I had my 18 week (I’m rounding up, since I will be 18 weeks on Sunday) doctor’s appointment this morning and have this to report back:
Weight: up 3 lb since last month (7 lbs total gain)
Blood Pressure: 100/70
Baby’s Heartbeat: Normal, 155
Today was just a routine appointment and everything looks great. The only thing of excitement is we scheduled the date for the BIG ultrasound for July 6th and we will (hopefully) find out if we are having a boy or a girl! Yippee!!
And so it begins. I am 16 weeks today and I have officially entered the point in my pregnancy where I feel like I need to start taking belly shots. I’m trying not to compare this to my first belly shot with Ana at 17 weeks. Everyone says you show faster with the second pregnancy and I am firmly supporting that theory. Well, it’s certainly not because I’ve been eating too much lately! Quite the opposite, in fact. Food and I are not on the best of terms right now. When something does actually sound good, I get about half way through eating it and I am done. Like, get it away from me. NOW. And we won’t be eating that, oh, ever again. Yep, I am still overcome with morning sickness.
But enough about that, let’s get to the baby bump! Here is Baby Bateman 2.0:
And Ana wanted to be in the picture too, so here she is giving some lovin’ to her future sibling.
I had my 14 week (I’m rounding up, since I will be 14 weeks tomorrow) doctor’s appointment yesterday morning and have this to report back:
Weight: down 1/2 lb since last month (3 lbs total gain)
Blood Pressure: 130/70
Baby’s Heartbeat: Normal, in the 150s
It was just a routine once-a-month doctor’s appointment, but it’s always nice to check on the baby and hear the woosh, woosh, woosh of that little heartbeat. Ana loves going to my appointments with me because my wonderful and amazing doctor really likes to get her involved. She is always asking Ana to help her out and this time Ana was THRILLED to get to help run the fetal Doppler that allows you to hear the heartbeat. All in all, things are looking great and I go back for my next appointment in a month.
I am so happy that I was able to keep track of my pregnancy with Ana here on my blog. It is so comforting to go look back through my archives and remind myself that all this is normal, I went through it before, and everything turned out just fine. I know every pregnancy is different, but it’s still fun to compare (sorry, baby #2, but it looks like the comparing-you-to-your-older-sister actually starts in the womb). For example, this pregnancy has followed the same trends as with Ana: I’m nauseous, I’m exhausted, I can’t stand to eat vegetables, and brushing my teeth is one of the worst forms of torture. However, things aren’t quite as intense. Maybe I’m not as dramatic this time around or maybe it’s the fact that I’m keeping up with Ana and don’t always have the time to focus so much time on ME. I will admit that not having to go to work each day as been the greatest blessing. When I get tired, I just curl up on the couch with Ana and we read a book or watch a movie. Ana still naps, so most days I get to nap as well. Even if I don’t actually fall asleep, I still get to lay down and rest. Plus I have Sim around to help me anytime I’m not feeling well. Having him work from home has been such a blessing. He’s quick to bring me a glass of juice and a wet washcloth when I get sick, he puts on a movie for Ana when I’m curled up in bed with a headache, and he is understanding beyond belief when I suddenly can’t eat certain foods that I have always loved, when I refuse to eat leftovers, and when I can’t eat the same food more than once (as you can imagine, I’m quickly running out of things to eat here). I have an amazing support system around here, and I couldn’t do it without them. I love you, Sim and Ana!
Well, it’s been a long time coming, but I am finally ready to make the official announcement: I AM PREGNANT!! We are going to have another baby!
Two lines! Two lines!
Seven week ultrasound picture.
Nine week ultrasound picture.
I am 12 weeks pregnant today and just starting my second trimester. The chance of miscarriage drops significantly at this point which is why we are finally comfortable sharing the good news. This gives us a November 14th expected due date! Wahoooo! In light of my previous experience, it’s really hard to let myself get excited and be happy, but I think we are finally at that point. I cannot wait to share this journey with all of you.
So backing up a little bit, after my miscarriage, the doctor told us to stop trying for a cycle to give my body a chance to recover. Then we tried the Clomid again. We did the same dose as before, since obviously it worked, just something else didn’t. I charted, tracked BBTs, and had my blood drawn (checking various hormone levels) more times than I care to recall. But it was all worth it in the end. I brought my doctor my successful chart and she joked that it was the most perfect chart she has ever seen, saying she would have thought it was the sample chart if it didn’t have my name on it. I couldn’t have been more happy!
