Almost 11 Weeks

I'm posting this week's development a day early because it will be Rosh Hashana starting tonight and extending through Wednesday night, so you won't see any posts until at least Thursday. Sorry!!!

The end of the twelfth week of pregnancy marks the end of the first trimester. (WOO HOO!) Your baby is now almost 2.5 inches long (6.1cm) when measured from crown to rump, and weighs between 0.3 and 0.5 ounces (9 to 13g).

Your baby's fingers and toes have separated and are getting longer. Your baby can open and close its mouth and drinks amniotic fluid which it passes out as urine. (Ewwww gross) Its head is becoming more rounded, though it is still large in proportion to its body. It has eyelids.

You can now hear your baby's heartbeat with a Doppler Ultrasound device! (Actually, I could over a week ago...)

Your baby continues to grow rapidly and has doubled in size in the last three weeks alone.

The face is beginning to look more human, and all body structures are present with a few refinements still in progress. Fingernails and toenails begin to develop this week.

Your baby's muscles are sufficiently developed to allow for involuntary movements at this time. The messages which control your baby's movements are sent from the spine, rather than the brain, which is not yet sufficiently developed.

Heartbeats and Home Pregnancy Test

I think I actually found both heartbeats on the doppler today. They were somewhat close to each other, but I'm almost positive that it was two different heartbeats. I found them each right under my belly fat roll (about 4-5 inches below my belly button); one toward the right side and the other toward the left side.

Even though I'm almost 11 weeks pregnant and heard both heartbeats, there's nothing like seeing the word "pregnant" on a home pregnancy test. I have a few left over, so I figured I'd take the digital one and get to see the word again. Sure enough, it came up in about 60 seconds (that's the least amount of time it takes for a digital test to become positive). Hehehe I just love seeing that word.

First Date

Please don't read this post if you do not wish to hear about intimacy between myself and my husband (ie if you're my mother or otherwise related to me and don't want to hear about it) lol

After avoiding my husband for a full two months (for fear of miscarrying after having sex), I asked my doctor if I need to worry and she said that it's perfectly fine to have relations during pregnancy. Now, I already knew that deep down, but have also heard horror stories as well. So, I said "what the heck" and did it anyway. :-) I figured that the babies are now fetuses (as of tomorrow) and have grown all of their various body parts which just now need to develop and mature. They're secure in there and their placentas aren't going to just separate from the uterine wall if it contracts slightly and the worst that really could happen as a direct result of intercourse would be bleeding/spotting from the cervix (which didn't happen anyway).

Conclusion: Sex during pregnancy is not harmful to your babies and fun for the parents. :-)

Doctor's Appointment

So, I had my 10 week doctor's appointment today. My blood pressure was pretty high at 138/80, so the doctor will probably have me start back on the baby aspirin when I get to 2nd trimester (in 2 weeks!!). She felt for my uterus, and it's already pretty high. She also listened for heartbeats. She found one really easily, but the second was hiding. There were a few times she *almost* found it, but we think the baby was hiding behind a particularly loud blood vessel of mine, which was blocking out his/her heartbeat. The doctor isn't worried, especially since my uterus is growing perfectly for twins at 10 weeks, so I'm not worried either. And I think I found that second heartbeat yesterday with similar difficulties. We scheduled another appointment for 2 weeks from now (it will be the day before my neuchal translucency ultrasound). I can't wait!

10 Weeks!

Yay! I've made it to double digits and I'm 1/4 finished with my pregnancy! I got some really neat outfits at Destination Maternity and Kohls on Sunday and even wore some to work yesterday and today. I only have a small belly (comparatively), and it's mostly fat...so I'm faking it, but it works anyway. I do believe that my belly has grown a bit...a few shirts have become too small and the maternity shirts I wear look more believable than they did a few weeks ago. Here's the fertility friend update for this week:

Your baby is growing incredibly rapidly right now. She is approximately 1.75 to 2.4 inches (4.4 to 6cm) when measured from crown to rump. She will double her length in the next three weeks. Your growing baby weighs about 0.3 ounces (8g).

The neck is developing and the chin lifts up from the chest. Fingernails are also present. While your baby's sex was already determined at the time of fertilization, male or female genitalia are now visible. Essential organs are formed and most have begun to function. The blood vessels in the placenta are increasing in number to meet your baby's increasing nutritional needs. Her ears are moving towards the sides of her head, away from the neck. Your baby's head is still not in proportion with her body. Your baby's head accounts for about half of her body length.

