Week Twelve ~ Getting Excited! We've made it past the "critical" stage! Whew! What a relief! I had my OB visit today, and all is well. The baby has a very strong heartbeat - 160 beats per minute. And the doctor says I feel 11-12 weeks along. Hurray! I'm so happy everything appears to be going as it should. I only gained three pounds. I don't know if that's normal, but for me that's a miracle. I figured on at least ten (as I sit here eating a bag of chips)! But I looked back at my "Chaynee Chart" and I weighed in at 126 at 12 weeks. Exactly the same! I guess I shouldn't start celebrating yet. My toilet paper measurement is still hanging in there around 7-1/2 squares. Maybe I should be measuring my rear end; it appears to be growing rather rapidly! ADVERTISEMENT My OB asked me to think about having the three screening tests done. And without thinking I said yes. I knew she was talking about the Maternal Serum Screening, but I didn't even think about what the other two were. DUH! So, now I'm wondering. It may be that she wants to do an amniocentesis also. I suppose a phone call is in order. I have mixed emotions about the Maternal Serum Screening. I didn't have it done when I was pregnant with Chaynee, but I think maybe I should this time. My reasoning is this: since I've had three miscarriages, two known to be wrong chromosome numbers, this test could help prepare me for a "special" baby if that is the case. Of course the Maternal Serum Screening isn't 100% accurate and can give false results, so maybe that's why the amnio too. More worries! I have to update you on my ultrasound. Do you remember me telling you how I felt unsettled, as if I wasn't really getting a straight answer or maybe I was just paranoid? My sister, the medical transcriber, didn't read my report (yeah right!)? Well, today my OB asked if the ultrasound technician had told me that there was too much fluid around the baby. What? "NO! She didn't tell me anything!" "Well," my OB said, "Good, because she's wrong and I would have hated for you to be worried about nothing." Whoa, small scare. My OB said that it was too soon in the pregnancy to be able to tell something like that anyway. I will have my second ultrasound sometime in early January. My OB wants to do another ultrasound before we do the tests. I guess I'd better find out what the other two tests are first, huh? I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! I'll write again next week. Pregnancy Week By Week Guide - Week 12 week 13  |  Week 11 return to Natalie's main page Visit StorkNet's Pregnancy/Infant Loss Cubby StorkNet Home | return to top family planning | pregnancy | parenting | family life | for fun | shopping | tools | community Copyright © 2000 Natalie. All rights reserved. Site Design by StorkNet Please read our disclaimer and privacy policy. Your feedback is always welcome.