Nuchal Translucency Scan

First of all I just need to say that we announced our pregnancy on facebook yesterday after this scan and the amount of love, support, hugs, congrats, well wishes and prayers for our family is overwhelming, yes I have cried multiple times at the comments you all have sent, THANK YOU for sharing in our excitement! I am so happy I shared the blog address with all of you too, if this is your first post, look further and see what has been going on :). I have had several people come out of the wood work struggling with infertility or knowing someone that has and thanking me for sharing our story. This blog started out to keep our out of town family/friends updated on everything but there had been lots of innocent questions from them "why it took so long?" Most knew we wanted a family right away and I am so happy to share now what we went through if it even helps one person know they are not alone in the journey of infertility. Thanks for the kind words and messages guys! You all are so wonderful to us. Now moving on.....


Hey friends, today is education day on the ole blog. I am gonna teach you all a little sompin' sompin' about pregnancy and prenatal testing today that I learned more about yesterday.
For those of you who don't know what the heck a nuchal translucency is, buckle your seatbelts you are getting the quick and dirty version of the explanation. For those of you who do, just skip past this little part to the good stuff...
So when you find out you are pregnant early enough (and get prenatal care early enough) there is a screening test offered at 12 weeks that looks for chromosomal abnormalities in your baby. It is a simple 30 minute ultrasound that looks at different parts of the baby and can detect problems with the baby's development and anatomy that would indicate a problem with the chromosomal makeup of the little nugget. So of course no result would change anything we are doing with this pregnancy (sadly yes for some it does) but we wanted to know if our baby looked healthy and hell it's just one more excuse to see our little peanut and who doesn't love to do that. Anyshways.... They look for things like the amount of fluid at the back of the neck (hence the word nuchal) and see how thick it is. This comes across as a black space (fluid looks black on ultrasound and looks translucent). Now you get where the name came from...first goal accomplished. Second, you get to learn it's significance. The thicker the fluid at the back of the neck, the more concern there is for a chromosomal abnormality as this is a finding shown with babies who frequently have a trisomy (3 copies) of any chromosome, most commonly Down Syndrome (Trisomy 21), Trisomy 13 and Trisomy 18.

I borrowed this from google images, The baby on the left has a thin amount of fluids at the back of the neck...normal, the baby on the right has a thicker amount and was diagnosed with Trisomy 18

Next the look for a nasal bone, babies should have a nasal bone that can be seen as a white mark on the face at 12 weeks, those that don't....you guessed it, at risk for chromosomal problems.

borrowed this one too, thanks google. You can bearly see it, but see the white mark they are pointing too?

 

Then they look at the heart and the belly and the arms and legs and make sure everything looks normal....if the baby stays still enough.....it did not.

 

BABY SMITH IS ORNERY!!!! just like momma (what?)

This child of ours did not sit still for 2 seconds, the poor ultrasound tech was trying desperately to get our kid to stop acting like it was having a house party in my stomach for a solid 30 minutes. She did get great pictures of his/her profile for us and of little hands. It amazes me that at 4 inches long this baby already looks so human. The heart rate was perfect at 159 and we got to watch baby do backflips and twists and turns and hide it's face with it's hands and kick off the wall of my uterus and jump and bounce. Truly the most fascinating thing I have ever seen. And super weird I felt nothing while it's having this kegger in my stomach except the hangover. Yes, I am still sick. Oh well.

 

The results were perfect, baby looks healthy (and apparently very happy). Nasal bone intact, nuchal fold very thin, heart looks healthy and has great blood flow, umbilical cord has 3 vessles (that is normal). Active, 2 hands, 2 feet, and a rough rough rough guess at the gender, which I am keeping mostly secret until we know for sure.

Baby Smith ^^^ SOO CUTE

 

I am dying to know btw and as soon as I find out, you all will too, so stay posted. I think we are going to do an elective 3D/4D ultrasound at 18 weeks (you have to wait until 20-23 at the Dr.'s office) and my parents and in-laws and sister have all be dying to go to an ultrasound so we are gonna kill two birds with one stone, I am not dragging my circus of a family into the Dr. for the sono at 20-23 weeks to make sure my kid is healthy, so I will drag them to this private boutique I found that does elective gender sonos in 3D and let them all scratch their itch with 30 minutes of baby viewing pleasure and find the gender out then, all together. This place also records the baby's heartbeat and puts it inside a build a bear for you to keep. Adorbs!

