Perfect Little Peanut!

Good Morning Everyone!

We just got back from our first sonogram appointment and we are absolutely relieved to have finally been able to see the little peanut, and he/she looks perfect!

Baby O measured exactly to date, 14 weeks and 2 days and had a strong heartbeat of 150 beats per minute (bpm)! The little peanut is right on course for a July 8th Due Date! It was so amazing to get to see the baby and we came out with several great pictures, but unfortunately, they don't scan very well (see below). Baby O was sucking his/her thumb in several of the pictures and we could see the beating heart clear as day! We had a great technician that really made the experience fun.

Unfortunately, Wes wasn't able to make it to the appointment because he is at a job interview in Washington D.C. this morning (good luck honey!!) but my mom came along for moral support and it was great to be able to share the experience with her. I can't wait for Wes to be able to see our peanut moving around right before our eyes at our next sonogram, which will be in about 5 short weeks.

We had our regular doctors appointment yesterday as well, and both Wes and I got to hear the heartbeat for the first time! That was a relief in itself! We met our new doctor for the first time and both really liked him and feel comfortable that he will take good care of us and the baby. He said that everything looked to be right on track and that all the test results were good.

The bloodwork that was done at our first prenatal visit in California showed that I am Rh negative, which means that I will get an injection of Rh immunoglobulin to prevent my body from developing antibodies that could attack the baby's blood. If the little peanut is Rh positive, then I'll get another shot of Rh immunoglobulin after giving birth. In doing a little research about it, here is what I found out. Your Rh status is determined whether you have the Rh (Rhesus) factor, a protein that most people have on the surface of their red blood cells. If you do have the Rh factor, as most people do, your status is Rh-positive. If you don't have it, you're considered Rh-negative. If you're Rh-negative, there's a good chance that your blood is incompatible with your baby's blood, which is likely to be Rh-positive. You won't actually know this for sure until the baby is born, but in most cases you have to assume it, just to be safe. Being "Rh-incompatible" isn't likely to harm you or your baby during the first pregnancy, but if your baby's blood leaks into yours, your immune system will start to produce antibodies against this Rh-positive blood. If that happens, you'll become "Rh-sensitized" and the next time you're pregnant with an Rh-positive baby, those antibodies may attack your baby's blood. Fortunately, you can avoid becoming Rh-sensitized by getting the injection that I mentioned above. So basically, no need to worry, just means I'll need a shot or two and we will be all set!