Well, Little L and I just went for our 4-month check-up last week. We're both doing very well! Shockingly, between the Oreos, Doritos, and bagels smothered in cream cheese, I've only gained 10 pounds so far. It's still depressing to admit to a 10-pound weight gain; I'm not saying it hasn't happened in the past, but I would certainly never have told the Internet.
I love going for my monthly check-ups because, so far, we've been really spoiled. Ever since my first appointment, the doctor has done an ultrasound every time. At the first appointment (8 weeks along), we just took his word that the gray blob on the screen was a baby. But at the 12-week appt., you could tell that it had a head and appendages that were kicking and punching every which way. Little L is very active!
This time, I was shocked to see how much bigger the baby had grown. Our doctor said that, from now on, we won't get to see ultrasounds at the monthly appointments because the baby is getting too big for the machine they have on-hand at the office. Too big!
Even to the ultrasound un-initiated such as Keith and me, this time around many parts of the anatomy were regularly apparent. (Not THAT part though, which is good because we don't want to find out the sex until the baby is born.) Right away the spine showed up bright white, and you could also pick out arm and leg bones. We could even see the tiny brain in the skull! The doctor switched to a different view and measured the brain size to see where we were at in development, and it was right at 15-16 weeks.
It's just amazing to me how much the pregnancy process has changed in the past 30 years. I've really enjoyed hearing stories from both my mother and mother-in-law about their pregnancies. Neither of them ever had an ultrasound for either Keith or me; after 12 weeks or so, you could hear the heartbeat and that was as close as they got to confirming the presence of another life in their body until the kicking started. Well, other than the nausea, heartburn, etc. that constantly reminds you that your body has been taken over by an alien being.
The only bad thing about hearing their stories is that they seem to have forgotten all about the unpleasant side effects of pregnancy. Everything was wonderful and fabulous and they both loved being pregnant. I'm excited, but I'm not sure that pregnancy itself agrees with me. So if I want confirmation that pregnancy can be a bit trying at times, I talk to my friends who have given birth in the past couple years. Their memories of the discomfort (did I mention the nausea? And the heartburn? Possibly at the same time?) are much more clear.
In a few weeks, Keith and I will go to a special ultrasound facility for our 3D ultrasound. We're both really excited about it, but a little nervous because we don't want to know the sex of the baby. But what if it's obvious? Or the lab tech mistakenly blurts it out? Interestingly, both Keith and I have had dreams that it's a boy .... but hopefully we have a few more months before we find out for sure!
2 comments:
Yeah its a bit of a let down when you find out when you don't want to! My sister-in-laws baby (she's due in April) was referred to as "she" by the radiologist :S
In our case we guessed. Well.. Kirst did. She walked away from the appointment and went "yup... gotta be a boy". When I asked how she figured that, she told me she'd seen what could only have been testicles between the legs. "Either that or she has really big lips". My Kirst has such a way with words :S
Bren: Sorry to hear you found out when you didn't want to! Before we went, I had a dream that my doctor accidentally said "he" and immediately looked guilty, so we knew it was a boy. Luckily, that hasn't happened in real life!
I can't believe Kirst was able to see that it was a boy; I could barely tell the fingers from the knees! ;) Best of luck to your sister-in-law!
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