Normal

Today I returned to work for the first time since losing Taylor and Cameron. Until today, the kidlets didn't know I was pregnant, but I can't hide it any longer; I have a fairly noticeable bump.

At first I observed some shifty eye movements; stomach, eyes, back to stomach, look away. No one said a thing until the quietest of them all cocks her head and says, "Mrs. Forell are you pregnant?" It was downhill from there.

It was actually nice to see such excitement on their faces, instead of a flabbergasted "congratulations, your life is over," when I was carrying our triplets or "I'm so sorry about your twins, but at least your singleton has his/her best shot." That's what I hoped it would be like when people first learned I was pregnant. Thanks, kidlets, you made my day.

On the health front, I visited Dr. H. for my very late prenatal ("you're half way already??I thought we were only at 12 or 13 weeks!"). That's what crazy complications will do for ya, I guess. My extensive blood work came back normal, except that I don't have any antibodies to CMV, which can be common in elementary school-aged children. Dr. H. said not to worry, the chances of it affecting Crunchy are slim. Great, we all know how I do with slim odds.

Because we were so far behind on the routine care, I had to decided at this appointment if I was going to have an amniocentesis. Dr. H. noted that Dr.D's report stated that the babe's nuchal translucency was well within normal ranges, and that his/her nasal bone was visible - all good indicators that Crunchy doesn't have Downs Syndrome. Had this been different, Dr. H. would have suggested I have the procedure done, but considering the trauma I've been through and the 1 in 200 chance of miscarrying the pregnancy, we decided against it.

Dr. H. checked my blood pressure (normal) and did another doppler to hear Crunchy's heart. Once again, our babes clocked in at 160bpm. BUT, it was almost impossible to hear because Crunchy was kicking like Beckham, which overpowered his/her heartrate. Amplified throughout the room, it sounded like someone banging on the wall. Love it:)

My detailed ultrasound is scheduled for April 19, and my next visit with Dr. H. is on the 28th.

In the mean time, we're relishing in hearing the word "normal." No word has even sounded more beautiful.