Yesterday Josh and I went for BB's 4 month appointment! Tomorrow I will be 16 weeks along. I can't believe we are getting close to being half way through already. I mentioned to Sharon (our nurser practitioner) that my lower back has been hurting, especially when I lay on my back (which I like to do when I'm reading in bed or watching tv on the couch). She looked at my charts and said "Well, I can't get on you for gaining weight too quickly, because you are doing great with only gaining 3 pounds since the beginning of your pregnancy so far." That was good to hear, because with how much BB is already sticking out, I was nervous that I was gaining too quickly. Apparently, though, my weight is just redistributing itself right to my stomach. She advised me to stack a few pillows under my knees when I'm lying on my back and gave me some exercises to do to stretch out my lower back and loosen my hips some.
Once again, BB was hiding, so she couldn't find the heartbeat with the doppler. So off to the ultrasound room we went. And guess what...BB has "railroad tracks". She pointed to the screen and said, "See those railroad tracks? That's the baby's spine going all the way down to the tailbone." BB was tucked right-side up, curled with his/her back to us, so we got a great look at BB's spine which is looking great according to Sharon. We got glimpses of BB's arms and legs, but because of the way he/she was tucked in there, it was hard to see much else besides the back.
After the ultrasound, we scheduled our BIG APPOINTMENT! On April 6th (Good Friday), we will venture across the street to the hospital to have our extra detailed ultrasound with the techs there to find out whether BB is a boy or girl. But sorry, folks, while Josh and I are very excited to learn this news, we have decided to keep it a secret until BB is born. We decided it would be something very special for the two of us to share together until BB makes his/her entrance into the world. So, feel free to start placing your bets now, but you've got a few months until you will know if you are a winner! I'm sure someone will set up an "official" Baby Blakely pool at some point, so be on the lookout for that information. Maybe you will even get a cool prize if you guess correctly.
After scheduling our next appointment, I had to go upstairs to LabCorp to get some blood drawn. This was a little terrifying...not the blood being drawn (that doesn't bother me so much), but what the blood was being drawn for. This blood sample will be tested as a screening for down syndrome and open neural tube defects like spina bifida. While I am considered low risk due to all my other factors (no family history of these abnormalities, young, healthy, etc.) these results will give a better idea on whether additional research and screenings might need to take place if there are signs of either in the results. Josh and I decided to go ahead and have the screening done since the blood being drawn is at no risk to BB. However, if results come back needing more tests to be done, we will have to discuss our options and their safety to BB.
The afternoon consisted of having lunch and going to the library to check out a few new books to read! Then we took a 1.5 hour walk on the High Bridge Trail with our friends Jeff and Courtney and their two dogs Bandit and Lily. It was a beautiful day with weather in the 70s, and it is only supposed to get warmer throughout the week! Then we went to the Prince Edward varsity girls softball game to watch some of the youth play. The weather was so nice that I actually got some sun on my face, neck and chest. Oh how I love Spring! If only the weather would stay this way until BB is born!
No comments:
Post a Comment