Back from Ultrasound

Joaquin looks great! The doctor and the ultrasound technician both agreed that he does not have echogenic bowels. They re-did the entire anatomy scan and said he looks healthy. What a great relief!!

He is measuring way ahead in growth now too - at 20 weeks and 5 days, so 6 days ahead. He is 14 oz., so he has gained 5 oz. in less than 2 weeks!

The technician was really nice and could tell I was nervous, so she switched the machine over to 3D and let me see his face. I took this picture with my phone off the computer screen. It is incredible.

Ultrasound Tomorrow Morning

Just a reminder that I have my follow-up u/s tomorrow to check and make sure Joaquin is okay and determine if Hoag's diagnosis of an echogenic bowel is accurate or is something to worry about. The appointment is at 8:45.

Please wish me luck.

Hopefully I will also get another batch of pictures to share with you.

I can't believe this is my sixth ultrasound this pregnancy. Most people get three the entire time!

Bananas - Having a Relaxing Afternoon!

Jay and I went to Pottery Barn Kids Yesterday

Yesterday, Jay and I were hanging out relaxing and started to get bored, so I suggested we take a trip to PB Kids together to grab some stuff for the nursery. Jay was not very excited about the idea, but he was a good sport and off we went.

When we walked in, he looked at me and said something along the lines of "I've never been here before. It is actually really cute. I bet kids love this stuff."

So, we wandered around the store for quite a while and checked out all of the stuff they had. Jay really liked the Star Wars bedroom set for boys (not babies) and I think he hopes it's still in stock in a few years when Joaquin has a big boy bed.

We picked out some really cute wash cloth hand puppets for the bath and some other little toys and got some more stuff for the nursery - curtains, a valance, a pillow and the mobile hanger.

Now we just need to hang our curtain rod and we can put up the curtains and the valance. Hopefully we can motivate for that project this week sometime.

Congratulations Maren!

One of my closest friends and colleagues had her baby boy last night at 8:52 p.m. After 12 hours of labor followed by 2 long hours of pushing, Bennett David was born via c-section. Mother, son and father are doing well.
I'm thrilled for their family!

I need a volunteer :-)

We have a list of things that need to be drilled into the wall that's a mile long. Anyone want to swing by with some power tools? No? Just checking.

Between moving and getting a nursery put together, we sure have take on a lot of projects.

Follow Up Ultrasound Scheduled

Finally! After going back and forth with the insurance company to obtain authorization, we have an appointment at Magella Medical Group on Wednesday, June 30, at 8:45 a.m. They are going to repeat my anatomy scan, but this time with a much better machine and check on Joaquin's echogenic bowels. I hope everything is okay.

It will be nice to get an extra chance to see him too.

Wish us luck that we get good news next week.

Ticker Change Thursday - 19 weeks

Joaquin is 19 weeks today and about the size of a mango. Vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil and dead skin cells (yum) now coats baby's skin, shielding it from the amniotic fluid. (Picture yourself after a nine-month bath, and the need for protection makes sense.)

How far along? 19 Weeks Today
Weight gain/loss: Up 15 pounds. My OB says I'm right on track.
Sleep? Not a problem lately.
Best moment this week? Seeing the nursery painted. We are making progress!
Movement: I can feel him now and then, but I have to be sitting still to notice it.
Food cravings: My friend bought me a snow cone maker and it is AWESOME.
Gender: BOY!!
Belly button in or out? In, barely.
What I miss? My thin face, still.
What I am looking forward to? Our next ultrasound. I still haven't been able to schedule it due to my insurance authorization process. This is so frustrating.
Milestones: We got our first piece of furniture put together yesterday - the glider! It is unbelievably comfortable.
What I'm nervous about: I'm really nervous about our next ultrasound to check on Joaquin's bowels. I hope that everything is okay. It is just awful having to wait this long to find out more.

Nursery Painting Complete!

Jay did a fantastic job. This picture is terrible though.

Go Spain!

