I meant to write yesterday to commemorate the end of my first trimester, but time got away from me. Today I am now 12 weeks and 1 day and it's with a sigh of relief I greet the second trimester. The chances of miscarriage have dramatically decreased, those niggling fears can finally be put to rest...maybe. :) I still feel some nausea, but it has lessened, thankfully.
Our next milestone is finding out the gender of CJ, which probably will be tomorrow, Thursday. We are going in for a test, Nuchal Translucency. This is a test done by ultra sound, and they can give us an idea on the baby's gender. It's not 100% accurate because the genitals have not fully developed; needless to say I will not start buying blue or pink until the gender is confirmed at 20 weeks. :) For those who are wondering what the nuchal translucency test is:
"This prenatal test (also called the NT or nuchal fold scan) can help your healthcare practitioner assess your baby's risk of having Down syndrome (DS) and some other chromosomal abnormalities as well as major congenital heart problems.
The NT test uses ultrasound to measure the clear (translucent) space in the tissue at the back of your developing baby's neck. Babies with abnormalities tend to accumulate more fluid at the back of their neck during the first trimester, causing this clear space to be larger than average." (babycenter.com)
I've always wondered why pregnant ladies rub their bellies; the reasons are probably different for everyone but I've started to think about it more as I find myself doing the belly rub. For me its an intimacy thing; it's the closest I can get to touching my baby. Maybe it's part of the bonding process. My reasons may change later, but for now, it's "hey baby, I know you're in there, I can't feel you or see you, but I love you."
One last thing. At our appointment tomorrow, we should be getting a 3D ultra sound, make sure to check back so you can see our cutie-patootie. ;)
