Doctor's Appointment Week 37

I had doctor's appointment this morning.  I 'll will be going every week from here on out!

Here are the stats...

Weight: A total of 28 pounds.

Cervix: Starting to thin, not dialating yet.

Baby's Position: Doctor said he's dropped lower, facing back and seems all ready.

I've been experiencing some cramping, lot of pressure and back pain. Trying to rest a bit and take it easy-- but for most part, I'm feeling pretty good these days!

Next appointment at 38 weeks...8/30

Appointment...

Yesterday I had my last appointment with the Maternal Fetal Dr. at HUMC to measure baby and determine his position. It is so exciting getting to see baby and listening to his heart beat. According to the tech Baby Scerbs is a big baby, weighing at 7 pounds (no wonder it's getting hard for me to walk around with the load) and she said he has very chunky cheeks, lol! He has dropped, he's very low (which I knew already, I can feel it and it's not pretty comfortable) and he's in full position ready to come out and play soon. 

Baby still has another 3 weeks to go...so that means he can still gain about a pound a week...unless he decides to come sooner and since he is considered full term already, I say..."Baby Scerbs you're welcome any time now, Mommy, Daddy and Leo can't wait to meet you and bring you into your new home... We love you"!

Today's appointment...what a relief

Today I had an appointment with the maternal fetal Dr. I had been pretty nervous the past couple of days since the results from the last bloodwork were apparently showing signs of high sugar--'slightly high'. Dr. R (obgyn) said there was a possibility of having to stick with a diet or some medication until delivery and that truly scared me. I was a bit depressed to say the least. Thankfully Dr. P (maternal fetal) cleared me and said everything was totally fine, sugar was normal and that I had nothing to worry about. He said "here's something to worry about...start saving for your baby's college funds and to start buying inexpensive handbags because baby will eventually barf allover my LV" LOL
He also said not to overdue the sweets...which I am not doing anyway and to go home and just enjoy the rest of my pregnancy. yay! What a relief!!!

Today's appointment =(

ahhh a few bad news...
One, the numbing on my hand is due to carpal tunnel syndrome. Dr. R said it is pretty common during 3rd trimester. So, baby must be leaning against some nerve on my right side =( I guess as long as he's comfortable...let it be. He said it will go away after birth. I am now wearing a splint on my wrist for most of the day and during sleep.
Two, eventhough I've been taking prenatals since before knowing I was pregnant, I am now borderline anemic...He has prescribed Ferro-Sequels as an iron supplement. I guess baby is taking everything from me...everything! I guess as long as he's healthy...let it be.
And three...my sugar came back slightly high =( I have to see my maternal fetal doctor on Monday to see if I have to do a special diet or go on medication...shucks!

Other than that baby is in position...seems like he's ready, I say stay cooking in there baby until mommy's ready...9 more weeks.

Today's appointment

Today is my last monthly appointment, now I will start seeing Dr. R every 2 weeks...due date is getting closer!!
Baby is in position (head down) and heart beat was 130bpm. Got to see my little munchkin moving around and it's just so amazing to see how active he is in his little space.

I was given a slip to go have more bloodwork done =(  just when I thought I was past that, I guess not!

26th week appointment

Baby is getting bigger and strongre by the minute. Heart rate was good at 155 bpm and baby is positioning head down in form of a C. Due to his position he has my right side totally sore from the constant kicking lol.

My glucose test came back fine, although the techs srewed up on writing the time of when I consumed the glucose tolerance drink, but since they wrote down the time bloodwork was doen and I had the time written out for my own notes...Dr. R was able to read the results. I am glad all was fine, I had been stressing a bit because I did love sweets prior to my pregnancy.

Tomorrow is my 26th week mark, getting closer and I am both nervous and excited!

Hubby and I will be taking a short 'babymoon' trip this week. Again, both excited and nervous but Dr. R assured me it will be fine to fly (within the US and at this point in my pregnancy) he gave me a clearance letter just in case and said to take advantage and enjoy my trip since no flying for ma after June 12th!

I'll post pics of our 'babymoon'!

Glucose Screening

I had my glucose tolerance test done this morning. It was pretty rough for me to fast, I wasn't able to eat anything as of 9PM last night. I had not craved anything in the past week and last night of course I get the cravings for everything! oy!

I was given a fruit punch flavored liquid that contained 50grams of glucose. The stuff tastes like a very sweet soda pop and I had to get all of it down in five minutes. It would have probably not been as bad if it had been chilled or if they had let me pour it over ice. After drinking it, baby went hyper in the belly and kicked for hakf of the day...did I mention his kicks are getting very strong...ouch!

