Today was the big day, the day which we were allowed to get excited, the day where we found out what we were "getting." Three weeks ago I didn't think that my heart was going to be able to make it three whole weeks without exploding. For three weeks I had to be open minded to the possibility of either a girl or a boy, and in the last couple of days of the last three weeks I lost my gut feeling telling me that there was a little boy in my tummy. But today...today God answered my prayers, today proved my gut right, and today I felt a joy like I didn't believe was possible. My Bean Sprout, my former "it," is a HE!!!
WE'RE HAVING A BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hip Hip Hooray!!!!! Dave and I are both beyond excited, and can't wait to meet Mr. Bean Sprout.
The stars were aligned this weekend and it worked out perfectly that it was a holiday weekend. I was able to get some nice relaxation and rest in without having a ton of plans or obligations. I am not one to normally stress, but I need "down time" to be my normal stress-less self. I wasn't necessarily stressing over the gender of our baby, more just stressing over not knowing. Our weekend was full of good timing events. For instance, Saturday we napped until 8:30 and got up ready for dinner. I woke up thinking about going to Ghengis Grill which Dave doesn't really like, but agreed to. It was cold inside, so I wanted to sit outside and a little after our food came out fireworks went off and we had a perfect view from our table. That worked out great. We walked around downtown after we ate and then as soon as we got home, it rained like crazy. The nice weekend led to the niceness of today.
My appointment was at 2:30 and if I wouldn't have had to work today, I may have just showed up at the doctor's office as soon as they opened. As soon as Dr. Brody put the wand to my belly, Bean Sprout was in position to tell us that he is all boy. Today he wasn't nearly as squirmy as usual and (obviously) we saw more than we had seen in the other ultrasounds. We saw the chambers of the heart beating, individual fingers, the skull, and the boy parts. Dr. Brody said that he is 99% sure that he's a he, so I take that as enough to get super duper excited. I had a blood work taken to test for the risk of spina bifida and Downs Syndrome and we'll know if there is an increase risk of either in a week. More than I wanted a little boy, I want a healthy little baby. Hopefully he will be really healthy and really happy. 
(Click on the picture to enlarge)
Now that we have obtained the exciting news I will no longer live doctor's visit to doctor's visit. This should help time slow down. I cannot believe that we are already 4 months into this. It seems like just yesterday I was peeing on a stick. I want be able to enjoy this last Summer of just Dave and I (and the dogs). Although I am looking forward to having little Bean Sprout in the house (instead of in my tummy), I know that we'll be losing a freedom that we now have. Can't wait to see what the Summer has in store for us.
Today after our appointment we went to Target to do a little registering for Bean Sprout. Mainly I wanted to register so I could take some (more) time to look at all the cute baby things, and more specifically, only look at the little boy stuff. I was in cuteness overload, so I bought him his first little onesie thing.
That's Bean Sprout's bassinet filled with all of his stuff so far. It's an exciting thought to think of him playing with his stuffed animals, or reading his books, or sleeping in that bassinet. This will soon be much more than just a thought...
I hope everyone had a very happy Mothers' Day. Our weekend was filled with fun and family. Saturday we went up to Dave's grandparents' for his Grandpa's 80th birthday. Thankfully the rain avoided us all day, although it was a little on the chilly side. The food was beyond tasty (as always); we had a cajun boil with shrimp, sausage, mussels, potatoes, carrots.....I have to stop--I am getting hungry just typing that. Sometimes I joke that I married Dave for his family's cooking, and sometimes I wonder how much of a joke that actually is. The family is growing and growing, every time we go up there it seems like we meet a new cousin (normally babies). It's nice knowing that our bean sprout won't have a shortage of playmates. The girl cousins out number the boys so I really really hope we are able to help the ratio. While we were there I realized that I cannot remember the last time that I held an infant, let alone a newborn. I don't even recall holding my niece when she was really little. OH NO! I am more unexperienced than I realized. I expressed my fear to my sister-in-law, Jo Ann, of how I am terrified of dropping little bean sprout. She says that I'll be fine, but I am not sure I believe her. Maybe I should find a place where newborns hang out and practice. Where might a place like this be? Hopefully my instincts will kick in when I need them to.
CORRECTION: I have been corrected. Jo Ann sent me a picture of me holding my niece, Katie, at 1 month old. And she didn't remind me that I dropped her or anything. Maybe I can do this!!!
Sunday was lots of fun too. My mom and my little brother came over and spent the afternoon. I like cooking for my mom since she doesn't cook (sorry I'm telling on you), so I think it's nice to provide a nice home cooked meal for her (and myself). Normally Dave helps me cook but I ended up doing this whole meal on my own. I baked salmon in lime and butter, made couscous with tomatoes, zucchini, feta cheese, and green onions, and made some tasty cole slaw with lime. I found a recipe online but made my own alterations too. Culinary comfort is something that I am slowly acquiring, but it's a skill I can't wait to master. I was a little proud of myself for creating such a tasty and attractive meal. Before and after we ate we all played Pictionary Man, which I really enjoy. I consider myself semi-creative but I think I stole any artistic genes that my brother may have had any chance at. He's a lot of fun to watch.
