Hidden Hiller Chronicles: Week Thirteen

How far along: Thirteen weeks as of Wednesday, January 8, 2014. 
Size of baby: Lima Bean is nearly three inches long, about the size of a pea pod, and weighs nearly an ounce.
Maternity Clothes: Staying out of maternity wear for now.  I am down to four pairs of pants that fit.  Luckily, long tops have been in fashion for awhile so I'm set with those.
Movement: Haven't felt anything for awhile.
Sex of baby: Thinking girl, but we'll see. 
Sleep: Sleeping fine.
What I miss: Options for lunch at work.  There aren't that many places to eat near my office, and now that I can't eat deli meat or prepared salads (chicken salad, tuna salad, etc.), I am really limited.  I have been grabbing a veggie sandwich and soup from Subway nearly every work day.  That is going to get old soon!  Maybe I should just start bringing lunch from home.
Cravings: Chocolate pie with whipped cream.  I wanted this so much that I took it upon myself to purchase ingredients and make it.  Not that it was difficult: I used a pre-made pie crust, chocolate pudding, and whipped cream in a can.  But it was still delicious!
Symptoms: Fatigue, bad skin.  Hoping the fatigue will ease up as I enter the second trimester.
What I'm looking forward to: Telling people our happy news.  I haven't told many people yet, mostly because I have just been so busy.  When I'm not at work, I'm chasing after Henry, and once he is in bed, I am too tired to do anything except sit on the couch and read.

Other notables: I had my 12-week appointment with my regular doctor this week.  It was pretty uneventful, with the exception of hearing sweet Lima Bean's heartbeat!  Going strong at 161 bpm.  The nurse also commented on how busy Lima Bean is--it took awhile to get her to stay in one place long enough to get a good heart rate.  Oh, no, what are we in for?!  I also got tired of waiting for the results of the first trimester screening, so I called and asked for them.  Lima Bean has a less than 1/10,000 chance of having trisomy disorders, which was great to hear.

Hidden Hiller Chronicles: Week Twelve

How far along: Twelve weeks as of Wednesday, January 1, 2014.  Entering a new year, soon to enter a new trimester!
Size of baby: Just over two inches long, the size of a lime, and about half an ounce.
Maternity Clothes: Still no, but I am taking advantage of my comfy, stretchy leggings and long tunics.  I can wear a few pairs of pants still, too.  I also bought a new pair of "skinny" maternity jeans at the mall while shopping with my mom.  Now that's an oxymoron if I ever saw one.
Movement: Well, the pulse beats I had been feeling stopped.  So maybe it wasn't the baby moving after all.  The strange thing is that I was talking with a coworker, who happens to be due with her second baby two days before I am, and she said the same thing about fetal movement.  She thought she felt her baby really early at 10-11 weeks, but then the feelings stopped around 12 weeks. 
Sex of baby: Thinking girl, but we'll see.  I honestly don't care.  I would like to have a daughter to have a shopping and movie buddy, but I would also love for Henry to experience having a brother.  So either way, we will be happy.
Sleep: Still sleeping like a rock!
What I miss: Being able to have a glass of wine when going out to dinner.
Cravings: Chick-fil-a chicken strips.  I had to have some when my mom and I were shopping at the mall, and I scarfed down all three in a matter of minutes.  Also, Indian food and spaghetti and meat sauce, and my soup and sandwich kick is going strong. 
Symptoms: Still tired, still have acne.
What I'm looking forward to: Getting the results of my blood work back. The screening ultrasound went well, but I want to have the comfort of the percentages, too!

