ULTRASOUNDS

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SLIDE SHOWS OF ULTRASOUNDS AND BELLY GROWTH!

You can view the slide shows of the ultrasounds and belly growth at the bottom of this blog.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

13w5d

Courtney felt flutters again today. She described it as a roll..as if the baby was turning flip flops! (She really didn't know how else to describe it). He/she must be full of energy! She also listened to the heartbeat today and called me at work to let me hear it, but I was in a meeting and missed the call! I was so SAD!....oh well....Friday will be here soon...only 39 more hours until I see that cute little face on the 4D Ultrasound!

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

13w4d

Dear Baby Barnett,

Grandma and Grandpa Dason are counting down the days until we see you on the 4D ultrasound (14w0d) this Friday! I have been surfing the 4D ultrasounds online to get an idea of what you will look like. You will be able to squint, frown, grimace, and possibly suck your thumb! You should be measuring about 3 1/2 inches and weigh around 1 1/2 ounces!

Mommy keeps feeling you fluttering around inside of her, once or twice a day.....so we are guessing it is not gas! I also heard your heartbeat again today with the home doppler!

Courtney has a few names at the top of her list. I wonder if they will change throughout this pregnancy. If you are a boy, she likes the name Carson William. If you are a girl, she has two names that she likes. They are Brooklyn Nicole and Nevaeh Grace. She is leaning towards Nevaeh because it spells Heaven backwards.....and you're a gift from God! If Mommy and Daddy pick that name for you, I will nickname you Vaeh or NeNe. ...Time will tell!

Even if they are able to tell the sex on Friday. I will still wonder if it is just too soon to tell. After all you will only be 14 weeks old!

LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!
Grandma Dason

Sunday, September 27, 2009

HELLO SECOND TRIMESTER!

Courtney is 5 hours away to officially saying 13w3d which will be the end of her 1st trimester and saying hello to her 2nd trimester. Of course she had to give me a belly shot in person! I was so excited. Her sister Caitlin just laughed at me and said I was like a kid in a candy store. After all I am the GRANDMA and allowed to be this excited!


13w2d- LOOKS LIKE A PHARMACY!

Courtney and Mike came over today! She brought her pink medicine bag in. I took all the meds and baby doppler out and took a picture of them. It is amazing the amount of meds she needs to take during this pregnancy!

Friday, September 25, 2009

13w0d!!!!


Courtney and Mike are home for a week. She is exactly 13w0d today! I got to feel her belly which is starting to show. Hard to believe the little peanut is about 3 inches long now! I also heard the heartbeat on the doppler for myself rather than over the phone. Yes, I had to record the event! Just think, one week from today will be the 4D ultrasound. I hope the baby cooperates and shows us his/her "stuff"!


Wednesday, September 23, 2009

12w5d OB Checkup!

Courtney's 12w5d OB visit was a good one! The doctor found the heartbeat right away....he said "Do you hear the galloping horses?" Just as he said that, the baby moved....he then said, "Opps, the baby just galloped away!" Courtney said the baby must be getting used to the home doppler and doesn't like it because he/she constantly moves away from it.

Courtney has had many migraines lately, so the doctor prescribed Nasonex spray, which is a category C drug....but he feels it is safe to take. Hopefully she gets some relief from the spray. He also checked her blood pressure which is in the normal range, so the blood pressure medication is doing its job! YEA!

He wants to see her again on October 7th for another check up when she is 14w5d.

Courtney and Mike are coming home this weekend and staying for one week. While they are here, she will have a 4D ultrasound done on Oct. 2nd (14w0d) at 11:00 in Columbus at Ultrasona (private ultrasound) They said that if the baby cooperates, we will get to find out the sex of the baby.....TECHNOLOGY IS ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE!

Since Mike is in the Army, they will get a discount. The combined package is $206.00(with discount) for both sessions. Her doctor was going to charge $100.00 (her insurance will not cover 4Ds) so this seems to be a better deal! Plus we get to be there with her!

