Ninja Baby

Did you feel that?

How far along? 17 weeks, 4 days



The big question at this stage of my pregnancy has been "Can you feel the baby yet?"
That's a very good question. How am I supposed to know if the sensations I'm getting down there are baby related or just the intricate workings of my innerds?! After all, I don't know what it feels like! I'm hyper sensitive to any feeling I get in my belly region now and I have no idea if these strange little nigglings have been there all along and I'm just noticing them now because I'm looking for it. Everyone says, "oh, you should be feeling the baby now"..."wait till you feel the baby for the first time. It's amazing!" For all I know I may have been feeling the baby for weeks now and just wasn't sure...it's supposed to be this big momentous occassion and I've missed it! I suspect that the little nudges I'm getting are baby related..but how can I be sure. Sometimes I spend long periods of time staring at my belly looking to see if it moves...There! I swear I saw something there!

We get to our next midwife appointment and we start with a bit of casual conversation and then..."Have you felt the baby yet?" to which I answer with an exasperated...I don't know! "Any little fluttery feelings?" What is this fluttering that I keep hearing about? What I feel are like little pokes from the inside which could almost be like a strong pulse except not steady...right around here- I point to my lower belly. I want to think that what I'm feeling is the baby, but Simon also suggested that maybe it's the feeling of my uterus and other things stretching with the growth of the baby. "He could be right.", she says...That's not what I want to hear! I want to hear that it's the baby!
"I think you're feeling the baby", she says. Oh, I feel so convinced now.
Again, big momentous occassion and I've missed it.
The midwife says, we'll let's listen to your baby with the monitor. A lot of the times it just takes hearing your baby move in conjunction with the sensation to recognize that what you are feeling is the baby's movement.
She puts the monitor to my belly and right away...swish swish swish. That was cool. She looks up to me with a big grin on her face like...did you feel that? Nothin. Still fascinating though. Then thump thump the midwife starts giggling..."did you feel that?" I just shake my head. Then POW! Laughing now, she says, "That was a direct hit to the monitor! Did you feel that?!"
Not a thing.
I am convinced, however, that we have a ninja baby on our hands. You'd never know it was there and before you know it bam! Swift kick to the belly! I said to Simon that maybe our name option "Ninja Awesome" would be well suited after all.

Genetic Screening Results

Fingers crossed.

How far along? 17 weeks 4 days



Today we had our 3rd appointment with our midwife and a big part of that appointment was finding out the test results from my genetic screening tests. Because I am 35, the chances that our baby could have downs syndrome is higher than ...well, that of a younger person. Why? I don't know but statistically it is true. The series of tests not only are to discover chance of downs syndrome but also help detect spina bifida and trisomy 13.
Our test results reveal that our baby has a 1 in over 520 chance of having downs syndrome. This is a good reading in that, if the results had of been 1 in 200 or less, further testing (amniocentesis) would be recommended to determine if the baby was free of chromosomal abnormality (I can't keep writing the DS words...feels a bit like saying "Voldemort" out loud). Anyway, our test for that was promising and we feel confident to proceed without further testing on that front.
The chances of our baby having spina bifida is way way way less than our other results and the same for trisomy 13.
Woo hoo!! and phew. I have to say that I was feeling pretty good about things before we had our results explained to us but when our midwife told us she would review the test findings with us my heart started to palpatate a little. Simon revealed that it was that moment that he realized how much he had been looking forward to hearing that news too.
We're feeling good about our baby's development after our appointment today and our little one is apparently quite active in there...look soon for blog entry "Ninja Baby".
Next big marker: 20 week ultrasound...if you don't want to know if it's a boy or girl...too bad.

The Great Due Date Debate

When will it be?

How far along? 17 weeks



It seems that there is a discrepancy with when our baby is expected to be born.
Everyone always asks "When are you due?" to which I answer "Good question". If you ask my midwife when our baby is due, she will tell you October 29th. If you ask me, I say something else. Why is that? Well, doctors and midwives all calculate your due date based on the first day of your last period, then they count 40 weeks and that is your due date. The problem with that? The calculation is made assuming that all women ovulate at 14 days into their menstrual cycle. The actual gestation of a baby is actually 38 weeks.

