Oh my goodness, there really is a baby in there!

And it actually looks like a baby! I could tell there was a baby in there before the tech even started talking. The title was pretty much my response. The tech seemed really amused.

OK, now that we have gotten my initial excitement out of the way, I can move on to talking about what actually happened at the appointment. Queenie has her nuchal fold ultrasound tomorrow, and wanted me to post on what happened at mine. So here goes...

To measure the nuchal fold, the ultrasound tech must be able to see the back of the neck. Which means that the little one must be lying in just the right position in order to get the measurement. My little one was being stubborn and refused to show off the back of its neck at first. Both techs tried looking both transvaginally and abdominally, and then called in another tech to help. She did eventually get one from the abdominal approach, but it took two of them, and several tries, and a whole lot of pushing on my belly. Not the most comfortable thing, but as anyone knows who has been through IF, I have had worse. (I did not even tell them about my transfer story.)

The coolest thing was that I got to see the baby. The practice I go to has the coolest ultrasound rooms. They have big flat screens connected to the ultrasound machine, so you can see everything without having to look over the tech's shoulder. That was really neat. I wish Hubby could have made it, as he would have loved it. Maybe next time.

After the ultrasound, I got to talk to the doctor. Dr Sweetness said that all my bloodwork looks good. The baby looks good, and things seem to be going well. I only gained about 3 pounds, which was really good. So both baby and mom are healthy. Good news!

I did ask the doc about getting out of 12 hours and night shifts, and she told me that there is really no medical reason to not work them. Later in the pregnancy I will have to be careful about how much I work. But right now, I still have to work the 12s and the night shifts. Sigh. Now I get to spend the 4th of July in the OR catching traumas. All night long. I did try to talk to the person who does the scheduling. I asked her not to schedule me any 12 hours or night shifts. I did tell her I would be willing to some work evening shifts to make up for it. I did not think that was too outrageous a request. We will see what happens. I still have this block to get through, though.

The best part of the day was that my appointment took so long that I did not have to go back to work today. Hooray for afternoons off!

And now, because I know you are just dying to see them....

Baby pictures!