Non invasive prenatal testing is a safe way to get important information about your pregnancy and offers the peace of mind every new parent needs.

I’ll never forget finding out I was pregnant with my 1st baby in January of 2004. Those 2 lines changed everything for me. I had wanted to see 2 lines for SO LONG and they were FINALLY there!! I honestly thought I imagined them at first!! I kept saying to my husband, “You see them, right?”

I was beyond excited.
I was completely nervous.
I was scared.
I was giddy.
I was – truly – every emotion.

The very, very first thing I did (my husband was with me when I tested) was call my mother and father. I wanted them to know immediately… and for me, I wanted some extra positive love and prayers in the universe for me and my baby-to-be.

As I’ve talked to more and more people throughout the years, it seems that most women have that “safe” person that go-to immediately (besides their partner). You know that “safe” person… the one that won’t share your news with anyone and the one you can be totally honest and open with.

For me, that was my parents, especially my mom. And then… for me, the next thing I did was call my OB/GYN doctor to make an appointment. I’m someone who really likes my hand held throughout pregnancy, so for me – this was key. I wanted to make sure I got an appointment as early as I could.

Related Article: Five Things That Surprised Me About Pregnancy

The 1st trimester is a roller coaster of a ride… many women experience morning sickness, many women are nervous, many women are keeping this beautiful secret to themselves… it’s just a fabulous and crazy time because you can’t see that you’re pregnant from the outside, but you surely know it from the inside! There’s emotions and feelings and anticipations about everything.

I’m honored to have partnered with Panorama Prenatal Testing by Natera this year in being able to give moms-to-be and moms who are looking to get pregnant advice and tips about pregnancy. I’ve had 5 babies, so I do feel that I can speak to this subject on a very personal and passionate level.

It’s something I just love talking to other women about because it’s such a happy time and it’s such a bonding time for women. Natera shared with me 5 GREAT tips for 1st Trimester Pregnancy and I agree with everything single piece of advice. You’re Pregnant… but NOW WHAT??? You know. You’ve told your partner. You have maybe averaged your due date. But NOW WHAT?

Here are 5 amazing tips to think about (and do) during your 1st 12 Trimester…

Also, one of the most incredible and amazing things for me know about now is the Panorama Non Invasive Prenatal Testing by Natera. You can find out important information about your pregnancy as early as 9 WEEKS with Panorama Prenatal Testing. I never had this available for any of my pregnancies and I SO WISH I had. Panorama is a DNA screening test that can tell parents important information about their pregnancy.

You can find out if your baby is at risk for having Down syndrome or other chromosomal abnormalities. Panorama can also tell you the gender of their baby as early as 9 weeks. Non-invasive and highly accurate, Panorama has the lowest false positive rate of any prenatal screening test for the commonly screened chromosomal abnormalities, trisomies 21, 18 and 13. Imagine knowing all this as early as nine weeks into pregnancy using a simple blood draw.

I absolutely love this option during your first trimester. You will know so much about your baby – at 9 weeks, it’s simply amazing. Modern technology changes everything.

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.