Even though we didn't have much time to slow down this weekend, I had the most fabulous time. With Bean Sprout on the way, family is taking on a whole new and bigger meaning for me. I am so thankful that we have loving and super supportive families. It's making this process much more comfortable and super exciting.
Speaking of Bean Sprout, I am dying to know what he or she really is. I am really trying my best to not get excited about it, but how in the world am I not supposed to?!? Maybe if Dr. Brody would have said that our odds of a boy were 50% (instead of 80%) then I wouldn't have been inclined to freak out on the inside. Boy clothes are looking cuter and cuter and I am doing everything I can to not get just one outfit or toy or socks. I have to tell myself that I only have 2 weeks--only 14 days until we really know, but it seems like so far away. tick tock, tick tock. I am still not having much luck in the name department. I am pretty sure that I have a first name in mind, but can't find a middle name that sticks. (And I am getting a little exhausted of names) For some reason I feel like I need to have a name picked out by my next appointment. It's the only thing I feel rushed for, but I don't know why.
Bloggy stuff:
I have been playing around with the settings on my little blog and I made a change where ANYONE can comment. You don't have to have a blog or google account, you'll just show up anonymous if you don't. So feel free to tell me ANYTHING, this is my source for getting advice and whatnot, so I want to know what you have to say.
I also made a widget of my favorite etsy stuff. If you're not familiar with etsy, it's awesome. It's a site of handmade items that are sold by the artist/crafter. You can find everything on there, and I like knowing that I am supporting the art or craft. A lot of the sellers on there are stay-at-home moms (and inspirations to me). Maybe soon I'll get some of my creations back on there.
Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone! Dave and I celebrated at Dr. Brody's office with a somewhat exciting ultrasound. Dr. Brody had mentioned that there would be a slight possibility of determining the sex today, but we tried our best to not get our hopes up. Besides the fact that I could barely sleep last night or the fact that I have been searching like a mad woman to figure out a name in the chance of a little boy, I have remained absolutely calm about today's visit ;) So, here's a recap of today's events:Dr. Brody comes in and starts the ultrasound and reminds me of the chance of finding the sex. I assure him that I am more than ready to find this information out. We saw Bean Sprout flipping and squirming around like crazy, and both Dave and I saw something that appeared rather...um, boyish. Well Dr. Brody asks me if I have a feeling of what it was, and yes I have had a feeling that there's a little boy inside of me. (This could be the result of many a' days of wishful thinking, or the result of the extra testosterone production) I tell him that I am guessing that it’s a little boy and he says, “Guess again.” What?! Has my gut (and eyes) lied to me? I responded by asking him how he knew this, and he gave me a rundown of his medical training. Then, just a few seconds later, after bouncing the magic ultrasound wand thing on my belly, he tells us that he sees “boy parts.” If I wasn’t covered in jelly and lying down, I would have been dancing. He also tells us not to get too excited and not to buy anything yet, that it could still go either way and that at my next visit in 3 weeks we could tell for certain. Dave asked him the probability of Bean Sprout being a boy, and Dr. Brody said 80%!!! Those odds look good! (By the way, I’m not excited.)I am just 13 weeks along and I haven’t heard of anyone finding out this early, so it’s nice to at least have a good guess. I finally got to see the pictures of my cyst. Wow, I am glad that it is no longer hanging out on my ovary. Dr. Brody said that it was twice the size of my uterus, larger than he had expected going into the surgery. I should ask for a copy of the pictures to hang in the nursery. That was it for today’s visit and we’re anxiously waiting May 26th for the next one. We don’t want to rush the pregnancy along, but it’s so hard to patiently wait for this sort of life changing information. In the mean time we’ll be working on what to name Bean Sprout if he does indeed have “boy parts.”
I am working on another fun post for tonight...get ready!
This past Sunday marked 12 weeks, so I just have 28 more weeks to go. Woohoo! I think I have felt better since Sunday, although it could just be a mind over matter thing. Or it could be that I am done with my finals and so close to being finished with this semester. I haven't felt nearly as tired, but last night i couldn't sleep. Sleepytime tea didn't even help. I ended up finally going to bed around 4:30, but I did get my fix of middle of the night infomercials.
I am really hoping for a pleasant 2nd trimester, it sure would be a nice relief. But more than that I hope that we have a healthy happy baby. The past week I have really been worrying about the bean sprout. After my initial doctor's visit I felt fine about the health of the baby and had planned on being extra careful during the crucial 1st trimester. Then came the surgery. At first I felt good about having the surgery, since we were removing something that shouldn't have been inside of me, and especially next to the baby. But all the medication is what is worrying me. The anastetics during the surgery, the strong pain meds in recovery, the take home pain meds, and the hormones that I am taking for 2 weeks. I trust my doctor, but I know that there are risks involved with everything and that worries me.
