27 Weeks

 We went back to the maternal-fetal specialist (MFM) on Friday and we all feel much better. After having a week to think about everything, we definitely had some questions. My mom met Mike and I at the doctor's office and it was great to have her there for support. One neat thing I like about this office is that they have a big TV screen on the wall so everyone can see the ultrasound images, but unfortunately, the screen had stopped working so we all had to try and see the images on the little ultrasound machine screen. The ultrasound didn't take too long...we got to see and hear his heartbeat, which is such an amazing sound, and we saw him folded in half. He is quite flexible!! The tech measured the fluid and then looked at the blood flow to the cord. 

We then went and met with the doctor. She was very positive and we all felt such a sense of relief. She said the fluid level looked good and that while there are some spots on the cord that don't have great blood flow (which she said is typical at 27 weeks) that the rest of the cord looks great. We asked a few questions about some of the things we had read about. I knew that an enlarged kidney and being on the smaller side are both soft markers for Down Syndrome and asked if she thought we might be looking at a chromosomal abnormality. She said that is not at all on her radar screen which was very reassuring, Mike asked if there was anything we needed to do or not do and she said the typical, stay away from alcohol, massive amounts of caffeine, no seafood or cold cuts...all the things we knew. I asked if she was more concerned about the kidney or the weight (he is only a few ounces behind) and she said that starting next week, it is all based on his health testing. Starting next week at 28 weeks, he has "tricks" he has to do during the ultrasound...move, practice breathing, etc. They will also do another growth scan to see how much he has grown in the past 2 weeks. Again, she emphasized that a small baby is fine, they just want to make sure he is a small, healthy baby!

Yes, those are his legs and feet over his head!!

George wanted in on the picture!

27 weeks....headed to a baby shower for a friend

26 Weeks

So I am way overdue for an update so here goes. . .

Here are pictures from 24 weeks. . .

         

You can see the pack and play set up in the background. We actually got it around Christmas when we realized that the set we wanted was being discontinued. The pack and play, swing, and bouncy seat (we already have them all) are the Snug-a-bunny line by Fisher Price. We had seen the swing and bouncy seat in person, but had not seen the pack and play so we decided to go ahead and set it up to see what it looked like, and thankfully, we love it! 

If you remember from the previous post at 20 weeks, when we went for our anatomy scan they found that one of Will's kidneys was slightly enlarged. It is a very common prenatal diagnosis, but they watch it to make sure it goes down. We went last Friday at 26 weeks for a repeat ultrasound and they found that his kidney is still enlarged. One of his kidneys looks like a milk chocolate M & M and the enlarged one looks like a peanut M & M. The doctor didn't say how enlarged it was, but at 20 weeks, it was measuring at 4.5 milliliters of fluid instead of 4...so not an extreme case, but enough to keep watching it.

We also learned that Will is measuring small for his gestational age. When they what they call a growth scan, they measure the femur in the leg, the width of their tummy, and their head circumference. All of his measurements were about a week behind. They also measured the amount of amniotic fluid, which was normal, and the health of the umbilical cord by looking and listening to the blood flow, which also looked good.

I was hoping that I would not have to return to the maternal-fetal specialist after this visit, but that is not the case. I will continue to go each Friday to have my fluid level and umbilical cord checked as those are 2 good signs that everything is good. Then every other week, I will also have a growth scan to check his growth progress. I am trying to stay positive and not think about the "what ifs", but it is hard at times. After having some time to process what the specialist told us, we obviously have some questions. It is hard for Mike to get off from work and drive from Athens to Snellville, so thankfully my mom is going to go to the next 2 appointments with me. We appreciate prayers, specifically that Will's kidney to return to normal size and that he would grow like a weed...well, not too much...I'd rather not birth a 10+ pound baby!

William Lemke Hervey @ 26 Weeks!

How far along? 26 weeks 

Total Weight Gain? Zero....still hanging out at about 18 pounds lost..and not complaining about it!

Maternity Clothes? Definitely...now that spring is around the corner, I may need to get a few more things so I am not hot all the time.

Stretch Marks? Not any new ones!

Sleep: The last few nights have been anything but great. I am falling asleep ok, but have a hard time staying asleep after about 1 or 2 am. 

Best Moment of the Week: Feeling Will moving around!

Miss Anything? Great sleep

Movement? I feel rolls and tumbles a few times a day and some pressure on my bladder, but no real kicks or punches yet.

Food Cravings? Anything ice cream related

Anything making you queasy and sick? Brushing my teeth is still not my favorite thing

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Symptoms: Just tired and I get very full after I eat

Belly Button: In

Wedding Rings: On and very loose

Mood: Good...just worried about out little guy

Looking forward to: Getting the changing table...it's a great shelf that my dad made years ago and my sister used it for both of her kids. We got it from them this weekend and my dad is repainting it. Once we get it in the nursery, we will be able to get things where they need to go!

Stay tuned for nursery pictures when we get everything arranged!

20 Weeks :: Halfway Point!!

20 Weeks :: We are halfway there!!

Adorable little Ralph Lauren outfit I found at TJ Maxx!!

How far along? 20 weeks 

Total Weight Gain? Zero....sill hanging out at about 18 pounds lost

Maternity Clothes? Yes...need to get more maternity shirts 

Stretch Marks? Not any new ones!

Sleep: Falling asleep is not as easy as it used to be

Best Moment of the Week: Seeing Baby Hervey on the ultrasound!

Miss Anything? Great sleep

Movement? Not yet

Food Cravings? Ice Cream!!!

Anything making you queasy and sick? Brushing my teeth is still not my favorite thing

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Symptoms: I'm pretty tired and still really nauseous a few times a day

Belly Button: In

Wedding Rings: On and very loose

Mood: Good

Looking forward to: Starting to get the nursery going...taking out the guest room furniture and painting the walls!

