7 wks already...time is flying by!

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.
See what's going on in your uterus this week.

1st Prenatal Visit went FAB! @ 6w4d

I'm so happy, I got to see my little butter bean again today...looking great, nice and healthy and strong with a HB of 130bpm!  I had a regular first check up: Blood work (6 vials..yuck); pelvic exam; pap smear; breast exam; weight check; blood pressure; urinalysis, and the ultrasound.  I love my doctor's office u/s room and the tech is the sweetest!  Scott and the boys went with me and were all able to go into the u/s room and see the baby on the big screen!  She took her time and pointed everything out to them, we got to hear the HB, then she printed each of the boys out their own pic of the baby. Awwww.... *smile*. 
The doctor said she was just going to keep an eye on my cysts for now.  She said most times pre-existing cysts will "balloon" during pregnancy then go away on their own.  The smaller cyst on my right had actually gone down some and the bigger one looked the same.  I go back in 4 wks, I'll be 10wks then, and I'll get another u/s (YAY!).  I should be able to hear the heartbeat with the fetal Doppler as well.  I'm thinking about renting my own too, so I can listen anytime I want.  They do those really cool 3 & 4D u/s at my doc's office but they're like $225 extra...so don't know about that, but that would be really cool! 
I'm so glad my appt went well today and my little Rainbow is growing!

BABY'S FIRST PHOTO SHOOT



Little Scare

Why oh Why do I always have to get the crap scared out of me when I'm PG?!  I went out with a friend last night to a homeschooling event and got home around 10pm.  I went to the bathroom and noticed some light brown spotting in my underwear and again when I wiped.  With the fear of the MC still lingering I figured I better be safe than sorry and go get myself checked out.  So, around 10pm me, Scott and the boys piled into the car and heading to EJ Hospital Emergency room.  They took a blood and urine sample, and also did a pelvic exam.  The attending ER doc, said everything appeared to look okay, he saw no red blood.  Afterwards, I had a transvaginal u/s in which I was able to see my little sweetie's heartbeat for the first time *smile**tear*.  The baby looked great and measured right on time around 6wks3days with an EDD of June 13th, with a heartbeat of 129. The u/s tech checked everything else out in there and noticed a nice size (about 3cm) cyst on my left ovary, which she said was normal and most likely the corpus luteum from the pregnancy.  She wasn't able to view the right ovary, so she switched to the regular, on top of the stomach u/s probe.  She was able to find a very large cyst on that ovary.  Back in Feb. when I had a hospital stay for horrible pain in my abdomen, they did a CAT scan in which they saw the same cyst but at that time it only measured about 4cm.  Normally, they do not like to see a cyst get over 5cm.  My doc and I both assumed, and hoped, it would resolve itself like most cysts do.  Well, that same cyst has increased in size to 5.5cm.  I was discharged shortly after with orders for bed rest and to follow up with my doctor.  My dear family ended up trying to sleep in the car in the parking lot and we ended up finally getting home around 3am.  I have not had any cramping at all, and the spotting has seemed to lighten up even more, to barely even visible.  All appears to be well as of right now...little to know spotting (brown blood at that), no cramping or pain, baby looks good and strong.  So, thank Father!  Now, I just have to hope and pray this cyst issue will be resolved quickly and easily and will not affect my pregnancy in any harmful way.  I have my first Prenatal appt. this Tues, but will be calling my nurse Monday to alert her of everything that has gone on.  AFM, I will be bed bound the rest of the weekend and will continue to be praying for a very healthy and strong pregnancy.  Hopefully this first trimester will go by very quickly and no more scary situations will arise!
P.S. We had to tell the boys last night that "Mommy has a baby in her belly", before we left to got to the hospital so they could understand what was going on.  They are really excited.  We prayed together before we left and were relieved to hear the good news that baby looks good.  They were real troopers at the hospital and waited for me very patiently.  I love my boys, they are such a blessing!

What my little sweetie looks like right now...

How your baby's growing:

This week's major developments: The nose, mouth, and ears that you'll spend so much time kissing in eight months are beginning to take shape. If you could see into your uterus, you'd find an oversize head and dark spots where your baby's eyes and nostrils are starting to form. His emerging ears are marked by small depressions on the sides of the head, and his arms and legs by protruding buds. His heart is beating about 100 to 160 times a minute — almost twice as fast as yours — and blood is beginning to course through his body. His intestines are developing, and the bud of tissue that will give rise to his lungs has appeared. His pituitary gland is forming, as are the rest of his brain, muscles, and bones. Right now, your baby is a quarter of an inch long, about the size of a lentil.

I'm 6 wks!!

I still can't believe I'm even expecting and with every week that passes it becomes more and more real!  I'm so unbelievably happy!  This weekend couldn't come fast enough, now I just need to get through it and on to Tues!  It's been torture keeping this secret from my mom and my kids, so I can't wait to tell them after my appt.!  More to come.....

5wks. 3days today...

Just wanted to touch base, but not much to report.  I'm surprised I haven't had the usual symptoms I've experienced with my other pregnancies.  No sickness, No frequent urination, etc.  Not complaining though, especially on the sickness, but it is still fairly early on so I'm not writing it off yet.  My main symptom has been sore boobs, and that's predominantly in the evening and during the night.  I still feel little pains and things in my uterus, but I know there's a lot going on in there. :-)  I can say I've had constipation as well...if coffee's not doing the trick I have to be PG!...lol.  Still very low energy and it takes alot out of me to do a little, so I haven't been doing a whole lot, at least not at one time.  I can be very emotional from one end of the spectrum to the other and tear up at the littlest things.  I've been craving Mexican more than normal and treated myself to dinner for one at my local Mexican restaurant the other night!  It was SO good!  I'm counting the days down to my first appt and can't wait to get a peek at my little one!  8 more days to go!  I'm trying really hard to stay in a positive frame of mind and am expecting to see my baby in the perfect nestled spot with a rapid little heartbeat.  <3

5 wks. Today!

How your baby's growing:

Deep in your uterus your embryo is growing at a furious pace. At this point, he's about the size of a sesame seed, and he looks more like a tiny tadpole than a human. He's now made up of three layers — the ectoderm, the mesoderm, and the endoderm — which will later form all of his organs and tissues.
The neural tube — from which your baby's brain, spinal cord, nerves, and backbone will sprout — is starting to develop in the top layer, called the ectoderm. This layer will also give rise to his skin, hair, nails, mammary and sweat glands, and tooth enamel.
His heart and circulatory system begin to form in the middle layer, or mesoderm. (This week, in fact, his tiny heart begins to divide into chambers and beat and pump blood.) The mesoderm will also form your baby's muscles, cartilage, bone, and subcutaneous (under skin) tissue.
The third layer, or endoderm, will house his lungs, intestines, and rudimentary urinary system, as well as his thyroid, liver, and pancreas. In the meantime, the primitive placenta and umbilical cord, which deliver nourishment and oxygen to your baby, are already on the job.