We're having our first baby and we want to share what we've found from our research. Hopefully, people will feel comfortable sharing their experience and helping out our community. Thanks for visiting -- we'll update all this as fast as we can (in-between Dr. appointments!! :)

(Please be patient as we build up the site.  There are still many things "in progress" that will be changing as quickly as we can get to them.)

We're busy getting ready

Submitted by Paul on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 1:02am

Hiya folks. Sorry about the lack of updates around here, but we've been busy. I'm working on expanding and updating other web sites of ours, while trying to keep all the other ones updated (yes, there are even more sites than those three and this one -- ack!).

Anyway, to get on topic real quick, Amy's doing well with the incubation of our kid. She'll have to talk about things from her perspective (I'll bug her about it), but things have been pretty smooth in general. We had thought there would be another ultrasound appointment (and I really looked forward to it) but our Dr. doesn't do one at this stage unless there's a problematic reason to do so.

Well, I just needed to drop a note here. Again, we'll really try to get things rolling on here. We are swamped with work and such, but we need to get this thing going.

Thanks for visiting!
--Paul

July 4 Family Weekend

Submitted by Amy on Thu, 07/10/2008 - 8:00pm

My entire family - on my side - came to visit me, except my older brother, for this whole weekend because my cousin got married in Vail.

An awesome trip, tho way too many people for my small house, but that's ok. Lot's of good time w/ my sis and her 4-yr old twins. That was interesting.

An entirely super visit - a family reunion of sorts of my Dad's side of the family - his sisters were there, whom he hardly ever gets to spend time with. He and my mom were able to spend LOTS of time with them! I haven't seen them in a really long time, either.

Nice to catch up with my cousins, too!

However, they all WORE ME OUT! I thought I had energy. I guess not so much.

"On Oxygen"

Submitted by Amy on Fri, 07/04/2008 - 7:00pm

Went up to the mountains for a family visit and wedding. I found out that I have REAL, SUPER trouble w/ altitude!!!!

My father-in-law is on oxygen 24/7; and he offered for me to have some. He's got several types of nifty portable oxygen carrier-thingys.

SO I DID!

ABSOLUTELY HELPED!!

Before I turned it on, I couldn't breathe well, my ankles swelled up really fast, I could not hardly make it to the top of their staircase (full staircase)....felt like I had just finished a 2 hour hard muscle work out! Not breathing heavy, but I could hardly move my legs!

Then, I sucked some air. Yep, the good stuff.

Blamo - felt better! It's a good thing, because this wedding ceremony was at the top of Vail Mountain, on what they call the "Wedding Deck", which is something like 11,000 feet. Had to walk there too; that wasn't too much fun, but at least I could walk (i.e., move my legs) better! No, I didn't wear high heels!

I thought it was funny. Perhaps you had to be there. Can you visualize my predicament? Let me know and I'll try to be more descriptive.

:-)

Ultrasound Anatomy Scan Level 2 Ultrasound

Submitted by Amy on Mon, 06/09/2008 - 10:25pm

Details, details! This special ultrasound gives you a very specific glimpse of your growing baby.
What it screens for: The ultrasound anatomy scan, or level 2 ultrasound, is an amazingly interesting experience for parents-to-be. Your baby will be measured from crown to rump (and what a cute rump it is!), around his/her middle, around his/her head — and that's just for starters. The four chambers of the heart will be viewed, as well as the kidneys, bladder, stomach, brain, spine, and sex organs (be sure to tell your sonographer if you don't want to know what he or she sees — or doesn't see!).

Measurements are taken to make sure your baby is growing appropriately (and that his or her gestational age is still on target). A survey of the organs, including the umbilical cord, ensures that they are developing normally (or identifies any potential problems as soon as possible). The sonographer will also be looking at your amniotic fluid levels, the location of the placenta, and the fetal heart rate. Settle in to enjoy the show: The detailed level 2 scan can take 30 to 45 minutes (depending on how cooperative your little one wants to be during the photo shoot).

Who it's for: Most practitioners order a level 2 ultrasound for all their moms-to-be.

How it's done: You recline on an exam table with your belly exposed. A sonographer applies gel and then moves the transducer over your abdomen. As sound waves emitted from the transducer bounce off "structures" inside (like your baby's adorable face!), images are formed on a video screen. To get the most comprehensive assessment, the sonographer will be aiming for many different views from lots of different angles in this scan. When the technician gets a clear shot, he or she will freeze-frame the picture (that's the actual sonogram) and then measure the anatomy. You can expect to go home with one or two good sonogram pictures (the perinatologist and your practitioner will review the rest).