 

So now you know what a Nuchal Translucency is and got an update on Baby Smith. Score! I will post the 12 week pics and update as soon as I make the chalkboard for this week :)

Grateful

I am grateful. So incredibly Grateful....

for each of those two pink lines we watched get darker and darker each day
for the black circle and blinking dot on that first ultrasound
for the tears
for the trouble
for the stress
for the worry
for the hopelessness
for my wavering trust in god, that I somehow found again
for the countless hours in the waiting room at the infertility office, most after working long night shifts
for the every other day ultrasounds checking for signs of hope for that cycle...for eggs
for the failed cycles
for the failed meds
for my body failing to do what it should
for the medications and the scientists who created them
for the mommas who have walked this path before me and have been my mentors
for my cheerleaders
for the times we almost gave up and didn't
for the 40- something labs draws over the last 18 months
for my poor "big vein" in my left arm that's the "sweet spot"
for the surgery to help my uterus be a perfect home for our future baby
for the diagnoses
for feeling like my body failed me, failed us
for the OB/ GYNs
for the incredible nurses that held me when I cried and encouraged me when I needed it, who held my hand as I fell asleep in the OR because I was scared, who made me promise to keep in touch, who hugged me and cheered loudly when I found out this baby was coming, who fought for me and my ideas, who called me when they didn't have to, just to check on me, who high-fived me after good appointments, who loved me.
for insurance
for family
for all the hormone shots
for yucky side effects
for my stepdad who encouraged me to read the word of God for my answers and hope
for my sister who never gave up hope for us and prayed with me from 4 hours away
for my mom who sat through countless phone calls listening to her baby cry out of anger, shock, disappointment, disbelief, sadness
for a strong husband who loves me more than anything and never showed me his doubt
for doctors whose only goal in life is to help women like me have their dreams come true
for teaching hospitals with advanced medicine and ideas and treatments
for every single sleepless night
for every prayer answered and unanswered
for every penny spent
for friends
for coworkers
for our entire support system
for the looks on their faces when we told them we are pregnant
for our endurance
for our strength
for the look on my husband's face when we talk about "the baby"
for the tears welling up in his eyes when we saw it for the first time
for 4 perfect sonograms with perfect heart beats, loud and strong
for Taylor putting his hand on my stomach at night when he sleeps.
for growth
for change
for every single time I have thrown up, even in public or at work
for every moment of discomfort
for every single milliliter of fluids to rehydrate me and keep my body going
for Phenergan and Zofran
for love
for our new family of 3
for the hope of the future
for the end of the first trimester
for milestones reached

.....for being pregnant....for this baby.

I know this is super sappy (call it the pregnancy hormones) and I never thought I would admit half of that even happened, I lived in a dark desperate place called infertility for a long time. A place I hope no one else in this world ever has to visit. But, for me, it has made me realize what we could have missed had we not tried "everything". What we could have gone without experiencing. What we would have lost if we didn't go through all this. To see our baby on sonogram after sonogram growing so fast and drastically changing has been an awe inspiring experience. Most women get 2 sonograms, one to confirm the pregnancy and determine the due date, the other for an anatomy scan and to determine gender. We have already had 4 based on our trouble to get to this point and what a blessing it is. Each time I think to myself, "Ahh I am so sick of being sick", I watch the videos of the baby and it's blinking heart and it all melts away. I promised myself that I would do anything, ANYTHING, to have this opportunity to become a mother, to feel my stomach start to swell, to throw up in an applebee's restroom during dinner. And that if I was ever given the chance to have this happen to me that I would never complain about any part of it. So far I've had one day where I broke down and cried and that was the day I had to go to the hospital to get IV fluids and anti-nausea meds through my IV because I was so sick. But even then I reminded the nurses and Taylor the whole time that I am so grateful to be here, to have a reason to be sick, to have a baby growing.

I can't get past what has happened, I doubt I ever will. There is a certain amount of pain that comes flooding back and brings tears to my eyes each time I hear of someone walking the path we walked down. I know how they feel and until you go through infertility you can't quite comprehend the amount of emotions involved. I knew then it would all be worth it but I doubted that there was a finish line, a light at the end of the tunnel. I doubted God at several times and his love for me. That after all the major trials in my young life that I would still have to face something this hard. Why did it have to be that hard? Why could 15 year olds, high on cocaine, get pregnant on a 1 night stand at a party and we had to wait almost two years? Why did I have to watch babies at work be born into abusive families with mother's who drop them and never show up to the hospital and see them. Why did God let them be mothers and not me? Why did Taylor have to go through it too, couldn't I just take the hard stuff by myself? But God knows I needed a partner and a best friend to walk through it with me and God gave me Taylor. God knows the answer to why it had to be so hard, not me, but I have a feeling it has something to do with being grateful. Teaching me that nothing in my life comes without work and that's ok. I am stronger because of it. I wasn't then, but I am now. It has molded me into the person, the wife and the mother that I am now and I am grateful. So grateful.
That kind of despair and desperation can tear a person and a marriage apart and I am so blessed that while it tried, it never did. Taylor and I are stronger than ever and I think we both learned so much about ourselves and our character and our marriage. The type of people we are and what is important to us. I am thankful for that. I am so thankful for him. He is such an incredible person of strength in my life and for him to walk through this with me and carry me when I couldn't do it anymore, he is such a blessing to me. I hope our baby has his qualities in that way.

