20 weeks

Here's a picture of me at 20 weeks along.

I know this may sound strange, but I'm already feeling very much attached to our little girl. I don't even know what it'll be like when she actually arrives.

Also, we started playing music for her...a little late I know. But, she's got awesome taste. So far her favorites are "Imagine" by the Beatles and "Humans Being" by Van Halen. The Van Halen song was played by accident on my iPod. I've been playing more classical/piano music for her lately.

So...here's the belly picture.

Smithling is a...

GIRL!

We are soooo excited to welcome Scarlett Leigh into our lives come April of next year. We found out last Wednesday that our little one was a girl, and have announced it to our families over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

19 weeks

So this is it...two days until our Smithling officially has a proper name (although, I DO love Smithling). Saturday marked 19 weeks in this journey to mommy and daddy-hood, and we've thoroughly enjoyed every step of the way.

Saturday I also went in for my 3 hours glucose tolerance test. I passed 3 of the 4 tests, and have an appointment with a dietician next week. I will have to test again at around 24-26 weeks, but I haven't heard if it's the 1 hour or the 3 hour again.

So, here's this week's belly picture. Please excuse the weird hair as I hadn't "done" it yet.

Texas and 6 days left!

As most of you know, I have been out of town. Well, more out-of-state, really. Jake and I made our yearly trek to Texas to visit his Dad and Step-mom last week. I always enjoy going to visit them. Texas is like a different world. Of course as almost always happens when we go out there, our last night was met with a thunder storm that was really cool to watch because you're able to see it even though it's two cities over. We got to see the Dallas Cowboys new stadium (from the freeway, and it looked like a giant marshmallow) and Six Flags over Arlington (we didn't go because Jake didn't want to ride anything by himself). All in all, we had fun.

Yesterday also marked ONE WEEK until Jake and I find out if our Smithling is a boy or girl. I'm excited, but also a little scared. It's one more step to the whole thing being real and I've been having some strange dreams...one of which was last night where I was only 4 months along and in labor. But I was in labor in an old folks home-like place where the nurse was giving the bed next to mine to someone and they were cleaning old leaves and stuff out of that bed and putting it on top of mine. That and my entire family was there watching me go through contractions. Yeah...I was a little freaked out.

I also failed my one-hour glucose screening and have to do the 3-hour test on Saturday. That means I'll have to have my blood drawn 3-4 times and I can't leave the lab until the final draw is done. Yeah...not a fan.

Wish me luck!

Elections

In case you're wondering, no this post isn't about our elections last week and my disappointment in them (Looooooong story, will tell any inquiring minds later). This post is about choices, because that's essentially what elections are - choices we make. We make these choices that will affect our lives, even if for one moment.

During pregnancy, there are tons of choices you must make...and they ALL seemingly affect your child. Will you breastfeed or bottle feed? Will you choose an epidural, or go au natural? Will you choose cloth diapers or disposable ones? Some of these choices, or ELECTIONS are harder to choose than others. One person's choices isn't exactly the same as someone else's.

Some of the most important choices I have made during my pregnancy is in regards to genetic testing. There is an entire gamut of tests that I could choose from. I could do blood panel screenings, ultrasounds, and all the way up to amniocentesis, and CVS (Chorionic Villus Sampling). I was able to choose any test I was comfortable with taking.

It was expressed to me that some might not have understood why I had the NT scan. An NT scan is called Nuchal Translusency scan. It's a detailed ultrasound where they measure this little pad of fluid on the back of the baby's neck. Every fetus has it. The thicker the pad (or more fluid), the higher the chance the baby will have of having Down Syndrome along with some other genetic abnormalities. The fluid in the pad puts pressure on the developing spine, thus preventing crucial brain development and function (at least that's what I was told by the tech). If the test indicates that there might be a higher risk of Down Syndrome, an Amniocentesis would've been recommended along with further testing. I could've chosen to skip the ultrasound and gone straight to the Amnio, but I CHOSE or ELECTED to do the blood panel screening and NT scan. I wanted to get tested to make sure the baby was OK, but I also wanted to do the least invasive tests available. So I had the blood test and the NT scan. Of course if the doctor had told me further testing was recommended, I would've done the Amnio. But being that I am not a fan of needles and their general reason for existing, I decided to not do that. As it turns out, our baby is fine and the tests I ELECTED to have were the right choice for us. It wasn't because I am considered "high risk" which I am not at this point. The doctor and I made conscious decisions together for the best benefit of Jake and my child.

Oh, and the NT scans became a normal choice in genetic testing in 1995-1996.

Weekly video 11/5/10

Remember, remember the 5th of November,
The gun powder, treason and plot -
I see no reason why the gunpowder and treason
Should ever be forgot.

I love this movie.

16 weeks!

Wow...16 weeks along. Holy cow!

I always say this, but I remember when Jake and I first found out we were pregnant and one of my thoughts was "Wow...it's a long time until we get into the double-digit months, especially 16 weeks". 16 weeks has always been a major milestone in my mind as far as pregnancies go. To me, it was a comfortable number, and still is.

It's still amazing to me that we've received such a gift from God. I've been thinking about it a lot - about when I finally calmed down and stopped praying for a child, and starting praying for understanding of why I was going through this. Within a few months, God blessed Jake and I with our baby. We have another appointment on Friday, so we get to see the Smithling again. I must admit, the few days before an ultrasound are torture because all I want to do is sit and stare at that ultrasound screen all day.

Alrighty...I guess I'll post a belly picture. ;)