 1/3 the size of the body, it used to be 1/2 head and 1/2 body!! Improvements! :)
• Baby's tummy is making room for all of his/her intestines too, right now most of them are still in the umbilical cord :)

About Mommy:

• Increased blood flow.... you don't say?! Yesterday at the First Trimester Screening, they did the finger poke thing where they take blood.  The nurse said, before sticking me in the finger, "the worst part will be me having to squeeze your finger hard to get the blood to come out..." Um what really happened was she poked my finger and before she even had time to get the cotton, there was blood everywhere.... so 'increased blood flow' is an understatement!
• Ever growing belly, every time i put a pair of pants of that i wore last week... they don't fit!! Annoying!! Oh well... an excuse for shopping right!? I can't wait until warmer weather when i can wear the cute little spring/summer dresses!! I'm glad the majority of my pregnancy will be in warmer weather, that way i don't have to wear constricting pants all the time!! (hint hint.. motherhood & pea in the pod are my fav stores :) just saying... lol!!)

Baby Holland sucking his/her thumb :)

Baby Holland's little nose, mouth, and chin!

Side face view

Baby Holland's side view of face :)

Baby Holland all stretched out!

Laying down with hand up!

12 Weeks Down, 28 Weeks To Go!

OB Appointment #2 - February 6, 2012

Baby Holland and I had our 2nd doctors appointment yesterday! All went really well.  This was more of a doctor's visit for Mommy and not really Baby, but we went over my blood work, I had a physical, and we talked about my headaches/back pain.  We also.... let me re-phrase that, the Doctor also got to hear Baby Holland's heartbeat :)  They used the Doppler so that I could hear it to, but the baby was positioned close to the center over the spine, and apparently if the baby is sitting there, its very difficult to hear JUST the baby's heartbeat over Mommy's super loud heartbeat.  BUT good news is that the doctor could make out baby's heartbeat and it registered at 163bpm which is very good! At the first appointment is was 165bpm - so all is well with baby and with mommy :)

Jason and I were asked if we wanted to have any testing done for the baby.  They offer tests to check for heart problems, down syndrome, other genetic diseases, etc.  We originally declined all testing for the baby since we both know that it doesn't matter as long as baby is breathing and alive! But then..... I was super impatient....go figure... and wanted another picture of baby..... so I talked to the doctor and he said I should just go ahead and get the "First Scan" or the NT Scan.  This scan is done at Rex Women's Center (part of the birthing center at Rex) and it tests for down syndrome and it can look at the heart a little bit closer to make sure everything is okay.  Again.... Jason and I could really care less about the results of this scan, as long as baby is breathing and alive - I really just wanted another picture :) So we will be getting a REALLY great Valentine's Day Present - a picture of baby Holland!!! I will be sure to share with you all as soon as we get it! Appointment is at 2:50pm on Valentine's Day :)



Baby Holland at 12 Weeks:

• Baby is the size of a Plum! About 2.1 inches long & weighs about .49 oz. Growing about a millimeter each day!
• Most of baby'scritical systems are fully formed!
• baby's about to enter the growth and maturation stage, in which her organs and tissues will grow and develop rapidly.
• baby's now developing her reflexes -- if you poke his/her body, he/she will  likely move. (Please no poking lol)
• baby'sopening and closing his/her fingers and curling his/her toes, too.
• baby's brain is developing fast!

Mommy at 12 Weeks:

• Still feeling pretty good - no real symptoms yet! Hopefully i make it out of the 1st trimester with no sickness or bad symptoms!
• Terrible round ligament pain is the only problem so far! Ouch! Doctor said its just my body preparing for baby and to put heat on it when it is hurting (that would mean walk around with a heat pack all day lol)
• Sleeping is fine, no morning sickness!!
• Migraines - gross! I had those before pregnancy and of course they are a little worse now.... the migraines cause a little bit of nausea but nothing too bad.
• Starting to not want to wear regular pants... I broke down and bought a pair of maternity dress paints (i love them!).  I only 4'11"... the baby has no where to go but out! lol