22 Weeks!

Clearly I need to work on updating my blog on time... my week changes on Sundays, my size updates on Mondays, and my last post was on a Thursday.  Oops.

Baby is the size of a?  papapya!

Belly button in or out?  In, but getting flat

Wedding rings on or off?  On

Symptoms?  Lower back aches and difficulty getting comfortable at night.

Movement?  All the time.  Yesterday during church I could see my belly move cause of all the big kicks.  No escaping just yet, little one.

Pregnancy PSA- If you've been following the news recently, you may have seen articles about increased incidences nationwide of pertussis (also known as "whooping cough").  Pertussis can lead to severe complications in infants, including pneumonia, apnea, encephalopathy, convulsions, and even death.  In infants who contract pertussis, over half will require hospitalization for pertussis-related complications.  For this reason, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has many recommendations regarding pertussis vaccination for pregnant woman and persons who will be in close contact with infants.  A quick summary of the CDC's recommendations-

• "The best way to prevent pertussis in a young infant is by vaccinating the mother during pregnancy."  It is recommended that pregnant women receive the pertussis vaccine (commercially combined with the tetanus vaccine- the Tdap) at 20 weeks gestation or later.  (My vaccine was up to date prior to pregnancy, so I'm good :) ).
• "The immune response to the vaccine peaks two weeks after administration...you should encourage others, including dads, grandparents and other caregivers to get vaccinated with Tdap at least two weeks before coming into contact with their infants."

Infants receive pertussis immunizations as part of their standard childhood immunizations, but these vaccines do not start until the child is 2 months old.  Adult immunization while the infant is less than two months old help prevent the spread of pertussis to a newborn.

If you're curious as to why this disease is also known as "whooping cough," listen to the sound byte of the cough HERE.  That's certainly not a sound I want to hear from Gideon!

Reference
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tdap for Pregnant Women: Information for Providers.  Updated 2012 June 15 [cited 23 July 2012].  Available from http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/pertussis/tdap-pregnancy-hcp.htm.

21 Weeks

Baby is the size of a?  Spaghetti squash

Baby bump?  People who don't know me ask when I'm due now

Movement?  All the time, but more at night.  Sometimes I think Gideon is trying to escape!

Fun baby purchases?  I went shopping with Mimi, who got Gideon a bank for his room.  It's shaped like a lion, so Keith named it Aslan.

Exciting this week?  Mommy got her license to practice pharmacy!

Overwhelming this week?  Making my list of items to register for.  The first time I walked into a Babies R Us I felt a little hypertensive, so I've been doing some pretty extensive research.  I've been utilizing the book Baby Bargains by Denise and Alan Fields to make several of my larger purchase decisions, but have also consulted recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Baby likes?  Lots of fruit

Baby dislikes?  Nothing really.

20 Weeks!

It's hard to believe that we are already halfway through with this pregnancy!  Time is flying by!  And now we can officially introduce our little one...

Meet Gideon Samuel!  Our little one is officially a boy, and we are so excited!

Baby is the size of a?  Banana!

Development?  According to our 20 week fetal scan, Gideon is growing appropriately.  The major organ systems all looked good, however, our ultrasound tech had a difficult time visualizing all four chambers of the heart.  Our OB was not concerned, but we'll have an additional ultrasound at our next visit to confirm a lack of cardiovascular defects.  Mommy is not concerned as another ultrasound means more pictures of my baby; have you seen how adorable my child is?

New pregnancy issues?  Heartburn, and lots of it.  I ate plain cereal for breakfast this morning and got heartburn.  Thank goodness for Pepcid Complete.

Explanation of name?  

We chose Gideon (meaning "mighty warrior" and "feller of trees") as we were both led to the story of Gideon in Judges during our quiet times at different points in time before we decided to start a family.  Gideon's story in the Bible is special to each of us for various reasons.  

For a middle name, we chose Samuel (meaning "God heard" or "requested of God") to represent God's answer to our prayers for a child.  

19 Weeks

Baby is the size of a?  Well...that depends.  My current "go to" pregnancy app keeps me at mango for another week, yet other apps state varying produce from banana to butternut squash.  Baby is approximately 6.5 inches long- pick your favorite appropriate produce for comparison.

Fun developmental things?  From what I can gather, Baby has a rapidly developing nervous system, as well as a newly formed vernix caseosa.  Within the next few weeks, I should be able to distinguish Baby's heartbeat with my stethoscope.  On a somewhat related note, I have a hard time trusting "cutesy" medical information; does anyone know of an HonCode certified pregnancy week by week resource?

Pregnancy Pet Peeve?  Pregnancy Paranoia, especially as it relates to diet. I got an email this week from a respected pregnancy/baby source titled "Fourth of July foods to avoid during pregnancy."  The list made me laugh, as it included these items

• ready to eat foods- as they could be contaminated with listeria
• hot dogs and luncheon meat- same reason
• soft cheeses- same
• burgers and other grilled meat- risk for E. coli if undercooked
• ice cream- risk for salmonella if containing raw eggs

The risk of listeria (even in pregnancy) is ridiculously small.  Also, most packaged lunch meats contain added food-safe antimicrobials to reduce the risk of listeria even further.  Soft cheese "risks" are overblown as, per US law since the 1940s, soft cheeses cannot be sold in the United States unless pasteurized, which kills the bacteria.  All undercooked meats pose a risk for E. coli; that's just common sense.  And ice cream, even with raw eggs, is fine as long as the eggs are pasteurized.  

As a pregnant woman, I'm at a MUCH higher risk for issues like gestational diabetes, venous thromboemboli, preeclampsia.  Why not send me articles addressing prevention of these issues instead of making me feel bad about eating a turkey sandwich?

Upcoming fun things?  Our anatomy scan is next week, so we'll get to confirm Baby's gender and hopefully see that Baby is growing and developing appropriately.  Assuming all is well with Baby at that scan, we will register with the pediatrician we've picked out.