I am going to celebrate this Cinco de Mayo with an ultrasound. I get so antsy to go back to the doctor (at least for my scheduled appointments), and I really can't wait for this one. Dr. Brody had mentioned the possibility of determining the gender of bean sprout. I also can't wait to hear his or her heart beat again. Speaking of gender, I believe we have chosen the girl name. At first I wasn't going to tell the names that we picked out and surprise our family and friends at the birth, and then I remembered that I can't keep exciting info in for very long. Drum roll, please.......Harper Magnolia. There is a rather long story as to why I chose Magnolia that I may blog about one day, but basically it is after my Nana. My Nana is very very important to me as she taught me and influenced me more so than anyone ever has. Okay, so for the life of me and Dave we cannot pick out a little boy name for bean sprout. I have came across names that I like but not that I love, hmm....maybe I'll think of something soon.
Yesterday I was searching through the names on the babycenter.com and was blown away by some of the names that I found on there. Now I have looked at several unique names lists, but have yet to see what I saw on baby center. I want to warn you that I will not be naming my child any of these, and felt like these were so outrageous that they deserved mention on my blog. I was looking for mainly boy names but saw a couple of crazy girl names to.
So here goes:
Crazy boy names
fu (really?? Fu Jeffers)
firstborn (this is fitting for us, but no)
fish
froggy
fuzzy (this also could be fitting)
faggot (Seriously, why would someone do this to their child??)
food (I do love food)
Crazy girl names
fakhr (I am not sure if I am saying this one correctly)
hypothetical
haha (this is scrapping the bottom of the barrel)
These were just a few of crazy ones that I saw, and now I want to know where the babycenter.com gets these names from.
Time to get cracking on finishing my papers for my Scientific Writing class, as of this Thursday I will be completely finished with school for a little while. And, I'll have more time to concentrate on getting ready to meet the bean sprout and more time for blogging.
Since I am a wonderful procrastinator when it comes to homework, I am going to make one more post for today and then start working on my long list of things that should be done before tomorrow.
I believe that one of my pregnancy symptoms has being increasing impatience, at least when it comes to figuring out the sex of our baby. Let me go ahead and mention that I have not yet even gone to my first OB visit, no blood work has been taken, no ultrasounds ran, or anything. I have peed on two sticks and quickly both said "pregnant." For about 9 days straight I had terrible morning sickness (that I went to the doctor for and was diagnosed with the stomach virus--more about this later) and after I thought I was in the clear with no more morning blues, I started to feel like I haven't slept in months. Something is obviously going on.
My first doctor's visit is on April 22, by this time I am assuming that I will be around 10-11 weeks. I don't have much to base this off of, but I feel like this may be a little late to see the doctor. A lot can happen in 11 weeks, based on the web info I have been reading, my baby should have already started to develop muscles and fingernails. I just think that I should have a "do" and "do not do" list.
I have already said that I am clueless about babies, well...intimidated is a better description. And then intimidated is an understatement as to how I feel about raising a little girl. I grew up as a little tomboy, expect for the random dancing and modeling--my mother's ideas. Now I feel more drawn to boyish things; like when we're shopping for toys for our nieces, I always end up playing with the boy toys and wanting to get them dinosaurs and tool belts. It's not just toys, boys just seem a little easier in several regards (at least for me).
Dave and I are on the same page as to what gender we are hoping this baby to be. We don't like saying it out loud, thinking we're lowering our chances of that possibility. I had heard about the old wives' tale that says that you're going to have your babies in the same order that your mother had her babies. My mother's mother had a girl first, and then my mother had me first, and this was true for just about everyone I could think of. This made me a little paranoid. To my rescue, Dave's friend Krystal called yesterday, and she told him about the gender test of hanging a needle from a thread tied to a pencil over the mom-to-be's hand. If the needle swings back and forth, it's a boy, and if the needles swings in a circular motion, it's a girl. She said this was true for both of her pregnancies. We tried this as soon as we got home. This test worked in my favor. YAY!
disclaimer: Although I am clueless, I wouldn't consider myself stupid. I do know these tests were just for fun, and I will love this baby equally, whether girl or boy, or anything in between.
Since finding out about my pregnancy, I have been browsing the internet to find what it takes to take care of a child. I know it needs a place to sleep, some blankets and bibs, bottles, diapers, clothes, milk, and love, but what about the other stuff? I have found a world of neat things that I never knew existed. Some of these things I realize wouldn't be as useful as they claim, and some I am not so sure what to think. One of these things is a baby sling. I like the idea of this, it looks useful and less cumbersome than hauling a stroller around for short trips out into the world. This one from RaspberryBaby on Etsy has caught my attention. It appears to be holding that toddler just fine and it says that it easily fits into a diaper bag when not in use. Does anyone have experience with one of these? I haven't ever seen one of these in use and that makes me wonder if they are as practical as they appear.
FYI: I love Etsy and love buying handmade.
(Click on the picture to enlarge)
That's Bean Sprout's bassinet filled with all of his stuff so far. It's an exciting thought to think of him playing with his stuffed animals, or reading his books, or sleeping in that bassinet. This will soon be much more than just a thought...