Growth Package:
One Basic 4D Session 14 - 26 Weeks
One Deluxe 4D Session 27-34 weeks
FREE Heartbeat Bear included!!


Basic 3D/4D Session (14+ weeks):
3D/4D Imaging, Money-back gender guarantee by request,
4 B&W 2D Images
4 B&W 3D Images
CD of all JPEG Images
15 Minute DVD of session set to music
50% off regular price of next 3D/4D Session during this pregnancy

When she is home during Christmas, we will go again and get this next package:

Deluxe3D/4D Session with Limited Medical Fetal Survey:
3D/4D Imaging, Money-back gender guarantee by request
4 B&W 2D Images
8 B&W 3D Images
8 Color 3D Images
CD of all JPEG images
25 Minute DVD of session set to music
50% off regular price of next 3D/4D Session during this pregnancy

By the way, Courtney shared that she felt the flutters a couple more times today. She is convinced it is the baby moving and not gas! I just smiled when she told me!


Monday, September 21, 2009

12w3d- Fetal Movements????

Courtney called me and put the speaker phone on. She had the doppler on and the baby's heartbeat was loud and clear. I feel like I am right there with her! What an experience! The baby moved away from the doppler....heartbeat very faint..., she didn't move the doppler and we heard other sounds similar to thumps and swooshing.....could have sworn we heard the baby moving its legs????

Courtney also shared that she has felt flutters two days in a row......maybe the baby....maybe gas??? Time will tell if she keeps feeling this flutter. We are sooooooo excited. CAN YOU TELL!?

Sunday, September 20, 2009

End of First Trimester?

I am just as confused as Courtney is when it comes to determining the end of the first trimester....(I don't remember this confusion when I was pregnant...but then again, pregnancy was not counted until conception....now there's an additional two weeks before conception....how confusing!)

This is what I found on the internet:

One way is to look at development. This way, 2nd trimester starts at 12 weeks and 3rd starts at 27 weeks.

Another is by gestation - this simply divides the 40 weeks of pregnancy into three equal stages, which gives 2nd trimester starting at 13 weeks and 3 days. 3rd trimester starts at 26 weeks and 5 days this way.

The third is by conception - take the 38 weeks of pregnancy that occur after conception and divide that into three equal stages. This way gives 2nd trimester starting at 14 weeks and 5 days, while 3rd trimester starts at 27 weeks and 3 days.

The third trimester dates all seem to fall pretty close together at around 27 weeks, which is why I guess the conflict doesn't seem to arise there, but there are vastly different dates for second trimester. Averaging them out gives something around 13 weeks, but information will vary as to which method was actually used to calculate them.

I think we will go with the 13w3d as the start of Courtney's 2nd trimester, which will be on Sept. 28, 2009.....I keep saying extra prayers for little baby Barnett!

Saturday, September 19, 2009

12w1d Belly Picture!


Courtney sent me this picture. She is 12w1d. As promised, I only posted her belly picture and cropped her face out. Little does she know, I have her engagement picture posted on this blog!

12w1d...WOW!

Courtney is now 12w1d....so hard to believe. We smile every day when she hears the heartbeat with the doppler. She records the heartbeat through video on her phone and then sends it to my phone....almost on a daily basis. (Courtney lives 7 hours away from me!) That baby heartbeat monitor was money well spent! Technology is grand! Soon we will have to figure out SKYPE so we can see each other when we talk over the computer versus simple e-mail and texting!

She has her next OB visit on Wednesday at 1:30 (central time). She will be 12w5d.....soooo close to the 2nd trimester. Hopefully we will get to see little baby Barnett again.

I have to admit, I am having a VERY hard time staying out of the baby section in stores. Courtney is eying pinks/browns if she has a girl, or greens/browns if she has a boy. Yesterday, I found myself in a fabric store mentally picking out fabrics for the baby's room! God help me! This pregnancy wait is killing me! Only 195 days to go! Courtney just laughs at me!




Sunday, September 13, 2009

Bruising from Lovenox Shots!



