CenteringPregnancy

We had our first CenteringPregnancy group today and it was a really positive experience. It went from 9-11am, and we had to get there a little early since it was the first meeting. It was held in a large room with an exam room off to the side. There was a table with some snacks and a water cooler. There was salsa music playing, which set a good and uplifting tone. A table was set up with a blood pressure cuff that went on your wrist and there was a scale along the wall. The first 30 minutes of each meeting, we take our blood pressure and our weight and write that down in our chart. Our charts are on the table with the blood pressure cuff. One by one we went into the exam room with the midwife and she did a little check up. Today she listened to the baby's heartbeat, which sounded good. We were able to clearly hear it, which was cool. For each subsequent meeting, that is the process and it takes up the first 30 minutes. We were given a tote bag with a binder in it that had a lot of different information and things for us to fill out regarding how we feel about various issues related to the pregnancy and the baby - we have to bring that with us to every group. There were 8 women including me and all but one had their husband with them. Interestingly, the one who came solo was also the only one who already had a child. For the rest of us, this is our first.

The group is led by the nurse midwife and a nurse. The nurse was the one who got everyone situated and who explained the process for the group meetings. After the exam and the check in, we all sat down in chairs that were set up in a circle. Instead of introducing ourselves, we had to speak to the person next to us (not our husband) and find out a little about each other and then introduce that person. That turned out to be a good ice breaker. Then we started a discussion about what our expectations were for the group. It took people a little bit to get warmed up, but once that happened, people were fairly talkative. We then talked about nutrition and how we were all feeling. I would say that we were all roughly in the same age bracket - I think everyone was probably somewhere in their 30s. Each week we will talk about something different, though we are always able to discuss how we are feeling or if there is anything going on that we want to share with the group.

I did find out that I am not guaranteed a midwife when I deliver because they are not on call 24/7 at UCSF, which is something that I was not told before. I am a little disturbed about that since I really do not want an MD or a man delivering my baby - I want a midwife. I spoke to the nurse midwife about this a bit and she referred me to a couple of doulas, which are birthing assistants. I had been thinking about hiring a doula, but hadn't been totally sure if it was necessary, but now feel that it is. Joe andI still have some time to discuss it and find the right person.

We were both really happy with the group today and I'm glad that we started this program. I think it will be a really good experience and it will be nice to go through this journey with this group of people. The next group is March 26th.

Bump Watch

This is the start of week 16, and I'm still feeling good. This week starts the CenteringPregnancy program and our first appointment is Thursday morning, which I'm looking forward to. I'll have more to report Thursday after the appointment.

Update

Overall, I'm feeling pretty good. I have been feeling tired lately, but I think that's because I'm getting up at least once a night to pee and then it takes me a little while to fall back asleep, so that is of course interrupting my sleep.

My belly is getting bigger and I think I finally look like I have a pregnant belly and not a beer belly. The last couple of days I have been having twinges in my lower abdomen, which I think is my uterus stretching. There is a lot of growth happening in these next few weeks, so it makes sense and my pregnancy books have talked about that. Next week is week 16 and from week 16-20 is when I should start feeling the baby move, which is exciting. The books say that you'll probably feel something for a few days before you realize that that's what you're feeling. I guess if you've never felt it, you don't really know what it is.

Today I signed us up for some prenatal classes - a breastfeeding class, a parenting class, and a birthing class. We'll also do a tour of the birth center at the hospital in July. The first class (breastfeeding) starts in April, so we still have some time. Close to the due date we are also going to do a baby CPR class and once the baby is born, we are going to do a baby massage class - we can bring the baby with us to that one.

Here are the class descriptions:

Breastfeeding
Learn about breast physiology, milk production, let-down, latch-on and positioning. This class teaches participants how to overcome breastfeeding challenges, problem solve and how to establish a successful breastfeeding relationship right from the start.

Surviving the First Two Weeks With a New Baby: Basic Baby Care
This class offers basic survival techniques to care for your newborn and emphasizes postpartum care for mom. Learn about newborn characteristics, infant milestones, bathing, hygiene, diapers, diapering, crying, comforting, sleep and recognizing the signs of illness. Great for first-time parents.

Childbirth Preparation: Birth Alternatives
This class addresses the needs and interests of women who wish to have an intimate, fully involved birth experience. The four-week series covers the basic childbirth preparation content with an added emphasis on natural delivery and making choices in response to the birth process. Labor support techniques and comfort measures from home birth and other cultures are emphasized. Classes are a 4-week series.

Bump Watch

This is the start of week 15 and its hard to tell a big difference from last week as far as the bump. It will be cool after several weeks have gone by to really see the progression.

All is well since Friday and nothing new has really happened.

Prenatal Appointment

I had another prenatal appointment today. This was the last one before I start the CenteringPregnancy program on the 26th. Today the nurse midwife listened to the baby's heartbeat. She was able to hear it, but I couldn't because there was also the sound of my heart and other random sounds and even though she pointed out the sound, it was hard for me to make it out. Then, the baby moved, so she lost the heartbeat. We did hear the baby kick a few times, which was cool. I told her how the baby was moving all over the place during our genetic screening ultrasound and she said that's a good sign and a sign that this is a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. Based on all of my bloodwork and the genetics testing, she said everything looks great, so I'm very happy about that. I have been feeling really good, so I'm excited. There is one more set of blood tests that I will take that checks for any other random genetic problems. That will be done sometime next week. I can just drop into the lab and get my blood drawn.

I made my appointment for the big ultrasound when (hopefully) we'll find out the gender. It is scheduled for March 13th and 2:15 pm. The one thing that would prevent us from finding out would be the position of the baby. The baby obviously needs to be in a position where the radiologist can see between its legs. Considering how active this baby seems to be we'll keep our fingers crossed that he/she will cooperate for that ultrasound. I am SO anxious to know what it is.

Update

This is the first official week of the 2nd trimester, and I am feeling good. This weekend I went to The Gap and bought a couple more pairs of maternity jeans and some tops, so I think that should hold me for the next several months. As you can see in the Bump Watch picture, I now have a bit of a belly and am starting to show, which is really exciting! It still kind of looks like a beer belly, but that's ok. It'll only get bigger in the coming weeks.

I have my next appointment this Friday, so I will let you all know how it goes.

Bump Watch

This weeks starts the 2nd trimester and I am finally unable to wear my regular pants and have started wearing maternity jeans. I got cute some jeans from The Gap. A couple more pairs of pants and some shirts and I should be good for the next 5-6 months.
Joe and are going to start taking weekly belly pictures to show the bump progress. I'll stand in the same place each time, so you can watch as my belly grows towards (and beyond) the line on the wall.

I am feeling good and looking forward to next next few months. My next prenatal appointment is this Friday, the 13th.

Week 13

This week is week 13 and the final week of the 1st trimester. As I've said before I am really looking forward to the 2nd trimester. I can't wait for the baby to start growing more so that I am showing. We'll learn the gender and start some prenatal classes this trimester. I will also start the new pregnancy program, CenteringPregnancy at the end of February, which I am looking forward to.
I found a site that shows pictures of what the baby looks like each week. Here's week 13,

My next prenatal appointment before I start the CenteringPregnancy program is February 13th. I'm not sure if they are going to do an ultrasound at that appointment or not - we'll have to wait and see. She will do a check up and obviously make sure everything feels right with the baby.

I'm feeling good. I am able to get up in the morning now without feeling like I have to drag myself out of bed. I am also able to get up at 7am whereas a few weeks ago, I could not even move before 8. I would like to get back to getting up around 6, which is my normal getting up time. We'll see how that goes.