Merry Christmas Baby Carly!!!

First of all, Merry Christmas to everyone!!!

Baby Carly hasn't been born yet (obviously) but she already had presents under the tree for her this year.

Her Great Aunt Ruth gave her a cute book about a Christmas tree along with the Tiny Love crib mobile off my Babies R Us registry. (Mary - don't you love that this was one of the first items purchased off my registry? On Christmas morning I told everyone the story about you and your 5 mobiles.)

Her grandparents Jody and John gave her a couple of Christmas CDs -- "Christmas Eve Lullabies" and "Christmas in the Crib", which have already been burned onto Baby Carly's iPod and turned into playlists.

Mandy even gave her a present (with a little help from Grandma Jody), which was a very cute book called "Tails Are Not For Pulling" to teach Baby Carly proper pet etiquette.

And she also received a very special teddy bear that belonged to her Great Grandma Betty.

We are all looking forward to Baby Carly's official "first Christmas" in 2008, but this year certainly was a good warmup for her!

What Does That Scale Say?!?!?

I really did ask the question, "what does that scale say?" at my doctor's appointment with Dr. C today. Logically I knew how to do the math, but I just couldn't immediately process the fact that I have gained 21 pounds so far.

Especially since I only gained 5 pounds in my first trimester, which means I've gained 16 pounds in the last 2 months. Eeek gads!!!

Dr. C said he's not worried about it and that I shouldn't be either. He said it is going to be impossible for me to stay within my original goal range of 25-30 pounds because of the fact that I'm not allowed to exercise at all. I guess he has a point that turning the pages of books and watching Netflix after Netflix doesn't exactly burn a lot of calories.

So my new goal is 35 pounds or less. Let's see ... I've got 18 weeks until my due date and only 14 pounds leeway? I wonder what the Vegas odds are on that?

Anyway, everything else with the checkup went fine and I'll see Dr. C again in 4 weeks. Stay tuned...

5-Month Belly Shot

Here I am 21 weeks pregnant, back in that same red leotard.

Anyone notice a difference between months 4 and 5???

For the record, I can't wait until Baby Carly is old enough to ride in a baby jogger, at which point I'm going to run her, and those legs, all around Fort Lauderdale!!!

Another Checkup With Dr. R = Another Sonogram Picture

I had a routine 4-week checkup with the specialist Dr. R today and he said everything looks great! He said there has been no change in my cervix from the ultrasound images taken 4 weeks ago, and that is what we want!

As my Dad would put it, we need to keep the oven door closed long enough to bake the bun!!! I couldn't agree more, and I'm pretty sure Baby Carly wants to stay put for a while as well.

During today's ultrasound we got the best picture to date proving her girlhood. This particular picture was very detailed ... almost pornographic ... so I'll spare Baby Carly the future embarrassment of posting it on the web.

In the sonogram picture above you can see that Baby Carly has found a new position ... she is kneeling, leaning forward and then hunched in the classic fetal position.

My next checkup with Dr. R is scheduled for 1/16.

Baby Carly Standing On Her Head Today

I had a routine checkup with the specialist Dr. R today and he's very pleased with how everything looks since the surgery. He did a thorough ultrasound of both Baby Carly (she was standing on her head!) and my cervix. He was very pleased with how strong the cerclage was holding while he was applying pressure on my belly.

He also gave me a prescription for a medication called Prometrium, which is progesterone that will relax the walls of my uterus as an additional effort to avoid preterm labor. I asked him so many questions about the medication that he made photocopies of 2 medical journal articles that he gave me along with the script.

My next appointment with Dr. R will be on 12/18.

Doesn't it look like Baby Carly is blowing bubbles in the sonogram picture? I guess she has to do something to entertain herself. I've been able to feel her moving inside me now for about 4-5 days.

Thanks So Much to Anita, Silvia & Sarah for Helping Me with the Baby Registries!

