Marathon appointment day!!!

So yesterday I was at the UUMC from 10:20 a.m. - 4:20 p.m.  Talk about a long day!!!  I was supposed to have an hour between appointments for lunch, but things just kind of ran together so no such luck.  Oh well - I did eat at 4 p.m. and MAN did that taste GOOD! :)

The first appointment was for a study (Mom2Be) - that went just fine - had to do a few samples of things but it was relatively painless.

Second appointment was with Dr. Silver - he confirmed that there is no reason for me to NOT plan on a vaginal delivery so I suppose I will be signing up for informational classes on labor and delivery options soon! ;)

Last appointment was for my integrated screen - I met with a genetic counselor who went over information about basic principles of genetics, risks, and testing options.  For the integrated screen, you have three parts - an ultrasound (1st trimester) where they measure the nuchal translucency at the back of the baby's neck, along with two blood tests (one 1st trimester, one 2nd trimester) to look at various hormone levels.  This information basically tells you your risk for things like trisomy 21 (Down's syndrome), trisomy 18, and neural tube defects.

After meeting with her, I had my ultrasound.  Well... this kid did NOT want to cooperate!  We got a few cool pictures, and video even, but the baby wouldn't position right for the nuchal translucency measurement.  Not after everything from emptying my bladder, to walking around for 10 min, to touching my toes 10 times!  Oh well.  They would have just had me come back, but the baby is measuring CRL 7.71 cm and they can only do this test through 7.9 cm.  Oops.

So... we're just going with the blood tests.  I'm really not worried - just a step for reassurance and to prepare if anything does come up - but so far things are on-track.

Oh and that whole not cooperating for the ultrasound?  In my mind further evidence it's a boy, and he gets it from his father! ;)  (Just kidding!!!)

Next ultrasound/appointment will be on Jan 21.  This is the one where, if (and that may be a BIG IF) the baby cooperates, we'll find out gender!

I will post video later - I am sure I've done something wrong here - but in the meantime, here are pictures to check out (it is cool to see such fast progression from ball of cells to this!):

This is a picture showing the baby's foot - heel to toe, it's 1.21 cm long. :)  You can also see the full length of its body - you can see its skeleton which is cool, if a little Halloween-ish!

Kind of hard to make it out, but this is the crown-rump-length (CRL) measurement - head is on the right, rump on the left - 7.71 cm (showing a mature age (MA) of 13 weeks 6 days, though I was 13 weeks 3 days along).

This was taken while measuring the heart rate.  The bottom graph visually showed what you were hearing in a way.  The heart rate was 144 beats per minute - perfect! :)

This shows the baby's leg - kind of amazing I think!

  ... and this shows its leg fully extended- judging by the flexion, extension, and overall look, I'm thinking this kid will be a natural-born cyclist! ;)

Now - in terms of what happens developmentally during week 13, according to my favorite source, babycenter.com (link: http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-13-weeks_1102.bc?read_more=1&scid=mbtw_preg13:968&pe=2UvuHCR)

"Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. 

Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

See what your baby looks like this week."

For me, I am feeling MUCH better - I feel like I'm not quite as tired, my nausea is going away and my appetite returning, etc.  I've had headaches - Dr. Silver said that's pretty common and suggested trying tylenol (and he'll give me something else if needed).

Well, on to a day of Christmas prep!  I do love this time of year!!! :)

PS 2nd trimester (week 14) starts TUESDAY!!!