My super awesome boss, Susan, purchased a really cute gift for Joaquin, which I found on my desk this morning.

Let's hope that Spain kicks some butt today to make up for their poor performance last week.

Putting the Nursery Together

I just purchased a crib and glider for the nursery! We should be able to pick them up in one or two weeks. Mom, you would be proud - I used coupons and saved $114! BabiesRUs always has great coupons online and in the paper so there's never a reason to pay full price.

Jay is Painting the Nursery Today!

Jay is hard at work today painting the nursery with environmentally friendly paint from Benjamin Moore in Pistacio. We are so excited to get the nursery put together!

I am not allowed to help because I should not breathe the paint fumes, so I am going to head over to BabiesRUs shortly and buy some of the nursery furniture (as much as I can fit in my car!) and then I have an appointment for a facial at my dermatologist's office, because these pregnancy hormones are not very nice to my skin. It's a rough life today!

Update from OB

I talked to my OB at around 6:00 last night and feel much better. She said that in all but one case when one of her patients was diagnosed with an echogenic bowel from Hoag at their Big U/S, it was nothing at all when they followed up at Magella (the high risk center with the better u/s machines). In the one case where it was an issue they already knew the baby had Down Syndrome from the NT Scan and a follow amnio.

My NT Scan came back beautifully as did the related bloodwork, so she is not worried about Down Syndrome at all. Additionally, I was tested to see if I was a carrier for Cystic Fibrosis and I am not, so we don't need to worry about that either.

In my case in particular, she said the echogenicity was very mild, so she is really not worried about it.

Phew!

I will be able to schedule my follow-up u/s on Monday or Tuesday and they will fit me in on a rush, so hopefully we will have the u/s next week sometime.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is just a great way to get another set of those really detailed pictures from Magella like we did a month ago, but this time he will be a lot bigger so the pictures will be even better.

Follow Up to Big Ultrasound Results

I got a message from my OB yesterday to call about our ultrasound results. I was in a meeting for much of this morning when the office was open, so Jay called to see what was going on.

We don't know much except that our OB said:

1) We shouldn't be worried (most important part)

2) Joaquin has a mildly echogenic bowel

3) I am going to need another ultrasound soon at the high-risk center (where we had the NT Scan) to see more and determine whether we need to do any further testing.

I haven't been able to touch base with the doctor yet to ask follow up questions, as she is currently otherwise occupied at a birth.

I have consulted Dr. Google and found that most of the time an echogenic bowel (especially when diagnosed as "mild") is nothing at all. Sometimes it is just the result of the calibration of the machine performing the ultrasound. In the most severe cases it is a marker for Down Syndrome or Cystic Fibrosis, but we don't need to worry about those because DS was ruled out by our NT Scan and my bloodwork did not come back positive for Cystic Fibrosis.

If you want to read more about echogenic bowels, this website is probably the best description I have found.

Once I know more and get a date for our ultrasound, I will update further. Hopefully this is just a great excuse for some really good pictures of Joaquin at the next ultrasound.

Belly Picture Friday - 18w1d

Ticker Change Thursday - 18 Weeks

Joaquin is 18 weeks today! Joaquin is now passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing.

How far along? 18 Weeks Today
Weight gain/loss: I'll find out a week from today. I'd guess I'm up 14 pounds.
Sleep? I had a lot of trouble sleeping on Tuesday night because I couldn't get comfortable. Hopefully that was a one time thing and not the norm from here on out.
Best moment this week? Confirming that we are having a healthy baby boy yesterday. He even gave us a thumbs up during the ultrasound to let us know he was doing okay in there.
Movement: He sure was moving around A LOT during the ultrasound yesterday. The technician said he was abnormally active, which is why the scan took about 2 hours. I only feel movements every once in a while though.
Food cravings: Soup.
Gender: Now we are confident that we are having a boy!
Belly button in or out? In, barely.
What I miss? My thin face.
What I am looking forward to? Getting to the half way mark - 2 weeks to go!
Milestones: Getting through the big ultrasound was huge for me. It looks like Joaquin has all his parts in the right places, which is great!
What I'm nervous about: Getting the nursery put together and looking cute. It will happen, it will just be a lot of work. First step is painting this weekend.