Thank you so much to Anita, Silvia and my goddaughter Sarah (all pictured above) for helping me get my registries set up at Babies R Us and Target today!

Getting pushed around these stores in a wheelchair with a scan gun and 3 enthusiastic helpers going, "Awwwww ... look how cute!!! Jen ... scan this!!!" was SO MUCH FUN!!!

Also pictured above is the nursery theme we collectively selected, which is called "Jungle Luv." (Any fans of Morris Day and The Time out there?) We are hoping that Baby Carly likes giraffes, because we scanned a bunch of em today.

A few people have already asked me how I feel about baby items as Christmas or birthday gifts, since both of these events will precede Carly's birth in April. My reaction to this is that I think it is a great idea because I truly have everything I really need for myself.

It's Official ... It's a Baby CARLY!!!

Congratulations to everyone who voted "girl" in the poll ... you are right!!!

I went to Dr. C's office today for an ultrasound of my gallbladder because I've had a lingering pain just below my right rib cage now for about a month. Apparently gallstones are fairly common in pregnancies ... and thankfully I don't have one because the only solution is to have one's gallbladder removed. They also checked the kidneys and liver as well ... all good.

So we still don't know what the lingering pain is, but at least now we know what the baby is!!!

The woman doing the ultrasound asked me how far along I was and if I knew what I was having. After I told her the story about the shy, indian style sitting baby she said, "well, after we're done looking at your organs we'll take a peek to see what position the baby is in today."

I didn't tell her that the woman's theory from last week was 70% girl, because I didn't want her biased in any way when she looked at the screen.

"Congratulations! You are having a baby girl!" she said without hesitation. I asked how certain she was and she said 100% and showed me why. Typically they are looking for the "3 lines" associated with a positive female sonogram ... she said based on Baby Carly's position she could only see 3 dots. But none the less she is sure of what she sees ... and what she doesn't see.

BRING ON THE PINK!!!

Everything Looks Good!!!

I saw Dr. C today for my post-surgery checkup and my routine monthly visit and everything looks good since last Monday.

"Who did this beautiful work?!?" he said upon inspection. What modesty! Gotta love a doctor who can make you laugh when you feet are in stirrups.

No ultrasound today. Dr. C just listened to the heartbeat with the little Doppler device. The kid was probably spread-eagled today. Or doing a backbend.

I see Dr. R next Monday (12/3) ... maybe they'll do another ultrasound then ...

The only other update from today is that I've gained 14 pounds in total now. Hmmm ... Let's see here ... I gained 5 pounds in the first 13 weeks, and 9 pounds in the last 5. Damn that yellowcake!

Gender Update -- We Have a Shy Baby on our Hands

The most recent person to vote in the gender poll was my friend Larry who I met at the Toronto Film Festival, and he posted "now hurry up and tell us!" after voting.

That's exactly what I said to my baby on Monday ... twice!!!

It seems we have a very shy baby on our hands who does not want us all to know yet.

On Monday I actually had 2 ultrasounds (keep reading the new posting below for other important pregnancy updates) ... one around 8:30 in the morning and the other around 4:30 in the afternoon.

In the first ultrasound the kid was sitting indian style with the legs crossed, making it impossible to see the goods. The woman performing the ultrasound did share with me a theory, and she showed me her logic behind the theory, but she said she can't be sure until she sees better proof. Maybe next time ...

Well, I didn't know this at the time, but the next time I would have an ultrasound would be about 8 hours later. I was so excited because I thought for sure that the kid would have moved around. Believe it or not the kid was making it even tougher to see anything the second time around ... he/she was sitting indian style again and this time leaning forward.

I'm convinced that the baby can hear already and knows the word "ultrasound" and gets into this position upon hearing the magic word.

The top picture above is from the second ultrasound, and you can see the position of the head and the slant of the spine showing the slumped over posture.

