Ponyo

Today we had our first pregnancy ultrasound (definitely not my first ultrasound, though, given the 2 pelvic ultrasounds and several follicle ultrasounds I've had along this journey). When I arrived I had to give a urine sample (not sure what they are testing with that) and I was told blood labs would be drawn after the ultrasound.

The ultrasound tech was very nice. She asked some routine questions: When was the first day of your last menstrual period? April 7. Did you conceive using fertility drugs? No. Have you had any spotting or bleeding? No. Do you have any concerns? Well, I was supposed to be having surgery for endometriosis tomorrow so we hope everything is where it should be. Then she smiled and said, Oh so we just need to threaten surgery and then you get pregnant, huh? I guess so...

She found the baby right away and we saw the heartbeat immediately. Thankfully everything is inside of my uterus - no concerns about this being an ectopic pregnancy anymore. Then she said they had to measure my cervix, which she didn't tell me anything about. Hopefully it is how it is supposed to be! Then she went back to the baby and measured the heartbeat. It came in on the fast end of normal at 198bpm and then later at 189bpm. I started crying, partially out of happiness and relief and partially out of concern over the fast heartbeat. She said it wasn't anything to worry about; a fast heartbeat is generally better than a slow one and it could just mean that the baby had been moving around. We got to see arm buds and leg buds as well as the yolk sack, the beginning of the umbilical cord and placenta. The baby was upside down and wiggled a few times. That made me laugh. She measured the baby and on first measurement said 8w6d but then measured again at 8w4d (which is right on track).

She also checked my ovaries. My right ovary was easy to find. I asked about the cysts (my chocolate cysts or endometrioma) and she pointed to a dark circle on my right ovary and said that was likely one of them. She had trouble finding my left ovary so I mentioned that at my last follicle ultrasound in January the ultrasound tech said my ovaries were very close together and then she found it, right next to my right ovary. I will be asking if my ovaries being so close together 1. is anything to worry about and 2. could be caused endometrial tissue binding my organs together. I'll have to wait to ask that, though, because my doctor was out delivering a baby during our appointment so we are going back next Wednesday to meet with her and do the blood work that we were supposed to do today. 

Thank you all for your hope, support, and prayers; they mean so much to us! We hope that things continue to go well and that little Ponyo (that is what we named them for now so we don't have to call our little one "the baby, " "it" or "baby") grows healthy and strong. For anyone wondering where Ponyo came from, yes, it is from the movie of that title. Ponyo was a magical goldfish-girl and we know this baby is quite a miracle. Translated to English, Ponyo loosely means soft, squishy, and chubby.