At the end of the day would I do all of this again? In one word. ABSOLUTELY! Every single second of it. I had a person tell me once during all of our infertility struggles "maybe you are just not meant to be a mother". It was the single most devastating and heart wrenching, hurtful and cruel thing anyone has EVER said to me. After knowing what we were going through to tell me that was just soul crushing. I am meant to be a mother and if not by my own body, by adoption or other means. I was put on this earth to be a mother, I am a surrogate mother to every baby I care for at work while their own mother's can't be there. You don't have to have a baby out of your own womb to be a mother, you have to have the qualities and the passion for it and I have that, I've always had it. This journey has been worth every tear and heartache, every cruel comment, every questioning glance, every opinion that wasn't the same as mine. I know not everyone would do what we did to get to this place, but it's a beautiful place filled mostly with people who desire to help you and some who only know to bring you down, but it's worth it. So so so worth it. It's all been worth it. And for that, for this. I am GRATEFUL.

11 weeks

This week feels like it has taken forever to get here but also has taken forever to leave too. We have our next ultrasound on Sept 10th and we are DYING to see the baby and make sure everything looks ok. We also have our next doctor's appointment that same day so that will be good to check in.

This week also had a little bit of excitement that we wish we didn't have. I have felt much more sick the past week and had trouble keeping anything in my stomach including my anti-nausea medications, which means things were only getting worse. I got to the point where I was so sick that I couldn't keep even water down for the majority of Friday and all of Saturday. Luckily Taylor was home from work and could be with me. I was worried about how dehydrated I was getting and even more about how the baby was doing. I called Labor & Delivery and talked to one of the attendings, she suggested I come into the ER and get IV meds since I couldn't keep oral meds down and get some fluid so I would feel better.

We spent from 7:30pm to 2am in the ER but I got a few big bags of fluids and IV anti-nausea meds and even felt good enough by the time we left to eat something before we went to bed. The best part though was that the ER doc wanted to see the baby and get a heart rate to make sure it was ok. I LOVE GETTING TO SEE MY BABY! and it seems sooo weird to see how it's grown in a few weeks. It looked like a baby this time and not a gummy bear or a blinking bean. Needless to say, I feel soo much better today and I am so glad I went.

I am so lucky to have such an awesome husband to spend his Saturday night trying to make me laugh and distract me from feeling sick while we waited and waited and waited.

Here is the close up of the baby. It's laying on it's back inside the black circle, facing up with it's head on the right and its big belly on the left. Baby looked great strong and had a heart rate of 171.

 

On a more exciting note, I got a free nursing pillow, nursing cover and bought a bumbo seat and tray and a floor play mat with sides that fold up so that Cora (the dog) is less likely to trample the baby on the floor. I am all about saving money on all this ridiculously expensive baby stuff and if I can get it from online promotions, buy cheaper from friends or use coupons and sales I am all about it.

 

 Here is the picture of the bumbo seat and a playmat similar to the one we got. So excited!

 

Here is this week's chalkboard and stats

How far along? 11 weeks, baby is the size of a lime

Total weight gain: Lost another pound. Down a total of 15 lbs. 

Maternity clothes? Nope, not yet but this week I have noticed my stomach feels a lot more firm and is sticking out more.

Sleep: Still sleeping like a rock.

Best moment this week: Seeing the baby again on ultrasound.

Miss Anything? having an appetite

Movement: WAAY too soon still.
Food cravings: Taco Bell's cheesy gordita crunch and mashed potatoes

Anything making you queasy or sick: EVERYTHING

Gender: Taylor wants a boy, I would love a girl but of course we will be thrilled with either, just praying for a healthy baby. I think it's a girl based on the heart rate being higher this week.

