29 week update

Today was our 2nd fetal echo, a follow-up and routine re-check of the baby's heart.  While Ben hung out with Grandma and daddy was at work, I watched as the cardiologist quietly examined the blurry ultrasound images for almost an hour, being sure to thank him for his thoroughness.  A little part of me, actually a huge part, was hoping for some tiny miracle where they would rule out one of the original defects.  It turns out, we have to add one to the list.  Little Will also has mild pulmonary hypoplasia, which means his pulmonary artery is a little small.  There are many shades of gray to his diagnosis, as our cardiologist put it, because this is a very rare combination of defects.  Our perinatologist has never seen this combination and the cardiologist said he's seen it less than 5 times, so no one is really sure what to expect.  He did seem confident that I'll be able to breastfeed and that he shouldn't have to spend very much time in the NICU after birth, but I'm just trying to have an open mind and let things happen as they do.  So much of this journey is not knowing what will come next and not knowing what to expect of the baby's health.  Thankfully, I have lots of doctor's visits to keep me busy and reassure us that he's doing ok while in utero.  From here on out, we'll be going to the doctor twice a week for non-stress tests and weekly ultrasounds, every Tuesday and Friday.

Here's a heart diagram that may help to visualize what is going on and my understanding of the diagnosis:  the middle part of the heart, the AV canal is missing, which is causing the left and right ventricles to act as one, and add to that that his pulmonary artery is a bit small.  It's amazing that they are able to tell all of this from inside the womb and I was reminded today how lucky we are that our doctor noticed something was wrong so early.  Only 30% of major heart defects are diagnosed before birth, so again, I'm happy that we're a part of that 30%.

Thank you for all the well wishes.  Keep them coming as this is bound to be quite the test of all of our strength.

27 Weeks and Style

This week marks 27 weeks, a lucky number around our home.  It didn't disappoint either.  At today's ultrasound, the doctor confirmed that Baby Will's growth is normal.  He weighs about 2.5 pounds and is in the 55% percentile.  I won't bother you with the details of my own weight gain, but trust me, I'm on a steady pace, but luckily my glucose levels are great and I have low blood pressure.  I have my sweet, meal-cooking husband to thank for reminding me to eat and putting healthy meals on the table.

We've also scheduled the delivery for May 31st, (updated to May 29th) so mark you calendars.

Ben was so lucky this week to have his Grammy and Papa here to visit and he sure impressed them with his style.  Each day he changes into some type of uniform, usually outfits himself with carabiners, and almost every day tops it off with at least one sticker.