Dr. Levine Visit

Our appointment is OVER and I am all smiles! We got a good report! Everything with baby peanut looks great. We have no greater risk of a birth defect or other issue than anyone else. Basically, he can be 80% sure our baby is ok. We could bump that up to 88% if we wanted to do genetic testing, but we are not (as I have said before). Dr. Levine thought the baby looked good. It still measured slightly bigger and ahead of our 7/22 due date, but not enough to change it. Darn! Ha ha! I have definitely started gaining weight...bummer! But, that's OK! I'm totally fine with gaining weight for a healthy baby! As for the gender, we had to look away at one point, but then I'm pretty sure I saw something (either there or not there) on another view. But, I will keep that opinion to myself!! He did say something about the thickness of the neck, but said it could be because of the way the baby was laying - nothing to be concerned about. He said he'd make note of it in his report and Dr. Lo would follow-up. I'm actually not worried about it. And, finally, the placenta previa is gone! The ultrasound tech seemed shocked when I told her I had had it throughout the entire pregnancy. So, thank you all so much for your overwhelming support! Not sure what I'd do without all of you!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

As for now, we are stuck in Omaha - the blowing snow and roads are keeping us here. They have parts of I-80 and I-29 closed. I'm really hoping we can leave today, but if we can't, we can't. I certainly don't want to be in an accident after getting good news!

Again, thank you! Have a great day - I know I will!! Love ya, Kari

In Omaha

We are in Omaha! We arrived yesterday around 11 am. We had a great day of shopping at Bass Pro and Target. I must admit that Brad was extremely efficient in Bass Pro. He had his typed list with item, color, price, and quantity needed all ready to go. I was impressed! We found Peanut its first bass -- a cute little stuffed large-mouth bass. It is even the green color we love. :) Happy Valentine's Day, Peanut! The best part of Bass Pro was that we left with tons of merchandise without paying a dime! Thank you, gift cards!! Woo hoo! Brad thinks he has almost everything he needs for this fishing season now! Target was good, as well. We actually found the car seat, pack and play, swing, and stroller that we want. It was a good learning experience for us! Babies R Us should be interesting!

After shopping, we went out to eat at Applebee's...yum! We then tried to find Gordman's. We found the distribution center! Ha...why would they put that in the GPS? Then, we found one that had gone out of business! By then, Brad made the decision that we were going to the hotel and nowhere else. :) No biggie! We have all day today!

Today, we are hoping to meet up with some friends that are in town for a gun show. Then, we're off to Babies R Us and Gordman's. I am so happy we decided to come yesterday. Carroll County is in a winter weather advisory for blowing snow (shocker) today until tomorrow morning. Plus, it has been nice spending time away from the drifts of snow! Omaha doesn't have near the amount of snow we do. And, who doesn't like to get away for a weekend?!

Tomorrow, we will check in at 7:30, meet with the genetic counselor at 8 and the doctor at 10:30. We are hoping for an informative and positive experience!! I will update the blog as soon as possible after the appointment.

Love ya,
Kari

Omaha Trip Delayed

Due to the blowing snow here in the great state of Iowa (please note sarcasm), we are not going to Omaha tomorrow for our dr. appt. We will now go on Monday, February15th. I am so frustrated with our weather, but there's nothing I can do about it. I just really want this appointment over with!! So, I guess this just give us all more time to say more prayers for a good appointment.

I did speak to a Genetic Counselor this morning (she called thinking we were still coming tomorrow). She wanted just our brief family history. After we went over it, I asked if she saw a reason to be concerned. She didn't see anything that would greatly increase our risk. So, it was at least nice to hear that. God works in amazing ways...he must have known I needed to hear that today. Obviously, she couldn't be sure since it was literally a 5 minute conversation, but a little reassurance is always nice.

Until next Monday...thanks for everything! We have received such nice comments and e-mails recently and they have helped me tremendously!!

Love you,
Kari

"Medium-Large or Large-Large"

Oh, relief! Well, at least a little for now! We just had our appointment with our regular doctor this afternoon. Baby Peanut looks great!! But, "it" doesn't really look like a peanut anymore! Our baby is growing so fast. What a cliche, huh? I have a feeling we'll be saying that for at least the next 18 years. :) Today, I am technically 15 weeks & 5 days. According to the measurements, we are 17 weeks and 2 days (body) or 16 weeks & 4 days (head circumference). In the words of our doctor, we are going to have a "medium-large or large-large baby instead of a medium-small, small-small baby." Yes, that's a quote...Brad and I both had a good laugh over that! I have to admit, I am a little shocked that I'm going to possibly have a larger baby considering I was a mere 3 pounds, 15 oz! OR...could it be that I have been right all along and my due date is actually earlier!?!? I still think I'm right on that one!! The heartbeat was 155 today and everything else seemed to look good. I still have placenta previa, but he thinks it should be gone by our next appointment. It is getting better. Let's hope so! The doctor was also happy that my weight has remained steady and that I haven't really gained any weight (within 1-2 lbs). I sure feel like and probably look it in the pictures, but I like to call it a "redistribution of weight!"

Now, if you know me at all, you know I stand up for what I believe in and you never have to wonder what I'm thinking! Well, I felt the need to express my concern about our previous appointment today so I did. The nurse was able to explain things much better than the doctor ever did. We are still going to go to Omaha next Tuesday. So, please keep the prayers coming!! We will first see a genetic counselor who will assess our risk of having a child (this one or future) with birth defects based on family history. We will then see a perinatologist. This will be our doctor should I have pregnancy complications of any kind or go early and cannot deliver in Carroll. So, he is not just a genetic doctor. If only they would have explained all of this at our last appointment. Anyway, our nurse said it should be a pretty informative appointment so we have decided to go forward with it. However, we did decline the blood test for downs syndrome today. We are going to love this child no matter what and feel that if there is a true concern, we will likely find that out next week. Further, we do not want to do an amniocentesis so we did not see the point in doing the blood test, especially with the chance of false positives. This is simply a decision that Brad and I have made together and were thankful that we were at least given a chance to make that decision for ourselves today. This obviously does not eliminate our concern of not having a healthy baby. Of course, we want the best for it! I'm hopeful that our appointment next week will go well and be beneficial for all of us. Again, prayers are great!

Until next time, we love you all and thank you for all your support!!
Kari

P.S. Here are a couple pics of my baby bump! :) Yes, I know my face looks scary in the second one...yikes!