Symptoms: Sick as a dog and just tired.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Not moody just don't feel good. Happy to be pregnant and have a healthy baby so far though.
Looking forward to: The end of my first trimester! Still want my belly to "pop" and to get to my 12 week mark for our next sonogram.

10 weeks

I am 10 weeks now and had a rough week this week. My nausea was much better but I have heard horror stories quite a bit this week about seeing a heartbeat at 8 weeks and then having a 12 week sonogram and nothing seeing one again. I am terrified of the "M word" and refuse to say it but it has been in the back of my mind all week. I think hormones definitely play into that. I was also getting nervous because my anti-nausea meds were working so well that I was hardly ever getting sick anymore. So I did the reasonable thing.... I stopped taking them for 2 days to see if I was still having morning all day sickness. This all along has been a good sign of a strong pregnancy for me and as much as it sucks to go through, it's a constant reminder of the baby in my belly. It took 2 full agonizing days but the sickness came back with a vengeance. Yesterday was aweful, but gave me a large piece of mind and I am back on my anti-nausea meds and moving forward with the determination to be positive and grateful for each day that we are closer to our next ultrasound. Sept 10th by the way.

Not much has gone on around here this week other than that, both Taylor and I are just working and sleeping basically. I got to sleep in today after being at the hospital and in meetings for 14 hours yesterday and will be working on some Etsy orders so I can get that off my slate. Other than that, the only big thing we have going on this week is that we are going to the Royal's game on Saturday night with all of my girlfriends from college and their significant others. It's our first Royal's game of the season which is sad because it's August for pete sake, but none the less, we are going!

Here are some pics from the Game!

How far along? 10 weeks, baby is the size of a prune

Total weight gain:down a total of  14 lbs. but not losing as quickly anymore I think.

Maternity clothes? I have been living in scrub pants and yoga pants this week so when I put on jeans again I will let you know for sure how they fit, so far no maternity clothes needed.

Sleep: I LOVE SLEEP and I am really really good at it.

Best moment this week: Royal's game on Saturday! 

Miss Anything? nope, not really this week.  

Movement: WAAY too soon still.
Food cravings: Hot dog and soft pretzel with cheese mmm

Anything making you queasy or sick: EVERYTHING basically

Gender: No idea, we will be thrilled either way. I am going to make them guess at our 12 week sono

Symptoms: not many this week

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on.
Happy or Moody most of the time: really emotional this week and a little stressed out but sooo soo happy that we are still moving forward in our pregnancy! I can't believe I am already 10 weeks.
Looking forward to: Still want my belly to "pop" and to get to my 12 week mark for our next sonogram. And being done with my progesterone pills.

9 weeks and telling the rest of our family

Update on my morning all day sickness......This week started out pretty rough. I got my prescriptions filled for my excessive nausea/vomiting and the Zofran did not really work. I took just the Zofran the first day to see if it would help at all and  got sick 23 times at work Wednesday night. It was rough but I pushed through and survived. Thursday night I took the Zofran and Phenergan (the big guns as they say) and it worked! I got floated to work in the PICU (Pediatric ICU) and didn't get sick once, which was great because that would have been really awkward in a different unit than my usual with different patients and different nurses working with me. Since Thursday I have only gotten sick once! Hurray!! The problem is, the Phenergan makes me so incredible exhausted and weak. I feel like a zombie and can't keep my eyes open and feeling like that makes me grouchy. I think from here on out, I will take each day at a time and assess my need for meds and try to take them only if I need them so I can try to function and no be a grouch. That being said, I am still incredibly thankful for being sick, I constantly remind myself that this is a great sign of a healthy pregnancy and baby and that I would do anything to have this baby, this is just part of that process and I will do whatever it takes, this journey is not about me, it's about this baby and as long as it's healthy... I am happy!

This is my go to meal right now when I feel sick, you buy it frozen and shake it up with juice and Whalaa...Smoothie!

pictures from my grandmother's house.

 

Other news.... We told my grandmother and my dad's side! We went to Saturday dinner armed with nothing creative but our sonogram picture of our gummy bear at 8 weeks and smiles on our faces.....and a baby in my tummy. We got to my grandmother's before everyone else and I showed her the sono picture and asked if she knew what that was? After a few seconds of silence I told her  "this is a baby" and pointed to the picture and she said "ahhh! Are you P.G?!" I told her yes and she was so excited. Next my little brother came in and we showed him and said "That is your neice or nephew!" and he was excited and gave us hugs/hand shakes and congratulated us. My Aunt Joel and Uncle Blair were next with their two boys Max and Jack. We were sitting outside eating the hors d'oeurves and I showed them the picture and my aunt started screaming and hugging me and my uncle too. And then my last Aunt and Uncle came up and we showed them and they kind of did the same thing and said " about time!" There are only 9 grandchildren on this side of the family, the oldest two of us are married and we are the first to have a baby so this will be my grandmother's first great-grandchild. Everyone is so excited for us. It was great to share.

