We Have Movement!

Today (13 weeks, 5 days) was my First Trimester Screen, which consists of an ultrasound and a finger prick blood test.

This type of test is normally optional but I have a family member with a birth defect* so my doctor thought it was necessary (and my insurance company will cover it).

First up was the ultrasound and it was AMAZING. This was my first 'belly' ultrasound, so at least I got to leave my pants on for this. The peanut is about 3 inches long right now but she** already has so much definition! We could see the profile of a face, little arms and legs and a chubby little belly! The ultrasound tech sent us home with 7 photo printouts, but these are just the best 2.

profile view - head, face, belly, bent legs

front view - face, raised arms, torso

One thing I wasn't expecting was to see the Peanut moving so much. I had read that by now a baby has limbs and is learning to move them. I was expecting a slight wiggle, but she was really flailing around in there! At first you could see her squirm to get away from the ultrasound wand but she calmed down after a bit. For most of the exam she had one of both of her hands up by her forehead - she already has a flair for being dramatic! I still don't really 'feel' pregnant so it was wonderful to see our Peanut wiggling for us on the monitor.

But as amazing as the view was, my favorite part of the ultrasound was seeing the look on Steven's face. I don't consider him an emotional or sappy guy, but he seemed awestruck as we watched the Peanut. He was so much more affected by this than the first ultrasound where the Peanut truly was a peanut that just laid there.

The blood test was uneventful and we should get the lab results back in 10 days. I don't know if we'll hear anything or if this is another "no news is good news" scenario. I have no doubts that everything will come back normal and perfect.

My next OB appointment is in 3 weeks, so stay tuned!

*Nothing major to worry about. My cousin was born with a chromosomal anomaly, but his doctor assured my uncle it was a genetic fluke and not something hereditary.

**My intuition is telling me the Peanut is a girl. When people refer to the baby as a 'he' I feel the need to correct them, then I realize that would make me a little crazy.