Pregnancy Update - 21 Weeks

Yesterday marked 21 weeks of pregnancy and so far so good! We had our 20 week ultrasound on Tuesday and our follow up appointment with the doctor yesterday.

The ultrasound was definitely not what I expected. This baby would not stop moving for anything! Every time the ultrasound tech tried to focus on a different body part, the baby decided it was time to move around. She was trying to see the face, and up go the hands and into the mouth. She tried seeing where the umbilical cord connects to the baby, there go those feet kicking away. She tried to see the heart up close...nope, not gonna happen. We joked the whole time about how stubborn this baby is going to be.

About 45 minutes into the scan, the ultrasound tech suggested we go for a walk to see if the baby would flip over for us. No such luck. They want to see all 4 chambers of the heart answer look for any signs of cleft lip. They said it's a good thing we don't want to know the gender, cause they couldn't tell anyway. Overall she said everything looked good. The baby's size is right on track at about 1 lb. the heart rate was 141 beats per minute, which is right in the middle of the healthy range.

All the necessary body parts are there, she just needs to be able to get a better look at the heart, hands and face. They said I have an anterior placenta, meaning the placenta is positioned directly in the front of the uterus. This is perfectly fine, however it causes some difficulty with getting a good look at the baby. It also makes it harder to feel the baby move from the outside. They said it could be another 4 weeks or so before we will be able to feel any movement from the outside....so if you're thinking of grabbing my belly any time soon, you might be wasting your time!

We left the appointment with the knowledge that our baby looked completely healthy. They asked us to come back in 3 weeks for another ultrasound to try and see the heart hands and face better. At first, I felt relieved that my baby was healthy and then my crazy anxiety brain kicked in. By the time we got to the car my mind was racing and I asked brian "what if everything is not ok?! What if the tech didn't want to tell us and wants the doctor to tell us herself? What if they just said that so we wouldn't worry and they really want us to come back to see if something has gotten worse?!" I know, it sounds crazy...but my mind goes some pretty crazy places sometimes. I spent the next day worrying about all the things that could have been wrong and anxiously awaiting our appointment the next morning.

He/She already looks adorable! 

The only picture they could get without a hand directly in his/her face.

Playing with his/her face

Look at that little foot! 

We had our follow up a appointment first thing Thursday morning and our doctor confirmed that everything on the ultrasounds looked good. I had gotten myself worked up for nothing, like always! The amniotic fluid level is normal, baby is measuring within 3 days of my due date and is perfectly proportional. She said my cervix is still long so no signs of preterm labor risks. Surprisingly, I haven't gained a single pound this month! I don't know how that is possible because i am always hungry and my belly has definitely grown. The doctor actually asked me if I'm eating enough, which is comical since I've been overweight most of my life. I ordered food for dinner tonight and the server actually asked if I was going to eat all that food by myself! I'm indulging in some pregnancy cravings like frozen yogurt and Mexican food, but I'm also adding lots more fruit and veggies into my diet. I've cut down on sugary drinks too and I'm drinking mostly water and my one small cup of coffee in the morning.

At my last appointment, they drew some blood to see if I have any antibodies for the pertussis virus. I had an allergic reaction to the vaccine both times they tried to give it to me as a baby. Usually they give you this shot while you are pregnant so you can pass on the immunity to the baby. Well the results show no traces of any pertussis antibodies. Which unfortunately means that I am not protected against whooping cough in any way. The doctor does not want to risk giving me the vaccine and having another reaction while I'm pregnant. She said it isn't the end of the world, but we will have to be extra careful with where we take the baby until he/she is old enough to receive the vaccination. No daycare for the first 12 weeks and anyone who watches the baby will need an updated booster shot. We will also have to he careful with anyone who seems to have a cold or even the sniffles, and make sure we don't let them around the baby. I'll have to play some serious mama bear with this one!

