We went to see the Dr. post ultrasound. He reiterated that things were measuring well, the only "interesting thing" he found was a spot on our babies heart that was showing up as bright as bone when looking at the films. After researching it it is really called: "Echogenic intraventricular focus (EIF) — a bright spot on the baby’s heart, which could come from calcium deposits." Ok a spot on the heart, we can deal with that since all 4 ventricles were there and all else appeared well. Then, he continued to give us more information.
These spots are a soft indicator for downs syndrome. "A soft marker is “soft” because it’s simply not a very reliable indicator of Down syndrome." "These markers are not problems in and of themselves: They’ve just been shown to turn up more often in fetuses with Down syndrome. But false positives are extremely common, and markers will be found in a whopping 11 percent babies who don’t have Down syndrome." Hearing these numbers are both terrifying and a relief. Our baby has a mark on it's heart that could mean downs but it also could be absolutely nothing.
They have this AWESOME new test that is apparently a new wave of prenatal medicine. With a simple run-of-the-mill blood draw in the normal crook of your arm, they can separate the mother's DNA from the babies! HOW COOL IS THAT!?!? The procedure, according to my doctor, is on its way to replacing amniocentesis (thank goodness!) They did the blood draw and have results in about a week. We will know in about a week if our baby has downs or not.
The thing is, absolutely no matter what, we were going to love this baby. Absolutely no matter what, we were going to be ecstatic for his/her entry into the world. We were going to be the best parents we could be no matter what, but it was still so overwhelmingly scary. The unknown. We thought not knowing the gender was hard, wow- this was a tough one. We knew God would not give us more than we could handle and if He decided we were chosen for a journey with a child that happened to have downs, we would do the best we could to be great at it, but that doesn't take the fear away.
Going to work on Tuesday was rough. I was crying on my way to work, I was crying at work, I was crying every time I had to tell someone (simply because my tear stained eyes wouldn't go away so I had to explain myself). By the time people knew, more prayers were given, confirmation that all would be ok regardless, and I had time to tell my story, take some deep breaths and still feel the kicks growing stronger in my belly, I was fine. I have been fine since. All is going to be fine. I don't know what it entails and I won't until the blood test results come in, but regardless, things are going to be fine.
So now that I have made it through the research, the tears, the happiness, and the love of my husband and unborn child, I am on the exciting journey of cleaning my house to prep for the gender reveal this weekend. OUR babies gender reveal. The excitement brings me to a whole new level of tears!
(my info on soft indicators was found here)
How far along? 20 Weeks, half way!
Total Weight Gain: 9 lbs (3 since last Thursday's weigh in)
Maternity Clothes? yes, moving into them in all areas
Stretch Marks? not yet
Sleep: Actually doing pretty good, thank goodness.
Best Moment this Week: Seeing our baby, 4D ultrasounds are amazing!!! I think it looks like Alex!
Miss Anything? not really
Movement: yes, and growing stronger. I actually even saw
Food Craving? none really
Anything making you queasy or sick? doing pretty good but some mornings are sketchy after the vitamin... I just eat more then.
Have you started to show yet? yes! Actually I popped Monday morning but Alex didn't see me leave for work. When he showed up just a tad late for our ultrasound, I was already on the table (they were only checking ovaries, they promised only me-no baby parts until he got there). He walked in and actually second guessed himself and thought he walked in the wrong room because my belly had grown that much! It still sticks out when I lay on my back. I am so happy to see my beautiful baby is growing more and more every day that I am so excited about this belly!
Bellybutton in or out? In, but on its way out!
Gender Prediction: I honestly will be surprised either way as I keep getting gut feelings both ways. That being said, If I see pink this weekend, it would surprise me more than if I see blue!
Wedding Rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time? I feel this week makes it rough to answer, but I was happy most of it besides the day-long bought of tears on Tuesday.
Looking forward to: THE GENDER REVEAL IN 2 DAYS! I can wait to find out if we are having a son or a daughter!
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| I think baby looks like Alex here. That is the knee on the far right, baby all curled up! |
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| I think baby looks the most like Alex here. That is the knee on the far right, baby all curled up! |
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| A perfect little foot! Both feet have all 5 toes, and both hands have all fingers and thumbs! |
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| Baby is a gymnast like mommy! Feet way up by its head! Want to see something entertaining? Show this picture to a group of 4 year olds and they all start laying on the floor reenacting this position! |
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