Other notables:

We had our first trimester screen ultrasound this week, on January 2.  The place we went for it was packed when we arrived.  Plus, the office was short-staffed, probably because people were still out for the holidays.  We had to wait over an hour to be seen!  Not only were we bored, but I had to have a full bladder for the ultrasound and I was about to burst by the time we were called back!  But other than that, we had a wonderful experience.  This place specializes in ultrasounds, so their equipment was much better than we had seen before in doctor's offices.  The image was much clearer, and they had a huge projector screen, so Mark and I didn't have to look at the tiny computer monitor to see Lima Bean.  Lima Bean looked great.  Heartbeat was 167 beats per minute.  She has a clear nasal bridge and little fluid behind the neck, so the risk of Down Syndrome or other trisomy disorders is low.  Plus, we were able to see her spine, and it looked good, so hopefully the spina bifida results will be negative.  We also saw her brain, which looked normal.  The ultrasound tech commented on how busy Lima Bean was--didn't want to stay still!  I am only slightly joking when I say I worry about whether this kid is going to be one of those kids who never sit still!

We asked the ultrasound technician if she was able to wager a guess about the sex (but not to tell us if she could), and she said sometimes she can tell this early, but she couldn't with Lima Bean.  Looks like we will have to wait another 8 weeks to find out!

Some photos of our sweet baby:

Close-up of Lima Bean's head and profile.  Look at that adorable nose and lips!

Lima Bean from head to toe.

This shot is showing the neck and fluid level.

Hidden Hiller Chronicles: Week Eleven

How far along: Eleven weeks as of Christmas Day--Wednesday, December 25, 2013.  We told my family about Lima Bean on Christmas Day!
Size of baby: Lima Bean is just over 1.5 inches long and is about the size of a fig.  She is now almost fully formed.
Maternity Clothes: Not yet.
Movement: I still think I am feeling some movement with a few little "pulse beats" here and there. 
Sex of baby: Thinking girl, but we'll see.
Sleep: Lots of it!
What I miss: Nothing specific.
Cravings: Indian food.  Also, soup and sandwiches.  Specifically, grilled cheese and tomato soup. 
Symptoms: Fatigue and acne.  I bought new face wash with the hope that it will help, but I am doubtful.
What I'm looking forward to: Next week's ultrasound!  As usual, I am anxious to learn that everything looks ok.  Our new doctor uses a different company to do the screening, so we will go there for the ultrasound and blood draw.

Hidden Hiller Chronicles: Week Ten

How far along: Ten weeks as of Wednesday, December 18, 2013.
Size of baby: A kumquat (still don't know what that is).  Lima Bean is a little over an inch long and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce.  Big news: Lima Bean has now completed the most critical part of her development!
Maternity Clothes: Not yet.
Movement: I think I am feeling movement, but it seems way too early.  I remember what it felt like when I first felt Henry move--little pulse beatings in my abdomen that would beat a couple of times and then stop.  This is the same feeling.  Given that I am only ten weeks, it doesn't seem possible, and I even googled whether I could actually be feeling movement this early!  Results seemed mixed.  Who knows, but it does help reassure me.  I don't want to use the fetal monitor to try to confirm, because then I will get upset if I don't hear the heartbeat.  So we will go with "maybe" for now!
Sex of baby: Thinking girl, but we'll see.
Sleep: Lots of it!
What I miss: Nothing specific.
Cravings: Barbeque potato chips.  Not so out of the ordinary for me.
Symptoms: Fatigue.  Also, acne.  Ugh--I had perfectly clear skin with Henry.  Not so much this time.  My skin is worse than it ever is normally.  Hormones to blame!  I also have not been spared from the stomach issues I normally deal with when not pregnant.  When I was pregnant with Henry, my stomach only acted up once or twice.  It was heaven.  This time, while it is better than normal, it is much more problematic than it was last time.  Sigh...one perk of pregnancy I thought I would get that isn't panning out that way!  Oh, well.
What I'm looking forward to: Telling our families, which we plan to do over Christmas by having Henry wear his Big Brother shirt to announce the news!

Hidden Hiller Chronicles: Week Nine

Ugh--terrible photo of me.  Focus on the bump instead!

