Recently I visited a local university and received a free ultrasound! It was free because the "technicians" were still students. It was thrilling, magical, indescribable! I was on cloud nine the rest of that day, and feeling so in love with this baby!
Bean was very cooperative for the ultrasound, by which I mean he/she stayed very still while the student was trying to capture an image, then would wiggle only when she (the student) was looking for the next shot to take. The professor told me that Bean is very photogenic - "We like it when cute babies come in!" Gosh, someone knows how to butter this Mama up...
Here's an image of Bean's face, at 26 weeks gestation. I flipped the picture so the face is upright, although for the videos (yes, videos!) below, Bean is laying on his/her side. Can you recognize the eyes (the one on the left is in shadow), the little nostrils, the lips and chin?
The videos below are VERY short (3 seconds), but that's because they actually capture short videos for ultrasounds, and then move through the video, frame by frame, and select the shot that best captured the feature they were trying to look at.
Here you can see Bean's face! (Try viewing the video a few times to better "see" the image - Bean's forehead is on the left, chin is on the right - so the baby is laying down on his/her side)
Here's Bean's profile (baby is looking up). You can even see Baby open his/her mouth and swallow! He/she was actually swallowing a lot during the scan - something that is very good to see in little babies!
Just a week and a half later (i.e. earlier this week), I went in for an "official" ultrasound through my doctor. If you will recall, at 20 weeks they noticed I had a "low laying placenta," meaning the placenta was less than 2cm away from the cervix. My doctor wanted me back at 28 weeks (which I am now) to re-check the placenta, hence ANOTHER "sneak peek!"
Again, Bean quieted down and quit squirming for the "photo session." Someone really likes the camera! The placenta is now nice and high, so no c-section will be needed.
Bean at 28 weeks
Once again, Baby showed off his/her swallowing skills. Bean also kept opening his/her mouth and sticking out his/her tongue! So cute, let me tell you.
The technician must have liked us because she tried to capture some 3D images (for no extra cost!). This only works if there is enough fluid between Baby's face and the wall of the womb, which fortunately was the case for us. However, as soon as the technician got the scanner into position, Bean curled his/her hands up by his/her face! Camera-happy at times, shy at others... Anyway, we did get these images:
Do you see the two arms curled up on the right? Then the nose is in the middle, with the eyes and mouth closed. (I don't know why the Baby's side of the face couldn't capture) (Also, let me know if I should point out the features of the face a little better)
Here's the profile 3D shot. Once again, you can see the arms are up, and a faint line down the middle showing where Baby's nose, lips, and chin are.
We are so in love with this baby and can't wait for his/her arrival!! Bean looked VERY content in there (loved seeing that little tongue wag in and out, too), but Mama is getting uncomfortable (and the insomnia is getting worse), and Daddy is itching to snuggle Bean! :) Oh, and big-sister Madeline uses her new toy stethoscope to "check" Mommy's tummy. She tells me, "There's a baby in there! Thump thump! Thump thump!" Of course, she likes to listen to Daddy's tummy, too, but doesn't claim he's with-child as well.
We're into the third trimester now, just 9-11.5 weeks or so to go! But who's counting, right?
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