I'm looking forward to the next ultrasound so we can see our baby again. I have been keeping myself busy working on the nursery and painting birch trees on the walls.We also have been battling with the insurance company over one of my IVF procedures. The doctor got a prior authorization for all of the procedures and insurance has sent it back 6 or 7 times with different reasons that it was denied. Thankfully we keep good notes and the billing department at our fertility clinic has kept great record also.the procedure was finally approved and a check was sent to the doctor yesterday. With that weight off of our shoulders, we can move forward preparing for our baby!

-Emily

Pregnancy update: 15 Weeks!

This past Thursday marked the start of the 15th week of my pregnancy. I thought it was about time I post an actual update instead of a 3 sentence photo caption on facebook! A lot has happened in the last few weeks. 

We met with a doula! The first time I had ever heard of a doula was on the "Family Guy" episode where Stevie is pregnant and he yells "call the doula". I am a worrier by nature and I can experience some pretty bad anxiety at times. Most recently my brain has decided to play the "freak out about possible c-section game" and now I'm really worried about it. I began researching different ways to prevent a c-section and I kept coming across articles about Doula's.

The easiest explanation I have heard of a doula is a "birth coach". They are there to help reassure you (and your partner) that everything is moving along normally. They can also help with different birthing positions and with pain management techniques, should you choose not to have an epidural. (Epidurals have been known to slow down labor and increase the risk of a c-section. Right now I don't believe I want one, but who knows how I'll want when the contractions kick in!) I asked other women for their experiences with or without a doula and the resounding answer was "get a doula!" 

We met with 2 different Doula's and decided to go with a woman named Brenda. She has been doing this for a long time and has been a doula for 70-something births. She is knowledgeable and shared her own childbirth experiences with us. During our meeting, she had to take a phone call from a woman who's contractions had been progressing throughout the day. I listened to her talk to this woman and right away I decided I liked her! She was so calm and reassuring and told her she would be right over. We will meet with Brenda a few more times before the actual birth so that we can write up a birth plan together. 

We met our doctor! Because we used IVF to conceive, most of my appointments were at the fertility center. While most women call their doctor right when they find out they're pregnant, it's a little different with IVF. They want to make sure the pregnancy looks like it is going to last before referring you to an actual obgyn. We met Dr. Brandt a couple weeks ago and when she walked out of the room, Brian and I both said " I really like her!" She was so calming and knowledgeable. She was 100% for my desire to work with a doula and said she has had some wonderful experiences in the past. 

One concern I had was that I hadn't gained any weight yet. It goes up 1 or 2 lbs and then right back down again. First off, she is the first doctor who has ever told me that I shouldn't worry too much about my weight. She said overall I am healthy and that as long as I am eating right "you're just never going to be 120lbs and that's ok" I swear I wanted to hug her! I've been overweight since I was young and every doctor has ignored any concern I have and has pretty much just told me to lose weight. She also said that I shouldn't worry too much if I don't gain weight. She said as long as the baby is growing as it should and I am eating fairly well, it isn't too big of a deal. She said some women don't gain any weight their entire pregnancy....sounds great to me! While I may not be gaining any weight, I'm definitely gaining some belly!

I am so glad that we started doing these weekly pictures so early on. It's one thing to look in a mirror every day and see my body changing, but seeing weekly pictures is a whole different story. It seems crazy that I've gotten so much bigger already and I know I'm just going to continue getting bigger for the next 25 weeks! 

We are excited to be moving into the "calm" of the second trimester and away from the uncertainty that comes along with the first trimester. Our baby is continuing to grow and I even felt him/her move for the first time earlier this week! Baby Retz can even hear our voices now! I am feeling great and anxious for the summer so we can meet our baby. 

-Emily

Pregnancy Update: 10 Weeks

Today marks the beginning of the 10th week of this pregnancy. I am officially 1/4th of the way there! I'm not quite showing yet, but we started taking weekly progress pictures a few weeks ago so we can keep track of how plump I am getting!