How far along: Nine weeks as of Wednesday, December 11, 2013.
Size of baby: Lima Bean is about an inch long, the size of a grape, and weighs just a fraction of an ounce! 
Maternity clothes: Nothing yet, although I think I've got another few weeks or so before I will run out of pants that fit!
Movement: None.
Sex of baby: Still leaning towards girl.
Sleep: Just fine.  I don't think that being able to sleep will be a problem for me.
What I miss: Again, not worrying about everything I do and its effect on Lima Bean.
Cravings: Carrots and ranch dressing.  Yum!  And kind of healthy!  Also, I indulged my craving for peach ice cream when I saw that Harris Teeter carries it.  It's not something I would ever buy normally, but Henry and I have been enjoying it as an after-lunch treat.
Symptoms: Fatigue. 
What I'm looking forward to: Spilling the beans to family members soon!

Other notables: On Sunday, December 8, Henry, Lima Bean, and I took a tumble down the flight of stairs connecting our first floor to our basement.  I was carrying Henry and slipped after the first step.  I then slid down the entire flight of stairs on my back/butt, trying the whole way to catch the hand rail to stop myself.  But because I didn't want to drop Henry or harm him, I wasn't able to do it.  Talk about scary!  I burst into tears after the fall because I was so worried that it could have harmed Lima Bean.  I called my doctor, who said that at this early stage, the baby is so wedged into the uterus that it is very unlikely anything could have happened, but I could come in for an ultrasound to be safe.  Of course, it snowed early this week, so the first time I could go was on December 12.  But Lima Bean looked fine, as you can see above.  Her heart beat is now 180 beats per minute, and she is still measuring two days behind (so 8 weeks, 6 days).  The ultrasound technician checked for tears to my uterus, and all is clear.  Thank goodness.  And it was so neat to see how much Lima Bean has grown in just 10 days!  Looking so much more like a baby.

Hidden Hiller Chronicles: Week Eight

How Far Along: 8 weeks as of Wednesday, December 4, 2013.
Size of Baby: Kidney bean!
Maternity Clothes: Not yet, but it's only a matter of time.
Movement: Nothing I can feel.
Sex of Baby: I have had an intuition it's a girl since day one, but we will see if I am right. 
Sleep: As much as possible.  My biggest pregnancy symptom is fatigue and it has definitely hit me.
What I Miss: Not worrying about every little thing and its effect on Lima Bean.
Cravings: Peach ice cream, for some reason.  Such a strange thing to crave.  But maybe I was thinking about Lima Bean being born in the summer and peaches are associated with summer.  Who knows?  Will have to satisfy that one soon.
Symptoms: Mainly fatigue.  I do think the fatigue is a little better this go around than with Henry.  I am still exhausted often, but not as much as I thought I would be having to chase around a toddler while pregnant!
What I'm looking forward to: Our next doctor's appointment, which isn't until 12 weeks with my new practice.  But they will do the nuchal translucency scan to check for chromosomal disorders, so we will get to see Lima Bean on the big screen again!

Other notables: Seeing Lima Bean for the first time this week in our ultrasound!  I was so nervous about the appointment because of the antibiotics I took and just a general fear that something would be wrong.  But the baby looked great!  Such a relief. 

Meet Lima Bean

Here are our first photos of Lima Bean!!

Unfortunately they aren't very clear images, but it is hard to beat seeing the little person you created for the first time.  Watching the little heart flicker on the screen just takes your breath away.

I expected to be 7 weeks and 5 days, but I measured two days behind at 7 weeks 3 days.  The ultrasound technician said a few days' difference here or there is not concerning, as long as the baby isn't measuring a week or more behind.  My due date will remain July 16, 2014.

Lima Bean's heartbeat was a steady 150 beats per minute.  This is a normal rate for a 7 week, 3 day baby.

We asked this technician to tell us which side of the uterus the placenta is on, based on the theory that we were told last time that if it's on the right, the baby is likely to be a boy and on the left, a girl.  She had no idea what we were talking about and said the placenta doesn't even form until 12 weeks!  We followed up with the doctor, because honestly I was concerned that I had gotten such a different perception of the placenta formation than I did last time.  While the doctor hadn't heard of the theory, she did confirm that I do, in fact, have a placenta forming already.  Whew!  Remind me to request a different ultrasound tech next time...