Kid, you don't make things easy, do you?

Wednesday was the anatomy scan to make sure the girly has all the parts she's supposed to. Dr. Bitch, who did my ultrascreen sono and beat the shit out of me, did the anatomy scan too. She's got the personality of a cold dead fish. Baby wasn't moving much, so Bitchface kept jabbing me with the wand to get her to move. Babygirl is just like mamma and was none too pleased by that and ignored Dr. Bitch. Good girl! Then Bitchypoo decided that my amniotic fluid was low, therefor I must be leaking from my amnio and now I need to be on bed rest. She went to call my OB to consult with him, but he happened to be in the office.

Off JB and I went to his office where he confirmed that my fluid has always been low, and he didn't think I was leaking if I hadn't noticed anything. He said I did not need to be on bed rest, but should take it easy. Take that, bitch. He did recommend I get a second opinion at the hospital by the doc that did my amnio, and that doc would be able to do a better anatomy scan.

So, off to the hospital I was this morning. This doctor confirmed my fluid is and has always been on the low side, and he was able to see almost all of baby, and confirm things are in working order. He's bringing me back again in 2 weeks to recheck my fluid and get a better look at her face to make sure she doesn't have a cleft lip, and he wants a better picture of her heart. Her heart looks fine, he just wants a better picture.

It's a....

GIRL!

We're so excited to know it's not an "It" in there anymore, but our little girl.

Hang in there sweet one, you're halfway through!

NORMAL!!!

My OB just called - the hospital called him with preliminary results, and genetics are blessedly normal! Thank you thank you thank you!

Third Time's a Charm

Mission complete. The same nurse, Rose, I'd had the last two times came in and said she didn't even bother filling out the paperwork because she didn't want to jinx it. As soon as she did the ultrasound, all three of us could see a clear view of the baby. Woohoo! She went to get the "team" together and things were quickly underway.

I felt the needle go into my stomach, and it was pinchy he entire time. The rest just felt like a lot of pressure. I couldn't look at the overhead monitor at all. I didn't really want to know what was going on in there. They took several vials of fluid, and ended up with 2 keepers. One for FISH results, and one for the complete analysis. Rose did say during the ultrasound that everything looked good and there were no deformities that they usually see with Trisomy 18.

After I was all cleaned up and dressed, JB and I delivered the vials to the geneticist who explained what they were looking for and asked if we had any questions. After that we were good to go. Now I just have to stay off my feet for a few days, and call for the results on Friday.

18w1d

OB checkup today. No u/s. I was surprised, but I guess I've had enough in the last 2 weeks, and will have another with amnio attempt number 3 this week. He found the baby's heartbeat right away, and it was a nice strong 160 bpm. I also had a spina bifida screening this week. I almost hesitated to sign the consent for it. I just don't want anymore false positives. I can't take it anymore. I'll be so relieved once we have the amnio results, and just about completely relieved after the anatomy scan next week.

We joked about names yesterday on our way home from visiting friends. Rather, I called out ridiculous names that JB just laughed at. Our child will not be named any of the following:
Lexus
Infiniti
Ikea
Sequoia
Brooke Lynne
Toyota
Saturn
Mazda
Brooklyn Queens Expressway
Verrazano
Escalade (pronounced Eska-ladee)
Earl

I know you're relieved.

2 + 3 = 0

Second amnio, three doctors, nothing.

The second attempt at an amnio yesterday was yet another no-go. The placenta is still anterior, and every time a small pocket that might have worked opened up, there either wasn't enough fluid, or the baby's head was too close to risk it. Three doctors were in the room with me for the 45 minutes or so that they tried to get this done. They tried everything - me laying on my side, having my bladder full, shaking my stomach, having me cough to make the baby move. Nothing worked well enough.

We did get to see a lot of the baby this time, though. The spine was very clear, bones in the hand and arm. We saw it kick. We even saw details of the heart, although not enough to be assured it's a properly formed 4-chambered heart. That's not what we were there for, so it's not even a concern to me.

The fact that we were able to see so much of the baby this time gives me hope that next week everything will work out just fine and it'll be done at last.