16 weeks 1 day: Kickin' it on the way to school

I think I felt the baby move today. I stopped for breakfast on my way to school today. After wolfing down my bagel with cheese and a large lemonade, I parked in the commuter garage, and began the 10 minute walk to class. The road is a pretty busy street, and there were lots of trucks going by. My bag was rubbing/bumping against my stomach as I walked, and each time a truck passed me, my stomach felt like there were bubbles popping to the right of my navel. It was perfectly timed with the rumbles from the trucks. I just kept rubbing my stomach, and then the bubbles would stop until the next truck came by.

Dyke Two is doing an all day training session, so I can't call and tell her. I wanted to call her as it was happening, but I didn't think it was an "emergency" that warranted interrupting the training.

15 weeks 2 days: we have a heartbeat

routine pre-natal appointment

Dyke Two wasn't able to come with me because she had to work. I went alone, and was actually surprised at the number of people who remained in the waiting room instead of going into the examining room with their wife/gf/daughter.

Took my blood pressure, weighed me, urine sample. all were normal.

used the doppler to hear the baby's heartbeat. it was nice and audible, 150 bpm.

next appointment: Tuesday september 13 at 1:15


I realized this morning after I heard the heartbeat that I honestly thought the doctor would not be able to find it. i think that in my anxiety, I do such a good job of preparing myself for the worst that I truly expect the worst to happen.

I just assumed that the doctor would not find the heartbeat, and we would have to do an ultrasound. I don't think I had gotten to the point of assuming that the ultrasound would be bad news, but I definitely thought that the doppler would not help me.

I need to get that anxiety under control....

and, apparently, the trash can fairies fixed the broken trash can yesterday. we now have wheels on the can again.

who knew that my trashcan could become a part of my daily life like this??

15 weeks 0 days: Taking out our trash

Funny thing about the trash can. After I wrote that journal entry on Friday, Dyke Two came stomping into the house Friday afternoon and announced that the trashmen had broken our trash can during the pick up on Friday. Not a big deal since our can did not cost $60, but a big deal since trash in our town has to have a sticker on it to get picked up. Our can has a yearly sticker, and it cost us over $100. I am not sure how we replace the can and remove the sticker to put it on a different can...

I had a bittersweet end of the week last week. I went to my old school to drop off some more stuff, and my principal had already heard about my pregnancy, since he greeted me with a huge hug and a congratulations. That was nice, but it was very weird to be back in the building but not a part of the process....

I am heading out for a Town Hall meeting this afternoon. Our lieutenant governor (and democratic candidate for governor) is speaking about his education plan at 4:30, and since he is my hero, I will be there with bells on to hear him speak. It will be nice to be a grown up again, with real clothes on, and talking to other people about bigger picture things instead of nausea, heartburn and back pain.

14 weeks 4 days: good thing it's legal...

My father called last night, and proceeded to tell me the big story of his week. He and my stepmother needed a new outdoor trash can, so he went to Home Depot and bought the only one he could find. $60 for a trash can. He said there was no price tag on it, and he was so shocked at the register that he just bought it because he was too embarrassed to tell the cashier it was too expensive.

So, he brought it home, filled it up with a week's worth of nasty, kitchen food type trash and left it outside in the 100 degree weather. He wheeled it out on trash day, so proud of himself to finally have a can on wheels. The trash men came, and then they left, refusing to pick up the brand new trash can.

He called the public works number of his town, and discovered that the new trash can was too big. The legal requirements of his town is 42 gallons. He had purchased a 50 gallon trashcan. He talked to the public works administrator, who agreed to send the trash men back, as long as Dad handed the trash men the bags, rather than make the trash men lift the contraband can.

That night, he wanted to go buy a new trash can, but my stepmother said, "But we have to go babysit for the kids (my stepsister and brother-in-law) since it is their anniversary." Apparently, since my stepsister and BIL live one town offer (ostensibly without the same size requirements for trash cans), a lighbulb went off in my dad's brain, and he proceeded to put a bow on the trashcan, load it in the car, and give it to my stepsister and brother-in-law as a present.

He is still confused as to why my stepsister wasn't thrilled to receive a trashcan (with a slight stench of a week's storage of nasty trash) as an anniversary gift.

The icing on the cake of the trashcan saga is that he then told me that the trashcan wasn't so much a gift per se. It was more of a forced trade, since he insisted on taking their old trashcan, which met the legal requirements for their town.

All I can say is that it is a good thing that Dyke already put that ring on my finger, and that divorce is not possible for us since our marriage is not recognized. Otherwise, my family is way too crazy to willingly marry into.

Dyke Two and I don't have to worry. Our trashcan is also a 50 gallon can.

14 weeks 3 days: a holding pattern

I really have nothing to say. I went back to my old job last week and earlier this week to finish up some paperwork, and meet with people who are taking over some of my duties. It felt very weird to be there, but not be part of it anymore. I really am going to miss it, much as I am excited to start grad school.

