Baby's First Picture!

I had my first prenatal visit this morning. Everything is GREAT so far, although I haven't gotten any news on my blood work yet.


There were only two things I was nervous about:
1. That the baby's heartbeat wouldn't be there (possibly the sign of an impending miscarriage)
2. That the sac would be empty (meaning, baby stopped developing weeks ago and just hasn't aborted yet)

But as soon as the ultrasound went on, there was a little mass inside of that black sac and a fast and furious flicker in the center of it. Our baby has a heartbeat. It's incredible to sit here and think that inside of my body is a fist sized, 23+ year old heart beating and the immature heart of our tiny little zygote is beating independently of mine. The heart was going strong, at about 149 BPM (they like to see it between 130-150). And the baby was exactly the size it should be for 7 weeks -- 12.4MM.

My due date is officially August 18th. Okay, now the fun part, here is little baby Erickson-Sander:



Here, I've labeled what the nurse told me about the hard-to-understand shadows:


The same photo, unaltered:


Using this photo, the nurse was able to determine our bean's heart's BPM:


So there they are, folks! Like I said to my sister earlier today, only a pregnant woman can find these black and white shadowy pictures simply adorable!

Luckily, my doctor does 3D/4D ultrasounds after this (unlike some docs, at no extra cost) so at my 12 week appt in 5 weeks, you'll be able to literally SEE our baby. It's amazing.

One more cool thought: today my baby isn't even as big as a bean. By my 12 week appt in only FIVE WEEKS, it will be about the size of an apple! That's some fast growth there.

Regarding my doctor's office- so far I love everyone I've met and it's been a great experience all around. The doctor even called me at home about 30 mins to congratulate me and let me know to call if I had any questions (today, I just saw a nurse for basic stuff). He sounded genuinely excited for me. Fake or not, it was nice. The nurse says both doctors are phenomenal. I feel lucky to have found them and that they take our insurance.

Cheers!

Motherly Advice

Like I said in my last post, when you get pregnant, everyone is ready to offer up advice. When my best friend and confidant cat, Luna, heard I was going to have a baby, she had several helpful tips. Who better to listen to than the mother of 6 grown kids?

Here is her advice:
1. When picking up baby, best way to hold is by the neck using your teeth. This seems to calm them down and also immobilize them.
2. Immediately after birth, chew off the umbilical cord and eat the placenta for extra nutrients.
3. When baby is naughty the best way to correct baby's behavior is a quick swat (claws extended) and a hiss.
4. When baby is old enough to leave, pretend like they're not yours anymore and ignore them as best you can.
5. To clean baby, lick it thoroughly. With girl baby, be sure to lick their bottoms front to back.

Gee thanks Luna. Not sure if this advice applies to me, but you never know until you become a mother what will work...

Morning Sickness

I really can't stand another 6+ weeks of this. I wake up sick. I go to bed sick. I live sick. Sick defines me. Maybe you're thinking, "Gee, Heather, complain much?" But I really have tried EVERYTHING. Nothing makes it go away. Saltines, natural ginger ale, etc. Mints help it temporarily but I can't pop peppermints 24/7.

The advice, however, is almost getting as old as the morning sickness. As soon as people find out you're pregnant, even if they're complete strangers (ie - my client's moms)or even if they're family, they immediately launch into all the tricks and tips that worked for them when they were pregnant. I'm already getting baby care advice too. Not that I don't appreciate their desire to help, but I've heard so many different things- who am I supposed to listen to? And as far as the morning sickness, I've already tried it all, so just save it please. What worked for you doesn't work for everyone, I've found out.

One of the nicest pieces of advice I've gotten, however, came from one of my favorite client's mom. Immediately after congratulating me, she told me this: "Make sure to relax and enjoy your pregnancy. Let everyone pamper you and wait on you! Believe me, you won't be getting anymore of that after the baby comes, so take advantage now. Let your family come clean your house for you, let your husband make you dinner, take full advantage."

So you heard her! Everyone come clean my house! :) No, as selfish and self-centered that may sound, I'm going to let people wait on me for the next 8 months. She's right, I won't get that anymore after this baby is born. My sister told me to especially enjoy this first one because a second pregnancy is never the same- you already have kids to care for.

Justin has already been a doll, it's not like I need to tell him all that. He doesn't complain when I ask him to go downstairs for my Tums at 3am. He makes dinner and always asks me what he can do to help me. After seeing some of my acquaintances and their jerk husbands I know I'm very lucky to have a patient, unselfish husband who puts his family before himself. What a good daddy my baby is going to have. I had a good daddy too.

The cat has been evicted from the bag...

We told the rest of our family today- all Justin's side, all at once. It was fun. I basically set it up like I was going to take a picture of everyone at Christmastime but instead of saying "Say cheese!" it was "Say, Heather's pregnant!" and I actually video recorded it. They didn't believe me at first, which I can't blame them for since I'm a total April Fool's type of person all year round. Here it is! I'm relieved the whole family knows finally... (I HATE my voice on this recording!)


Telling our family

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Nauseated

The nausea has come... :(
It's not as bad as I was thinking it would be. It's not, oh my gosh I'm going to puke my brains out, stomach flu nausea.
It's more of a dull, annoying, nausea. I don't want to eat anything nausea -- get those scrambled eggs the hell away from me NAUSEA.
But my mother's advice has proven true, and usually (usually!) as soon as I start eating it tapers off. Some foods help it go away better than others. I wonder why your body does this to itself when pregnant?

On a happier note, I've hit week 6! The risk of miscarriage drops dramatically this week, and my baby is starting to form it's eyes, spine, and little nubs which will become it's hands and feet. It's doubling in size every week. Right now, it's about the size of a grain of rice. By my appointment next week at 7 weeks, baby will be the size of a bean. Byt 12-13 weeks, the size of an apple! Sigh... they grow up so fast...