We also sent a box to my Aunt Betsy and Uncle Bob's house for them to share with their kids (my cousins Heidi and Ben, Peter and Brianna and David and Stacey.) The box had a box of ice cream cones, chocolate sauce, strawberry sauce, peanuts, m&m's, sprinkles, gummy bears, etc in it and a note telling my cousin Heidi, Happy Birthday (she LOVES ice cream) and that this was an ice cream party in a box all they needed was to add ice cream to their toppings we sent. While they were celebrating Heidi's birthday, they had one more to celebrate. On the next page I put a sonogram picture and the baby's due date. They sent us this picture!

We have decided to start buying a case of diapers in all different sizes each paycheck until the baby is born so we can stock up. This is our first case! Yay!

And we also finally bought our garage door opener this weekend and Taylor spent all day sunday installing it. So excited to be able to park in our garage easily this winter and when the baby is born.

And for this week's chalkboard....

How far along? 9 weeks, baby is the size of a green olive!

Total weight gain: down 12.5 lbs. :( (my face is thinner for sure I think)

Maternity clothes? Nope, in fact my pants still fit just fine, although I am noticing they are getting tighter in the belly again.

Sleep: I am a zombie because of my Phenergan for my nausea.

Best moment this week: Telling the rest of our family. The nausea going away for little periods of time.

Miss Anything? A glass of wine with dinner at my grandmother's house.

Movement: WAAY too soon still.
Food cravings: Strawberries dipped in chocolate cream cheese, peanut butter, BBQ!!!!

Anything making you queasy or sick: EVERYTHING

Gender: No idea, we will be thrilled either way.

Symptoms: nausea and tired, that's it.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on.
Happy or Moody most of the time: I have been totally grumpy and have no energy to do anything when I am on my meds but I am still thrilled to be pregnant and know this baby is on it's way.
Looking forward to: Still want my belly to "pop" and to get to my 12 week mark for our next sonogram and maybe the end of my sickness?

8 weeks, 1st OB appt and Last infertility appt.

Tuesday we met with Dr. Steinbis, our new OB/GYN. We really liked her, she took her time with us and gave us a huge packet of information to reference throughout the pregnancy. They drew tons of labs to make sure everything looks ok. Dr. Steinbis said my uterus is a great size for how far along I am and said everything looks good so far. We discussed my worsening morning all day sickness. I have been so incredibly nauseous the past two weeks that I really can't keep anything down. I feel okay enough to try to eat something and it never stays. I can keep water down but that's about it lately. I also get frustrated because I try to eat but NOTHING sounds good. I have no appetite whatsoever and don't even feel hungry. Dr. Steinbis discussed the concerns with my weight loss to date (10.5lbs) and not getting enough nutrients for myself or for baby. She said with my prenatal vitamin and some food and water the baby will get what it needs but that she is concerned about my electrolytes and blood sugar and my hydration. She said that If I go longer than this without eating much or being able to keep it down we may have to look at more extreme ways to keep me hydrated like IV fluids and hospitalization. NO FUN!! She gave me a prescription for Zofran and for Phenergan and hopes that will help. If not, we will have to figure something else out. She will see me again in 4 weeks (September 10th) and we will also have our 12 week nuchal translucency ultrasound to check for down's syndrome, and trisomy 13 and 18 (chromosomal defects that are not compatible with life).
Today we had our "close out" appointment with our RE. It was definitely be bittersweet. I am so sad to leave these women who helped us create a miracle, but I am thrilled we have a baby coming and get to be on the "regular" OB side. Dr. Krieg (our reproductive endocrinologist) met with us and did our last scan. We got to see the baby again and the best part.....
WE GOT TO HEAR THE HEARTBEAT for the first time!
We both were on cloud nine. Here is a video of it.

It is one of the most wonderful sounds I have ever heard and it feels so good to know that the baby is doing so well. The heart was beating at 166 bpm today and that is perfect, which you can hear Dr. Krieg say on the video.

 It's hard to see but the baby is facing down with its head on the left side and its booty on the right. There are two white-ish lines pointing down and those are the arms and legs. I tried to label some parts for you to see.

