Baby Week 16 - Fluttering, maybe??
July 25, 2008
16 Week Fetus
I always assumed that with my second pregnancy I would be able to feel movement earlier, and I would recognize it as soon as it started. As with most assumptions, I was wrong. I remember what it felt like to have Xander bouncing around in there, but it’s hard to recall specifically what that initial movement felt like. Additionally, it’s so easy to convince myself that it was just a belly gurgle or gas or some other bodily process going on in there, and not actual fetal movement.
This past Sunday I was riding around on some pretty bumpy unpaved roads up on a mountain (that’s another story all together). I was pretty convinced that I could feel this little baby wiggling around as we rode. But, I didn’t feel much movement after that - not for a few days. Every once in a while I’ll think “maybe?” but then I’m not sure. This morning again, I thought I felt some wiggling, but it’s so faint that it’s hard to say definitively one way or another.
I’m not worried about not feeling movement yet - with Xander it was 19 weeks, and with some women it’s even later than that. They say that with your second (and later pregnancies) you feel movement sooner, partially because you know what to expect. Maybe I am feeling movement sooner, but it’s so easy to say “nah, that was something else” that I’m still not sure. I guess I’m waiting for a single definitive boot to the bladder to let me know that he or she is moving around in there.
Speaking of he or she - we have our ultrasound scheduled for August 7th at 8am. We are hoping that this child will be more cooperative than Xander was at telling us the gender prior to birth. Please keep your fingers crossed for us - this could be a huge help in the name negotiation game!
i just hit 19 weeks yesterday (first baby!) and i’ve gotten to where i’m pretty sure i’ve gotten that kick feeling identified, but they’re still so soft it’s hard to know. But yeah, around week 15/16 I was laying in bed on a lazy morning and felt this weird sensation on my right side, kind of like when a muscle near your eye twitches and spasms and flutters. It was a few days before I felt it again, and now it feels different than that - the same sort of frequency but harder.
BTW, love your site! I found it last week I think and went through all your pregnancy posts with Xander from about week 17/18 on, and then into about 24 weeks with baby Xander before I tore myself away.
Keep it up, it’s so helpful!
Hi Sara, good luck with your U/S on the 7th August.
I’ll be 32 weeks on Monday, this is child no# 2. They’ve told us it’s a girl and we have been showered with pink gifts, the likes of which I’ve never seen, but now I’m having scary thoughts of delivering a boy and having no boys stuff, what have I got myself into? Oh well, what will be will be : )
Hi Kirsten - congratulations on the pregnancy! I’m glad you’re enjoying the site and finding it useful
I definitely agree that it was tough to pick out those first few kicks/flutters for a week or so, but then I felt some more definite movement, and now I’m feeling it pretty regularly, though not with any predictability - I couldn’t tell you that the baby will definitely start dancing a jig at 10pm, but I know that he or she won’t let me forget that they are alive and kicking in there!
Hi Lisa - congrats on baby #2! Is your first child a boy or a girl? I was surprised to learn that in most U/S’s they can actually identify female organs, and not just a lack of a penis, which is much more reassuring that their predictions are somewhat accurate. On the other hand, you can always just save stuff in boxes and keep tags on until the little one arrives if you’re nervous and then go on a crazy returning/shopping spree (though if you’re anything like me, you’d want to have all that stuff unpacked, washed and ready to go before the baby arrives. Good luck, and hopefully the prediction of girl is correct for you