Hellobee

Now that I am in the second half of my pregnancy, the weeks are flying by. I’m not complaining! I’m ready to meet Baby P.

Overall the second trimester was pretty uneventful. Once I hit 13 weeks I feel like a fog lifted. I was no longer nauseous or throwing up and was able to eat most of the foods that made me feel gross in the weeks prior. The only food I still have an aversion to is salmon. I experienced pretty strong cravings for chips with spicy salsa and sweet tea for a few weeks. Now my eating habits are what they were before pregnancy, and my cooking routine is back to normal.

The best part of the second trimester for me was feeling the baby move for the first time. I have an anterior placenta so I was concerned that it would be a long time before I was able to feel her. Around 18 weeks I felt something like bubbles in my abdomen. I thought it could be her, but was unsure. Towards the end of week 19 I felt what was undeniably a kick. I’ll never forget that moment. I was sitting on my mom’s screened in porch looking out at the lake early in the morning. I was the only one outside just taking a few moments for myself before a busy day, when I felt a little thump on my right side. It was amazing! It was a couple of more weeks before I felt her kicking on a daily basis. Mr. P was excited to feel her too. After she faked us out a few times, he was able to feel her when I was around 22 weeks. Now she kicks and rolls around all day long! Right now she’s digging her heel into my rib cage, which is a little bit painful.

There is a downside to feeling so much movement. Whenever she is having a quiet day I get extremely anxious. Last weekend we were traveling and she was unusually still. I felt her move, but not the amounts that I am used to. I spent most of Saturday and Sunday thinking something was wrong. Fortunately Mr. P is good about listening to my concerns and helping me feel better. As soon as we were home Sunday night, she resumed her big movements.

There was one dark cloud during the second trimester, but fortunately it passed quickly. I had my anatomy scan at 20 weeks. Before that scan my doctor told me it would likely be the last, since insurance companies don’t want to cover a lot of ultrasounds unless they are medically necessary. After the anatomy scan Mr. P and I were told that the baby looked great and that I would be having a growth scan at my 24 week appointment. We were a little confused about why I was having another scan, but didn’t question it.

At my next appointment we went into the ultrasound room and the tech started the scan. She immediately found the baby’s brain, zoomed in on it, and said to us, “This is a follow up scan for the cyst, right?”

Mr. P and I look at each other and asked at the same time, “What cyst?”

The tech’s face froze a bit and she told us that what was the order was for. Then she pulled up my anatomy scan on her computer to be sure there wasn’t a mistake. There wasn’t. At the anatomy scan they had found a choroid plexus cyst on the baby’s brain. The tech let us know right away that it had resolved itself and was no longer there. She also told us they were common and developed in areas that contained fluid. They often resolve themselves and do not cause any type of damage. Mr. P and I were so grateful that the tech told that right then because she isn’t supposed to give us any information; that is the doctor’s job. It was definitely an emotional few minutes for Mr. P and me. Choroid Plexus Cysts can be a soft marker for Trisomy 18 if they are accompanied by other markers as well. Fortunately Baby P has no other markers for Trisomy 18 and with the cyst gone, I am confident that she is perfectly healthy. I’m not sure why my doctor didn’t tell me about the cyst after my anatomy scan. I think she didn’t want me to worry when she expected it would resolve by the next scan. It’s probably for the best that it worked out the way it did, but I was a little annoyed with her at the time.

The crib ready to be painted and assembled.

I made quite a bit of progress in Baby P’s nursery during the second trimester. It was a catch all/sewing room and had quite a bit of stuff in it that needed to find a home somewhere else. After taking a bit of time to clean it out I painted the walls, sewed some curtains, and made a quilt. Mr. P and I built a crib, with him doing most of the work and me assisting. We also picked out fabric and had a rocking chair reupholstered. With all of those items in the room now it makes the fact that a baby is coming even more real.

In the coming weeks I have lots of things that will keep me busy as I wait on Baby P’s arrival. We’ll be celebrating Mr. P’s last birthday before fatherhood, attending childbirth and baby prep classes, visiting family out of state, and going to my baby showers. I also want to soak up as much time with Mr. P as I can as this time in our lives draws to a close and we look towards the next chapter!