Thursday 22 March 2012

12 Weeks!!!

Any woman who has been pregnant knows, 12 weeks is a pretty significant milestone to reach, and today I'm there!  I won't be "officially" out of the first trimester until the end of 12 weeks but knowing that I've made it this far is definitely reassuring!

Today was my Nuchal Translucency (NT) ultrasound scan.  I know everyone is waiting to see pictures so I won't make you wait any longer!
 Here is little Baby A!  According to the technician, Baby A was relaxed and she got the measurements easily.  During the NT scan, the fluid at the back of each fetus' neck is measured.  In fetuses with chromosomal abnormalities (like Down Syndrome for example) there is usually an excessive amount of fluid, indicating a possible problem.  The nasal bone is also checked.  In the past few years it's been discovered that 3 out of 4 fetuses with Down Syndrome do not have a nasal bone at 12 weeks gestation, whereas the majority of "normal" fetuses do.
To the right we have Baby B!  Baby B was being a bit of a brat during the scan...is this a sign of a future little troublemaker? ;).  The technician needed to get a "profile" picture to measure the nuchal fold and nasal bone but the little one kept wanting to look straight on at the technician, and kept wanting to be the center of attention when she was trying to get Baby A's measurements!  A little attention hog!  Maybe a future superstar! lol.  After having me lay on my side the tech was finally able to get a perfect profile picture, as you can see.  Believe it or not, the twins are actually right next to each other, but it's hard to see by these pictures since they are both taken on either side of the babies.

So my scan was at 11am, and I had an Obstetrician appointment at 1:00pm to go over the results of the exam.  I know in my head that there are plenty of "false positives" with NT scans, but thankfully, it seems we won't have to worry about that because everything came back PERFECT and NORMAL!  The babies are measuring perfectly size wise, and have great heartbeats.  It's such a relief to hear that news after going through the sickness and exhaustion that is the first trimester :).

To be extra sure that all is fine and well I'm also having Integrated Prenatal Screening done, otherwise known as IPS testing.  It's a blood test that tests for Down Syndrome and also for the risks of Spina Bifida.  I'm a firm believer that knowledge is power, and if I can have tests that will help me to be prepared for any problems with my babies I want to know, so although I expect "normal" results, the tests are simple, non invasive and virtually painless, so why not know?  I know some people have differing opinions but I just NEED as much information as I can get.

So there is my update!  I'm pretty excited that my little babies are growing strong and healthy!  I actually got 2 photos of EACH baby, so though they're very similar to the other photos, as a parting gift here are the other 2:

4 comments:

Marjorie said...

They look awesome, enjoying these updates. Keep us informed. Praying for those wee ones and you and the family of cours.e

Anonymous said...

Just love the updates Sarah! Keep em coming!! xoxo

Cousin Helen

cindy sowa said...

I am so happy and excited for you, Honey. Their photos are just amazing. You are in my thoughts everyday. Hugs to all of you.

Whoo Hoo!!!
Cindy

Sarah said...

Thanks Ladies! I love being able to share this journey with everyone, the internet is a pretty fantastic creation! lol.
Cindy can't wait to see you and the girls on the 7th :)