The bottom picture, with the hand, is from the first ultrasound. Either the baby is saying "Hi" to all his/her blog readers, or he/she is saying "Stop! Don't look at me I'm naked!"

Ugh!!! I want to know now!!!

So I've extended the poll and will keep you all posted....

A Very Interesting Monday

Well, this day did not turn out quite the way I expected when I got up this morning and dressed for work...

I was excited for my 7:45 a.m. appointment with the specialist, Dr. R., for high risk assessment appointment #3 of 3 because I was hoping to learn the baby's gender, which you know from the above posting I did not learn.

What I did learn at this important appointment is that A) all indications from all tests show a perfectly healthy baby, and B) that I have another condition called an "incompetent cervix" which is another concern for a pre-term delivery on top of my unicornuate uterus.

What this basically means is that the "seal" on my cervix is not tight enough to continue to support the baby and keep him/her inside once the baby grows bigger.

They discovered this because they are watching me extra close because of the unicornuate uterus. I've been told that it was a very good thing they caught this at 17 weeks. Apparently most women with this condition don't find out until week 20-22, and at that point it is even more serious.

Anyway, Dr. R talks to me to tell me all this ... then he talks to Dr. C on the phone ... and then Dr. C wants to talk to me ... and the next thing I know my Mom is driving me to Plantation General Hospital for an emergency surgical procedure.

Around 2:30 Dr. C performed the surgery to insert what is called a cervical cerclage, which, as you can see from the image at the top of this posting, basically stitches the cervix closed to keep the baby in.

Dr. C said the procedure was a perfect success. His hope is to remove the cerclage at week #37 and then let the baby come out when nature dictates.

He also said I can't go back to work until after the baby is born. I need to avoid prolonged periods of standing and restrict my daily activities to mostly bed rest. At this point gravity is not my friend because we want to minimize the baby's weight putting pressure on the cervix.

GlaxoSmithKline has excellent benefits and I will have 180 days of short-term disability before returning to work after the birth. I will get 100% of my salary and commission for the first 3 months, and 75% for the second 3 months. All benefits, including my car privileges, 401K, etc. remain active.

While I'm still in a state of shock that I won't be working again until June, I am considering all of this to be very good news. I'm lucky they discovered this problem early and that there was something tangible they could do about it to protect the baby.

Now I'm going to spent most of my time horizontal reading books and watching Netflix movies. I'll also be checking email again during normal business hours and will welcome lots of phone calls and visitors at any time of the day as well.

Make Your Boy or Girl Vote Public -- Add a Comment to this Posting

I'd love to know who voted "boy" and who voted "girl" in the poll ... so after you vote please post a comment to this posting to tell me who you are and what your vote was. Thanks!!!

4-Month Belly Shot

Here I am at exactly 4 months.

I haven't decided yet if I'm brave or stupid to be posting pregnancy pictures wearing a leotard on the internet, but since you are reading this I have already found the courage to click on the "publish post" button. I'm taking comfort in the thought that the only people going to this site will be friends and family who like me.

And as you can see, I am definitely showing. I actually look like I'm carrying two babies ... one in my belly and the other in my butt.

Even though the doctor says I haven't gained too much weight I can see the result of substituting naps for exercise. This picture does provide the motivation to try and get some more walking worked into my schedule somehow.

So, brave or stupid, I'm planning to do a belly shot at 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 months. I hope the kid will someday get a kick out of seeing these photos to document his/her progression toward birth.

Stay tuned...

More Great News From High Risk Screening #2

I went in today for blood work at Dr. R's office for some important tests as it relates to the likelihood of a perfectly healthy baby.

All 3 tests came back NEGATIVE, which is not a guarantee, but certainly puts the odds dramatically more in our favor.

The odds for any 38-year old woman to have a baby with Down syndrome is 1 in 175, and for any type of chromosomal abnormality 1 in 103.

They told me that based on the blood tests the chances of my baby having Down syndrome is 1 in 810, the chances for spina bifida is 1 in 6,000 and for other types of trisomy abnormalities 1 in 10,000.

