So today is the start of a new Lai family blog!
I think I'll start the first post by giving props to S on thinking of a very clever title. [high five]
Next, I have some early pregnancy posts from another blog that I'll just transfer over. After all that boring stuff, we'll let family and friends know they can find pictures and stuff here. Most likely, people won't care too much until we have pics of the little one up. So in the meantime, this blog is to record how the whole pregnancy business is coming along.
Estimated due date is June 4th, 2009!
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Thursday, November 20, 2008
12 week ultrasound
From Blob to Baby
We had our 12 week ultrasound yesterday. It was originally supposed to be on Friday, but Dr. V had to leave early for a trip, so all the Friday appointments were moved around. Luckily, we got to see him sooner rather than later. It was a busy day at the clinic and everything was running behind, but it was all good. I was super good and drink my water and Gatorade. I have a problem with drinking water, so I tried really hard this time. I hadn't anticipated a 30 minute delay, so I was ready to burst and my bladder was far too full by the time the ultrasound technician saw me. I had to empty out 2 coffee cups worth and I was still a little too full. She told me not to drink so much next time. I could have retorted that she shouldn't be so late next time, but kept things civil because it was really no big deal.
We forgot the camera, so didn't get to take any video or additional photos of the screen at the ultrasound, but it's ok, we saw lots. We got two pictures of the little one and it was so cute!! I didn't see the screen at first, but S looked absolutely shocked when he saw how baby-like our blob had become. One month makes a big difference. We could see the outline of the little face and we could see that he/she was holding his/her hands together! You can even see the little bones of the fingers! It was breathtaking to see the baby floating in there and a little heart beating at 162 bpm! Go baby go!
Nuchal Translucency (NT) test seemed okay so far. I snuck a look at the screen when the technician was measuring the neck bits and saw that the measurements were under and around 2.0 mm. I believe it might be an indicator if the measurement is greater than 2.5 mm.
We saw the Dr. V, who was quite pleased with the results. Everything seems to be humming along nicely. We didn't have many questions at all, but he told us the answers to the most frequent questions are (points to DH) "Yes, you can have sex" and (points to me) "Yes, you can dye your hair". Heehee... He also changed our estimated due date to June 4th, 2009.
Then I went to get a blood test for the IPS screening for Down's Syndrome and Spina Bifida. I'll have to go back in 4 weeks for another bloodtest. After that, it's Christmas holidays (yay! We're going to Jamaica!).
The next ultrasound is a level II and will be more detailed and we'll hopefully see if it's a boy or girl! Guess what? That's going to be on my birthday! 2009 is going to be a great year... :)
We had our 12 week ultrasound yesterday. It was originally supposed to be on Friday, but Dr. V had to leave early for a trip, so all the Friday appointments were moved around. Luckily, we got to see him sooner rather than later. It was a busy day at the clinic and everything was running behind, but it was all good. I was super good and drink my water and Gatorade. I have a problem with drinking water, so I tried really hard this time. I hadn't anticipated a 30 minute delay, so I was ready to burst and my bladder was far too full by the time the ultrasound technician saw me. I had to empty out 2 coffee cups worth and I was still a little too full. She told me not to drink so much next time. I could have retorted that she shouldn't be so late next time, but kept things civil because it was really no big deal.
We forgot the camera, so didn't get to take any video or additional photos of the screen at the ultrasound, but it's ok, we saw lots. We got two pictures of the little one and it was so cute!! I didn't see the screen at first, but S looked absolutely shocked when he saw how baby-like our blob had become. One month makes a big difference. We could see the outline of the little face and we could see that he/she was holding his/her hands together! You can even see the little bones of the fingers! It was breathtaking to see the baby floating in there and a little heart beating at 162 bpm! Go baby go!
Nuchal Translucency (NT) test seemed okay so far. I snuck a look at the screen when the technician was measuring the neck bits and saw that the measurements were under and around 2.0 mm. I believe it might be an indicator if the measurement is greater than 2.5 mm.
We saw the Dr. V, who was quite pleased with the results. Everything seems to be humming along nicely. We didn't have many questions at all, but he told us the answers to the most frequent questions are (points to DH) "Yes, you can have sex" and (points to me) "Yes, you can dye your hair". Heehee... He also changed our estimated due date to June 4th, 2009.