Joaquin is a big boy!

He is measuring at approximately 9 oz. The norm for right now is about 6.7 oz. Maybe Jay's dream of having a son on Notre Dame's football team is not totally out of the question...

Meet Joaquin Jose Luis!

Big U/S video

Here is a very short video of Joaquin's little heart beating away!

Still all boy!! It's official! He looked healthy but my OB will go over the results with me next Thursday.

40 hours left!

Until our BIG ULTRASOUND!! I am so excited. We are going in at 9:00 am on Wednesday for the anatomy scan. This is the ultrasound where they can tell us (for ure) the gender of the baby. They also do a bunch of measurements of the baby's organs and head, legs, arms, etc. to make sure everything is growing properly. The scan takes about an hour and a half. It will be so wonderful to get to see our baby moving around for that long.

We should be getting a lot of pictures and maybe even a DVD, so hopefully we can post lots of stuff for everyone to look at.

Wish us luck that our baby is growing and healthy!

Belly Picture Friday

I am going to really try to stick to this schedule from here on out. It will probably mean a bunch of pictures of me in my work restroom, but hey, it works.

Ticker Change Thursday - 17 Weeks!

Baby is 17 weeks today and about the size of an onion. Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints.


How far along? 17 Weeks Today
Weight gain/loss: Up at least 11 pounds. I haven't weighed myself in about a week, so I'm not sure of the exact number yet.
Sleep? The best part of coming home from vacation is sleeping in our own bed. We slept 12 hours on Monday night to make up for the Sunday night red eye flight.
Best moment this week? Steve and Jamie's wedding on Friday was a lot of fun. Weddings are always magical for me.
Movement: II'm pretty sure I'm feeling tiny little movements here and there. I can't wait for that first big kick!
Food cravings: Anything home cooked.
Gender: Only 6 more days until the big ultrasound and we will know for sure!
Belly button in or out? In, barely.
What I miss? Hawaii.
What I am looking forward to? Our big ultrasound. I can't wait!
Milestones: I'm officially 4 months pregnant now, which sounds so far along. I am so happy to have made it this far without complications. I am hoping my good luck continues.
What I'm nervous about: Nothing today. I'm feeling pretty good.

Belly Pic!

I have admittedly been a slacker when it has come to taking and posting pictures of my belly. There hasn't been much to see until now. I finally look pregnant, rather than looking like I just ate a huge plate of nachos.

Movement!!

Yesterday I felt our baby moving for the first time! They were little tiny movements, but I am pretty sure it was the baby and not just my digestive system.

What a cool feeling.

Ticker Change Thursday - 16 Weeks

Baby is 16 weeks today! Tiny bones forming in baby's ears mean the little one can now pick up our voices. Eyebrows, lashes and hair are starting to fill in, and taste buds are forming.

How far along? 16 Weeks Today
Weight gain/loss: Up 11 pounds. I had to get weighed at the helicopter place.
Maternity clothes? Exclusively.
Sleep? We are both having a hard time adjusting to Hawaii time, so we have been going to bed early and waking up early. It is gorgeous here in the early mornings.
Best moment this week? Tough question. We have been having an excellent time in Hawaii. All of the moments are amazing.
Movement: I keep thinking I feel something, but I think it is still just wishful thinking. Hopefully soon I will feel an unmistakable kick!
Food cravings: Pineapples and macadamia nuts. Yum!!
Gender: We have an ultrasound in 13 days to confirm that we are having a baby boy.
Belly button in or out? In, barely.
What I miss? Nothing.
What I am looking forward to? Just taking in each day of this vacation one at a time.
Milestones: My first plane trip pregnant wasn't so bad. It makes me a little less nervous about our flight to Spain in September, although I will be a lot bigger then.
What I'm nervous about: Going back to work.