November 3rd: A film crew comes to our apartment! The main researcher of HG lives here in Los Angeles and she contacted me to be a part of a news story on HG and extreme morning sickness. The news crew interviewed her and then I was their "real life story" example. Haha! I say that it only took me 2 months in LA before the film crews were flocking to me.
Also November 3rd, Ben and I meet with a prenatal geneticist. It turns out that I am carrier of a rare mutation of Cystic Fibrosis and Ben needs to be tested as well. If he is a carrier of any mutation (there are 1,000s) of CF, then our baby will have 1/4 chance of having Cystic Fibrosis.
November 6th: Ben flies to Minneapolis for a case competition where his team places 4th! I fly to Merced for some more Mommy-lovin'. Although one of Ben's flight's attendants lost his finger while trying to fix an A/C malfunction (you'll have to ask him), I think my flight was scarier. Only 9 seats on that thing, but it put me right into Merced!
November 6th - 18th: Merced for me, where I thoroughly enjoyed the "winter" weather and started listening to Christmas music. It was a shock to come back to LA where it's 75 and sunny the week before Thanksgiving. Lucky for me, my family went to Cambria while I was with them. I also attempted to sew my first baby things.
November 24th: We have our 16-week appointment with Dr. Murphy. Everything is looking pretty good with baby! I need to be sure to eat and stay hydrated. His heart rate is a steady 160 bpm. On the ultrasound we see head and brain, arms and legs, belly, and that baby is definitely a BOY! We can also see his heart and all four chambers! Baby has a bright spot on his heart that is called an EIF - Echogenic Intracardiac Focus. It is a small calcification and seen in about 3-5% of babies. The EIF itself causes no problems, but it often occurs in babies that have some sort of chromosomal abnormality, like Trisomy 21. But, because so much of my blood work and other tests have come back so clean, we aren't too worried about it. Hopefully it will disappear by the third trimester.
November 25th - 30th: We spend Thanksgiving in Merced and it is totally delightful!
December 1st: Ben thinks my belly is beginning to show . . and I certainly feel a lot more full and uncomfortable after eating large amounts.
December 4th & 5th: I feel . . 98% normal! This is pretty fantastic.
I admit that I'm beginning to show, though it is a "barely show" in the mornings and a "much bigger show" in the evenings. All that food's got to go somewhere! Also I am maybe beginning to feel baby move?!
December 5th & 6th: When I lay down at night the first thing I do is put my hand on my stomach where baby is and I definitely feel him kick two nights in a row!
December 1 - 8th: I am totally stressed out about insurance changes in the new year, finding a new doctor, and ensuring that I deliver at a hospital I feel comfortable with. Lots of stress and lots of tears. Lots of phone calls and visits and hours and hours of research and trying to figure things out. In the end, I think I have it figured out. We shall see come January.
December 8th: Because of insurance changes, I have to wean myself off the Zofran pump and onto the oral form. This process begins today and I'm totally freaking out. At least I won't have to be poked anymore. I go from 0.660 ml/hr to 0.600 ml/hr. That's 31.68 mg/day to 28.8 mg/day.
December 9th: I don't feel that great - achy, nauseous, headache.
December 10th: I feel better today. We (Alere & I) decrease my dose from 0.600 ml/hr to 0.500 ml/hr. That is 28.8 mg/day to 24 mg/day. I go to the mall for 2 hours and to a ladies' night . . still feeling pretty okay.
December 11th: I start taking oral Zofran again to make up for the lesser dose in my pump. With two oral doses of 4 mg/day plus the 24 mg/day in my pump, I am getting my original high dose of 32 mg/day. Hoping it works!
Ben's blood work for Cystic Fibrosis comes back clean/negative. Hooray!
December 12th: Decrease Zofran pump from 0.500 ml/day (24 mg/day) to 0.420 ml/day (20.16 mg/day). Now take 3 4 mg tablets a day to make a total of 32 mg/day. I don't feel so good.
December 15th: I turned off the Zofran pump and removed my last infusion site today. This was a huge moment for me. I have been attached to this thing for what feels like forever . . I'm so free without it! I am so grateful for the Zofran pump - it has literally been a lifesaver for me and baby. I am hoping and praying that the adjustment to strictly oral Zofran goes alright.
December 18th: We have our 20 week anatomy scan! Everything with baby is looking great. He is measuring about a week ahead and his heartbeat is a great 156 BPM. He still has the echogenic intracardiac focus (EIF) on his heart, but hopefully it will disappear next trimester. We also see that baby has Pyelectasis, a dilation in the kidneys. It is a very common finding in ultrasounds and is very common in male fetuses; usually it resolves itself normally. Both of these are soft markers for Trisomy 21, but my blood work has come back looking fine. Even if things are not "fine," we love this little boy with all of our hearts!! The anatomy scan was really fun because we got to see and measure every part of baby - legs/feet/toes, abdomen/kidneys/heart, arms/hands/fingers, and face/skull/brain. We could even see different parts of the brain, like the Cerebellum. The best part of the ultrasound was getting some great 3D and 4D views! They are just the sweetest thing and I am obsessed with looking at them! Baby even waved at us. :) I have loved our OB (we won't be seeing her with our new insurance in the new year) for many reasons, but one in particular is that she gives us a DVD of each ultrasound - it is so fun to come home and re-watch what we have seen and just admire our cute thing! Also, according to the doctor's scale, I have gained 5 pounds, so now I'm only at 10 pounds below my pre-pregnancy weight! Woo!
After our doctor's appointment Ben and I went to the temple. I'm starting to be a normal person again! We had to capture my first official picture of my baby bump outside. It just sort of popped out all of a sudden!