Then I went to get a blood test for the IPS screening for Down's Syndrome and Spina Bifida. I'll have to go back in 4 weeks for another bloodtest. After that, it's Christmas holidays (yay! We're going to Jamaica!).
The next ultrasound is a level II and will be more detailed and we'll hopefully see if it's a boy or girl! Guess what? That's going to be on my birthday! 2009 is going to be a great year... :)
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Itchy Ankles!
AAAAArrrrgghhH!! My ankles are so itchy!!! I want to scratch and scratch until they bleed!!
For the past week and a half, I have been suffering from itchy ankles at night! At first, it started with itching as I as getting into bed. Then the itching got worse and would wake me up at night. I had thought that perhaps we had bedbugs or some sort of creepy critter, but when S logically pointed out that he's not itchy, I calmed down. I've managed to soothe the itching a little bit (but not much) by applying Aveeno Lotion with Oatmeal and Mentholatum just before getting into bed. Lately, it has creeped into my daytime and no amount of lotion can stop it!
A quick Google has revealed that this is apparently normal in 20% of pregnant women. I hope this doesn't last too long and hope I don't get itchy elsewhere. It's killing me!
Today is 10 weeks, 6 days! The past 3 weeks have been ROUGH with the morning sickness and I've done very little to function properly. However, the past couple of days have been better, so I hope this is a sign that the M/S is finally letting up! Just 9 days until our next ultrasound! I'm staying positive and hoping that all will be well with the little one.
For the past week and a half, I have been suffering from itchy ankles at night! At first, it started with itching as I as getting into bed. Then the itching got worse and would wake me up at night. I had thought that perhaps we had bedbugs or some sort of creepy critter, but when S logically pointed out that he's not itchy, I calmed down. I've managed to soothe the itching a little bit (but not much) by applying Aveeno Lotion with Oatmeal and Mentholatum just before getting into bed. Lately, it has creeped into my daytime and no amount of lotion can stop it!
A quick Google has revealed that this is apparently normal in 20% of pregnant women. I hope this doesn't last too long and hope I don't get itchy elsewhere. It's killing me!
Today is 10 weeks, 6 days! The past 3 weeks have been ROUGH with the morning sickness and I've done very little to function properly. However, the past couple of days have been better, so I hope this is a sign that the M/S is finally letting up! Just 9 days until our next ultrasound! I'm staying positive and hoping that all will be well with the little one.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Ultrasound #1 - 7 weeks, 5 days
Wow.
For the past 4 weeks, we've been holding our breath.
I didn't want to get too far in the planning, too attached to the idea of a little growing inside, but today...wow. Today was a turning point and now I'm really allowing myself to believe that this baby is real!
We had our first ultrasound today! At first, it was terrifying. S was scared, I was scared. Leading up to this day, I have been frightened of receiving bad news. I've imagined looking a blank screen and being told "sorry", and all sorts of sad outcomes. I really tried not to think about these things, but I couldn't help it.
This morning, I got up, drank my 2 bottles of water, and we headed to the clinic. After a short wait, the technician called us in and directed me onto the table. Thankfully, it was a transabdominal (yay, no probing!). As I lay there, I saw a black circle on the screen, then a couple of little fuzzy blobs in the circle. The techician didn't say anything and continued to click and zoom and measure. Since she was measuring, I assumed that she was measuring something good! S was going crazy with wonder as well.
She said that my right side was gassy (!) and that it was difficult to see the ovary on that side. She had found the baby on the left and was looking for a baby on the right! Since it was so hard to see, she didn't find anything on the right side. I hope that we'll conclusively know if there is or isn't something there during our next ultrasound. Note to self: No gassy foods the day before the next u/s.
Our little bean looks healthy and is dated at 7 weeks 5 days with a estimated due date of June 3, 2009. All that reading and researching - and I got the date right! Woot! The technician pointed out the yolk sac, the baby, and the heartbeat! It was so amazing to see that little heartbeat. It looked like two little wings fluttering - and fluttering strong! We were relieved and delighted. S did a little dance behind the technician and I got all teary-eyed. It's alive! Alive!
We were still stunned when we walked out of the clinic, but ecstatic. We called our moms to update them on the healthy report and of course, they are both extremely happy! It's a wonderful day! Yay!