Courtney is 11w2d in this photo. Part baby bump and part progesterone bump! This is the worst bruise so far from the lovenox shots. How many more to go???? OUCH!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Test Results Are In

In my previous post, I explained Courtney's blood disorder MTHFR. Since this is a hereditary blood disorder, her sister Caitlin was tested as well. Sadly, she has MTHFR (homozygous, 2 copies of the mutated gene C677T). On a positive note, knowledge is power. The next step is to meet with a hematologist for future family planning and overall good health! Hopefully she will not experience the losses that her sister endured!

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

10w5d OB visit

Courtney had an OB visit today. The doctor found the heartbeat right away! (170bpm). She needs to continue the antibiotic (Macrobantin, pregnancy category B) once per day as a preventive measure for the previous kidney infection. She also has elevated blood pressure. The doctor said he noticed the elevation at the last couple of visits but now feels she should be treated. She is taking Aldomet which is a category B blood pressure medication. It is safe to take during pregnancy. The doctor feels that the high blood pressure could be stress induced since Courtney is so worried about miscarrying again. Hopefully as the pregnancy progresses and the stress levels go down, so will her blood pressure. The doctor seems pleased with the growth of the uterus and feels the baby is doing fine......but.....since she is high risk, the doctor wants to see her again in two weeks!

For those of you new to this blog, here are my daughter's pregnancy difficulties:

* 3 miscarriages in the first trimester
* Blood tests after the 3rd miscarriage revealed she has MTHFR
*(heterozygous =1 variant gene)- The mutated gene is A1298C....normally it is C677T- not her!
* This is a hereditary blood disorder. Her father has Factor XII blood disorder as well.
* Caitlin (her sister) is in the process of being tested for these blood disorders.

*Pre-pregnancy meds:
1. Progestrone 3X per day
2. Low Dose Aspirin (81 mg)
3. Prenatal vitamins (He did not feel extra folic acid would help....vitamins are enough)
4. DHA supplement

*Pregnancy meds:
1. Continued with protocol above
2. Added 40mg. Lovenox shot per day
3. Progesterone tablet decreased to 1 per day at 10w5d pregnant

Monday, September 7, 2009

10w3d Heartbeat With Home Doppler

Courtney has been trying the doppler at home. It took her awhile to find it, but once she did, it was exciting to see and hear! The OB has been getting the heartbeat rate at about 168. The doppler picks it up at this rate if the baby stays in one place long enough to catch it! (It is hard to catch the heartbeat this early in the pregnancy, but when we do, it sure eases our minds since she has had miscarriages in the past......makes it less worrisome between OB visits.)



Sunday, September 6, 2009

Fetal Doppler 9w6d


Courtney purchased this fetal doppler from Amazon.com. With gel, it was $95.00. She was 9w6d when she tried it. She picked up a faint heartbeat but the doppler did not record it correctly. It states on the package for 12 weeks and up. It is nice to be able to hear the baby's heartbeat for reassurance between OB visits. It is amazing the things mommies and babies have now-a-days. Where was this stuff when I was pregnant with Courtney and Caitlin!

Saturday, September 5, 2009

9w4d 9/1/09


Courtney had a check-up today to see if her kidney infection was getting better. She also got to take an extra peek at the baby while she was there. First they tried the doppler, but Courtney was soooooooo nervous that her heart was beating faster than the baby's. They had a hard time telling the baby's heartbeat from hers! Finally after trying for a few minutes, they rolled the ultrasound cart into the room for a peek inside. The baby was moving all around. The arms were wide open, saying "Here I am mommy!" The baby is a now 9w4d, with 160 hbpm and right on schedule! Do you think the baby is a boy or a girl? Courtney keeps calling the baby a "he". She sure will be surprised if he ends up being a girl! ......TIME WILL TELL! Hopefully we get to see the baby during the 10w5d scheduled visit!

Ultrasound Video- Watch Baby Nevaeh Grow!

Watch Courtney's Belly Grow!