Amy steered her car through Pasadena, heading towards the doctor's office for her first appointment. Noticing Sheldon was picking at a spot on his pants leg, she reached over and placed her hand on top of his, causing him to stop. "Hey, what are you nervous about?"

"What?" Sheldon was pulled back to reality and realized what he had been doing since they got in the car at the university. "I've never done this before. I don't know what to expect. I've never been to a doctor's appointment with you."

"They're just going to go over my history, ask when my last cycle was and what my pregnancy with Max was like. That sort of stuff. They might try to do an ultrasound, but they might not, it depends on how far along they estimate I am," Amy explained, trying to calm his nerves.

Sheldon quickly turned his head to look at his wife. "What do you mean by estimate? We've only done it twice recently. That's got to make their job a lot easier to know when we conceived."

Smiling, Amy agreed with him. "We'll tell them the two times we did it. I think it's the night of the Nobel ceremony, but they'll check and figure that out for sure." Parking the car, she continued, "You can ask the doctor whatever questions you might have, but also remember that I've been through this before. You can ask me anything at any time."


The couple sat in the exam room, talking quietly to one another when they were interrupted by the doctor entering the room. "Hello," he remarked while looking through Amy's file. "I see here that you had a positive pregnancy test last Wednesday and you are here for your first prenatal exam? I'll start by doing an ultrasound, see if we can get a picture of your baby and hear the heartbeat. It might still be too early to hear it, so don't worry, we can try again at your next appointment. Before I start, when was your last cycle?"

"I don't remember the exact date, but I know it was around Thanksgiving. The past few months have been crazy for us; we just won the Nobel Prize for physics, and the days have all kind of blurred together. Sheldon and I have only been intimate twice since then. There was the night of the Nobel ceremony on December 10th, and my birthday, December 17th," shared Amy.

The doctor looked at the calendar on the wall, flipping back a few pages. "Okay, that puts you at six or seven weeks. Now, if you lie back and slide down to the end of the table, we'll try to get a look at what's going on." Amy held onto the paper sheet covering her lap as she followed the doctor's instructions and placed her legs in the stirrups.

Sheldon's eyes grew wide as he watched the doctor apply the ultrasound wand and adjust the monitor so they could see. "Is that our baby?" he asked, grasping tightly onto Amy's hand.

"It is," the doctor nodded as he repositioned to get a better look. "And it looks like you're closer to seven weeks, which puts your conception date on December 10th. I'll calculate your due date in a few minutes." He adjusted a dial on the machine a fast-whirring sound filled the room. "And that is your baby's heartbeat. Strong and fast, just what we want to hear. Everything looks good for where you're at right now. I'll print a few pictures for you & give you a minute to get dressed, then we'll talk about any concerns."

Amy quickly got dressed while Sheldon stared at the ultrasound photo in his hand, only looking up from it when the doctor returned and sat on the stool across from the couple. "Okay, Amy. This is your second pregnancy, correct? Any complications with your first pregnancy?"

"Yes, our son is almost twelve. I didn't have any complications throughout the pregnancy, but my labor and delivery is another story. I went into labor about a week before my due date and was in labor for over twenty hours before they had to do a C-section because Max's heart rate was dropping with each contraction. He ended up in the NICU for four days after he was born because he'd aspirated fluid into his lungs and they wanted to make sure everything was clear before he could come home," Amy shared. "He's healthy now, though, no lasting side effects."

Sheldon's jaw dropped, "You never told me that. You've never said much about your pregnancy with Max."

"Sheldon wasn't around for your first pregnancy?" The doctor looked back and forth between the two.

Shaking her head, Amy explained, "I used a sperm bank to get pregnant with Max. I didn't meet Sheldon until Max was two."

"Sorry, you referred to him as both of your son and I assumed. I'm sorry about that. Since you're forty, there are a few things to keep an eye on. You are at higher risk for complications such as miscarriage, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and low birth weight. You're generally healthy, so I'm not too concerned about any of those things, but we'll monitor you a little more closely than you were during your first pregnancy. It's your decision, but I do recommend getting an amniocentesis to check for any genetic abnormalities." The doctor reached for a pamphlet on the desk and passed it to Amy.

Overwhelmed by the information being given, Sheldon's voice was shaky. "Miscarriage? Like we could lose the baby?"

The doctor nodded, "Yes. The greatest risk for that happening is during the first trimester, or until Amy is twelve to thirteen weeks along. I know this is a lot of information and it sounds scary, but I will do everything I can to keep both Amy and the baby healthy until September second, which is your due date."

"Is there anything we should be doing right now? You know, to keep Amy and the baby healthy?" Sheldon hesitantly inquired.

"No alcohol or sushi, plenty of water, and healthy foods. There's no need to completely cut out sweets, but in moderation. Also, Amy, you should start taking prenatal vitamins. I can either write you a prescription for some or you can pick some up at any pharmacy," the doctor explained. "The big thing is to try to relax; that goes for both of you. Enjoy this time."

Amy noticed Sheldon was not looking like he would be relaxing anytime soon. "Thank you. We can call if we have questions before my next appointment, right?"

"Absolutely. For the record, Sheldon, a lot of first-time fathers feel the way you're feeling at the moment. If you have any friends who have been through this recently, try talking to them. I'm sure that will help calm some of your nerves to see you're not alone. I'll see you next month," the doctor commented as he exited the room.