Week Twelve

Dear baby,

You're 12 weeks old today!  Yaaaay! :) I bet you're wiggling and jiggling down there in my tummy right now. Though I can't feel your squiggles yet, I know you're as active and as perky as mommy.  :) We can't see you yet except during my ultrasound scans, so your dad and I just keep on imagining you, and how you might look like. According to my research, this is a very exciting week for you. You should be over two inches long now from crown to rump. Your vocal cords will start to form, and your nails on all 20 fingers and toes will become visible. Your fingers will soon begin to open and close. More of your cute facial features will come into focus, such as your tiny eyebrows and little lips.  Your mouth will already make sucking movements this week. Your toes will curl, and your eye muscles will clench.  I am very excited, Munchkin! :)

While you're busy growing in my tummy, I'd like to take this chance to thank you for sparing mommy from many unpleasant pregnancy symptoms.  So far, you've never let me experience morning sickness (even all-day sickness for some), nausea, or vomiting.  My sense of smell has definitely become sharper, but not to the point where I'd find common smells repulsive. Your daddy is also thankful that I don't have weird food aversions!  I've never woken him up in the middle of the night just to get me food.  But I like taho much more now compared to when you weren't there yet.  And my sweet tooth has gotten ten times sweeter! I can't stop myself from eating cakes and ice cream and candies in huge amounts/quantities.  Hehe.  I think it's a sign of how sweet a baby you will become. :) If anything, perhaps my only pregnancy discomfort comes from the insatiable hunger I feel day in and day out, and my need to pee a hundred times in just 24 hours.  But these are nothing compared to what other expecting mommies go through.  So again, thank you Munchkin! You're such a sweetheart! :)

We are almost done with our first trimester, and from this point forward, you will start growing at a rapid pace. Your daddy and I can't wait!  Six more months, and we can already hold you in our arms, and you're about to change our lives forever.  We love you, baby! So much! :)

A photo of you and me taken today, 01 October 2014. :)

#BellyBlessed,

Our Little Likot :)

It's been a very happy day today! :)

After completing my two-week bed rest, it was time for another ultrasound to have my SCH re-evaluated. Needless to say, Rolly and I were both very antsy about what the results would be, but as usual, we placed everything in God's hands.

After a few minutes of waiting, ta-daaah!  It was declared that the blood clot is gone!  Yippee!  Add to our happiness the fact that our baby has grown bigger, at 2.69cm today! Lookie! :)

Little Munchkin only looked like a tiny tailed dot before, but now s/he's looking more and more like a baby. S/he was very malikot during the ultrasound, and my heart skipped a beat (or more) when we saw him/her move his/her hands, as if s/he's waving at us!  Nakakatuwa, I was on the verge of tears!  Rolly and I hugged the moment the doctor stepped out.  It's just a different kind of joy seeing our little one move.  Haaay.  S/he seems happy too, nagpapakitang-gilas sa mommy at daddy. :) Likot-likot!  Thank you for this sweet gift of life, Lord! 

*********

Baby Bump at almost 10 weeks :)

#BellyBlessed,

Blessed

I am blessed because my Healer is the best. :)

#BellyBlessed,

OB-Imposed House Arrest

Today, I begin serving my two-week sentence declared by my OB-gyne.  I've been put to home detention, a.k.a. bed rest, for half a month, all because of one nasty culprit --- spotting.

Saturday seemed like an ordinary 'pregnant' day.  I was either sleepy or hungry and sleepy again.  I practically slept through the entire morning!  But that changed after I went to the restroom post-lunch and discovered the light bleeding which scared the wits out of me. :(  I couldn't stop alarming thoughts from running through my head. :( Like greased lighting, Rolly and I dashed to the doctor to have it checked.

The first thing the doctor checked was my cervix, and thank God it was closed. I had an ultrasound done to know for sure if our Little Munchkin was okay.  In the middle of our silent prayers, the sonologist told us that s/he was doing pretty good, with an improved heart rate of 154 beats per minute.  The embryo also doubled in size compared to last week's scan. :)  Haaaay, thank You Lord!  The bad news, however, was that a "subchorionic hemorrhage" was found at the inferior pole of my gestational sac.  Of course I did not understand what it was at first, until my OB explained it to me.  I did my own research as well.

According to justmommies.com, "Subchorionic Hemorrhage/Hematoma (SCH) is a gathering of blood between the membranes of the placenta and the uterus. A more technical name is the chorion. Some doctors will also just refer to it as a blood clot. There is no known cause for SCH but many researchers speculate that during egg implantation, the egg slightly separates or tears from the uterus causing a bleed. There is nothing a woman did or could have done to cause or prevent them. SCH occurs to pregnant women of all ages and races."

There is no formal treatment for this blod clot, but most doctors advise bed rest until it heals on its own. I was told that it's important for the clot to not get any bigger, otherwise, it could pose a risk to the baby. :(

I know God is with me every step of the way.  Though I naturally feel concerned, I am very sure that He will get us through this.  Jesus is my Healer, and I declare in His name that this SCH thing will be resolved and will not threaten the life of our Little Munchkin.  Buti na lang nandyan ka Lord.  You are indeed my strength and my refuge!

For now, I will try to 'enjoy' my two-week home detention.  I don't know how I can manage that, but I am willing to do anything for the sake of this sweet life inside me. :) That's how mommies are, right?

#BellyBlessed,