Our First Ultrasound & Blood Tests

Our First Ultrasound & Blood Tests

A couple of days ago, March 18th, was our first Ultrasound (photos below)!  I have to say, that this is a moment I have been waiting for, not only ever since I found out I am pregnant, but ever since I was younger and realized how much I wanted to be a Mommy.  I have cried three times when my Sister showed me her sonogram photos of my nieces & nephew and I just couldn’t believe it was MY turn to experience it.

My appointment was at 10:45 and after falling asleep at 6pm the night before and waking up at 4am, there was no way I was able to fall back asleep; I was too excited.  The hospital never told me if I should have a full bladder or not, or gave me any instructions.  I simply ate a normal serving of breakfast in the span of a few hours and got ready to go.

Half an hour before we were going to leave, a sheet that I thought was solely for the Hospital’s use said to fast for at least 6 hours before the appointment if it is going to be a pelvic scan and if it’s an abdominal scan, to drink 2 glasses of water beforehand without voiding it.  I had no idea how far along I actually was, but I was going with approx 11-12 weeks so I assumed it would be an abdominal scan.  I used the washroom then chugged two glasses of water (which was very much needed anyway) and then we were off to the hospital!

We were sitting in the waiting room for about 40 minutes and by that time, I swear I was going to burst.  You know the scene in Pinocchio when he smokes a cigar and his eyes fill to the brim with water?  That’s how I felt.  Jokingly, I said “Just watch, it will be like when you wait for food to be served at a restaurant.  I’ll get up to go to the washroom and they’ll call my name.” That is exactly what happened.  I got up, started walking away and saw a woman walk into the room with papers.  I paused, she called my name and all I did was laugh and tell Jesse, “I knew it!”

We walked into the room, I lay down on my back and she warned me that the “goo” would be cold.  As if that’s something I even cared about.  After two seconds, there our baby was.  It was absolutely beautiful.  I always thought I would burst into tears.  I think I was so overwhelmed with happiness that I didn’t even think about crying.

We were shown its head and were able to see the brain, the cute little nose, its feet, its legs, its arms (at one point one arm was moving so much it looked like the baby was waving, Hi Baby!) and you saw the flicker of the heartbeat which was going at a healthy 169 beats per minute.  Just seeing a strong heartbeat made a wave of relief wash over me.  I was afraid of the worst case scenario- no heartbeat- but I was quickly reassured that all is well.

I know there can still be several complications and I don’t want to jinx anything but I am grateful to have seen the little peanut wiggling around.  At this point, while it is still too early for me to feel anything, it is ultrasounds like this that make you think “Wow, I’m really growing a human being inside of me.  It is really in there.”

From crown to rump, the baby measures 53mm and is dating at 11 weeks and 5 days- just a couple of days behind what I had been calculating.  The technician took photos of my ovaries, several of the baby and allowed us to take photos with our phone.  I am so thankful that we took the photos.  While they don’t print photos anymore, the quality of the photos just on the screen is amazing.  Thank goodness for the advancements in technology- being able to see the baby that well before 12 weeks is astounding.  Here he/she is, waving hello to all of you.

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The entire scan took about ten minutes and then it was time for blood tests.  Including registration, we waited about 40 minutes.  I opted to get the Trisomy 21 tests done.  They took a total of 5 vials of blood for everything else that needed to be tested.  Getting the blood took 3 minutes, and one urine sample later, we were done!  My next ultrasound will be on May 10th when we do the 20 week scan to find out the gender.  By these photos does anyone have any guesses, just for fun? 😉

We then went to see the Baby’s Nanna and Poppa to show them the pictures.  We relayed the information, and had a really nice lunch.  The Baby was definitely hungry after all of its time in the spotlight.  We also took the pregnancy announcement photo.  Here it is!

Photo credits go to Nanna- it was so special to have you be the one to take these photos.

Thank you to everyone for all of the kind words and well wishes we have already received.  It is unbelievable how much support we have been given and I am overwhelmed with gratitude.

What were your first ultrasounds like and how did you announce it?  Let me know in comments below or find me on Facebook!