NT Ultrasound (week 12)

The day finally arrived! Our first appointment was in Maternal Fetal Medicine where we would have the ultrasound. The tech/doctor there would be measuring the baby's neck to test for down syndrome. Like I said before... we didn't care about the results of the test, just wanted another opportunity to see the baby. And Dan got to be there this time!

Unfortunately for the tech, baby Harjes wasn't cooperating. She needed a profile shot with the neck pulled away from the uterus. But baby was hanging out upside down and facing away from us, snuggling right into the uterine wall. This worked out just fine for me and Dan- because it meant the ultrasound lasted a long time! We got to watch the baby moving around... fun! The tech kept jiggling my belly and asking me to cough in order to get the baby to re-position. S/he responded to these movements, but not enough. The doc stepped in at that point and they tried a trans-vaginal ultrasound (ick), which gave a beautifully clear picture, but still not the shot they needed. After they finally got a few images they could work with, we were done. I had to get some blood drawn and then we were sent off to the OBGYN department to see the regular doc. We won't get the official results of the down syndrome test until I get more blood drawn in a few weeks, but the doc said it looks good so far.

Dan had to get his blood drawn up there, which didn't go too well. He has a tendency to pass out when he's stabbed with needles :). The nurses were laughing at him, poor guy. After that we had a very unexciting and uneventful appointment with our doctor. Just a Q&A session.

Next up is a monthly appointment with the doc and another round of blood work during week 16, and another ultrasound during week 18. If baby H cooperates then, we'll hopefully be able to find out the sex.

Exciting week

On Wednesday 3/31, week 12.5,  we have our 2nd ultrasound. Hopefully Dan will make it this time :)

Technically this is a down syndrome test, however we're just using it for the ultrasound. The outcome of the test is no matter to us. I think we are both really nervous about just making sure the little bean's heart is still beating away in there. I've been freaking out because although my waist is definitely expanding, I don't feel a bump like the books say I should.

If the little guy is healthy, we're planning on spreading the news to family and close friends right away, and then will make it public knowledge next week, when we officially enter the 2nd trimester (April 5th). I'm looking forward to telling all of our parents!

As of this moment, we've been invited to 4 weddings this fall, and I think there is another invite coming soon. I already know we won't be able to make one of them because it is in France. I am bummed to miss Ana's wedding, but I'll be 35 weeks along and international travel is pretty much a no-no at that point! The rest are questionable- 2 over the 2 weeks prior to the due date (Cousin Laura on Cape Cod and BTT friends Stacy and Andrew in NH), and one 3 weeks after (Cousin Julia in PA).

Nearing the end of trimester 1!

Weeks 10-12

I am getting really, really sick of hiding the pregnancy. I feel pretty good, just some trouble sleeping and tiredness. I am pretty sure I haven't had an uninterrupted night's sleep since Park City. Exercising helps with tiredness and energy levels, so I'm trying to do that as often as possible. It's a little depressing watching my fitness level decline (usually it gets better and better, then I race, take time off, and start over), but it's for a good cause :). Right now my plan is to register for the 2011 Boston Marathon as a motivation to get back in shape post baby.

On another note, I attended a friend's bachlorette party extravaganza (2 days, 3 events) over the first weekend in March, which was really tricky. It's hard to hide the fact that you're not drinking when you're around 20 girls and lots of glasses of champagne! I got through it even though I slipped out early...

Oh, PS- I wore maternity pants for the first time during week 12. Ahhh.... they are comfy!

First appointments

Weeks 7-9

After what seemed like months of waiting, our first OB appointment arrived! I was nervous, excited, and hopeful. I really wanted hard proof that there was a baby in there and that it was in the right place. But when we got there, it seemed pretty clear that an ultrasound wasn't going to happen. The appointment went well, the doctor was nice, and she confirmed a due date of October 9th 2010. I think she could sense my nervousness though... and she suggested we come back the following Monday for an ultrasound. YES!!

One long weekend later...

And Monday arrived! After two visits to NWH I know now that I have to allow more time than I expect for parking. They've got a huge parking lot but it's a nightmare to navigate! Dan was meeting me there, and called to say he was running a few minutes late. I waited for him outside the office until 2:14 (for a 2:15 appointment). Dan was parking his car at that time and I didn't want to be disrespectful and arrive late. So I went to check in, assuming that he would be there by the time they called my name. We had waited for almost a half hour at the first appointment, afterall! WRONG! 30 seconds after I checked in someone called my name. Bummer! Dan wasn't there yet. The tech took me back to the ultrasound room and went to work. Within a few seconds she found the little bean and showed me the heartbeat- 150BPM! She confirmed that I was 7 weeks and a few days along, printed out some photos for me, and sent me on my way. I was back in the waiting room at 2:17 and Dan was there waiting for me :(

We were both bummed that he missed seeing the ultrasound, but relieved that everything looked good so far. We signed up for down syndrome testing at week 12.5 (March 31), for the sole purpose of having another ultrasound :)

Waiting

Weeks 4-6

I was still convinced that something must be wrong. When we got home from Park City, I scheduled an appointment at Newton Wellesley OBGYN. They scheduled me for Feb 19, which would be the end of week 7. Almost 3 weeks of waiting! It seemed like eternity!

I mostly kept up with my training for IMLP. It felt like bad luck to stop. Of course I kept an eye on my HR at all times, made sleep a priority (no more early morning swim sessions, oh darn ;), and didn't bother to make up any missed workouts. I eventually did tell coach Tim what was going on, and dropped off of his coaching plan. It wasn't fair to take up his time anymore.

Holy Cow!

Week 4!!

Well, we were hoping for a baby, but we were completely shocked to find out that one month was all it took. We were in Park City, Utah, with my family for a ski vacation when we found out. At that point I was still planning on competing in Ironman Lake Placid 2010, so I started each day really early at the gym before most of the house was up and about. Then most days we'd go skiing. The conditions were perfect- new powder on the mountain, and not many skiiers in town due to the Sundance Film Festival. Heaven! It snowed several days, but that never bothers me when I'm on skis :)

On Thursday, January 28, towards the end of the trip, I realized that I was had been experiencing some bizarre symptoms for a few days. I thought maybe it was the altitude or the combination of ironman training and skiing. However when I told Dan about it, we decided I should take a pregnancy test, just in case. The tricky part was that we didn't have an easy way to get to a drugstore by ourselves. The next morning, Elizabeth had gotten tickets for Dave, Dan, and myself to see "The Romantics", a Sundance film festival movie. Dan and I headed to the gym and then met them at the theater. The movie was great!! On the bus ride back into town where the house was, we passed by a Rite Aid. Dan and I saw our opportunity, yelled "headache, need advil, see you back at the house" to Elizabeth and Dave and jumped out of the bus before they had a chance to turn their heads. Later, back at the house, I tried the first of the three pregnancy tests. 3 long minutes later we saw a faint positive. !!!!. We sat on the bed with our mouths agape looking at each other. I took the remaining 2 tests over the next 24 hours, all with the same result!! It seemed too good to be true (I mean, it CAN'T really be that easy, can it??), so I convinced myself something must be wrong. We kept the news to ourselves and enjoyed the remaining hours in Park City.