That's just an orange peel rolled up to look like a Kumquat.

Crazy pregnancy dreams are here in full swing! I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had a dream about an argument with my mom over our baby having green eyes. I thought that was strange at the time, but that was nothing compared to some of the more recent ones. Last night I dreamt that Brian's uncle gave our baby to a giant bird and it dropped it from way up in the air. I woke up in the middle of the night extremely upset that he had given our baby to a bird. I even woke Brian up in the middle of the night and had a hard time getting back to sleep.

On a lighter note, Brian and I were talking the other day, and we realized that in all of my dreams the baby is a girl. The crazy thing is that the few dreams that Brian has had about the baby, it has also been a girl. So many women who I have spoken to said "I just knew it was a boy/girl". At first I thought it was a boy but that has gone away and now I have no idea. The dreams lead me to think it might be a girl but other than that I have no feeling one way or another. We won't be finding out any time soon as we are waiting till the baby is born to find out! At least that's the plan for now!

Last time I was at the doctor I asked him if I could take zicam while pregnant. He didn't know what that was and the resident with him said "it's that zinc cold remedy." He immediately said I could take that and shouldn't have any problems. Flash forward to this week and I have an annoying cold. I asked Brian to get me some zicam from Target while he was at work. Well, he just happened to talk to the pharmacist and she was very uncomfortable with pregnant women using Zicam. Apparently high levels of zinc have shown to cause premature birth. Plus it isn't regulated by the FDA so they don't have to say exactly what is in it. I'll be asking my doctor and a pharmacist from now on!

Other than having a cold, I feel pretty good. The nausea has gone away for the most part other than a few instances of instant upchuck. I was brushing my teeth this morning and with no warning threw up in the sink. I wasn't nauseous or anything; it just happened and it was disgusting. Certain smells are really getting to me still. Brian made french onion soup the other day and it smelled so bad to me I couldn't even sit next to him while he ate it. He did however make a great chicken noodle soup from scratch that I have had almost every day this week.

I haven't gained any weight so far, which is amazing because I have been all about the Christmas cookies lately. My work is filled with goodies brought in by caregivers and treats sent in from clients. It's really rather ridiculous how many cookies I have eaten in the past couple weeks. It hasn't seemed to have any impact on the scale though,, which I guess is normal at this point. I've read that most women don't gain any weight during their first trimester but I've also read that I should start to gain right about now. I've always struggled with my weight so being concerned that i haven't gained weight is totally new for me!

I have my first appointment with a regular OBGYN on January 4th. This is just with the nurse to get my medical history and go through office policy. My appointment with the actual Doctor is on the 11th at which point they will do another ultrasound. I'll be 13 weeks along at that point and can't wait to see how baby Retzlaff has grown!

- Emily

Ultrasound # 2 - 8 Weeks 4 Days

We got to see the baby again today and he/she is doing wonderfully! We could actually make out what the baby looks like and it doesn't just look like a blob anymore. Dr. Dodds, who did my egg retrieval, and a resident performed the ultrasound today. They joked about whether the baby looks more like a gummy bear or a weeble at this point. A few weeks ago the baby was about the size of a blueberry, even though it has grown quite a bit, we have all kind of taken a liking to calling it "blueberry". I even texted my mom the other day and said "blueberry is the size of a raspberry now!" Who knows, maybe the nickname will stick. ;)

Two little feet up in the right hand corner, two little arms on the sides and a giant head! 

Halfway through the ultrasound, Dr. Dodds asked if I had my phone. He said we were going to have some fun now that I'm almost 9 weeks. He flipped to a different screen and we could hear the baby's heartbeat! 

This ultrasound was a lot more exciting than the last one. The last ultrasound we got to see our baby for the first time, which was incredible. This one was just so much more detailed. They pointed out the umbilical cord that is forming and the yolk sac that is going away as it is no longer needed. We got to see the little arms and legs and we even saw the baby move. At one moment all four of us were exclaiming "it moved" and "did you see that". 

