Baby Update

Yesterday I had a follow up ultrasound to check the baby's brain. At my last u/s at 18 weeks he was a little small & in a bad position for checking out all the features of his head.  At just over 22 weeks, the tech was able to see the hemispheres, cerebellum, and all other parts of the brain on her checklist.  Everything looked good and measured well.

He's already 1lb 2 oz and about 10 1/2 inches long.  This makes him in the 63% and is right on track for a healthy size and weight at birth. The Dr. said somewhere around 7 & 8 lbs if everything keeps going the way it has been.

At the top you can see his arm & hand in the back as well as his bent leg & knee
(the little thing under his nose in the middle is part of the cord)
I've also been noticing that he's kicking more.  Last night after I laid down I could feel him across my belly (I'm pretty sure I felt both his feet and head bump up against me.)  Well, enjoy it while it lasts little guy, you won't be able to stretch out fully much longer!  Oh, and DH FINALLY got to feel the baby.  Now that he's over a lb, his kicks can be felt from the outside - yay!

I'm also starting to have Braxton Hicks contractions.  They aren't strong at this point; they just feel like everything is tightening for about half a minute.  It's not painful, just a bit uncomfortable.  My Dr. said it was totally normal to have them early and since I was thin, (I could have hugged her at this statement) I am more likely to feel them.

So far I've gained nearly 15 lbs and she said I should gain about 18 more (1 lb a week for the rest of the pregnancy) - ahhh!  (I know what your thinking - why 15lbs if the baby is only 1 lb?  Well, here's the breakdown that helped me understand it: Mayo Clinic pregnancy weight) I'm just focusing on healthy foods when I get hungry and trying not to stress about the weight gain.  I have given up peanut butter and Nutella, though - I can easily overeat on these.  I'm still expected to have about 300 extra calories a day, but I'm not counting.  I eat when I'm hungry and try not to overdo it.  Plus, I still workout, but I follow my Dr's heart rate instructions.

Comments

  1. Congratulations on the healthy baby report!! And the picture of Peanut is great!! Cute already!

    So exciting when hubby gets to feel the baby kick!!

    I'm sorry you are already feeling contractions. Hopefully they won't hinder you. You know that if you have more than four in an hour, you need to call your doctor, though just to make sure nothing is happening too early.

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  2. Oh, and please put the weight out of your mind. You are growing a baby. You will gain what you need to gain. Then you will lose what you need to lose post baby. No problem.

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