My Birthday Scan - and an update

Em and I snuck in another pm ultrasound.... She mainly got to see what was going on - I was laying at that weird angle where you can't really see the screen at all. So Blasto was dancing around like crazy in there & he's got the thumb sucking down already - which is about two weeks before my "your pregnancy week by week" book says he'd have it figured out - what a bright boyling he is.

He's supposedly around the size of a peach or my fist - I can't feel him moving around yet & when I put em's stethescope to my belly I don't hear anything but gas... but he's growing right on target with the numbers that the photo machine prints out. He's in there resting his head on a nice little cyst thats growing along with him... my contribution - the doctor says its nothing to worry about at this point & will stay out of the way of the pregnancy - all the extra hormones give everything more of a growth spurt.

Developmently he's still a big headed boy with his head being one half his entire body- but its sitting on his neck now and not just rolling about on the shoulders. The hearts in there beating crazy fast (pumping 25 quarts of blood a day!), and he's practicing breathing by sucking in & out the amniotic fluid - yuck!!!! His arms are proportional at this point but he's still got stubby legs - although on the last scan they looked pretty long & lean to me so I don't know.... and his liver & spleen and all start functioning so that he's starting to pee into that amniotic fluid that he's drinking (yuck!!)

As for me - I am still feeling sick in the afternoons & evenings more often than not - & I finally got sick for the first time when I took a new prenatal vitamin- it stayed down for less than 5 minutes. Made me pretty glad that although I am getting crampy stomach aches & feel like I am on an extended boating trip I am not actually throwing up.

CVS Scan

Ok - here's the photo from the Super High End fancy schmancy Ultrasound that they use when they are doing the CVS Testing.

I went in for the exam on Dec. 17th in the afternoon... I had to go alone cause Em was up in PDX for an interview. The bus ride to CPMC sucked which made me realize I better learn how to drive or something before the last month or two when I am going to have to get out there EVERY week. The genetick counselor lady was okay... I had already read up so she didn't tell me much that I hadn't already read about or thought through - except she assured me that the Dr. who would do the CVS was one of the co-founders of the dept - Dr. Goldberg & he's done tons & tons of CVS tests (which is one of the biggest factors in lowering the risks of complications!!) So that made me feel better. Then I went back to the waiting room & then in for the test... oh Did I mention that EVERYBODY ELSE who was there had there spouse with them... okay - so we went in & the Ultrasound Tech TOTALLY ROCKED - she was so cool - I felt like she spent a good amount of extra time getting lots of good shots of blasto from almost every angle - close ups of his hands & feet - I could see the bones in his hands - a good shot of the back of his neck & she told me that the neck is thin - a good sign from the genetic standpoint
and he was kicking his legs all over the place and rolled around for us - his place is actually pretty roomy in there right now - I hope he enjoys it cause its gonna get a lot more cramped in the near future.

So the placenta is between me & blasto which means they had to do the CVS with a needle through the belly - The big Doc & a nurse came in (she also rocked) and they gave me the numbing shot & then the Dr. went in & pulled out some cell samples - they showed it to me in the bottle it looked kinda like honeycomb --- all very fascinating. The Doctor was also great - I felt good about the whole experience & didn't have any pain or cramping or bleeding or anything. Shari came & got me after & I laid on her couch while she & Emma made holiday cookies. Then a had to lay around and not do much of anything for a couple of days... Doctors Orders!!!

Developmental Update .... his jaw has sockets where the teeth are growing. His brain structure should be complete & his face is pretty much human - he's got vocal cords and may be in there talking to himself. His intestines should have moved inside where they belong & out of the umbilical cord & the gall bladder, pancreas and thyroid are all good to go - the pancreas starts making insulin. His skin is "sensitive" and he's getting reflexes - fingernails are growing as are genitals. Go Blasto Go!