Random thoughts

I went to see my nieces and sister this weekend - and came home with a box full of clothes that my youngest niece has already outgrown, already washed in Dreft and ready to go for my little one. There are some cute clothes in there and most still look brand new. Combined with what I already have, I might only have to do laundry every couple of weeks - and that's accounting for 2-3 outfits a day :)

She's been super active the last couple of days - it's definitely more like little pokes than the vibrations I was feeling before and most of the pokes seem to be aimed at my bladder. And, unfortunately, she seems to be a morning person so far - the opposite of her mom!

I found the book I wanted. It's called Before You Were Born: My Wish for a Baby, about a single mother by choice using IVF with donor sperm to have a baby. They have lots of variations available - I highly recommend anyone who went through infertility (IUI or IVF) and gets their BFP to look into them at www.xyandme.com

"Who's my daddy?"

I'm fully aware that I'll have to deal with this question someday and I'm sure you might be wondering about Sweet Pea's "biological father" as well. We'll definitely talk about him, but I haven't decided what we'll call him yet - I'm trying to buy a book about it - it was called something like The Story of Me and they had several variations, one being a single mother by choice using donor sperm and IVF to get pregnant but I can't find it anymore! I'll keep looking because I want to find ways to talk to her about him so that she has a positive self-image and hopefully a way to respond if other children tease her about not having a dad. Also, if I start early, hopefully it won't be a big deal!

Its funny - when you're married, your goal is to produce a child that is a blend of the couple, when you're single, you want your child to have your best characteristics with improvements in the areas you don't like. Also, I was a lot pickier with choosing a donor than I ever would be in choosing someone to date! I picked a donor that is 6' tall with blue eyes and brown hair. His hair has some body to it, so hopefully she'll have some waves but not be too much like mine (some people like my naturally curly hair, but I usually refer to it as naturally frizzy). No allergies, excellent eyesight and good teeth, but he did need braces (but who doesn't, right?). He was a good student and earned a full scholarship to college (and since I did too, I hope I can expect Sweet Pea to get good grades and earn at least a partial scholarship - keep your fingers crossed!) He's athletic, but not good enough to participate professionally. His family's health history was pretty good also - no major red flags. My favorite part: "Why I became a donor: A good friend and his wife have had fertility issues, and I saw the trials that they went through. This is a way I can help couples in similiar situations." How sweet is that! Also, when she's 18, she can contact Xytex and get his name and contact information, so that she'll get an updated family history and a chance to research the other side of her family if she wants to.

The donor was 6 lbs 8 oz when he was born, so I was surprised that Sweet Pea was measuring a week ahead already. However, he does have a daughter who weighed 9 pounds when she was born - hopefully Sweet Pea won't be that big. And if she is, I'll definitely be planning on a c-section!

I'm having a ?????

Excellent u/s today! I got the best u/s technician (she used to do my follicle counts years ago when I was doing IUIs at the office and she was so excited for me) - I think I got to look at the baby for almost half an hour! She oooed and awwed with me and took the time to explain everything I was seeing. I got to see all 4 chambers of the baby's heart (151 bpm today), the brain, the little nose, the eyes, the mouth (which usually has a hand in it), adorable toes and fingers, even the baby's bladder! (I swear it's the size of mine right now :) The baby likes to keep it's legs crossed, but we did get to see the private area! Everything was looking great! The baby is measuring a week ahead (I'm 20 weeks and 3 days pregnant and the baby measured at 21 weeks and 3 days) and weighs 15 ounces already. The tech predicts I'll have a tall baby from the leg bone measurements - I did pick a taller donor in hopes that my kids will be taller than I am :) I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am! Can anyone figure out what I'm having?

Happy heart day!

Just got done listening to the baby's heartbeat - the smoothie I drank must've given him or her a little jolt because it was 177 bpm, a lot higher than the 150 bpm it was on Friday and the 149 bpm on Saturday morning (it's just so reassurring to hear the baby's heartbeat after I got hurt at work on Friday - but there are no signs of any problems and I'm just so relieved that the baby is okay! - and my doctor got me in right away since it was an emergency, no waiting this time!!!) Sounded like the baby was moving around a lot today, too, so maybe the elevated heart rate wasn't all from the smoothie.

