Pregnancy series: Part 4 -- Feeling baby kick!
As I write this blog post, I am sitting in the lobby at a health clinic, about halfway through my three-hour glucose tolerance test. After taking the one-hour test about a week ago, my results came back too close to the cutoff number, and a nurse recommended that I take the extended version of the test. This version consists of four blood draws, one before consuming the glucose beverage and three afterward.
Quite frankly, when I was first informed of my test results, it startled me to think that I might have gestational diabetes. I have been trying to maintain healthy eating habits and get light exercise throughout my pregnancy. The more I read about this particular complication, however, the more it seems that a genetic predisposition and other factors beyond our control contribute substantially to the likelihood of developing gestational diabetes. I know my mom was borderline gestational diabetic when she was pregnant with my brother, and my grandfather is currently fighting diabetes.
Anyway, I thought I would let you know that this has been part of my pregnancy journey, especially since many pregnant women also deal with the threat of this complication.
Fortunately, gestational diabetes is not the topic of my post for you today. Instead, I will be sharing with you the joyful story of feeling my son kick for the first time!
Looking back on it now, the whole experience was both very normal and pretty amazing! The day before our 20-week ultrasound appointment, I went to the mall to get my hair done. I was heading out of town in just a couple days to spend the weekend with a dear friend of mine in Chicago and wanted to get a (much delayed) hair "refresh" out of the way. My stylist was pleasant and fun to chat with, and although I knew that I should be able to feel the baby kick sometime around week 20, I hadn't really been thinking about the reality of it.
My stylist brought me back to the hair washing sinks, and as I reclined in the chair, I felt a curious sensation inside my stomach. It felt almost like someone was lightly kneading bread dough, but in my tummy! It took me off guard, and I must have made a surprised noise, because my hairstylist asked if I was doing okay. I told her that I thought I had just felt my baby kick for the first time! We both marveled at this, and I probably giggled like a weirdo, just thinking about it. My son was growing, and he was now big enough that I could actually feel him move! I definitely floated around on happy clouds for awhile after that.
The next day, my husband Kris and I went to our appointment. We waited expectantly to see our little guy again and to witness how much he had grown since our last visit.
As our sonographer dimmed the lights, we oohed and aahed at the beauty and complexity of our baby. He had fully defined fingers and toes now, we could see his facial features much more clearly, and he moved and fidgeted so much that the nurse assisting us with the ultrasound had to try several times to obtain accurate measurements.
I cannot adequately describe to you the profound joy and excitement we felt, both upon seeing him at that appointment and feeling him move since then. The miracles of pregnancy and birth continue to overwhelm us, and we are so thankful that God has blessed us with this little boy.
Once again, thank you for reading, and I would love to hear your stories! When did you first feel your baby kick, and how did the experience affect you and/or your loved ones? Please feel free to comment below or on the Facebook page for Mama Smith Writes.
Soli Deo Gloria.
- Mama Smith
*A quick update: The remainder of the three-hour glucose test went well! But I would definitely recommend bringing water and a healthy snack with you, should you have to take this test yourself at some point. They were definitely life savers for me!
Stock image from Pexels.com
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