Monthly Doctor's visit

Today I had another monthly visit with my doctor. Christopher went with me and we had so much fun! I was so nervous because I knew we would get to hear the baby's heartbeat and I couldn't help but worry. I'm sure all you mother's understand the feeling. When you can't feel the baby yet it makes it hard not to worry. Hearing the heartbeat gave me such a feeling of peace and joy! There is no other sound in the world that I love hearing more except Christopher's voice! The nurse used the doppler and found the heartbeat right away. She said it was very strong and 160 bpm. Christopher's face lit up when he heard it. I of course cried! I'm sure that's not a shock to any of you! After the nurse left, tears started streaming down my face and Christopher didn't know what to say. I told him they were happy tears. He said "I know babe, you always cry like that when you're happy." He knew I had been nervous and just wanted to hear the heartbeat. I saw a Midwife after that. She was really nice. She asked how I've been feeling and noticed that I had been crying and asked if I was okay. I told her what I had been feeling. She knew I was a pediatric nurse and asked if what I deal with at work adds to my worries. I told her that it's hard not to think about what could go wrong but that I know most of the things I see at work are very rare and that I trust that the baby will be perfectly healthy. I asked questions and was surprised that Christopher had questions as well. I love that he is so involved. I asked when the screenings for certain birth defects would be done. She said that blood will be drawn at my next visit. She asked if there was any history of Down's or neural tube defects. Christopher told her about his cousin Holly that had Down's and passed away a few years ago. She said that it's unlikely that the baby will have anything wrong. We already knew that but were glad to hear it from her. Long story short my doctor's practice is trying to get certified in a new ultrasound screening technique for certain birth defects. The midwife asked if we wanted to participate by having another ultrasound done. I was more than happy to let them use me for the ultrasound pictures they need. We got to spend about 40 minutes in ultrasound watching the baby! It was awesome! I wish I would have had a video camera! Christopher was sooooo cute. He was standing next to me at the beginning and by the end he was across the room staring intently at the TV screen. A huge smile on his face. He was focusing so hard and kept saying "wow". I asked him later what he was thinking and he said he was trying to figure out what everything was before I told him what we were looking at. I can't describe how awesome it was to watch our baby. We got to keep lots of pictures. Dawn, the ultrasound tech was great! We had so much fun! You'll see in a few of the pictures the baby is facing you with the left hand up like it's waving! (look at the top pictures on the left side and see if you can see the baby waving!) I could have stayed there all day! The baby looks great. The heartbeat is strong and regular and the spine is normal. I can't wait to have my next ultrasound in May! Love and miss you all. Hope you like the pictures. They are a little fuzzy but still great! Click on the picture to get a closer look! The baby is a little over 6 cm long and I am 12 weeks and 4 days!