A Milestone

*smiles*

Hubby felt the baby kicking from the outside for the first time last night (at 20w5d).

I've been feeling him from the outside for the last two weeks, but it hasn't been strong enough for hubby to pick up on. Sure enough last night he felt three swift kicks and his eyes lit up.

"Is that the baby?" he asked.

Yes Matt, yes it was. :)

Ultrasound Says...

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We will soon be buying more clothes that look like this:

Yes, baby is very much a little BOY!

(measuring right on schedule, everything is exactly where it should be)

So how does it feel to know that this baby is in fact a little man? Surprising, and yet wonderful at the same time! I have been feeling definite girl vibes for most of this pregnancy and went as far as to call myself 75% certain. There you go... that goes to show that the universe likes to save the best surprises for the most important of times.

Laying there on the bed while the ultrasound technician (the same woman who did our 13-week scan) waved her wand on me, manatee squirmed and wriggled, barely giving us all two minutes before he decided to change position and show us his goods. Previously, legs were crossed and I joked to hubby that it would figure, we wouldn’t get to find out the gender today and the technician said “oh, I already know what it is, do you want to know?”. Umm, yes please! She repositioned the wand and zoomed on in, and asked hubby and I what we thought we were looking at. Not three lines, but a something.

“Is that a boy?”, I kind-of-squeaked (wondering if she’d laugh at me if I was wrong).

“Yes, it’s very much a boy”, she responds.

Hubby and I squeeze hands, grin and while she takes pictures and continues the scan the tears stream down the outsides of my eyes. Happy tears, and the realisation that we were going to be parents to a manatee boy.

Yes, it figures that we had all but agreed on a girl’s name and hadn’t yet settled on a name for a boy (we decided not to push it anymore and come the 20-week scan, we might not need to have that conversation anymore!).

After the technician confirmed our realisations, hubby laughed and replied “that’d figure!”.

So now starts the journey of suitable names for little boys, names that will carry on through to adulthood painlessly. The list of ‘I hate it’s is lengthening, but the list of ‘I don’t hate it, but...’ is growing. Perhaps we’ll see eye to eye soon, or maybe when our little boy is born we’ll know the perfect name? Either way we won’t be sharing any names online before the birth!

Post-ultrasound, we emerged with an envelope of highly-prized pictures, DVD and big grins on our faces. It was a relief to also discover that the baby’s head isn’t overly huge (even though he currently weighs in at 380g or 13oz, which sets us on track for an 8lb+ birth at full-term), which was the case with my brother who required a forceps delivery during his birth. Dissimilarly, I practically slid out at a tiny 6lb 13oz (at 38 weeks; whereas hubby was born at 42 weeks and weighed over 9lb, if I remember correctly).

He. I have to get used to saying that. I’ve been so used to saying ‘it’ that there’s that adjustment period.

Now the fun of buying little jeans, overalls, t-shirts, rompers and shirts begins. And we couldn’t be happier. :)

20 Week Belly

In less than 24 hours we'll hopefully find out if we have a son or a daughter growing in my tummy. :)

19 Weeks x 2

My mind is a-swirl with things to come in the months ahead - planning this baby's room, putting away old furniture, building up our cloth nappy (diaper) stash. Hubby and I went to Mothercare yesterday and left without actually buying anything (!!). Actually, what was supposed to be a quick look at cots (which we'll be purchasing and setting up after Christmas) turned into ooh-ing and ahh-ing over soft blankets and co-ordinating nursery bedding, analysing prams and carseats, and envisioning the little one in little jeans, t-shirts or dresses. It was the first time either of us had looked at things specifically for baby together, so that was a milestone within itself.

We've decided to forgo the traditional pink or blue-toned rooms and are looking at light wood and shades of yellow, green and white (even though we hope to know whether the baby is a boy or a girl). We found the perfect nursery set which brings together all of these colours, and has cute baby insects with happy smiling faces. This will be perfect (in fact I had to restrain myself not to buy it right there and then - I know we have many eager family and friends who are itching to buy us gifts for baby; it'll be nice to be able to point them in a certain direction now!).



(this is what the quilt looks like...isn't it cute?)



After a few goes, both hubby and I have been improving with using the doppler. Baby's heartbeat tends to measure between 135-145bpm (which the old wives tales say could point to a boy ;P), nice and strong. This has definitely put my mind at ease after the fall I had a couple of weeks ago (my knees with their new pink skin still tell the tale!).

