13 Weeks and Counting
I can’t believe so much time has gone by! Week 13 has been good to me so far. I’ll be 14 weeks Friday and I’m feeling much better than I had been feeling the past month. I’m not as sleepy and not as nauseous. Certain foods still don’t sit well with me during certain times and I still love potatoes and grapes (not together) more than anything. I have a few friends who told me they had ultrasounds around 12-13 weeks and could tell if they were having a boy or girl then. I’m DYING to go get a special 3D Ultrasound so we can tell what we’re having but my husband is much more patient than I am, and says he can wait another 7 weeks… *sigh*.
I also wrote my first post for Modern Day Mom. They’re going to be following my whole pregnancy and helping me through it! They have experts to talk with me about nutrition, fitness, financial planning and more! We’ll also suppose to have fun contests where you help me pick out stuff for Spawnie and win things for your little one too!
Of course I’ll keep blogging here, I actually have a whole lineup of fun giveaways too that I’ll be doing throughout my pregnancy. I get quite a few request sometimes to write about different products related to children and/or pregnancy so I’m choosing my favorites to feature through my next 27 weeks! I’m not going to forget about all of my future mama friends either! They’ll be plenty of stuff you can save, and fertility stuff too to help along the way!
Ok, so on to what Spawnie’s looking like at 13 weeks:
-Fingerprints have formed on Spawnie’s tiny fingertips
-My baby’s veins and organs are clearly visible through his/her still-thin skin
-Finally, Spawnie’s body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of its body size now.
-If Spawnie is a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries.
-Spawnie is almost 3 inches long and weighs nearly an ounce.
Going on with Mommy:
-According to Baby Center, this is the last week of first trimester, and my risk of miscarriage is now much lower than earlier in pregnancy.
-Next week marks the beginning of my second trimester, a time of relative comfort for many women who see early pregnancy symptoms such as morning sickness and fatigue subside.
-More good news: Many couples also notice a distinct libido lift around this time (thank goodness cause I’ll be honest, my friend Libby has been on 3 month vacation along with my Aunt Flow)
-My breasts may have already started making colostrum, the nutrient-rich fluid that will feed Spawnie for the first few days after birth, before my milk starts to flow.
-I’m noticing more round ligament pain as my uterus grows and expands. It’s especially painful when I sneeze.
My stomach feels fattier. I had a chat with an RN today through my company’s maternity benefits program and she answered a lot of my questions. I’m suppose to gain about 25-35 pounds through my pregnancy. I gained a pound and a half my first two months then went down to where I started at 12 weeks. We’ll see where I’m at next time! I’m about 140lbs, so by the end of my pregnancy I may be about 175… That’s the biggest I’ve ever been! Yikes!!
Oh, and any ideas of how to decorate a little tummy like mine for Christmas or the holidays? I’m entering a photo contest and need ideas! Mine may not be as big as some of the others so I’ve gotta be creative! I’m thinking of wearing this shirt @NanceAttack made for me and taking it next month if my tummy gets bigger by then.
Oh,and PS, question of the day: Did you have a doula? Why or why not? I’m debating getting one. I’ll post my dilemma later this week but I’d love to know your quick thoughts for now as I sort through some of mine!
Found your blog through SITS. My best friend is also 13 weeks pregnant with her first baby and will be 14 weeks tomorrow (I think!). Such an exciting time huh? I’m sorry I have no ideas for belly decorating! I never had a doula with my 2 children, but I did have midwives instead of OBs and absolutely loved my experiences. If I ever HAD to go to an OB for some reason, I would look into have a doula so I could still have that midwife/doula feel to the experience.
Totally forgot to email you!
I would definitely read The Doula Advantage by Rachel Gurevich. It explains EVERYTHING you could ever want to know about doulas, complete with personal experiences of people. It’s not very big, and I would think it is one of my absolutely favorite books, whether on birth or not.
I’m at 28 weeks with my first and I’m interviewing doulas now. My husband and I want a birth attendant with us who has been through this before and knows how far to push me. I’m committed to a natural delivery and I want to avoid medical interventions so I want an expert there at the hospital to assist me with this process. I think for my next pregnancy, I will look for a midwife instead of using a traditional OB. But I just moved to my new city and I had to work quickly to find a physician and hospital. Make sure you check on your medical coverage. My provider doesn’t cover this service so it will be out of pocket, but having a doula lessens the liklihood that I will have a c-section so it’s worth it to us.
You look great! I never had a doula but my friend had one and she loved it! I highly recommend one if you can. I never heard about them until my 3rd pregnancy.
You’re looking great Future Mama!!!
I know how hard it is to wait to find out the sex of the baby but I think your hubby might be right.
I recently came accross your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I dont know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Lucy
http://maternitymotherhood.net
I didn’t have a doula, although I thought about it. My reasons were that I kind of like to be alone when I’m in labor. You know how cats like to hide in a dark corner when they have kittens? That’s exactly how I felt! But the hospital frowns on you curling up in the corner with nobody bothering you.
Also, I thought it would help my husband and I bond, with him being the one who had to fetch my laptop and sneak food to me (that “no eating rule” during labor is so bogus!) It’s true, though. It was really nice having it be just us. I didn’t want my husband to feel like he wasn’t needed and that someone else was doing things “the right way”. Plus I always have to feel like I have to be “on” when people are around and that just seemed like too much work.