Gotta say that I can make good smoothies! I used a frozen berry blend (cherries, raspberries, and strawberries) with half of a banana, a cup of milk and a packet of the carnation instant breakfast powder. Pretty tasty - and has some protein, which I need as a vegetarian.

52 1/2 hours until my ultrasound (with a different u/s technician since I called and got my appointment changed - yea!) and hopefully a glimpse at the baby's "private area" so I'll know if I'm right with my guess of a boy or will be surprised with a girl. Check back Tuesday night for the answer :)

Da - da - da - da - da - da - Charge!

Found my first pair of pants I can't wear anymore on January 22nd - they're going to the bottom of the drawer! Others still fit okay, but it was a wake-up call that it was time to either go up a size or buy a pair of maternity pants to have on-hand in case the baby bump sneaks up on me and I wake up some morning with nothing to wear! On February 3rd, I found out that my shirts are getting a little short too! One of the students had to come up to me and tell me that my belly was showing! Whoops! Guess it was past time to do some maternity clothes shopping (as of February 6th, I'm 19 weeks pregnant!) - so I've been slowly starting. I have a pair of khakis, a pair of maternity jeans that I need to get shortened, and several new shirts. It's a good start, but I still have some shopping to do (especially since I'll need winter clothes, along with spring and summer clothes - this pregnancy is going to hit most of the seasons - would say I should've planned it better, but after 4 years of trying to get pregnant, buying extra maternity clothes is nothing!) The best news is for all of the people I work with - I won't have to go to school naked!

Swoosh swoosh swoosh

A friend lent me her doppler and I'm having so much fun with it! The baby's heartbeat seems to range between 139 and 156. I had been picturing a very calm baby since my early ultrasounds all showed a little bean snuggled in the same position each time, but the baby was a little wiggler while I was listening to the heart beat a week ago. I was listening to it, then it disappeared all of a sudden with some swooshing noises and I found it a couple inches away a few seconds later. Guess he (or she) is getting more active - hope I can feel the baby's movements more consistently soon!

Should I switch?

As some of you might know, I was really disappointed with my last ob visit. My appt was at 3:30, and I showed up 10 minutes early, as requested. Well, they told me the doctor was running behind and sent me to the lab first to take the 2nd past of the sequential screening test. After the bloodwork was done, I went upstairs to wait for the doctor. The receptionist told me she was running a half hour behind - well, I didn't get to see her until 4:40! She had trouble finding the baby's heartbeat - that was the longest 90 seconds of my life - made worse by the fact that she looked panicked. Then, I had a list of questions I needed to ask, and she wasn't able to answer some of the most important ones (I know English is her second language, but if she didn't understand, she should've asked clarifying questions - as it was, I tried rewording it 3 ways before she just refused to even try to answer it). Also, she JUST read my chart from the fertility doctor. At my last u/s at that office, I got a very grumpy technician - and as much as I'm looking forward to my next u/s to find out if the baby is a boy or girl, I'm also dreading it because of that last experience. So, if I switch offices for this next visit, I might get a doctor who can answer my questions and a different u/s technician - and think that might be my plan. But I have less than 2 weeks before my appt, so I need to do that right away this week! Fortunately, the practice is large enough that they have 2 separate offices in town in addition to several in nearby communities, so I might have some options for trying out new docs.

Pink or blue? Whatever it is, I think I felt the baby move!

I MIGHT have felt the baby move this weekend (January 9th and 10th). It was about 20 minutes after I ate and I felt this odd little vibration down there. It happened 3 times, but nothing in the last few days - but I was sick this weekend - just a bad cold - and was laying around a lot so it might've been easier to feel it or it might've been gas - guess time will tell.

I'm ready to know what this little one is so I can use his or her name instead of "the baby" all of the time - as if it's the only baby in the whole wide world :) Finally found an IntelliGender test - they claim to be 82% accurate. The results are . . .