An hour later after reading a bunch of their mags and not passing out from the hunger, the technician took my blood and I still have the ugly purple bruise...Can't wait for those results and hoping it's all good.

The highlight of the day....Hubby and I went and finished our registry! Well, we are pretty sure we'll go back a few more times and add those items we forgot. We are registered at Bambi Baby and Babies R Us! It was pretty exciting selecting items for my lil' guy.

Baby is growing so fast...

Today's appointment was the regular 4 week follow up, it went great and Dr. R confirmed what I kind of already new...Baby Scerbs is a BIG baby! Baby Scerbs measured at 24 weeks and heartbeat was a whopping 148bpm. Eventhough I measured at 25 weeks, my due date will not change...huh?

Soooo looking forward to my next appointment...NOT! Normally during the 24-28th week of pregnancy the Oral Glucose tolerance testing is done, yuck!! this is to screen for gestational diabetes.
And if you're wondering what happens during the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test?....


The oral glucose tolerance test involves quickly drinking a sweetened liquid (called Glucola) yucky!!, which contains 50 g of glucose. The body absorbs this glucose rapidly, causing blood glucose levels to rise within 30 to 60 minutes. A blood sample will be taken from a vein in your arm about 60 minutes after drinking the solution. The blood test measures how the glucose solution was metabolized (processed by the body).

Crossing my fingers that 1, I don't puke that glucola crap and 2, that I am healthy for baby Scerbs.

Little boys steal Mommy's heart...

Our baby has a pee pee! LOL

So yesterday I had baby's anatomy scan appointment at 9:30am. It was a a long in-depth ultrasound where they measured each of baby's organs. Baby Scerbo is healthy-yay! And heartbeat was 157 bpm.

Although baby was not too excited about showing his goods, it took a while until he finally gave in and we were able to see the very obvious weiner lol. Mommy and Daddy's instincts were so right!

After the gender scan I was able to tour (HUMC), the hospital where I am planning on delivering baby Scerbs. I was very happy with the staff and how informative everyone was. I even ran into my OB/GYN who had just finished delivering a baby.

 I got to visit the delivery rooms and just in case the OR where c-sections are performed. The delivery rooms were and felt more cozy then the OR, it looked so sterile and plain (kind of scary, if you asked me). Let's just hope this baby lets me push him out.

The nurse that gave hubby and I the tour was very detailed and had a lot of patience as I had a lot of questions. I also toured the recovery rooms, the private mommy rooms and the nursery both level 1 and level 2 areas and the private lactation room nearby the nursery.

Pictures coming up soon...my scanner is giving me a hard time right now =(
I took shots with my digital of the u/s pictures, hope they are clear enough...

Baby with both hands over his head.

Baby finally let us see his good...It's a BOY!!

Profile picture of baby Scerbs!

Now Monday I go for my regular 4 week check up!

Results are in!!

Wednesday I had blood drawn to test for Spina Bifida on baby Scerbs. Called the Dr. today and the results are negative! Healthy baby on the way...yay!

Now, patiently waiting for organs/gender scan day! 20 days

Today's appointment...

Today's appointment went great. I had to come in with a full bladder, so it was a bit uncomfortable during the wait. I had 3 bottles of water, so my bladder was so full it could have burst. I tell you a portable toilet would've been my best friend.

Baby's legs were crossed but he/she was moving all around...did I ever mention hyper baby? Dr. R said, baby has a lot of room in there so he/she is exploring. I say good as long as he/ she keeps away from mommy's rib cage...lol

Heartbeat was great 145bmp and measurements were good.

Again I was surprised with having to do blood work. I guess it's a first time mom thing thing--you really don't know what to expect next. This time the nurse said she would be gentle and used a butterfly needle--whatever the difference is, if there's even any... it is still a needle and it's not my cup of tea. But again, anything for baby Scerbs.

This bloodwork will test for Spina Bifida = a birth defect that involves the incomplete development of the spinal cord or its coverings. The term comes from Latin and literally means "split" or "open" spine. It occurs at the end of the first month of pregnancy when the two sides of the embryo's spine fail to join together, leaving an open area. In some cases, the spinal cord or other membranes may push through this opening in the back.

Results in 2 days!

Got to see Baby Scerbo again!

We just had another appointment, the normal check up/empty the bladder routine, etc.
The best thing was that I did not have to undress since the transvaginal exams are over with...or so I think.

Baby is very active, moving all over the place. Although I didn't get to see much, hubby got to see most of the action (monitor was turned more towards him and I had a very slight view of the screen) and of course he was not the one laying down and getting all the pressure on his belly...lol. Still, it was so great to see the baby in some motion. Baby's heartbeat was at 149 bpm and measured just perfect. So we're looking for no changes on due date! yay

I was dissapointed I didn't get a print out of baby, but we should be getting some pictures on our next appointment in 2 weeks! yay!