When it's done: Most level 2 ultrasounds are performed between 18 and 22 weeks. If you have a condition that needs to be monitored (such as carrying twins), you may have more than one detailed ultrasound.

Risks: There are no significant risks associated with ultrasounds, though medical guidelines caution against unnecessary exposure to ultrasound — which is why your practitioner will schedule only a handful of them throughout your pregnancy.

Source: www.whattoexpect.com

Doppler Fetal Heart Rate Monitor

Submitted by Paul on Fri, 06/06/2008 - 12:57pm

A Doppler fetal heart rate monitor is a device used to detect the heart rate of a fetus without any invasive monitoring. The monitor looks like a little microphone and is pressed against the woman's abdomen. The monitor is moved around while the main device plays an audible signal that sounds a bit like you'd expect from a stethoscope (you've all played with a stethoscope, haven't you?? If not, ask to play with one the next time you go to the doctor. They're cool!)

The monitor is actually measuring the passage of blood in the fetus, and simulating an audible heart beat from the readings. I've decided a way to "spell" what this sounds like:

"ka-pshew, ka-pshew, ka-pshew..." (yeah, I'm a nerd. Get used to it. :P )

It's really awesome to hear, I think.

Here's a page on Wikipedia discussing in more deal what the Doppler fetal monitor does.

Can I take pain relievers during pregnancy

Submitted by Paul on Tue, 05/06/2008 - 12:37am
Question: 

Can I take pain relief medicines during my pregnancy?  I've heard that there are some medicines that are bad for my baby or me.

Answer / Suggestion: 

From what we've been reading/hearing from various sources, the most common answer about the issue of pain relievers is that acetaminophen (or Tylenol) is the best choice of pain reliever for pregnant women.  The notion of "best choice" here has to do with concerns during the final three months of pregnancy.  During that late phase of a child's development, there are known problems caused by the use of ibuprofen.  It has been said that there is not any known problem during the first two trimesters for ibuprofen usage, but hey -- we're not going to chance it!

I have read some places saying that "if you really need it, you should be alright during the first two trimesters."  This seems a bit too sketchy to me, so maybe we'll be asking around more to get more solid facts/theories about what's going on.  For now, it's acetaminophen all the way.  Sorry, Amy.  Cry

Anyone know where to get a belly band in SE Denver

Submitted by Amy on Sat, 05/03/2008 - 9:00pm

I've been searching around a lot for these "Belly Bands" - and they are NOT the doggy kind!!! :-) (So a google search for belly band; you'll see what I mean.)

All the mall maternity stores have them. A Pea in the Pod has their own brand; and many other kids' clothing stores carry them, you have to just look. Wish I went into one of those before A Pea in the Pod. I did not want to order online because I wanted to see and feel them first.

I've learned since that Target carries their own brand, but they're only available online. I think the NASCAR or other branded ones would be awesome. Have the two original companies thought of that? (Ingridandisabel.com or babybeminematernity.com)

Coming Up On MyBabyFAQ.com

Submitted by Paul on Thu, 05/01/2008 - 6:20am

I thought I'd drop some quick notes to let you know what we're working on here at My Baby FAQ:

  • Coming soon will be formalized "FAQ" (frequently asked questions) pages that will present specific questions about pregnancy, parenthood and such, from both our readers and us.  We're planning on taking advantage of having a bunch of experienced mothers helping answer our questions about all sorts of baby-related things.
  • A glossary will be prepared to help sort out as much of the mumbo-jumbo as we can explain.  Actually, Amy's the reason we need a glossary around here.  She likes to whip through doctor jargon and medical goodies like a freight train.  She frequently leaves me in the dust trying to sort out what the heck is going on.  Our glossary should help take care of that, but of course that will also be a bunch of work and will take time to get going well.
  • Articles about a bunch of things like pregnancy, parenthood, psychology, sociology and various-other-"ologies" that we hope will help round out a great resource for people who are out there looking for help having their babies (like we need) and raising them (like we will need).
  • We put a lot of effort into getting a moderately-decent site theme working that set up most of what we want in the general site layout.  There's more tweaking to be done though (a lot more, actually, but much of it will have to wait until we've added more content.)
  • Much more blog posting!  We want to be honest and share our experiences in the hopes that people will gain strength and comfort knowing that other people in the world are having similar issues and feelings about pregnancy.  There's likely to be a fair amount of humor too -- I hope you don't mind.  :P

Well, that's good for now to give you an idea of what's in the works.  Maybe I've missed something, but I'm getting pretty sleepy (and I can hear Amy's alarm clock buzzing upstairs, so I know I've been up TOO LATE!!  Gah.  I need to stop doing that.)

Thank you again for visiting and please come back with friends/mothers/children/anyone!

Syndicate content