We all sat in an office after the ultrasound and went over everything. Once we were done, Dr. Dodds said we didn't need to come back and that I should see my regular OB in the next couple weeks. I'll stay on the Progesterone for 17 more days and the Estrogen for 10 more days. I will be happy to be done with the Progesterone! 

My morning sickness is almost completely gone and I've gotten used to the exhaustion. Being overly tired is just a normal part of my day at this point, My boobs hurt really bad and they seem to have grown a bit...which was unnecessary as far as I'm concerned. I know it's all part of the incredible process of creating another human being. 

While I am happy to be far enough along in my pregnancy to see a regular doctor, It is definitely bittersweet to say goodbye to the staff at The Fertility Center. They have been there along this whole journey with us and they all seem genuinely excited when things go right for their patients. I'll have to drop off some Christmas cookies for everyone in the next couple weeks. 

-Emily

Ultrasound #1 6 Weeks 4 days

We got to see our baby for the first time today! A little blob on the screen that we have awaited for oh-so long! Everything looks great so far and the baby is right on track. He/She is currently measuring 6 weeks and 1 day, when in reality I am 6 weeks and 4 days along. The doctor said that is still within range and it could just be how the baby is positioned.

See that little blob up on the left side?? :)

When I went in for ultrasounds of my ovaries while they were stimulating egg growth, they were just fuzzy pictures but this was so clear. We could see the heartbeat right away. It was just a little flicker up in the corner, but Brian pointed it out right away. The heartbeat is 118 beats per minute, which is right on track with how far along I am. It looks like just a tiny blob at this point, but it's incredible to think of how much he/she has grown over the past few weeks. In just a few weeks it has gone from a microscopic group of cells to the size of a blueberry and it will just keep growing as time goes on. 

I have been saying all along that I think the baby is a boy. I don't know why, I just feel like it is going to be a boy. That was until last night. I had an incredibly vivid dream that We had a baby girl with green eyes. I had a long conversation with my mom in my dream where she was explaining that the baby couldn't have green eyes because Brian and I both have blue eyes. I have no idea if that is true or not, but in my dream I believed I knew what I was talking about. That little girl was mine, green eyes and all! 

This past week I have felt sick most of the time. I have only actually thrown up a few times, but I feel like I am going to throw up all day long. I have a stash of Saltines in my nightstand, my car, my desk drawer and even my purse. Brian got me these little candies called "preggie pop drops". They are slightly sour and have essential oils that are supposed to help with the nausea. I think the sour taste just tricks your brain into focussing on something other than the nausea. They do seem to take the edge off when I'm feeling extra crappy. I'll keep the nausea if it means this baby will continue growing. Our next ultrasound is in 2 weeks and we can see how much our little blueberry has grown! 

- Emily

Thanksgiving

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and Maybe it's the hormones making me all warm and fuzzy, but this year I have so many things to be thankful for.

I'm thankful for our parents. They have been so incredibly supportive throughout this entire process. They have celebrated with us when things went our way and listened to us when things got hard. It has been so great to see the excitement they share for our good news and has really been uplifting to Brian and I.  When the baby arrives we know we will have a great emotional support system when the sleep deprivation kicks in.

I am thankful for our families and friends. We have the most incredible support system and knowing so many people were rooting for us and praying for us. I am also thankful for all the people who we don't even know who have taken an interest in our journey. This blog has been read over 4500 times by people all over the world, even as far as Russia and Kenya. I don't even know anyone who lives in most of these places! I am thankful that the internet connects us all so easily and I hope that someday this blog will help someone else who may be in a similar situation.