Our next ultrasound is November 21st for the 12 week ultrasound, Integrated Prenatal Screening (IPS) and an appointment with Dr. V. We received a schedule of the anticipated appointments for the next 7 months:
Nov 21st - 12 wk u/s, IPS, Dr appt
Dec 18th - 16 wk IPS - just bloodwork
Jan 8th - 18 wk Level II u/s, Dr appt
Feb 4th - 22 wk Dr appt
Feb 25th - 26 wk Dr appt, 1 hr sugar test
Mar 25th - 30 wk Dr. appt
Apr 8th - 32 wk Dr. appt
Apr 22nd - 34 wk Dr. appt
May 6th - 36 wk Dr. appt
May 13th - 37 wk Dr. appt
May 20th - 38 wk Dr. appt
May 27th - 39 wk Dr. appt
Jun 3rd - Due date!
For the past 4 weeks, we've been holding our breath.
I didn't want to get too far in the planning, too attached to the idea of a little growing inside, but today...wow. Today was a turning point and now I'm really allowing myself to believe that this baby is real!
We had our first ultrasound today! At first, it was terrifying. S was scared, I was scared. Leading up to this day, I have been frightened of receiving bad news. I've imagined looking a blank screen and being told "sorry", and all sorts of sad outcomes. I really tried not to think about these things, but I couldn't help it.
This morning, I got up, drank my 2 bottles of water, and we headed to the clinic. After a short wait, the technician called us in and directed me onto the table. Thankfully, it was a transabdominal (yay, no probing!). As I lay there, I saw a black circle on the screen, then a couple of little fuzzy blobs in the circle. The techician didn't say anything and continued to click and zoom and measure. Since she was measuring, I assumed that she was measuring something good! S was going crazy with wonder as well.
She said that my right side was gassy (!) and that it was difficult to see the ovary on that side. She had found the baby on the left and was looking for a baby on the right! Since it was so hard to see, she didn't find anything on the right side. I hope that we'll conclusively know if there is or isn't something there during our next ultrasound. Note to self: No gassy foods the day before the next u/s.
Our little bean looks healthy and is dated at 7 weeks 5 days with a estimated due date of June 3, 2009. All that reading and researching - and I got the date right! Woot! The technician pointed out the yolk sac, the baby, and the heartbeat! It was so amazing to see that little heartbeat. It looked like two little wings fluttering - and fluttering strong! We were relieved and delighted. S did a little dance behind the technician and I got all teary-eyed. It's alive! Alive!
We were still stunned when we walked out of the clinic, but ecstatic. We called our moms to update them on the healthy report and of course, they are both extremely happy! It's a wonderful day! Yay!
Our next ultrasound is November 21st for the 12 week ultrasound, Integrated Prenatal Screening (IPS) and an appointment with Dr. V. We received a schedule of the anticipated appointments for the next 7 months:
Nov 21st - 12 wk u/s, IPS, Dr appt
Dec 18th - 16 wk IPS - just bloodwork
Jan 8th - 18 wk Level II u/s, Dr appt
Feb 4th - 22 wk Dr appt
Feb 25th - 26 wk Dr appt, 1 hr sugar test
Mar 25th - 30 wk Dr. appt
Apr 8th - 32 wk Dr. appt
Apr 22nd - 34 wk Dr. appt
May 6th - 36 wk Dr. appt
May 13th - 37 wk Dr. appt
May 20th - 38 wk Dr. appt
May 27th - 39 wk Dr. appt
Jun 3rd - Due date!
Queasiness and the dreaded morning sickness
While planning our trip to Iceland, I hadn't given much thought to pregnancy symptoms and scheduling. I hadn't anticipated that I would be queasy for most of the trip and that I would long to sleep all the time. Thankfully, we were going on a relaxing vacation, where most of the fun and games would take place at night. This left the morning and afternoon free for sleep! And sleep I did.
During the later half of our week in Iceland, I felt really queasy. On those days, S and I would wake around 9 am to catch the hotel breakfast buffet, then head back to our room for a nap until 1-1:30 pm. We'd get up, go for a walk to find lunch, do some shopping and sight-seeing, then return to the hotel around 6ish for a nap. Around 8-9ish, we'd be up again, go find dinner, attend some music festival concerts, and head back to the hotel around 12-1 am. Relaxing and fun! At the end of our trip, however, I was finding it very hard to get out of bed, but the longer I stayed cooped up, the worse I felt. Once we managed to get out in the fresh air, I felt a hundred times better. The flight back was a bit rough as there was no fresh air for the 6 hour flight.