We went to Target after the temple and this lady stopped me . . she said "Hi Karin . . you don't know me, but I'm Marlena and I just got the video of the news piece about HG this week and I recognize you from it!" It was Marlena Fejzo! The main researcher of HG! For me, a total celebrity. It was awesome. We talked about her work and our experiences with HG and the news piece that we were a part of. I hadn't seen it yet so she sent it to my email and it's awesome. I can't put it on the internet, but I can show you privately if you'd like to see it. I just had to take a picture with her. There are not a lot of women who suffer from HG and not only is she one of them, but she is the main researcher, in the whole world, of HG, its causes, and hopefully someday, a cure! It just totally made my day.
December 19th: Ben & I fly to Indiana.
December 21st: I am officially 20 weeks pregnant! I can't believe it. My heart is so full.
:)
November 25th - 30th: We spend Thanksgiving in Merced and it is totally delightful!
December 1st: Ben thinks my belly is beginning to show . . and I certainly feel a lot more full and uncomfortable after eating large amounts.
December 4th & 5th: I feel . . 98% normal! This is pretty fantastic.
I admit that I'm beginning to show, though it is a "barely show" in the mornings and a "much bigger show" in the evenings. All that food's got to go somewhere! Also I am maybe beginning to feel baby move?!
 |
| Oh yeah, I chopped my hair off this today, too! That's what the picture was actually for. |
December 5th & 6th: When I lay down at night the first thing I do is put my hand on my stomach where baby is and I definitely feel him kick two nights in a row!
December 1 - 8th: I am totally stressed out about insurance changes in the new year, finding a new doctor, and ensuring that I deliver at a hospital I feel comfortable with. Lots of stress and lots of tears. Lots of phone calls and visits and hours and hours of research and trying to figure things out. In the end, I think I have it figured out. We shall see come January.
December 8th: Because of insurance changes, I have to wean myself off the Zofran pump and onto the oral form. This process begins today and I'm totally freaking out. At least I won't have to be poked anymore. I go from 0.660 ml/hr to 0.600 ml/hr. That's 31.68 mg/day to 28.8 mg/day.
December 9th: I don't feel that great - achy, nauseous, headache.
December 10th: I feel better today. We (Alere & I) decrease my dose from 0.600 ml/hr to 0.500 ml/hr. That is 28.8 mg/day to 24 mg/day. I go to the mall for 2 hours and to a ladies' night . . still feeling pretty okay.
December 11th: I start taking oral Zofran again to make up for the lesser dose in my pump. With two oral doses of 4 mg/day plus the 24 mg/day in my pump, I am getting my original high dose of 32 mg/day. Hoping it works!
Ben's blood work for Cystic Fibrosis comes back clean/negative. Hooray!
December 12th: Decrease Zofran pump from 0.500 ml/day (24 mg/day) to 0.420 ml/day (20.16 mg/day). Now take 3 4 mg tablets a day to make a total of 32 mg/day. I don't feel so good.
December 15th: I turned off the Zofran pump and removed my last infusion site today. This was a huge moment for me. I have been attached to this thing for what feels like forever . . I'm so free without it! I am so grateful for the Zofran pump - it has literally been a lifesaver for me and baby. I am hoping and praying that the adjustment to strictly oral Zofran goes alright.
December 18th: We have our 20 week anatomy scan! Everything with baby is looking great. He is measuring about a week ahead and his heartbeat is a great 156 BPM. He still has the echogenic intracardiac focus (EIF) on his heart, but hopefully it will disappear next trimester. We also see that baby has Pyelectasis, a dilation in the kidneys. It is a very common finding in ultrasounds and is very common in male fetuses; usually it resolves itself normally. Both of these are soft markers for Trisomy 21, but my blood work has come back looking fine. Even if things are not "fine," we love this little boy with all of our hearts!! The anatomy scan was really fun because we got to see and measure every part of baby - legs/feet/toes, abdomen/kidneys/heart, arms/hands/fingers, and face/skull/brain. We could even see different parts of the brain, like the Cerebellum. The best part of the ultrasound was getting some great 3D and 4D views! They are just the sweetest thing and I am obsessed with looking at them! Baby even waved at us. :) I have loved our OB (we won't be seeing her with our new insurance in the new year) for many reasons, but one in particular is that she gives us a DVD of each ultrasound - it is so fun to come home and re-watch what we have seen and just admire our cute thing! Also, according to the doctor's scale, I have gained 5 pounds, so now I'm only at 10 pounds below my pre-pregnancy weight! Woo!
After our doctor's appointment Ben and I went to the temple. I'm starting to be a normal person again! We had to capture my first official picture of my baby bump outside. It just sort of popped out all of a sudden!
We went to Target after the temple and this lady stopped me . . she said "Hi Karin . . you don't know me, but I'm Marlena and I just got the video of the news piece about HG this week and I recognize you from it!" It was Marlena Fejzo! The main researcher of HG! For me, a total celebrity. It was awesome. We talked about her work and our experiences with HG and the news piece that we were a part of. I hadn't seen it yet so she sent it to my email and it's awesome. I can't put it on the internet, but I can show you privately if you'd like to see it. I just had to take a picture with her. There are not a lot of women who suffer from HG and not only is she one of them, but she is the main researcher, in the whole world, of HG, its causes, and hopefully someday, a cure! It just totally made my day.
December 19th: Ben & I fly to Indiana.
December 21st: I am officially 20 weeks pregnant! I can't believe it. My heart is so full.
:)
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2 comments:
Congratulations!! Your bump is so cute. So happy for you guys.
I love your bump! Please bring the video with you next week; we could show it after the shower for whoever wants to stay...if you're okay with that?
Love you,
Shelley
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