I'm even thankful for the morning sickness that has finally kicked in because that means my body is doing what it is supposed to! I had a moment the other day where I freaked out that the tests may have all been wrong and I actually wasn't pregnant. I wasn't feeling sick and I didn't have any of the other normal symptoms other than sleepiness. I actually went as far as to take a home pregnancy test just to ease my mind. It said I was pregnant and I went on with my day. I am sure at some point I will change my mind, but for now I am thankful for the nausea...and saltines!

Finally, I'm thankful for this baby growing inside my belly. I'm thankful that this child will be given a chance to grow up without the constant pain that his or her father lives with every day. I have an app on my phone that tells me how big the baby is and each day it says how the baby is developing and growing. It has been so cool to see how each day it is different. This week he or she started growing little nubs where their arms and eyes will be. and is about the size of a peppercorn. Soon we will be able to hear the heartbeat and actually see an ultrasound picture of our baby.

I hope everyone has someone to spend thanksgiving with and please find something to be thankful for.

- Emily

5 weeks Pregnant: No More Injections!

Tomorrow I will officially be 5 weeks pregnant and I feel great! I haven't had any nausea or bloating whatsoever. I am continuing to be extremely tired in the evenings though and I'm usually in bed by 8PM. My eyes also seem to be feeling really dry. I haven't been able to wear my contacts much at all and have switched to wearing my glasses a lot more. If I didn't already know I was pregnant, I probably would have no clue that I was pregnant!

I went in for another blood test last Friday to check how my Hcg was increasing. It had risen 136% from 174mlU/ml all the way up to 411mlu/ml. They look for it to increase by at lease 80% if not double, so this is great news! I have my first OB appointment at the fertility center on the 28th and I think we will get to hear our baby's heartbeat!

When I say I am done with injections, that does not mean I am done with the medications. I have to continue taking Progesterone until I am 11 weeks pregnant and Estrogen till I am 10 weeks pregnant. These help support the baby until the placenta is fully formed and I am through the first trimester. I really haven't had that much trouble with the progesterone injections, that is until earlier this week when my backside began to resemble something akin to an ugly pumpkin!

Yes...like that, but not orange!

I broke out in giant, red, itchy hives around each injection site. I called The Fertility Center that day and they said I had probably developed a sensitivity to the sesame oil that they put the progesterone in. Apparently this is not too uncommon. They said my next option was to try a progesterone injection with a different type of oil. They sent in the prescription for Progesterone in Ethyl Oleate hoping that a synthetic oil would help stop the hives. Only problem is my insurance will not cover anything other than sesame oil and the out of pocket cost would be around $150 for just 3 vials. I only paid $4 per vial for the Progesterone in sesame oil.

In an effort to save some money, my doctor has switched me to a vaginal capsule 3 times a day which are only $8 for 90 pills. The capsules seems like they will be annoying, but it will definitely be worth the savings. The hives seem like just a localized reaction, but they did tell me I will need to be extra careful the next time I eat anything with sesame in it. While they hope it will not be an issue, I may have developed an actual allergy to sesame. I'll just need to be careful and be aware that I may have a reaction in the future.

Switching to the capsules means I am 100% done with all of the injections!!! We started this journey back in September and My final poke count is exactly 100!! I had to have 2 pokes one day this week because I ran out of the medication before the next vial was delivered. We had to do one injection in the morning with about 1/3 of my dosage and another injection at night with the remainder.

On another note, it seems as though Renly, our dog, knows something is going on. He has been glued to my side for the past week or so and has just been super clingy. The other night he seemed like he had to go to the bathroom, so Brian got up to let him out. He ran over to my side of the bed and wouldn't budge even when Brian tried to coax him with food. Finally I got up with him and had no problem getting him to go out.

I have heard of animals acting differently when someone is pregnant, but I wouldn't think that it would happen so early. I looked up some info online and a few different articles suggest that the hormone changes cause your scent to change. Humans cant tell, but animals can sense a change and they innately become more protective of you. I like to think he is just as excited as we are and wants to protect the baby. ;)

-Emily