They stressed not to be concerned about the Down syndrome number because they said the only reason the 810 number is that low is because of my age. Still, 1 in 810 is a lot better than 1 in 175, so I'm very happy with all the test results.

Routine Doctor Visit = Ultrasound #5

Today I went in for a routine monthly checkup with Dr. C.

After unsuccessfully trying to hear the baby's heartbeat with some audio contraption that he moved all around my belly I was sent to the ultrasound room just to confirm the heartbeat.

Fine with me! I'll take any opportunity to see what the baby is up to!

The above sonogram picture is from this visit. He/She is starting to look at lot more like a baby, eh? You can see that the little feet are crossed. The baby sure looks comfortable and relaxed. Check out that nose ... let's hope the rest of the face catches up soon.

Other than the fact that I gained only 5 pounds in the first trimester, I really don't have much to report from this visit.

The next really BIG NEWS will come on November 19 ... when we find out if it is a boy or a girl!!!

Maternity Wardrobe

I'm right at the 3-month mark here and my "baby bump" has definitely popped to the point where I already can't fit into my old clothes anymore.

I've already purchased the bulk of my maternity wardrobe, including 3 suits for work and the jeans I'm wearing in this picture.

My Mom and Anita have been very helpful to me in the maternity clothes shopping department so far. I've made maternity purchases at Ann Taylor Loft, Mimi Maternity/Motherhood Maternity, The Gap, Old Navy, Target, JC Penney and eBay. Yes, eBay. I've been able to pick up several nice items that were new (still with the tags on them) for very cheap prices.

Great News From 1st High-Risk Screening!!!

Today I went to a perinatal specialist's office for the 1st of 3 high-risk assessment appointments associated with my "advanced maternal age."

Above is the latest sonogram from this appointment. I am at 12 weeks, 1 day right now.

I won't get the official analysis from these appointments for 4-5 more weeks, but I did get a lot of comforting news at today's appointment.

First of all they counted 2 arms, 2 hands, 2 legs, 2 feet and they showed me the 2 sides of the brain on the ultrasound monitor. They also confirmed that all of the baby's organs are internal.

They also measured the fluid behind the baby's neck because an excess of fluid in the head area can be a signal of mental issues, including down's syndrome. The measurement they are looking for needs to be less than 3 to be considered negative as a flag for these issues, and our measurement was 1.1. The woman who did the ultrasound said that the lower the number the better, so I was very glad to hear that the measurement was significantly lower than 3.

The baby's heartbeat remains strong at 155 beats per minute.

I go back for more blood work on 11/6, and then on 11/19 I have a level 2 ultrasound and they will review the results of all 3 of these high-risk assessment appointments.

On 11/19 we should also learn if we are having a girl or a boy!!!

So stay tuned...

How This Blog Got It's Name

The above album cover is Carly Simon's 1974 "Hotcakes" and as you can see she was pregnant with her daughter Sally.

Howie and I call this her "pregnancy album" and it was the first thing Howie played on his iPod after I told him I was pregnant. Howie and I don't always agree on which of her albums and songs are the best, but we both LOVE this album.

Track #3 is a wonderful little song called "Think I'm Gonna Have A Baby", which is how this blog got it's name. The lyrics are below and you can hear a 30 second sample of it by clicking on the link below...

Carly Simon's Think I'm Gonna Have a Baby

Platform shoes on table tops
I think I'm gonna be a lady
Opinions flyin' right and left
I think I'm gonna tell him maybe
They're puttin' out too many phonograph records
I think I'm gonna have a baby, a baby

I wouldn't be naughty for the sake of naught
Or be different just to differ
I wouldn't sell myself just to get bought
Or give to just deliver
They're puttin' out too many phonograph records
I think I want to be a river, be a river...

