Update: 24 Weeks! (& test results)

We got to see our little girl via ultrasound a few weeks ago…and there was no mistaking it, she’s a girl! 🙂 Oh how it sets my “planner’s” heart at ease that so far our kiddos have not been shy and we can know with a fair amount of certainty what gender to plan for. No offense to you mamas that want to wait to find out…I don’t particularly like the color yellow, am not inspired by gender-neutral nurseries, and there is enough uncertainty with the whole military thing (where will we live, will Sam be re-assigned, will we move, will there be a deployment, would a government shut-down mean no paychecks?) that I just do not feel as though my life is lacking in unexpected surprises. If I can know, I want to know. Plain and simple. 🙂

I am 24 weeks along, so we are most definitely halfway done (even if this one decides to come almost two weeks late like her brother did). She is measuring a little big….go figure. Heck, my first one was an almost-11-pounder. What can I say, we grow ’em big! Haha. The doctor asked me today if I am feeling the baby move. Holy cow, AM I?? I told her this kiddo’s got some ninja moves, just like her older brother. She eyed me kind of skeptically when I explained that her kicks are so strong that Sam can feel her moving, I can see her move from the outside, and sometimes her kicks are quite painful. Many nights I lay awake unable to sleep and feeling a bit motion-sick from all her rolling, kicking, and tumbling. I got the feeling the doctor thought I was exaggerating until she tried for over 5 minutes to find the baby’s heartbeat only to have our little girl squirm and kick away. At one point she looked at me and said: “Um, yea…even I can feel your baby moving. She sure is hard to pin down.”

Told you so.

My husband and I breed ninjas. Ninjas I tell you…   🙂

The biggest news from today though are that my titers were slightly higher when I had my blood tested a couple of days ago. It was not really what we wanted to hear, because it means that the levels of the antigens in my blood are now rising (up to this point they had remained at the same level and not increased). The good news, however, is that even though the number has grown, it is still a very low number where antigen titers are concerned. Because of that, for now we will monitor it the same as we have been, with blood tests every 4 weeks. Should they continue to increase, the blood tests would become more frequent, and we would only begin further testing if they reach a “critical” level.

The other “good” news in all of this is that we ARE at 24 weeks….which means from here on out the baby’s chances of survival outside the womb continue to get exponentially higher with each passing day. So, even if my titers DO keep increasing, it could end up just meaning that they take our baby girl out early as opposed to dangerous testing and intervention while she is still inside. 

The remarkable thing is – I really have a peace about it all. My biggest testimony at this point is that even though I thought an increase in my titers would really shake me up, when the doctor told me the news today I was flooded with peace. A peace that has been growing and deepening throughout this pregnancy. I know that God has a plan for this precious little girl of ours, and I will continue to trust him, despite the numbers in my chart. 

Thank you for standing with us and keeping us, and our little girl in your prayers! 

Believing that she will remain protected in there and will continue to grow healthy and strong, 

Bethany

You will keep him in perfect peace,

Whose mind is stayed on You,

Because he trusts in You

Isaiah 26:3