The Sara Study

Through our friends Lindsey and Drew Holbert, we found out about a study at UAMS called the Sara Study. This study is for pregnant moms who are around 30 weeks pregnant. UAMS received grant money for this study in 1998 to assess the neurological development of the fetus. Most neurological damage occurs to the fetus prior to the onset of labor. This study is voluntary and completely free. One bonus to the study is that you get free 4-D ultrasounds at every appointment. They want you to come every 2 weeks until the baby is born and then once after the baby is born (before 3 weeks of age). Hunter and I decided we wanted to participate in the study and had our first appointment on July 6th. We did the 4-D ultrasound first, which was amazing! Baby Weston was wide awake and sucking on his fingers, his toes, yawning, stretching, and moving his mouth all around. We were all laughing at him. We tried to get some good pictures of his face when he wasn't moving or sucking...so it was rather difficult...but we got a few keepers. He weighed approximately 4 lbs 8 oz. at our 32 week visit. Here are some pics of our sweet baby boy:

This next picture makes it look like he has Elvis hair...but it's not hair. He was smashed up against the wall of my uterus, so i'm not sure what that is. I asked her if she thought he had hair, and she said she saw maybe a little on the back of his head, but I doubt much. Hunter and I were both baldies, so we think he may be too...

After the ultrasound, they had me go into a room that looked like I was entering a space shuttle. I had to sit on this stool and lean forward onto another chair that had a cutout perfectly for a pregnant belly, laying my head down on a pillow. I had wires and things strapped around my waist, touching my belly. The lady shut the door behind me, which really felt like one of those doors they close for an airplane. I was all locked in...She could speak to me through a microphone and had a camera to watch me. Unfortunately, I didn't get to participate in the study because they were detecting metal that was interfering with the machine. Come to find out that metal was coming from my mouth...yes, I have several metal fillings from when I was a kid. She said this happens occasionally and we wouldn't be able to continue the study. Oops! I felt bad...but I got my 4-D ultrasound, so I was still pleased. We made another appointment to try again on July 16th, which is Monday. We will get to do the 4-d ultrasounds again, and I can't wait to see my sweet baby! Hopefully, I will get to participate in the study this time! If it doesn't work, this will be my last appointment. Hoping for better results this next week! -Carrie