Rivers do such nice things, they roll to the sea
When I am a river then Ill want to listen to me

So you pick me up, and you tune me up
And you wind me up and play me
You talk about heart, and you say you know soul
And the way to treat a lady
You're puttin' out too many phonograph records
I think I'm gonna have a baby, a baby

Babies do such nice things, they rock on your knee
When I was a baby my rockin' was something to see

(The End)

I just love the lines "They're putting out too many phonograph records, I think I'm gonna have a baby" and "When I was a baby my rockin' was something to see."

Special thanks to Anita for her patience and persistence in helping me figure out how to get this audio clip onto the blog!!!

The Baby Has A Strong Heartbeat!!!

I had a spontaneous visit to see the doctor today that turned out very well. I was nervous because I had some spotting and so Dr. C said, "come on in and we'll take a look."

I guess at my "advanced maternal age" (I chuckle whenever I hear this phrase because it is such an obvious substitute for "because you are older.") they aren't afraid to use the sonogram machine, which is what they did again today.

If you look at the picture above the circle to the left is the head and the circle to the right is the torso. You can't see it on this scan, but on the original they showed me where the arms and legs are starting to grow!

So they confirmed that everything looks great with the baby and I got to hear the heartbeat for the first time, which was an amazing experience! The little heart is beating 159 times a minute and they described it as "strong". To me it sounded like the little one was running around in there.

At this point Storm would say that this is because he/she is taking after me that way. He's already giving the baby credit for the increased size of the uterus. "Well, the baby must have said 'hey, there's not enough room for me in here' and went and got some tools and started hammering away at the walls of the uterus to make some more space," was his theory.

Anyway, speaking of that, the person who did do the sonogram today did say that the uterus does look a little bit long and narrow and not quite the "perfectly round" description from a week ago. I guess this could be the camera angle, or things shifting and changing in there. Dr. C did say that he is going to proceed through my pregnancy taking any and all necessary precautions.

I was supposed to go in for a checkup on 10/1, but they did everything they did today that they would have done then, so I will see Dr. C again on 10/23. Before that I will be going in for a nuchal translucency test on 10/18.

Oh, and my weight gain so far is 2 pounds. Very normal/acceptable for the 9 week mark.

First Sonogram Picture

Dr. C wanted to see me the day after I got back from my 10-day trip to Toronto. This turned out to be a GREAT doctor's appointment.

I got my second look at the baby and my first photo to take home. That big circle is not the baby's head, but rather the amniotic sac. Everything below that is the baby. Still looks much more like a cluster of dust, but there has certainly been developmental progress since my first look.

During the sonogram they confirmed that there is only 1 baby and that I indeed have 2 kidneys ... all very good news!

But the best news of all was the doctor's reaction to my uterus, which he says looks normal based on today's sonogram. They measured it and it is within a normal size range. They said the shape is round (not like a banana liked it looked on the sonogram at the fertility specialist's office) and that the baby is right in the middle of it. Hopefully getting very comfortable and planning to stay there full term!

I asked Dr. C if he thinks Dr. H. mis-diagnosed me and he said not necessarily. He said that when a woman gets pregnant her uterus expands. He theorized that perhaps mine expanded a lot. The fact that I'm tall may also be and advantage here as maybe my partial uterus was still a decent size.

So it seems that my body may be making the necessary adjustments to accommodate the pregnancy. Amazing.

Whatever the case, I'm thrilled that Dr. C. was so thrilled with what he saw at 8 weeks.

My next doctor's appointment is on Oct. 1.

Top Ten List of Pregnancy/Baby Movies

Hello from the Toronto Film Festival!

Well, it seems my streak of consecutive years at the festival (7) will come to an end in 2008, as this time next year I will have a 4-month old baby!

Amazing!

Anyway, I did get to see Ben Affleck live and in the flesh this year, so at least I was able to accomplish that goal before motherhood. I can't really say that I "met" him, or even had a "moment" with him, because I completely froze up and said/did nothing. I was close enough that I could have reached out an touched him, but after the Brad Pitt incident at the Venice Film Festival it is probably a good thing that I didn't.