All this time, I've been feeling really queasy and have gagged a LOT and thrown up a little. Most of the time, it's gagging and dry heaves. This morning however, on the way back from our ultrasound appointment (yay!), I congratulated myself for stocking my purse and car with plastic bags as I sat in the driver seat and yakked up about a cup of fruity-flavoured water. Ew!
I guess this is really the start of this phase of the pregnancy. I've been able to handle nibbling on very dry crackers, but have been afraid to take a sip of water. I hate drinking water, but know I must do it to get the vitamins down and to keep hydrated. I had tried the Nestea flavour crystals, but I still gag when trying to down it. There must be a solution.
During the later half of our week in Iceland, I felt really queasy. On those days, S and I would wake around 9 am to catch the hotel breakfast buffet, then head back to our room for a nap until 1-1:30 pm. We'd get up, go for a walk to find lunch, do some shopping and sight-seeing, then return to the hotel around 6ish for a nap. Around 8-9ish, we'd be up again, go find dinner, attend some music festival concerts, and head back to the hotel around 12-1 am. Relaxing and fun! At the end of our trip, however, I was finding it very hard to get out of bed, but the longer I stayed cooped up, the worse I felt. Once we managed to get out in the fresh air, I felt a hundred times better. The flight back was a bit rough as there was no fresh air for the 6 hour flight.
All this time, I've been feeling really queasy and have gagged a LOT and thrown up a little. Most of the time, it's gagging and dry heaves. This morning however, on the way back from our ultrasound appointment (yay!), I congratulated myself for stocking my purse and car with plastic bags as I sat in the driver seat and yakked up about a cup of fruity-flavoured water. Ew!
I guess this is really the start of this phase of the pregnancy. I've been able to handle nibbling on very dry crackers, but have been afraid to take a sip of water. I hate drinking water, but know I must do it to get the vitamins down and to keep hydrated. I had tried the Nestea flavour crystals, but I still gag when trying to down it. There must be a solution.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
No-no's for a Chinese Mommy-to-be
I'm starting to build up a list of things that can not be done while pregnant. Between Mom, MIL, and FIL, these are the things I am not to do while preggers:
- Don't hammer nails into the wall
- Don't move furniture about
- Don't move anything by kicking or pushing with my legs
- Don't knit
- Don't watch unpleasant shows or movies
- Don't lift anything heavy, or little kids (this makes sense)
That's all I can remember for now. I'll add to this as more come up - or when I remember.
- Don't hammer nails into the wall
- Don't move furniture about
- Don't move anything by kicking or pushing with my legs
- Don't knit
- Don't watch unpleasant shows or movies
- Don't lift anything heavy, or little kids (this makes sense)
That's all I can remember for now. I'll add to this as more come up - or when I remember.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Science says so
I finally had that beta test today.
I had just finished a bottle of Materna, so while I was there, I asked for a prescription for PregVit folic5, a prenatal vitamin that is available by prescription only. Prenatal vitamins are just so damn expensive, it suddenly dawned on me a few days ago that a prescription vitamin would be 80% covered under DH's health insurance plan. It makes sense to go get the most expensive ones and have them covered, as that would still be waaaaaaay cheaper than paying for over the counter. 3 months supply for just $22! That's less than one bottle of Materna and seems to have more punch to it. The Pregvit is kind of neat because the dosage is actually 2 smaller pills per day. One pink one in the morning and a blue one at night. This is supposed to help with the nausea that sometimes accompanies those big horse pills, and having certain minerals separated from each other aids in their absorption.
Wow, that little bit about prenatal vitamins went longer than I had expected. Back to the beta. I had the blood taken at 8 am and waited 6 long hours for the results by phone. Luckily, I had a busy morning of work, so that helped to distract me. The wonderful nurse at the clinic called and told me that my test was positive (Yay!!). I asked her "How pregnant am I? Is there a level?" and she went on to explain that they like to see a level of atleast 100 and mine was 250. So I'm quite pregnant! Yay!