When someone asks you how far along you are, you are actually 2 weeks "less pregnant" than what the doctor's tell you (that is if you ovulate at 14 days) meaning your baby is actually 2 weeks younger...eg. Right now any midwife or doctor would tell you that I am 17 weeks pregnant but the baby is actually only 15 weeks developed...or is it? Anyway, it was a surprise when we first found our midwife and we were told I was 7 weeks pregnant not 4 weeks like I thought. How could I be 7 weeks pregnant when our baby wasn't even conceived 7 weeks ago? I accepted it anyway because, well, I like immediate gratification and I liked the sound of being further along than I actually was. Seems ridiculous to me that the medical field in all their scientificness count the gestation of your baby to be 2 weeks (in most cases) more than when your baby is even conceived. So why did I think I was 4 weeks pregnant not 5? Why the debate with my due date? Well, seeing as Simon and I were planning our pregnancy I had been tracking my ovulation for several months before we started "trying" and I know based on basal body temperature* that I ovulate at 20 days (like clockwork)- 6 days later than the assumed 14 day ovulation. For some reason when, on seperate occasions, I told the midwife and the ultrasound specialist this, one actually said "that is not possible" and the other was sure I was wrong. Oh really?! Why is it so hard to believe that I ovulate at 20 days??? I've heard of many women who, in their quest to conceive, discover they ovulate early or late in their cylcle- so why is it not possible for me? Hmmmm??

So, if you ask Simon and I when our baby is due we will tell you November 3rd- if you are now trying to calculate when our baby was conceived...shame on you.

Since we have insisted with our midwives that I ovulate at 20 days, we have been informed that, in a situation where the due date is not certain, the due date will be established by the development of the baby as judged by ultrasound...fair enough. So far we have seen 2 of the midwives of the team and with each of them we have had the due date conversation and each brings up the ultrasound dating...and i just have to say that I hate their unbelieving tone and that they seem to be just throwing out the ultrasound bit to shut me up until they can prove me wrong. It's not just my imagination...it's Simon's too.
To add to the debate,apparently most first babies are born a week late and many people believe the full moon affects when women go into labour. (Our second appointment with our midwife happened the day after the full moon and 5 women went into labour...the midwife we met with says that she and nurses at the hospitals concur that they have more births on a full moon.)



So...
Midwife says: October 29th
Simon and Marie say: November 3rd
1 week late because of first birth: November 10th
According to full moon: November 10th

Okay, this is getting a bit long but I feel it necessary to explain why it even matters when the baby is due...
1. Gestation of the baby- Gestation is very important when participating in genetic an other screening tests- each step of the testing has to be done at certain weeks of pregnancy
2. If your baby is "overdue"- If your baby is more than a week overdue it is recommended to induce labour as complications may arise making it difficult to have a vaginal birth -one being the baby is too big. However, if you conceived later in your cycle your baby may not be overdue at all and induction unnecessary.

* basal body temperature (BBT)- the temperature of your body at rest.
When trying to conceive it is useful to measure your BBT. If you measure your BBT at the same time every day(recommended when you first wake up) and track it you should see roughly the same temperature every day...however, after you ovulate your BBT raises .2 degrees and remains that temp. for the next few days. If you are planning to conceive this can help you establish when in your cylcle you ovulate, though some may have irregular cycles.

oh yeah, and the following I quoted from a web site with conceiving tips...
"It is incorrect to assume that every woman ovulates on day 14 of her cycle. In fact, a woman's normal pattern can mean ovulation on day 10 or day 21."
SO THERE!

Pop! Goes the Navel

The incredible disappearing belly button.

How far along? 16 weeks 4 days

Today I had a friend over and I haven't seen her for about 4 weeks and I was showing her my bare baby belly and she said "oh! You're belly button's flattening out." Wh- what??? Let me see that! Holy crap! How did I not notice that? That was a shock....apparently not to Simon though who said to me..."I thought you knew."