We also set the appointment for baby's gender reveal! I can't think of a better wedding anniversary gift then getting to know our baby's gender that same day! April can't come fast enough!!! So stay tuned, in the event that I do decide to share!

Today's appointment...

Hubby and I visited the Center for Fetal Medicine at HUMC today. They took our baby's measurements (nuchal translucency screening) and we got to see our baby again via 4D ultrasound-cool!

I must have a hyper baby in process--the nurse was like "ok, this little one is giving the run for my money".

Baby Scerbo wouldn't stop moving around and throwing the little fists and legs all over the place.

It must have been the pressure of the u/s transducer...it was bit uncomfortable for me too.

Here are a few u/s pictures-we got tons this time!

In the pictures below you can see baby's little fists. Baby playing peek-a-boo?

Baby measured at 16.8cm and heartbeat was 158 bpm.

And of course, no appointment comes to an end without surprise...I got some more bloodwork (serum test) done-at least it was just one tube this time. whew!

Now the wait and the prayers begin for these results to come back normal.
193 DAYS TO GO!!!


(nuchal translucency screening) = special ultrasound done between 10 to 14 weeks that tests primarily for Down syndrome. Your doc will lather your belly with gel and rub a transducer over it, which emits sound waves that then become electrical signals, and voilà! You’ll see baby’s picture on a nearby screen. While you're absorbed with that, your doc will examine the back of baby’s neck. If this area is thicker than normal, it can be an early warning sign of Down syndrome, trisomy 18 (another genetic disorder) and other related birth defects. You'll probably undergo a combined screening, including a serum test to check your blood. Together, these two tests determine whether baby has a genetic defect.

2nd appointment...

Today I saw Dr. R for the 2nd time since I have been diagnosed "pregnant". I was told I was to leave a urine sample each office visit. Nice, because I can empty out this bladder every 5 minutes if needed be.

In this appointment Dr. R gave me the bloodwork results, yes from the 7 tubes of blood drawn from my thick juicy veins. I didn't know what the procedure was, but I was secretly hoping for a second u/s to see my little baby again...and I got to see my little lime! Blood tests came back perfect...what a relief.

Baby now is the size of a lime, amazing how much they grow and develop in just 2 weeks. Heartbeat was 164 bpm and baby measure at 11wks 3 d - 4.58cm. Baby was also doing a few flips and kicks and I'd even say a few fist pumps, baby is rocking it inside of mommy...unfortunately mommy doesn't feel anything moving yet. Dr. R said maybe at 20 to 24 weeks...so patiently waiting to feel my baby moving inside of me.

Dr. R said it was safe if I wanted to start sharing the news...I think I will wait until I hit my 2nd trimester-but next up for announcement is my dear friend R.

Glad this appointment went great!

I am anxiously waiting...

my 2nd appointment with Dr. R on 2/15.
I guess the anxiety kicks in more because I have no idea what to expect. I've never been pregnant before and didn't have any symptoms I could've associated with pregnacy.

The bloat and the booby soreness, I associated with Aunt Flo on its way and the tiredness with...oh well I'm getting a bit burnt out or just the changes that seem to start appearing when you're past your 30's... I now take all those symptoms very positively-I am not old, just growing a baby inside of me, yay!

And the anxiety continues to invade...I can't wait to hear the results and that evrything is and will be just fine.

1st appointment...

So Dr. H got me in to see my OB/GYN the very next day after the announcement (today).

I was both nervous and happy and then the excitement totally took over and I teared up when I saw my baby for the first time. Hubby and I were so amazed at what the monitor of my first u/s was showing; there was our little baby, the size of a raspberry all curled up measuring 1.82 cm at 8w 2d and an EDD for 9/12/10. We were able to hear the heartbeat too, and it was the most wonderful sound in the world! Baby is growing just fine!

Right after we were done, Dr. R handed me a bag of goodies; magazines, checklists, educational info etc…and informed me more blood work needed to be done. Ahhh did I ever mention how terrified I am of needles? Well, this was the very first time I felt so excited and willing to be poked with needles where-ever it needed be done!

Left Dr. R’s office and straight to the Lab, where 7, yes SEVEN tubes were filled with drawn blood from my beautiful, thick, juicy veins as the tech refered to them. I always get the “you’ll be fine, you have the most beautiful thick veins my darling, it will be quick” Well 7 tubes weren’t filled in a blink of an eye… it felt like forever.

Then off to tell the familia....

And then the wait for the test results…two weeks later.