Amazing Ultrasound!

Dad meet me at the Woodbury clinic at 8am. We were the first patients of the day, but Wendy, the receptionist, was on vacation, so we weren't greeted by name. This time instead of having a "limited" ultrasound (where they check her heart rate, amniotic fluid levels, and maybe a few other things), we had a "biophysical profile." Baby can get up to two points in each of five categories, for a total of ten. She got 100% on the ultrasound categories (small movements, large movement, breathing, and amniotic fluid levels) for eight out of eight.

Krista did the usual testing for amniotic fluid levels, looking around baby and measuring the amount, and gave baby two points. Then she did a quick head to toe scan of baby, and showed us that her lungs were practicing breathing, and gave her another two points. When she was looking at her head, she said, "You might not believe me, but these little lines here are hair on her head." You can kind of see it on the picture of the cross-section of her head.

The little lines are hair on baby's head!
She's not going to be bald when she's born,
like her mommy was!

Once Krista had those points assigned, and we saw (and felt!) baby kicking around and moving her little arms (another two points), she decided that she would use the 3D ultrasound (live this time instead of still pictures!) for the last two points. She looked mostly at her face, seeing baby's mouth open & close, and her eye brows moving up and down in different expressions. It was so amazing to see the different expressions she could make. She really is her own little person, developing her own little personality!

3D of baby. Her eyes are slightly opened.

My new favorite! You can even see her eyelashes!

Her two little legs and fist (right above her knee).

After the ultrasound, a nurse that I had not met before, named Deb, came and brought us to another room. She hooked me up to a fetal heart monitor, and a contraction monitor, for a non-stress test. She said Dr. Ledella was debating whether or not to do this part of the test for her, because her heartbeat is so strange anyway. But they decided to do it anyway. Once Deb had the monitors all hooked up, she pulled the cart over next to me and said, "With her heart, this alarm's going to go off a lot. So when it does, just hit this yellow button." It was weird watching the printout record of what her heart rate was. It would be hanging around 60 bpm, then suddenly jump to around 120 bmp, because she moved or something and the monitor could only pick up one of the rates at a time.

While I was hooked up to the monitor, Deb asked all the questions that go along with the OB part of the visit. Once she finished, she said she was going to let it run for another ten minutes, then Dr. Ledella would come in. Twenty minutes later she came back, and unhooked everything, and Dr. Ledella followed shortly behind her. Looking at the printout, she said that I wasn't having contractions (I haven't been feeling any either!), and baby didn't get any of the points for that part of the test (which no one was really surprised about). Her heart was too difficult to monitor for this type of thing. But baby's final score was 8 out of 10! I figure that's a "B" and still passing! Dr. Ledella also commented (and seemed surprised) about how well I was doing. I'm not sure if she meant she was surprised with how well baby is hanging on in there, or me emotionally.

On my way out, I set up two more appointments at Woodbury. The lady that was filling in for Wendy thought I had to be seen on a Friday again, but I explained that I've had appointments on Friday, and then four days later, on Monday, have another appointment. So she asked the nurse, who, of course, okay'ed it. Next appointment on Tuesday for another profile! (Hopefully we'll get Krista again!)