Baby looks huge to us now compared to 6 and 7 week scans and is measuring perfectly. It has arm and leg buds growing and you can see it's head defined from it's body now. It looks like a baby and not just a dot or a bean. A little gummy bear baby! We got the all clear to be seen only at the OB clinic now and it just feels so good to have that accomplishment and to know they feel that the baby is safe and healthy and going to do just fine.

I was able to keep some of my food down yesterday and today so I feel a little bit better. Here is a picture of my favorite snack that I have actually been craving and no I don't care how good it is for you. Calories are the name of my game right now and this helps pack them in.

Here is a picture of the baby at all three sonos to date. 6 weeks, 7 weeks and 8 weeks. Look how much it has grown. The heart beats have been 108, 134 and 166 respectively and everything has looked great!

Here is the chalkboard from this week but that will soon be changing, I don't like it and I have more fun things to put on there now, like hearing the heartbeat and that we got to see some arms and legs :)

How far along? 8 weeks, baby is the size of a raspberry!

Total weight gain: down 10.5 lbs. :(

Maternity clothes? Nope, in fact my pants fit better this week than last, maybe due to weight loss?

Sleep: I feel like I sleep all the time and I sometimes feel really guilty that I am not being more productive, but I am growing a child here, I try not to care because I need rest!  

Best moment this week: Getting my prescriptions for Zofran and Phenergan, hopefully my nausea/vomiting will be better. And getting to meet our OB and get started feeling like a pregnant mommy at the doctor and not a girl just desperate to get pregnant.

Miss Anything? having a normal appetite and having a day that I didn't get sick

Movement: WAAY too soon still.

Food cravings: Strawberries and chocolate cream cheese.  

Anything making you queasy or sick: EVERYTHING

Gender: No idea, we will be thrilled either way. cough girl cough cough.

Symptoms: Just suuuper nauseous and sick and tired.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on.
Happy or Moody most of the time: I was totally moody today and a little of yesterday with no reason why, just irritable and grouchy :(. I hate that!!
Looking forward to: Can't wait to see our baby again. and I really really really want my belly to pop!! I want that little bump!

7 weeks and our second ultrasound

Tuesday was our 2nd ultrasound. We get to have one more next week and then we have to wait awhile for our next. (around 12 weeks I believe). This is part of our close out requirements from the infertility clinic. 7 days after our first look at our baby and we were SHOCKED to see how much it has grown. About triple the size it was last week and looks more like a baby instead of a dot. Either way it's heart was beating strong at 134 bpm (108 last week). The sonographer and nurse said everything looked perfect and scheduled us for our close out appointments with our reproductive endocrinologist. Next Wednesday our RE will do our longer more comprehensive sono and will talk with us in her office about our experience and our questions, concerns and comments and if everything looks good we will have our first appointment with my new OB/GYN and maybe another sono if we are lucky! The appointments with both doctors are 1 day a part and I am hoping that they can tell us how baby is measuring compared to our estimated due date and set an actual due date for us. Here are the pics of the baby this week and the last is the comparison from this week and last.

The baby is the blob on top inside the dark circle.

The 6 week on top and 7 week on bottom. Look how big baby has gotten!

And chalkboard pics.

How far along? 7 weeks, baby is the size of a blueberry!

Total weight gain: down 7 lbs. I talked to the nurse and she said as long as I can eat a little bit each day and take my vitamins, the baby will get what it needs. I have no appetite and when something does sound good I am usually too nauseous to eat much or keep it down. Not fun but it will be so worth it as long as baby is ok and growing.

Maternity clothes? Not yet, but I did buy a belly band (to keep my regular pants up when they get too tight in the waist, it just looks like you are wearing a tank top under a normal shirt and is super comfy). I officially rubber banded my jeans closed the other day

Sleep: Still exhausted but I have discovered the more sleep I get, the less nauseous I feel.

Best moment this week: Seeing how much our baby has grown in 1 week and seeing that heartbeat again.

Miss Anything? having a normal appetite.

Movement: WAAY too soon

Food cravings: Grilled cheese and tomato soup (we had that for dinner tonight) and rotisserie chicken.

Anything making you queasy or sick: we went to the city market and all of the smells really got to me.

Gender: No idea, we will be thrilled either way. cough girl cough cough.

Symptoms: super nauseous, tired and had a little heartburn yesterday.

Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Still Happy & EXCITED
Looking forward to: Our next Ultrasound and our close out and first OB appts next week.

We got our first baby gift too from Auntie Kylie. So excited about this!!