Genes are strange...

Today we drove down to Springfield for some genetic tests on little Sprout. They don’t do the tests here in Corvallis, so our choice was OHSU, or Riverbend, so we chose Riverbend, since it was closer, and it’s a nice facility. My neurologist is there, as is my dad’s cardiac surgeon. It is a pretty campus, and the people there are always great to work with.

We first met with a woman named Kathryn. She was our genetic counselor. The first thing she questioned was the due date of the 15^th of October. She put it more at the 9^th of October instead. She then discussed a bunch of stats with us, and also a bunch of different things that could happen with Sprout. It was very clear and she explained things to us in a way that made sense, but also didn’t make us feel stupid. She discussed the chances of Sprout having Downs, Cystic Fibrosis, and Spinal Bifida. She also talked about some other things if those things might have been hinted at, given the results of our tests from today.

Kathryn was also very inclusive of me, which was fantastic. She had me involved in the conversation, and asked a lot of questions of both of our backgrounds, even though mine doesn’t have much to do with Sprout. She also asked a lot about our donor. He came from OHSU, as did her donor. She and her partner did a lot of what Shannon and I are doing now, with the donor from OHSU and she gave us some advice on keeping the number, for Sprout, for later in life, if s/he meets someone. The number could become important, which is something we have already considered. She was appalled that some of her friends don’t still have their donor numbers. Actually, I am too! What are they thinking??

After our counseling session, we went back to the waiting room and waited for the next thing on the list: our ultrasound! We went in the room and the tech found our little one. Right as she did, little Sprout started kicking and wiggling and seemed to get angry and flipped over to the side so we could see the spine. It was kind of funny. We have a shy little sprout in there. Every time the tech tried to move around to see a different area of Sprout, the little legs would start kicking and arms would start flailing, and the whole body would wiggle around. We have a little wiggler!

It was SO much different from the last time we saw Sprout! There’s a baby in there now! Little Sprout looks like a little baby, instead of a little bean. It was so amazing. S/he has a big brain, a perfect spinal cord, ribs, cute little hands and finger buds, a little booty, little legs and feet, so cute. I could have watched that little sprout all day long. The heart rate was at 162 beats per minute. All signs are pointing to a healthy little one and at 13 weeks development. We still don’t know gender yet, but maybe next time.

The doctor came in soon after the tech left and congratulated us first thing. He was super cute and very peppy. He found little Sprout, too, and again, Sprout flipped over and away from the pressure of the ultrasound. She started moving and wiggling. He pointed out things again, and pointed out the little “feetsies” and the spine and the heart. He was almost more excited about it than we were! It is so fun when the doctors are like that. He gave us an A+ for the day, so that is a good sign. All the measurements for Sprout were good, and things look great so far.

The last step was to get some blood drawn from Shannon. That took about three seconds, and then we were off back to Corvallis, with four new pictures of our little one, and a new feeling of “this is so real”. It is more and more real every time we go for a doctor’s appointment. Seeing Sprout moving makes it even more real. It’s amazing. Sprout is amazing. Shannon is amazing.

Speaking of genes, one strange thing happened today, that really doesn’t have anything to do with babies. We were walking from the parking garage sky bridge, and came out into the area where they have a little café. I kind of glanced around and saw an older gentleman sitting there in a chair, sipping a cup of coffee. He was wearing a beat up leather jacket, and an old trucker style hat. I looked to the hall we were heading down, and then I turned back to look at this guy and said “Oh my God” just as Shannon was going to say “that guy looks like your Poppa”. It was frightening how much he resembled my Poppa Reed.

There have been some strange things occurring in relation to Poppa Reed. We got inseminated close to the anniversary when he passed away. The night before we went in, I talked to him, and asked him for help. Our due date got changed, so the exact date between the two we were given for our due dates is when his birthday was.  It is very strange.  I have a feeling he has been helping us out a bit with our little Sprout, and I can’t be more thankful for that or for him.