Two days until I'm 20 weeks (!!) and 4 days until the big ultrasound. It's set to be an exciting week. :)

Bump at 19 weeks.

19 Weeks

I am 19 weeks pregnnat today, one week shy of being (give or take) midway through this journey with the soon-to-be-not-so-little little one.

A gorgeous package of cute baby things arrived from my husband's family (and a couple of their friends) yesterday - including slippers, a soft yellow rabbit toy, singlets, jumpsuits and hats. What a surprise!   There's just something about the extreme softness of all things baby *goes gooey*.

(the blanket is especially cute!)



Even though I'll only be 25 weeks-ish at Christmas, the in-laws are throwing us a baby shower when we're over in Tasmania in December (baby showers aren't a big deal here in Australia, but it's a tradition within their family according to my husband - so when in Rome....!). Sister-in-law is apparently planning some cheesy games, I said that as long as it involves food I don't mind what happens! Famous last words perhaps? ;)

We've been giving some thought to the future room of this baby. In our two-bedroom apartment, the second bedroom already houses a bed, three bookshelf units, a corner computer desk and linen cupboard. There isn't an in-built wardrobe (since it's not a large room to begin with), so storage has always been a bit of an issue. Since there isn't another space in the apartment for the desk and shelves, they'll remain in the room, we'll just co-ordinate the cot (crib) and change-table (which we already have; it's our old entertainment/TV unit) in a similar colour to tie it all together. This will be the 'baby nook', which will start its transformation after Christmas... which is surprisingly not too far away now!

(excuse the things on the bed, it's some of the last things to be put away or Freecycled from our move almost a year ago. The styrofoam [from stereo speaker packaging] is being picked up tonight for its new home. We will have more space then!)

I saw my Naturopath this morning, the lovely woman who has helped me from my initial diagnosis of infertility back in 2008 through to the IVF and finally pregnancy. She even had some wonderful pregnancy news of her own to share (!!). I find visiting her a very holistic experience and always leave feeling relaxed, empowered and happy - today was no exception. I'll next see her again after the new year, and am plied up with vitamins and minerals to last me until then. I can't recommend my naturopath (who are also known as herbalists in some countries) highly enough. :)

In other exciting news, I picked up my doppler from the post office this afternoon! Great timing, as it will be good for my reassurance when this baby is going through stiller periods (even though I feel movement most days, usually somewhere between 7-11pm).

.... now to just pick up some AAA batteries and try this out!





Letter to a Little One [18 Weeks]

"Everything grows rounder and wider and weirder, and I sit here in the middle of it all and wonder who in the world you will turn out to be“ (Carrie Fisher)

Who are you, the little one who kicks me softly in the early evenings and as I lay down and sleep each night? I've only known you for eighteen weeks but already you have changed my life and the lives of those around you immeasureably.

In fifteen days we will know whether you are a little boy or a little girl, and the rest of the surprises will be kept for after you join us in the outside world in April.

(Bump at 18 weeks)

We went out on the weekend to a fancy restaurant and discovered that I could still fit into a fairly small pre-pregnancy dress (I was thrilled, in fact!). It's not often that either hubby and I have the opportunty to dress up, so we took full advantage of it. :)

The way I was standing made it look as though I was carrying my bump really high (which isn't the case at all!)



17 Weeks

Thwack, thwack, thwack.

When I'm lying down in bed most nights, this is what I feel in the half-hour or so before drifting off to sleep. Always below the belly button, sometimes off to one side, sometimes to the centre (and down pretty low). I definitely know it's the baby I'm feeling now.

It's difficult to describe the movements - they're very light, almost like a muscular twitch but not. It makes me smile and forget whatever it is I'm doing (ie, if I'm having a conversation with someone while sitting on the couch).

Also had a 'gender' dream two nights ago, where I found out that this little one is a girl. I don't know if there's any significance to this, or whether my subconscious is just playing games with me (only 22 days until we potentially find out). Interestingly I haven't had any actualy baby dreams yet - as in holding this baby, or who it is outside of the womb. I'm going to trust my intuition and hope that these dreams come later in the pregnancy.

For the time being, I'm bidding on a cheap fetal doppler on eBay to put my mind at ease - I think for $30 both hubby and I will definitely get our money's worth with the reassurance it brings. :)