Ultrasounds & iPhones

Last Friday, we had yet another ultrasound to check on the baby's growth.  This time, we got some information I know you've all been dying to hear:

That's right!  Baby has ears!  At least one anyway.  Isn't that something??

I think our ultrasound technicians are becoming a bit desperate in their quest to provide us with exciting mementos each time we attend one of these appointments.  They say that the best pics are captured around 18-20 weeks, when the baby is grown enough to have discernible baby-like features but space in the womb is not yet at such a premium that cramped arms and legs are inevitably blocking all views of Baby's little face.  Since we've had relatively a lot of ultrasounds, we've had ample opportunity to test the validity of this rumor, and my advice to other moms-to-be is be sure to go for that 18-20 week ultrasound on schedule!  We spent a large portion of this appointment (after the necessary measurements were taken), failing to get a good pic thanks to Baby's two arms and two feet, all four of which Baby had placed (rather stubbornly) in front of his or her face.  Luckily, our very patient ultrasound tech finally managed to capture one shot in profile:

I call it "The Thinker" because that's Baby's little fist curled up at its chin.

(By the way, I'm no longer convinced Baby has my nose and not Bryan's.  What do you think?)

Readers, I have one more treat for you today:

Here, you can listen to Baby's heartbeat.  For those who might be curious:  I recorded this simply by placing my iPhone mic up against my belly.  It took a lot of patience and experimentation, but once I found the heartbeat, not only could I capture it through the mic, but Bryan was actually able to hear it directly just by putting his ear to the right spot!

Birth Classes & Our Latest Photo Shoot

Yesterday Bryan and I attended our first childbirth class.  After considering a variety of options, we've decided to study the Bradley Method, a set of birthing tools centered on childbirth as a natural process and on preparing husbands/fathers to play the role of coach throughout the pregnancy and (most importantly) labor.  So far we're feeling really good about it.  The class is made up of only two couples--us and another young set of academics also due in August.   Our teacher is a wonderful woman with a baffling amount of energy and years of experience as a mother, Bradley Method instructor, and both birth and postpartum doula.  We'll be attending the class every week for 12 weeks, two and a half hours per week.

Our first class focused on natural means of managing pain (mostly relaxation techniques such as massage and abdominal breathing) and on prenatal exercises that prepare the body for the act of giving birth (which, apparently, is the caloric equivalent of running a marathon--so I better get in shape!).  We also watched a couple of birth videos, which, I have to admit, can be a little overwhelming.  Seeing those children make their way into the world is simultaneously thrilling, heart-string pulling, and, no doubt, a little bit scary.

Luckily, though it can be hard to watch the women in those videos express the pain they're experiencing, pain in childbirth is one of the least of my worries (for now anyway).  I'm pretty sure I was born with my mother's imperviousness--and, in a real pinch, there are always drugs, though I'm hoping to avoid them.  But I have realized that I'm still working on managing two other fears related to childbirth.  First, I'm fearful of unnecessary medical interventions, which I've heard/seen/read can start innocently enough but often quickly cascade into a series of increasing dangerous and otherwise completely avoidable procedures.  I hope that by taking this class, both Bryan and I will find ourselves better informed about--and, therefore, better able to make decisions around--this particular kind of challenge during childbirth.  Second, I can't help but feel nervous anticipating my exposure during the birth.  It's difficult for me to imagine myself grunting and moaning and generally becoming so "raw" in front of other people, possibly even complete strangers.  But maybe attending this class will help me tap into that seldom-accessed part of myself, too.  In any case, it's a relief to know I still have time to get myself psychologically--as well as physically--prepared for what's to come.

In other news, Archimedes was the subject of another photo shoot today, this one at the ultrasound office.  Here are a couple of the pictures we snapped.  I can hardly believe how big we're getting!  (Compare these to the ones we took just 6 weeks ago.)

Archie's giving us a peace sign.  A hippie baby, perhaps?

Our baby in profile, displaying a little fist

Introductions

Allow me to introduce you to the newest light of my life:  Archimedes.  At least, Archimedes is his or her fetal name.  Though, if you ask, we might insist that'll be the permanent name.  "We'll call him (her) Archie for short," we'll say, while you politely smile and nod (surprisingly, responses to this suggestion have been fairly positive).  In any case, for now, Archie it is.

These days Archie is a little over twenty weeks old--just past the official halfway point of our pregnancy.  We cannot believe how quickly time is passing.  Why, I still remember when Archie was just a little blastocyst, blessing me with daily nausea and hyperactive tear ducts.  Fortunately, the second trimester has been much more pleasant than the first, and now when I swoon it's not because of an undesirably heightened sense of smell but rather because I can't get over the awesome feeling of Archimedes tickling me from inside or because Archie is just way too cute for words in the latest sonogram.

Speaking of which, here are a couple of pictures of Archimedes at about 19 weeks.  What did I tell you?  Superbly adorable.  Frankly, I'm still in near-disbelief that this little darling is growing inside me.