So far my favorite movie here at the festival is Juno, which is a hilarious story about a pregnant 16-year old, directed by Jason Reitman (who directed "Thank You For Smoking.")

This has inspired me to create a Top Ten List of pregnancy/baby movies. If I get put on bed rest I'll watch all these movies in a 3-day span as research for the big day.

1. Nine Months
2. Waitress
3. Juno
4. Knocked Up
5. Look Who's Talking
6. Jersey Girl
7. Three Men and a Baby
8. She's Having A Baby
9. Raising Arizona
10. Fools Rush In

My Due Date is April 29

Today was my first pregnancy appointment with my OB-GNY, Dr. C. I was told that I'm officially 5 weeks, 6 days pregnant. My due date is April 29, which would make the baby a taurus, just like my goddaughter Sarah!

Dr. C. has had patients before with uterus anomalies, but not one specifically with unicornuate uterus. He will be getting another doctor on board (how many doctors does one need to have before they can claim to have a "team of doctors" working on their behalf?) and he gave me the utmost confidence that he knows what needs to be done. We will be aggressive in our conservative approach to everything.

We did a sonogram and I got to see the baby for the first time!!! And, amazingly enough he showed me a little flutter that is already the heartbeat. According to the pregnancy calendar that Jill gave me tonight the baby is only about 1/10 of an inch long. Wow!!!

Dr. C will be watching me much closer than the average pregnancy. I'm going back again on 9/17 and 10/1. He said in the beginning he'll see me approximately every 4 weeks. Then in the middle of the pregnancy I'll be going every 2 weeks, and weekly toward the end. That's a lot of doctors appointments!

Dr. C also told me I can't go to beach boot camp anymore or go running. Because of the unicornuate uterus, my exercise needs to consist of walking and swimming only.

No travel past week #28. No predictions yet on bed rest. No kitty litter cleanup. No hair coloring until week #12.

Jen and Anita go book shopping!!!

On Saturday, Sept. 1, 2007 Anita and I went shopping for pregnancy books in Fort Myers. So I am now the proud owner of "What To Expect When You're Expecting" along with "I'm Pregnant! Now What Do I Eat?"

I also bought a blank journal that I'm going to use to write "Dear, Baby" letters like the character Jenna did in the movie "Waitress."

Home Pregnancy Tests

On Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2007 I took a home pregnancy test and for the first time in my life I saw 2 pink lines instead of one!!! I took another test that same night just to be sure and the result was identical.

I THINK I'M GONNA HAVE A BABY!!!

What is unicornate uterus???

The top picture is a normal uterus. The bottom picture is unicornuate uterus.

A uterine malformation is the result of an abnormal development of the Mullerian duct(s) during embryogenesis. Therefore, women are born with uterine anomalies.

A unicornuate uterus (a womb with one 'horn') happens when the tissue that forms the womb does not develop properly. A unicornuate uterus is just half the size of a normal womb and the woman has only one fallopian tube. However, she usually has two ovaries. 15-20% of women with unicornuate uterus have only one kidney.

Unicornuate uterus is a very rare condition. Uterine malformations affect about 1% of the female population, and unicornuate uterus represents about about 1 -2 % of all uterine anomalies. Only 8 women with this diagnosis were found in the entire infertility and obstetric practice at Norfolk General Hospital and Johns Hopkins Hospital between 1969 and 1981.

Women with a unicornuate uterus may have difficulties conceiving, because they have only one fallopian tube. However, pregnancy in women with this condition is far from unknown. In general, uterine abnormalities do not prevent a woman from getting pregnant, but they may make it more difficult for her to carry a baby for the full nine months of pregnancy.

Women with uterine abnormalities, particularly unicornuate uterus, are more likely to have complications during pregnancy or delivery.