Friday marked 20 weeks....only 20 weeks to go!! Hard to believe we are halfway to meeting our little boy! I have been thankfully feeling a bit better day by day...haven't been physically sick in over a week but still have bouts of nausea, which I will gladly trade over throwing up! We had an appointment with the maternal fetal specialist for our 20 week anatomy scan on Friday. We were so excited to get to see him! He was quite active. It was kind of surreal to see him moving and squirming and kicking and not be able to feel it yet. The ultrasound tech did the first part which lasted about 25 minutes. She looked over every single inch of him! I really appreciated how she told us everything she was doing and what we were looking at. She took a lot of measurements of him. She also was able to totally confirm that he is definitely a boy! Mike finally got to hear his heartbeat and it was so cool to be able to see the blood flow of this heart...and his stomach and his kidneys. It was really just fun to get to see him! The tech left and told us to hold still since Dr. Molina would come in and look more closely at parts of the ultrasound. Dr. Molina came in and started doing the ultrasound again. He spent a lot of time looking at his heart, which looks great. He then looked at his kidneys. One of Baby Hervey's kidneys is enlarged so they will need to watch it. He said it is from one of 3 things....a) it's nothing and will go away over time, b) he has a blockage in his kidney, and c) he has what they call reflux where the bladder leaks urine back into the kidney. There is no way to tell the difference between the later of the 2 in utero. We go back in 6 weeks for another ultrasound to see if it has gone away. Mike and I both started researching and found out that an enlarged kidney is one of the most common prenatal diagnosis they make and 75% of babies who have it are boys. They will continue to watch it and if we get closer to the due date and it is still enlarged, they will refer us to a pediatric urologist. From what we have researched, more than half of the cases resolve themselves and the babies do not need anything further after birth. I asked if this case was bad and Dr. Molina quickly said no...the cut off they use is 4 milliliters and Baby Hervey's is at 4.5 mL. We are obviously hoping and praying that everything is normal when we go back in 6 weeks! I also asked about my weight loss and how much Baby Hervey weighed....he is measuring right on schedule and is 11.5 ounces and is 6.5 inches from head to rump and 10 inches from head to foot! Dr. Molina said that as long as he continues to grow on schedule that they won't be concerned with my weight loss, but that hopefully I will start putting some of those pounds back on!

That's all for now...hopefully in the next few weeks I can show off some progress pictures of his nursery! For now, here are a few ultrasound pictures!

Baby Hervey's 20 week profile....look at his little button nose!

He is definitely a boy!

18 Weeks and Counting!

18 Weeks and Counting!

How far along? 18 weeks 

Total Weight Gain? Nothing....still hanging out in the negative 18-20 pounds lost range

Maternity Clothes? Yep! I probably need to get a few more shirts

Stretch Marks? Not any new ones!

Sleep: Falling asleep is starting to be a little more difficult

Best Moment of the Week: Hearing the little one's heartbeat on Tuesday...it was strong at 147 bpm!

Miss Anything? Still miss feeling good all the time

Movement? Not yet

Food Cravings? Nothing this week although I am starting to get my appetite back

Anything making you queasy and sick? Brushing my teeth and anytime I get too hot

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Symptoms: Haven't gotten sick since last Thursday, but still have some daily nausea and some other lovely pregnancy symptoms, but I will spare you the details!

Belly Button: In

Wedding Rings: On and very loose

Mood: Great...very sleepy tonight though

Looking forward to: A 3-day weekend...we are heading to my sisters in SC to go through her baby clothes!!

I'll write more when we get home on Monday and hopefully, I can show off some adorable baby clothes!

16 Week Update!!

How far along? 16 weeks 

Total Weight Gain? Nothing....Weight Lost? Close to 18 pounds

Maternity Clothes? Yes...my regular pants fit, but they are just not comfy and the shirts aren't long enough

Stretch Marks? Not any new ones!

Sleep: Sleeping like a champ!

Best Moment of the Week: Realizing I had not thrown up since Christmas Eve...still battle nausea daily, but manaing to keep more food down

Miss Anything? I miss feeling good on a day to day basis

Movement? Not yet

Food Cravings? Right now it's salty, crunchy things like kettle chips

Anything making you queasy and sick? Brushing my teeth!

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Symptoms: Still dealing with bouts of morning/afternoon/evening sickness, and I am still pretty dang tired. 

Belly Button: In

Wedding Rings: On and very loose

Mood: Great....I know the next few months are going to fly by

Looking forward to: My doctor appt with the OB next Tuesday...can't wait to hear the heartbeat again

I went to the endocrinologist on Friday for my 6 week Thyroid level check. During pregnancy, thyroid levels can go bonkers and since my doesn't work correctly anyway, they want to really watch it. I went 6 weeks ago and they upped my dosage. This time, my levels were perfect so they are going to keep my dosage the same. When the PA came in, we talked for a few minutes and then she did a double take when looking at my chart. She said, "you know you have lost a lot of weight in 6 weeks." I told her I knew and that I had been really sick and asked her how much their scale showed. She looked and said "almost 16 pounds." She said she knew my OB was watching it but that at some point I would need to put some of those pounds back on. She then basically told me to eat whatever tastes good and whatever I can keep down. Right now my cravings have been for salty, crunchy things like Kettle Chips and also for Dairy Queen Blizzards...again, she said, "eat them...it is better than nothing!" I told her that although I had not gotten physically sick in a week that my scale at home showed that I had lost 2 more pounds. I never thought I would hear a medical professional tell me to eat whatever I could handle and to try and gain a few pounds! I go back to see them in February. I see the OB a week from Tuesday and then see the specialist at the end of the month for the big 20 week anatomy scan! Hard to believe I will be at the half way mark in just a few weeks!