I have been keeping a little journal for myself (since I wasn’t able to post it all here yet) and wanted to share that with you now. Ya know, just to catch you up.
3/9/10
My boobs are killing me, my face is breaking out, when I opened the fridge the combination of all the smells made me gag and I’m over-reacting to every little thing (I can see myself acting crazy but I can’t seem to rein it in). I must be pregnant. There is just no other logical conclusion.
(Please let me be pregnant. I know it sounds like I’m complaining, but I’m really not. Please, please, PLEASE let me be pregnant.)
3/14/10
After 18 days of elevated BBTs I took a pregnancy test as soon as we got home from the beach tonight. I know the tests all recommend the first urine of the day, so I had low expectations. You can imagine my surprise when the second line showed up immediately, confirming what I already suspected: I’m pregnant!!
3/29/10
Despite the fact that I have taken SEVERAL pregnancy tests over the last couple weeks, it was still a shock to me when I had an ultrasound today and we saw a baby! We were even able to see (and hear!) a heartbeat. It was so comforting to have a positive outcome and happy tears. Looks like I am a little over seven weeks along and are looking at a November 14th due date!
4/14/10
I had a doctors appointment today (I’m 9w3d) and we got to have a mini ultrasound to check on the baby. I was so nervous, but sure enough there was a tiny baby and a steady heartbeat. They printed the picture and Ana carried it around the office telling everyone it was a picture of HER baby.
A big thanks to all of you who have offered us support and shared your experiences with us along the way. We are excited and scared but we wouldn’t have it any other way. I have started a “Maybe Baby TWO!” category where any and all baby related pictures will be posted. Check back often!
A little over two weeks ago, on December 18th, I got something I hadn’t had in almost four years: a positive pregnancy test. I was so excited. In fact, I wrote this:
Well, I just found out I am pregnant. I guess I already KNEW, but I was trying to not get my hopes up… like I did several times in the last 11 months of trying to get pregnant. It’s been a rough time so far, but I am sure that by August 24th 2010 (my due date!!), it will all be worth it. It’s a cool, rainy day today, but my heart is so full of happiness and hope that I don’t even notice.
But before you go and get all excited and happy like I did, I have to warn you: this story does not have a happy ending.
Four days ago I started spotting. I tried not to be too worried about it, after all, this happened when I was pregnant with Ana, so I tried to be optimistic. I took it easy, spending the better part of the day in bed watching a marathon of The Next Iron Chef. But the spotting continued. And then it got worse. Finally I decided it was time to call my doctor. After a couple calls back and forth I ultimately was given two options: 1) come in the following day for an ultrasound or 2) wait and see if things get worse. Since I had already waited and decided it was worse, I opted for the ultrasound.
That brings me to this morning. Sim and I dropped Ana off for a playdate with some friends and we went to our ultrasound appointment. The tech started the ultrasound and took a few pictures but decided she couldn’t quite see what she was looking for and wanted to do an internal ultrasound. Once again, this didn’t worry me because I had been through all this before. But as the ultrasound progressed and nothing appeared on the screen, our hopes started to diminish. The room was totally silent. Finally the tech spoke and said, “Ok, here is your left ovary…and here is your right ovary.” And that was pretty much all she had to report. Sim told me later later, “I kept waiting for her to say, ‘and here is your baby’ but that never came.” She said she would send the pictures she took over to my doctor and I would meet with her in a few minutes.
We went out to the waiting room and were soon called back to see my OB. She walked into the room and said, “This was NOT the reason I was hoping to see you guys today.” Boy, do I know! So we basically sat down and talked about what had happened and what we need to do now.
My doctor was a little stumped because there weren’t any obvious signs of a miscarriage; I hadn’t had any pain or cramping with the bleeding and the ultrasound didn’t show a blighted ovum (empty gestational sac). In fact, the ultrasound didn’t show anything. Nothing. I was beginning to think I was having a hysterical pregnancy like Terri on Glee, but my doctor assured me that I did not make the whole thing up. She said it was probably one of two things, either I had already passed the sac without noticing or I was experiencing an ectopic pregnancy. They drew some of my blood to check my HCG (human chorionic gonadotropinso) levels and hopefully we can try to figure things out. At this point, we are actually rooting for the miscarriage. If I DO end up having an ectopic pregnancy I would get a shot of methotrexate (which my doctor said is basically chemotherapy) that would hopefully end the pregnancy. If that didn’t work I would need surgery. Not really an ideal situation.