Whoops

I just realized I haven't posted since last Wednesday!! Oops on me! I'm going maternity clothes shopping with a friend tomorrow. She's actually due at the beginning of November, so I believe she only really needs one skirt and that's basically it. I, on the other hand, need a whole wardrobe. I have a $100 gift card for K-Mart as well as a $100 gift card for Kohls, which I am hoping to use for a nice shopping spree. :-) My hubby tried to buy me a pregnancy body pillow, but I think I'm going to return it and get a different one...I haven't tried it out, but I don't know if it's a "real" pregnancy pillow and don't want to try it out, hate it and not be able to return it. My friend and I may also stop at Destination Maternity if we have time, but since we'll be leaving home at 9:30 and she wants to be back by noon, we may not have time.

That's all for now. My next prenatal appointment is scheduled for this Wednesday, and hopefully the doctor will be able to hear heartbeats on the doppler. I still haven't had much luck with the one I've bought, but the babies are still pretty small and tucked away...and since I do have a retroverted uterus, they're probably even farther away from the doppler than they usually would be at 9 1/2 weeks. But I'm looking forward to my uterus flipping forward within the next few weeks!!

Ultrasound Pics

I finally got my scanner working again, so here are the pictures I know you've all been waiting for!

This is a picture of both twins @ 8w 3d


This is a picture of Baby A


Unfortunately, the ultrasound tech forgot to give me a picture of Baby B by him/herself, so we'll just have to wait until our 12 week ultrasound for that. Now tell me, don't they look like little frogs?? :-)

Uncommunicative

Sorry I've been such a bad blogger lately, but nothing's been happening. I can't get my scanner to work, so no u/s pics until that happens. No new symptoms--still have BIZARRE dreams, one of which my husband actually laughed at, my nausea comes and goes, still tired, and I got up to pee at least twice last night (may have been three, but I can't really remember...I was barely awake at the time and am surprised I actually made it all the way into the bathroom and back without getting lost). I've been getting some headaches since my doctor told me to stop the baby aspirin (and I think the two are probably related) and my blood pressure has been up ever since I got pregnant (today it was 125/85 with a heart rate of 94...it's usually around 110/70 or lower).

In other news, I'm 9 weeks today! Here's the update from fertility friend:

The crown-to-rump length of your baby is about 1.25 to 1.68 inches (between 3.1 and 4.2cm). He weighs about 0.18 ounces (5g).

The placenta is now producing progesterone which helps to make nutrients for your developing baby.

Your baby has passed the stage when he is most susceptible to damage. By the end of this week, the danger zone for congenital abnormalities has passed.

The plan for your baby's body has been completely laid down by now. Further growth and cell division will build on this plan.

Taste and tooth buds have appeared.

Your baby has recently developed fingers and toes which are now well-formed. Ankles, wrists and the inner ear have formed. Your baby's nose is flat and his eyes are far apart. His eyes, ears, mouth and nose are all recognizable. The tail is disappearing.

Your baby is moving around the amniotic sac, and moving his feet and ankles. You still will not be able to feel these movements but you may be able to see them on an ultrasound.

Blood is circulating through the arteries and the vein of the umbilical cord.

The brain of your baby is developing at a phenomenal rate. About one quarter of a million new neurons are produced every single minute at this stage in your pregnancy.

If your baby is a boy, his testes, though they are not even clearly visible, are already producing testosterone.

Your baby is no longer called an embryo, but rather a fetus.

Ultrasound

The ultrasound went great--will post pics probably on Sunday if I can get my scanner to work... Two babies, both measuring perfect for 8w 3d; two heartbeats, one at 176bpm and the other at 190bpm!

9/11

I know that everyone's posting about this today, but I also want to observe a moment of silence in rememberance of those brave men and women who lost their lives 7 years ago today....

Now that I'm done being silent, I'll let you know that I have an ultrasound scheduled for tomorrow afternoon just to check on the blood clot, make sure it's resolving and, of course, see the little cuties. :-) Hopefully my hubby will also get to join me this time!

8 weeks

Yay! I made it through 2 full months of pregnancy! Here's the update for today from Fertility Friend's pregnancy site:

Your baby measures about 0.9 to 1.2 inches (2.2 to 3cm) from crown to rump.

Your baby's arms and legs are longer and her hands are flexed at the wrist. The head is growing more erect and the neck is more developed. On an ultrasound, you may see your baby moving, though you still can not feel this.

The organs are forming. Ears are developed and the eyelids have begun to cover up your baby's eyes. Hands and feet appear as well as small buds which will become fingers and toes. The paddles of your baby's hands have clearly defined finger ridges now, with the tissue between them (which previously made them look webbed) reducing to leave separate fingers.

Your baby's back has started to straighten slightly and the tail is now shrinking. The head still seems large and is curved forwards on her chest. Your baby is starting to look like a tiny person!

Sleeping is entertaining

Why, might you ask, is sleeping entertaining? Well, I'll tell you. Being pregnant definitely has several up-sides, one of these being strange dreams. My dreams are highly entertaining. Three nights ago I dreamt that I was at Camp Anawana...now, the only people who will understand this reference are those who watched Nickelodeon in the early to mid 1990's. The TV show "Salute Your Shorts" took place at Camp Anawana (yes, there are episodes on YouTube). I had a very vivid dream about trying to join the swim team (even though I am a VERY slow swimmer) and hanging out with "Budnick". Two nights ago I dreamt that I was at Camp Tamakwa, the real summer camp that I actually went to for 7 summers. During this dream people were doing a triathalon (this is generally a pretty big event at camp); I was waiting in main camp for the triathletes to finish the race and watching Jon Linden (he may have been doing the infamous "butt dance"). Then last night I dreamt that I was with the people on the TV show Scrubs. This was a very complicated dream, but involved Dr. Cox and JD doing various things. I think this may have also involved swimming and a gas station. I think I may have also told them I was pregnant. lol

Well, there you have it. Pregnancy makes sleep so much more fun! :-)

I thought pregnancy meant no more maxi pads...

Yes, ladies, that's right. More spotting--brown only, in case you were wondering. It started late Thursday night and continued for all of Friday. Luckily it's all gone today and when I spoke with my OB/Gyn on Friday afternoon, she said that because of the blood clot they found in my uterus via ultrasound last Tuesday, having brown spotting is to be expected. She also said that since I'm not cramping, it's not red blood and it's really just spotting, not bleeding, I don't need to worry and just make sure to mention it at my appointment on Wednesday. They may do another ultrasound at that point just to make sure that the clot is resolving itself properly, but it's not something to worry about.

In the mean time, I'm going to continue with the pads so I don't ruin every single pair of underwear I own...hmph.

Nothing New

Not much to report...everything pregnancy-wise is going just fine, thank G-d. We told my mother-in-law yesterday, since it's her birthday, and she nearly passed out I think. :-) She was SO very excited, since she knew we had been trying for a while, and she's just happy to be a grandma again. We also told my husband's brothers today, and they were also very happy for us.

So, that's it for today. Will try to have more to report another day, but tonight I'm just so tired...ready to poop out...zzzzzzz

Ultrasound

Ok, I know this is the post everyone's been waiting for! We have two beautiful, perfect little heartbeats!! Baby A measured .95cm CRL (which is exactly 7w 0d) with a heartbeat of 137.7bpm and baby B measured .86cm CRL (which is 6w 6d) with a heartbeat of 146.8bpm.

Here are the photos!!

First is a picture of both beans at the same time...


Next is a picture of Baby A by his/herself


This is a picture of Baby A's measurement (you can see the yolk sac next to him/her...it's round)


This picture shows Baby A's heartbeat


This is a picture of Baby B's measurement


And, finally, this is Baby B's heartbeat

More Spotting

Sorry I've been so bad in posting this past week, but nothing really interesting has happened. Today is going to be my first "real" ultrasound and I'm nothing short of terrified. I woke up to more spotting today, although today's is all brown...but I don't know if it's just starting up or if it's going to go away as fast as it came. But it still freaks me out either way....spotting means something's going on and I don't know what that could be. I don't have any cramping still, which is good (except for gas...). *sigh* I wish this could be less stressful!! I don't really have any symptoms other than nightly nausea, but I haven't vomited at all. My boobs aren't really sore any more (probably because I'm only doing progesterone once a day now...), but they do twinge occasionally. I'm still tired all the time, but I get by without falling asleep sitting up. ;-) And I'm really trying my best to forget that I'm pregnant so I can live without freaking out every two seconds. I figure once I'm actually showing and can feel the baby move, then I can remember that I'm pregnant because I'll have a way to know that things are going ok...right now I have no idea. Thank goodness for the ultrasound today, or I might have a nervous breakdown... I'll update later!