I’m glad I didn’t go with a doula but I know a lot of people who loved theirs.
In a nutshell: “If a doula were a drug, it would be unethical not to use it.” ~ John H. Kennell, M.D.
:^)
To elaborate on why the above is true, here’s an exhaustive collection of posts on the benefits of doulas, as collected by Science and Sensibility. Excerpt: “A national survey of women who gave birth in U.S. hospitals in 2005 reported that only 3% had supportive care from doulas, despite evidence that doula support improves health outcomes and is rated more highly than other forms of labor support. In fact, a recent review of evidence-based labor and delivery care published in a prominent obstetric journal rated doula care “one of the most effective interventions“.
Be aware that insurance companies ARE starting to offer reimbursement for doula services – but so many moms who don’t have it covered still feel it is more than worth it. Or, more to the point, YOU’RE worth it!
I never used a Doula. It just wasn’t necessary to me, but that’s just me. I don’t know anyone that’s used a Doula either.
Well you already know with my babies (5) so far ,I never had one I also never had drugs and have never had to have a section. I think everything is different for everyone,so do what you feel is best…I will say maybe try it without and see how great your husband is when you are in labor and share that private time with him,then the next time try one if you think it would be better with someone else in there with you guys. Just my thoughts,do whatever you feel is right…you will find once you are in the middle of it your feelings change about things you thought you wanted anyway.
I did not have a doula but I really wanted to have one. My husband strenuously objected to the whole idea.
Since he was so firmly against about the doula thing, I proceeded to study HypnoBabies at home and use that. It worked quite well for most of my painful back labor. My husband was also very good with doing some of the support things we learned in childbirth class. However, at 9cm the baby was not descending and I never had the support I needed to try to do different things to change that. I was in pain and I didn’t want to move from my upright position in the bed. I had a natural childbirth friendly nurse but since I didn’t really *know* her, she couldn’t provide the encouragement I needed.
This is when I think a doula would have been invaluable. I would have known her and been more willing to listen to her suggestions (through the pain). My husband couldn’t fill that role because he simply didn’t know what to tell me. In the end, they started the Pitocin and the baby still didn’t descend so I had a C-Section for “failure to progress”.
Oddly enough, my husband was quite distraught about the way things went down. He is all for a doula next time!
I am a doula so of course I’m going to say GO FOR IT! Doulas will not get in the way of the father’s role – they will help both of you come up with things HE can do to help you. A doula will be there through the entire thing and then be able to help with BF after birth. A doula can be your advocate – not your voice. She will never make a decision for you – but WILL make sure you have all the RIGHT information you need to make an informed decision in case interventions come up. A doula can decrease the need for pain relief, induction, along with helping with pain management – HOWEVER we are not against pain management — its ALL about what you put in your birth plan – you are the BoSS! Hope that helps!
I thought about getting a doula. John Hopkins has a program that allows you to get one for free. I thought about doing that, but then decided to bring my mom in the room.
My mom has had 8 of us now all natural and I knew her advice and assistance would be greatly appreciated to me and my husband.
I really liked having her in the room because she knew without me having to say anything exactly what I needed and what I didn’t need.
I did not have a Doula for my fist and end up having a C-section had a Doula for my second and it was the best thing ever and got my VBAC yay thanks to her support!
Baby #3 will have a doula for sure too 🙂 Doula’s Rock!!!
I dont wanna burst your bubble but it’s next to impossible to tell this early even with 3D, it also looks extremely creepy if you don’t get the right view. The mantra i repeated to myself till i found out was, “patience is a virtue,just make this baby healthy”
I love that you are EXACTLY one week ahead of me! It gives me something to look forward to! I’m using a midwife, and her fee includes a doula as well…but since I’m a first-timer I don’t have any insight to offer you 🙂
I did not have a doula but I really wanted to have one. My husband strenuously objected to the whole idea.
Since he was so firmly against about the doula thing, I proceeded to study HypnoBabies at home and use that. It worked quite well for most of my painful back labor. My husband was also very good with doing some of the support things we learned in childbirth class. However, at 9cm the baby was not descending and I never had the support I needed to try to do different things to change that. I was in pain and I didn’t want to move from my upright position in the bed. I had a natural childbirth friendly nurse but since I didn’t really *know* her, she couldn’t provide the encouragement I needed.
This is when I think a doula would have been invaluable. I would have known her and been more willing to listen to her suggestions (through the pain). My husband couldn’t fill that role because he simply didn’t know what to tell me. In the end, they started the Pitocin and the baby still didn’t descend so I had a C-Section for “failure to progress”.
Oddly enough, my husband was quite distraught about the way things went down. He is all for a doula next time!
I am a doula so of course I’m going to say GO FOR IT! Doulas will not get in the way of the father’s role – they will help both of you come up with things HE can do to help you. A doula will be there through the entire thing and then be able to help with BF after birth. A doula can be your advocate – not your voice. She will never make a decision for you – but WILL make sure you have all the RIGHT information you need to make an informed decision in case interventions come up. A doula can decrease the need for pain relief, induction, along with helping with pain management – HOWEVER we are not against pain management — its ALL about what you put in your birth plan – you are the BoSS! Hope that helps!