So I have to go back into my doctors office on Friday to draw more blood to check my HCG levels. If they are going down, my body is already taking care of the problem on its own. If the levels are going up, we need to figure out why. I am also keeping my previously set doctors appointment in a couple weeks (they are changing it from an “OB” appointment to simply a “GYN” appointment) so my doctor can continue to monitor the situation. She informed me that during the ultrasound they discovered a little unexplained fluid around my right ovary and she wants to check on it with another ultrasound at that time. And the hits just keep on coming!!
So Sim took the rest of the day off work so we could spend some time together as a family. We cuddled on the couch, we got a babysitter so we could go see Avatar 3D to celebrate our 12 (TWELVE!!) year dating anniversary (we’ve been married for seven) and took every opportunity we could to be grateful for the amazing things we have in our life. We have each other. We have a wonderful relationship. We have our health. And, most importantly, we have an amazing daughter who we just cannot stop hugging.
UPDATE: I got a call from my doctor’s office this evening and my second blood draw showed that my HCG levels are down from 210 on Wednesday to 34 this morning. So we are pretty much guaranteed that I had a miscarriage and not an ectopic pregnancy. Whew. If there had to be a “best case scenario” this was it. Thank you for all your well wishes. It means so much to our family.
When I was pregnant with Ana, I got very accustom to stepping on the scale each week, but I haven’t weighed in since the Monday before she was born. I figured since Ana is three weeks old today, it was time I confronted the scale. I was very happy to see the numbers stop climbing a surprising 27 pounds below my last weigh in. That’s right: TWENTY-SEVEN POUNDS. So according to my math, that means I am officially 21 pounds under my pre-pregnancy weight. How freakin’ cool is that?! And I got an adorable little girl outta the whole ordeal to boot! Wahooo!!
Introducing Ana Diann Bateman.
Born: Saturday, December 9, 2006 at 10:47 PM
Height: 21 inches
Weight: 8 lbs 8 oz
Labor went well and we are recovering at St Vincent’s of Portland. More details to come later!
So I have been up since 3am timing contractions. They were 7-8 minutes apart and about 45-60 seconds long for the first couple hours. Simeon woke up around 5:30am and caught me breathing through one and I finally told him what was happening. As expected, he jumped out of bed, ran around plugging things in to charge, laying out outfits and even started some laundry. Meanwhile I was resting in bed keeping tabs on the contractions. I finally got up and about around 6:30am and wanted to take a shower before things got outta control. Being up on my feet brought the contractions much closer together, about 4-5 minutes, so Sim insisted I get my butt back in bed. I rested up for a little longer, then proceeded to finish packing and getting ready to go to the hospital. So now the contractions are about 3-4 minutes apart and we are getting ready to go. Just wanted to let you all know. We will keep you posted as things progress.
Oh my God, I am gonna be a Mommy!
39 weeks and still very pregnant. I don’t know if you can tell in the picture or not, but my baby? She hasn’t dropped. Like even an inch. In fact, I think she is actually climbing up higher if that is even possible. However, in the past couple days I have started to lose my mucous plug, and all the sites I have read remind me that this means I may go into labor in “the next couple days or even weeks.” But hey, at least my body is anticipating delivery at some point.
Oh and here is the 39 week belly shot:
And the close-up:
Still no baby. The full moon passed me by with neither a cramp nor a contraction. Damn my resistance to lunar influence! So Simeon and I have taken to eating lots of spicy foods, walking everywhere I can, and even “what got us into this in the first place.” Last night I got some tips from a friend of mine who is in school to be a massage therapist about pressure points and their correlation to all things reproductive. So far nothing is happening. I can practically hear the crickets chirping.
Since I am not terribly uncomfortable (yet!) I am just trying to enjoy this last bit of time before the world as I know it changes. I have a few random things to complete, and since tomorrow is my official last day of work (finally!) I will be able to get those things taken care of in the upcoming days…unless I have the baby, in which case, it won’t really matter anyway.
So that is pretty much what is going on with us. I just wanted to check in and let you all know so you don’t get all excited thinking I have gone into labor. And now I will leave you with a Mother Goose nursery rhyme that has been going through my mind constantly lately (I am sure you can imagine why):
Monday’s Child
Monday’s child is fair of face,
Tuesday’s child is full of grace;
Wednesday’s child is full of woe,
Thursday’s child has far to go;
Friday’s child is loving and giving,
Saturday’s child works hard for its living;
But the child that is born on the Sabbath day
Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay.