Immediately after the scan was started, the sonographer said to me, "Baby is fine." and swung the screen round to show me. Perfect, PERFECT little person looking all proper-baby-shaped and everything! :) The baby was lying in a big round bubble, on his/her back. I could see the little facial profile, and the twisty umbilical cord rising up from the tummy to the "ceiling" of the bubble, and little legs curled up. The heart was beating away merrily, but the baby didn't move in the brief time I was watching the screen, not even a bit. When I have had scans at 12 weeks, sometimes my babies have been asleep through the first part of the scan, and I presume that's what was happening this morning. :) The sonographer measured the baby's CRL (crown to rump length, that is from the top of the head to the bottom), and it was 35.1mm - just 3 and a half centimetres! So weeny, and yet so perfectly formed! She had asked me how many weeks pregnant I *think* I am, when I arrived, and I just decided to say "Ten." because so far the pregnancy/baby has measured 3 days behind at all my scans. She said that 35.1mm dates the pregnancy at 10 weeks and 2 days!! Yay! I'm so happy because that's my exact gestation from my own (definite) dates, and it seems that my little one has caught up. :)
She then said she could see "a very large bleed" and showed me a dark area going up and over to one side of the gestational sac, and also down and under it to the other side. She didn't comment on the cause, just noted its existence, and said that bleeds like this usually don't interfere with the pregnancy itself. She said that I would probably have spotting and bleeding for some time as it clears out, but that some of it will be reabsorbed as well. I asked lots of questions, and basically she said that she couldn't guarantee that I wouldn't miscarry, but that everything looked okay at the moment and many women bleed without complications to the pregnancy (as I know from experience!). So that was reassuring.
I saw the doctor after waiting quite a while in the waiting room (I was getting so hungry and queasy!), and she was similarly reassuring. She made comments about how many babies I've had (lots of exclamation, awe, surprise, etc. - all positive, which was nice!), and asked how many more I would have - I don't know! She asked if it was for "religious reasons" and I said yes, though it helps that I've always wanted a lot of children and we really enjoy having them! :)
She said that sometimes a HEAVY bleed earlier in pregnancy can be associated with complications later in the pregnancy, such as a baby that is small for dates, or preterm birth. I said, "Interesting!!" and she gave me a look, so I leaned over and pointed on her notes to the list of my babies' births, and showed her Nathan's, and she said, "Oh, 35 weeks?!" I told her that this bleed was almost identical to the one I had with him only a few days later in gestation (it was heavier actually), and she said that maybe they should monitor me more carefully later in my pregnancy. So interesting! Elijah was small for dates, and I did have a bleed with him at the start of my pregnancy (like this time), but no further or big bleeds. I had bleeding with Benjamin and Arthur too and they were both good and chunky! ;) I'm a bit annoyed at my tendency to bleeeeed like this, actually. :/
Anyway, so it's good news today - the baby is beautiful and perfect and doing well! I was so thrilled to get a glimpse of my tiny one, and felt SO IN LOVE watching him/her! I hope everything continues to be okay... This evening my bleeding has eased up some more, and it's now like a light period. I still need pads, but it's much lighter. I have had some IBS cramping this evening which has been a bit... anxiety-provoking, since it causes me pain in a similar area to the cramping I had yesterday, and the whole bleeding-and-moving-bowels thing is just UNNERVING no matter how experienced you are at it!
They discharged me from the hospital straight off, because they could see that the baby was okay, and the source of bleeding. I have my booking appointment with the midwife next week on Thursday, and then my scan will only be two weeks away after that!! Coming up nice and quickly! :)
Today my morning sickness has been more manageable AGAIN. Still nauseated most of the day, but a new thing has come alongside the milder level of nausea - HUNGER. I am so so so hungry today! Maybe my little one is having a growth spurt?! I had two bowls of cereal before I went to the scan, and less than 2 hours later in the waiting room, I was distractingly hungry, and wishing they could hurry up so I could get home and eat, lol! I got home at 10.45 and ate half a pizza for "lunch" by 11am - my leftovers from yesterday's large pizza! That is a FULL portion for me, that's usually all I can manage. I snacked on bits of fresh coconut if I felt too sick and knew I needed to eat, over the next few hours, and then had to make a cheese spread sandwich with some cherry tomatoes to keep me going. I felt yucky eating, and that particular snack didn't leave a nice aftertaste, but oh well. It kept the nausea level at "bearable" so I could continue doing normal activities, which was good. Neil worked from home today and decided to make a beef and vegetable sort of thing once he finished his work, so that was about 6pm. I was so hungry my stomach hurt and I was distracted from even conversations, from about 5.30pm, and he sweetly made beef, carrots, broccoli, and green beans in a stock, and a pile of boiled potatoes in their skins on the side - oh my goodness, I just was so focused on eating, it was a serious business, lol! I felt queasy but that is all. I ate every tiny piece, and when Neil said he was over-full, I realised that we'd eaten the same amount and I was feeling restless in the kitchen wondering what sort of dessert I could eat! ;) I felt mildly nauseous once I wasn't eating any more, but this is SO much better than a couple of weeks ago, for that time of day! I made the boys a fruit salad while they ate their dinner, and ate a bit of it myself (strawberries, people! I ate half a pack of them last night at 1am with some vanilla ice-cream and it was the most heavenly taste ever!!! Ha! So pregnant of me! :D ). By the time they had finished their fruit salad, I was feeling pretty yucky again, and snuck into the kitchen to eat a big bowlful of Ben and Jerry's strawberry shortcake frozen yoghurt, mmmm! The only thing about frozen yoghurt is that it has the taste, but none of the fillingness or satisfaction, I find.
Bedtime went fine, just mild-moderate nausea which is better than I was used to not so long ago, and if it wasn't for the IBS kicking in, I would have eaten a good amount of something-or-other when I got downstairs! ;) It has settled down now, and I've eaten a bowl of cereal. I weighed myself this morning and I'm still 8 stone 9lbs, which is pretty much exactly what I weighed 4 weeks ago, and exactly what I weighed around the time I took the pregnancy tests, and exactly what I weighed before I conceived, etc. So, no gain, no loss yet. I thought maybe I would lose a bit of weight with morning sickness, but I haven't and that's fine with me. I personally think weight gain is GOOD and NECESSARY if you are pregnant, unless you have a medical condition that means you have to be careful. ALL other pregnant mamas, GAIN YOUR WEIGHT!! Your milk supply will thank you on the other side! ;) There's a lot of new research coming out about the many benefits of gaining enough weight and putting on fat (yes, FAT) - really important for brain development of the baby, and also protection for mother's brains and various chemical changes that we go through postpartum. Fat is important to have as you hit the postpartum stage, we gain it for a good reason, and lose it at variable rates as we recover (again, good reason for it!). Anyway - weight gain in pregnancy is a big soapbox issue for me, which you'll know if you've read my blog for long enough! I'm thankful that in the UK nothing is made of weight gain at all. You are not weighed at all when pregnant, and nobody keeps track of weight gain, or asks about it, suggests you gain more/less, etc. It was phased out long ago as not relevant, unless medically necessary. There is no pressure on women to gain weight, or to try not to gain so much weight - I can't fathom the indignity of this in countries where they make it a big deal!!
Anyway!! Getting off my soapbox! :P
So, I am still very tired, but Lydia did not sleep well at all last night - really out of character for her. She stirred noisily in her sleep or woke up every few minutes for what felt like HOURS (I think it was at least 2 hours), and less often but still a few times an hour, after that. She was just making upset noises and reaching for me, or whimpering in her sleep, or yelling, "NO! Nooooo!" and stuff like that. She NEVER does this. She didn't look in pain or discomfort, so I am wondering if it had to do with the situation that day - me bleeding and she must have known something was up. And Nicola came round while the "something up" was going on - maybe she felt insecure with the general insecurity of her mummy? It didn't help matters that right after she got up for the day today, I left the house and drove off (which of course, I never do!)! She apparently cried and climbed to the window to watch for me, saying, "Mummyyy? Mummyyy?" (as the boys told me!), and when I arrived home and she saw me come in, her expression and the tone of her voice as she said, "MUMMY!!!" was like a million Christmasses for me! :) I hope she sleeps better tonight - her evening sleep has been solid so I'm hopeful! I think (hope) I am giving off a better "vibe" today, being no longer in pain, more confident and normal in my body language and activity level, and having seen my baby at the scan... She's at that age anyway, where she has been acting more clingy lately.
I must go to bed! I meant to take a belly pic, but my camera battery is dead and needs charging. I wore normal jeans to the scan but couldn't even begin to pull the zip up, let alone the button (which was gaping 3 inches!!!) so things are definitely changing! :D I used my desperate measures last resort, and wore a long length top over the jeans, which I fastened with a hair band looped over the button, through the hole, and back over the button. It still felt too tight, but it has done the job today! :) In the evenings I am more bloated than in the mornings, and I have a very definite baby bump in the hour or two leading up to bed time. I am not sure it's legit since it's a time-of-day thing, but I can't do jeans up in the morning either, so that is definitely legit! :) The boys noticed it one evening recently, and were very excited to see my tummy growing! If I lie on my back, my tummy is no longer completely flat. There's a little rise now! :)
I have been having some ligament pains when getting up suddenly or moving with a twist or something. I haven't had a lot of those this pregnancy, so even though it BURNS, it's nice to feel that familiar pain again. :) It also means that things are definitely growing!
I have had some tenderness and flashy pains in my breasts lately, just here and there. I get a few of those for a few days, and then nothing for a while. Breast tenderness has been really mild for me this time so far, and I haven't had ANY episodes yet of pain while breastfeeding, which is better than previous times too. Nursing pain has varied with previous pregnancies, and I will have none at all for ages, and then suddenly it's unbearable to nurse, and then if I make it through that, it's fine again for a while. I am still tandem nursing Elijah and Lydia. Most of my tandem nursing experiences of little ones their ages, have been nursing them one at a time. Elijah and Lydia breastfeed together a LOT. They are little buddies and if Elijah asks to breastfeed and I say yes, he will go to snuggle up ready, and suddenly stop and call, "Lydieee?! Do you want milky?!" and she will come running over, lol! Lydia usually just nurses whenever she wants to, with or without Elijah, but lately I have noticed she has started to snuggle up and then she might pat the other side and said, "Lide-lee?" (this is how she pronounces "Lijey" which is a short version of his name that we use a lot. Today she actually called him over and over until he stopped playing and came to see what she wanted, and joined her! ;) So, they breastfeed in tandem a lot. I have had a few brief occasions where it has felt skin-crawly to do that, but thankfully not for long, and for the most part it's fine. I am sure I will find that I get more occasions like this as my pregnancy progresses though. It's normal, as I prepare for my newest nursling! :)
Oh, I said I was going to bed! I feel a bit sick, but not too bad. I am wondering (beginning to really wonder!) if maybe I might be seeing the actual waning of morning sickness for this pregnancy. I know I am only 10 weeks, and maybe the fact that I've finally put that down in print will mean it bites me in the butt now. :P But it has been almost 2 weeks since it eased up, and it is continuing to very gradually become more manageable, though it is reassuring me by still being very much THERE. We shall see. I am certainly grateful for these last couple of weeks being so much better than I ever could have hoped! :)
I will try to remember to take a picture for the 10 week belly gallery pic (OH! Must start a belly gallery!), and post it soon with a general update on things. Thanks for the comments and well wishes! I really appreciate it!