Daddy's First Post

Hi Everyone,

It's Dan here. Beth's taking a nap and I'm waiting for dinner to heat up, so I thought I'd make a quick post. I keep telling Beth that I'm going to post, but haven't done it yet.

Monday brought our 2nd doctor's appointment. They tried using the doppler, but couldn't pick up the heart beat with it, so we got another ultrasound. Yay!! Once they got it focused on the baby, you could see the heart beating away. It was so great to see. It's amazing to see the woman I love carrying our child. I never could've imagined the joy it gives me. I can't wait until we can see more clearly and make out parts of the baby better (speaking of which, the heartbeat was 176 bpm leading Beth to think the baby is a girl. I'd appreciate any evidence to the contrary, but of course I'll love the baby whether a girl or boy). Hopefully, when the time comes we'll have the $$ for the 3D ultrasound.

Well that's all I have now. Hopefully I will have more news to post soon on another topic, but I'll wait till I have news to talk about that. Have a great day everyone!!

11 Weeks (32 minutes early)

How your baby's growing:Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden.She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

10 Weeks ( 6 days late--sorry!)

How your baby's growing:Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

9 weeks and (3 days) to be exact

How your baby's growing:Your new resident is nearly an inch long — about the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks. Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain.

I Got Your Back

Hello!

So, I guess I should post some other things besides the progress of the baby. I have been having "morning sickness" and it always comes after my shower right before breakfast. It's just dry heaves though. I guess that's better than what it could be. I am just ready for it to stop. It is really putting a toll on my back and throat. I could eat mashed potatoes, noodles, or rice every day and all day! My chest is growing and I wasn't expecting that until later, but it's a part of this wonderful journey. I am getting tired alot earlier in the evening and usually get 8 hours of sleep and then look forward to a nap at work. That is right, during my break I go either to my car (depending on weather) or back into the storm shelter and take a nap. It is always much needed.

Dan and I went to the doctor July 6th, and I am not sure if I posted about the visit. When we got there I had to fill out paper work and then go take a pee test. Normally that is pretty difficult to do on demand, but now it's a piece of cake! Then, we went and had an internal ultrasound done. No, it didn't hurt. I had already experieced it 2 previous times, so it was nothing new. As soon as she put the magic wand in I saw the baby's heart beating and tears just filled my eyes. Dan was sitting right next to me and it is a moment in our lives that I will never ever forget. The baby was measuring at .99cm and his/her heart beat was 143 (which could be a girl?!?!) Next it was time for the blood work. It took 3 nurses to find a vein to even get blood from! They poked my left arm, right hand and then finally was able to get some from my right wrist. Never had blood drawn from my wrist, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Any suggestions for next month when I get more blood work done on how to make my veins cooperate?

The title of this blog is "I Got Your Back." It's because every time I start to cough it usually means I am going to run to the sink. Not only am I at the sink, but Dan is almost always in toe getting ready to rub my back. I am sure if he could take away this particular symptom of pregnancy he would. He has been amazing thus far through all of this. He has been the one to get me new bras actually! Can you believe that? He always knows when I say "I have a taste for...." that I will want something, and want it in a timly matter. He makes sure I take all of my pills (prenatal, brain development (code for icky fish oil, and calcium chews.) He has brought me lemon drops and oyster crackers to work when I wasn't feeling to well. I know he felt kind of left out when we were at the doctor because they were asking about my family history and not his. The doctor was sweet and said, "Not that you don't count, but unless there were genetic problems, it's just the mom's family's history that we need." He was still hurt. Did he really want to get blood work done and sit and answer questions that the answers are all no?? Not really. Instead we finished up and went to lunch.

Well, that is all if have for now. Thank you for reading!!

Beth~

8 Weeks

How your baby's growing:New this week:
Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. You may be daydreaming about your baby as one sex or the other, but the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl. Either way, your baby — about the size of a kidney bean — is constantly moving and shifting, though you still can't feel it.

7 Weeks

How your baby's growing:

The big news this week: Hands and feet are emerging from developing arms and legs — although they look more like paddles at this point than the tiny, pudgy extremities you're daydreaming about holding and tickling. Technically, your baby is still considered an embryo and has something of a small tail, which is an extension of her tailbone. The tail will disappear within a few weeks, but that's the only thing getting smaller. Your baby has doubled in size since last week and now measures half an inch long, about the size of a blueberry.

If you could see inside your womb, you'd spot eyelid folds partially covering her peepers, which already have some color, as well as the tip of her nose and tiny veins beneath parchment-thin skin. Both hemispheres of your baby's brain are growing, and her liver is churning out red blood cells until her bone marrow forms and takes over this role. She also has an appendix and a pancreas, which will eventually produce the hormone insulin to aid in digestion. A loop in your baby's growing intestines is bulging into her umbilical cord, which now has distinct blood vessels to carry oxygen and nutrients to and from her tiny body.