She then gave me a quick list of things to avoid:
- make sure meats and fish are thoroughly cooked
- avoid unpasteurized dairy products
- limit caffeine intake
- I forgot the rest because I already knew them from my maternity books...
Then she told me to keep taking my PregVit (check!) and that I would need to start taking HCG shots (WTH!? more needles?!?). So on Monday, I will be going to the clinic for my tutorial on HCG and to pick up all those lovely vials and big-ass mixing needles. This past cycle has been so lovely with the lack of needles...I knew that they would inevitably show up again. Well, it was a nice break and these shots will only help the little one along, so I can hack it, of course!
On Monday, I will also need to schedule our first ultrasound (u/s) for 3 weeks from then. Woot! Three weeks Monday will be right after DH and I get back from our Iceland vacation. Hopefully, he will be able to take the morning off and come to the u/s. If not, we'll reschedule it so that he can! So exciting...
I called DH at work and let him know the official news. I think he was in a little bit of a shock as it is now official. Science said so. Now that we have the official results, I think I can finally relax a little and enjoy being pregnant. Not maybe-pregnant, but really pregnant. Gotta keep positive that this will be H & H (Happy and Healthy!).
I'm so happy, I think I'm in shock. I want to cry, but I can't do it because this time is DIFFERENT. Finally, a pregnancy test where I'm not crying with disappointment! That used to be the tradition, but this time is not like all those other times. I want to leave the crying for sad times and keep it associated with those times. As such, the crying (even for happiness) won't be in today's program.
I feel like I should thank someone or something. It's been a long time, but should I go to temple and thank buddha?
I had just finished a bottle of Materna, so while I was there, I asked for a prescription for PregVit folic5, a prenatal vitamin that is available by prescription only. Prenatal vitamins are just so damn expensive, it suddenly dawned on me a few days ago that a prescription vitamin would be 80% covered under DH's health insurance plan. It makes sense to go get the most expensive ones and have them covered, as that would still be waaaaaaay cheaper than paying for over the counter. 3 months supply for just $22! That's less than one bottle of Materna and seems to have more punch to it. The Pregvit is kind of neat because the dosage is actually 2 smaller pills per day. One pink one in the morning and a blue one at night. This is supposed to help with the nausea that sometimes accompanies those big horse pills, and having certain minerals separated from each other aids in their absorption.
Wow, that little bit about prenatal vitamins went longer than I had expected. Back to the beta. I had the blood taken at 8 am and waited 6 long hours for the results by phone. Luckily, I had a busy morning of work, so that helped to distract me. The wonderful nurse at the clinic called and told me that my test was positive (Yay!!). I asked her "How pregnant am I? Is there a level?" and she went on to explain that they like to see a level of atleast 100 and mine was 250. So I'm quite pregnant! Yay!
She then gave me a quick list of things to avoid:
- make sure meats and fish are thoroughly cooked
- avoid unpasteurized dairy products
- limit caffeine intake
- I forgot the rest because I already knew them from my maternity books...
Then she told me to keep taking my PregVit (check!) and that I would need to start taking HCG shots (WTH!? more needles?!?). So on Monday, I will be going to the clinic for my tutorial on HCG and to pick up all those lovely vials and big-ass mixing needles. This past cycle has been so lovely with the lack of needles...I knew that they would inevitably show up again. Well, it was a nice break and these shots will only help the little one along, so I can hack it, of course!
On Monday, I will also need to schedule our first ultrasound (u/s) for 3 weeks from then. Woot! Three weeks Monday will be right after DH and I get back from our Iceland vacation. Hopefully, he will be able to take the morning off and come to the u/s. If not, we'll reschedule it so that he can! So exciting...
I called DH at work and let him know the official news. I think he was in a little bit of a shock as it is now official. Science said so. Now that we have the official results, I think I can finally relax a little and enjoy being pregnant. Not maybe-pregnant, but really pregnant. Gotta keep positive that this will be H & H (Happy and Healthy!).
I'm so happy, I think I'm in shock. I want to cry, but I can't do it because this time is DIFFERENT. Finally, a pregnancy test where I'm not crying with disappointment! That used to be the tradition, but this time is not like all those other times. I want to leave the crying for sad times and keep it associated with those times. As such, the crying (even for happiness) won't be in today's program.
I feel like I should thank someone or something. It's been a long time, but should I go to temple and thank buddha?
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