For the most part, my nausea and fatigue have lifted. I am freaking out that something must be wrong, since I feel so good and am still not showing. I am glad I see the doctor next Wednesday for some reassurance.

I am worried about starting school again, since it seems that my brain has become completely addled this summer. I am losing words mid-sentence, struggling to make points, and forgetting important details. I am afraid that my new classmates and professors will find me a blithering idiot...

14 weeks 0 days: Genetic screening results...

The genetic counselor called this afternoon with the results of the blood draw from last week.

The risk of trisomy-21 has decreased even further to less than 1:10,000

The risk of trisomy-13 and trisomy-18 has decreased even further to less than 1:20,000

Needless to say, Dyke Two and I are thrilled.

13 weeks 1 day: turnin' up the heat

The air conditioning man just called to check on the ice situation. When I told him it was almost gone, he said he was on his way. However, he told me to turn on the heat for five to ten minutes to melt the last of it. so, I am sitting in the living room with the heat and the window air conditioning unit both blasting!

The gayboy and I just returned from washing Orangedog at the dog wash place. She was miserable, but she pranced back into the house so proud and happy to rub it in to Hounddog that she went on an adventure while he stayed home.

13 weeks 1 day: the heat is on...

UGH!! I thought that the heat wave had broken, and it is a good 10 degrees cooler than last week, but it is still 94 at noon. AND, our air conditioning has been funky all week, so the repair guys finally came today. Apparently, our coils have become completely covered in condensed ice, so we have to wait for it to thaw before they can come back (hopefully later tonight) to fix it. They think that when our filter got clogged because we forgot to change it (I have only lived in places with window units or management companies that do all that crap for you) the condensing started, and the cycle has been going on ever since. He said he could fix it for us and break the cycle. I am so glad that we have two wall units left over from the time before the central air was installed in 2003, so at least our house is relatively cool still.

My poor Orangedog decided that rolling in poo was a good idea this morning. Dyke Two decided that I can't clean her myself (the whole toxoplasmosis thing) so she left Orangedog outside when she left for work. I decided that since it was so hot, I couldn't leave my stinky girl out all day to swelter. (We had a teenager die of heatstroke last week, so I am nervous about a hairy, fur covered dog). So, I set up her old crate, turned on the kitchen wall air conditioning unit, and chased Orangedog around the kitchen until I finally was able to shove her into the crate. Hounddog watched with great amusement since he is the one who normally ends up in the crate. He's still peeing on the floor, and ate our vertical blinds in the kitchen last month.

Thankfully, one of the gayboys heard the story, and offered to come over and give her a bath. He adores our dogs, and said that as long as I helped keep her calm, he will get his hands covered in poo and soap for me. He is coming over after he eats lunch.

I get by with a little help from my friends...

13 weeks 0 days: hello again, little red!!

The Nuchal Translucency

baby measured 13 weeks 0 days (exactly MY assertion all along)
heartbeat: 150
Crown to Rump length: 68.0 mm
Nuchal translucency: 1.7 mm
placenta: anterior high
amniotic fluid: normal
cord: 3 vessels

In terms of anatomy: nasal bone, spine, skull, brain, adbomen all appear normal. the stomach, bladder, hands and feet were all visible.

The estimated risk of Downs Syndrome went from 1:545 based on age to 1:5524. The estimated risk of trisomy 13 or trisomy 18 went from 1:1021 based on age to 1:9016.

I took a rather spectacular tumble yesterday after the pilates ball I was sitting on popped. (I think it was overinflated, and then I rolled it over a piece of sharp grit or something in the carpet). Anyway, the doctor said that the baby looked great, and the placenta was firmly attached to the uterus. He also told me that falls for the next 10 weeks are likely to be fine, as long as I don't land on my stomach.

The actual ultrasound was incredible. The technical information was very reassuring, but it was amazing to spend 35 minutes looking at Red. I think my favorite part was watching Dyke Two's face as she watched the ultrasound screen. The emotions were right there in her eyes, and it was so reassuring to know that she is as excited and invested in the baby as I am. I feel as secure as I can that we won't be one of the couples whose relationships deteriorate after the baby is born. As a child of divorce, this is very important to me. i need as much tangible proof as possible.

As we were waiting in the lobby to see the genetic counselor, we began talking to a woman who was waiting for her sister to come out of the genetic counselor's office. She had her son and nephew with her. When we went back into the office, the pregnant woman was not around, so we assumed she left. However, when we were leaving, thrilled to pieces that everything was OK, the two women were leaving the office right behind us. The sister had left her son's baby carrier, and when I reminded her about it, she said, "We're coming back." They turned into the bathroom, and I heard the pregnant woman say to her sister, "I haven't told you the worst part yet."

Dyke Two and I looked at each other, walked down the hall in silence and then, as the elevator was opening, Dyke Two quietly took my hand and said, "We are so blessed with this pregnancy."

How quickly our joy was shadowed by someone else's pain.