First Day of First Grade

Twenty Weeks

Here I am at 20 weeks (disclaimer: it was really my first day at 21 weeks, but we'll pretend). :) This beautiful baby is sure making me big!

Twenty-Week Ultrasound

Here are the images and videos that we were able to obtain of our ultrasound on the 14th.  Somehow the machine in the doctor's office was set to the wrong date; they all say 08-15-2013.  But I swear our ultrasound occurred on August 14th.  Strange that it was incorrect.  Anyway, we were already smitten with this little one, but "seeing" her wiggle and squirm sealed the deal.  We are in love.  We cannot wait to see her up close and personal and kiss her precious face!  December cannot come soon enough. :)

The results are in!

I had everyone vote: Bow or Beau. Girl or Boy.  I asked people in person, via text messages, via Facebook and via Instagram.  I wanted everyone's vote!  I expected the polls to show a more bias divide; there were a whole lot of votes on either side.  But one side did win.

The results were: Boy: 17 / Girl: 24

Our little one is pretty patriotic; this I've known.  I have always liked the country in which I live, but since I have been pregnant, I have felt an immense amount of patriotism - more than possibly ever before.  I get choked up seeing the purple mountains' majesty; I nearly bawl when the soldiers march by in the parade.  It's been intense.  So it would make sense that our baby would concede to the popular vote.

It's a GIRL!

I was so, so anxious and excited for the ultrasound.  I seriously was having to take deep, calming breaths and was honestly scared I would throw up.  I don't know what was wrong with me.  I wasn't worried about anything in particular.  I genuinely would have been thrilled with either gender.  I have been there / done that twice now, for heaven's sake!  I'm not sure why I was so worked up.  But the second I was in the chair with the goopy jelly on my belly, I calmed down.  There was my baby.  Healthy, measuring to-date, and perfectly formed.  ((Huge sigh...))  The obstetric tech asked if we wanted to know the gender; we said yes.  She asked if we wanted her to check that right away; we said no, that we could get there when we got there.  I think she was sweetly trying to accommodate my anxiety, but it really had dissolved by then.  I felt calm and happy and good.  So she measured and checked the technical things she needed to: the femur, the head circumference, the lip and nose, the stomach, the heart and its chambers, the brain, etc.  She explained it all as she went along, and it was beautiful to see.  No problems, no concerns.  Then she showed us the genital region, and ta-da: it was a girl after all.  I asked her to check and double check and triple check.  I need to know for sure before I start planning/decorating, lol.  She did, and she said she was confident: our baby is for sure a little girl.

I was convinced during the ultrasound that it was going to be a boy.  This didn't disappoint me in any way; I was just sure that my intuition was faulty and there was no way I could have known.  But I did!  In Jolie's words, "My knowed!"  Maybe I have motherly intuition after all!  James and Derek had both voted "boy."  I asked Derek if he was disappointed, and he said of course he wasn't.  Then he admitted that he honestly just voted boy because I voted girl... to cover both bases.  That little stink.  And James said he wanted it to be a boy so that we could eat the blue M&Ms that are in the fridge, lol.  My boys... 

After the appointment, Derek and I went to Kohls to pick out a little gift for our bitty baby girl.  We have a tradition of going out to buy our baby a gift the day we find out the gender, etc.  For James, it was a little newborn (preemie, maybe) outfit and a snuggly blue blankie.  For Jolie, it was a set of cuppie cake onesies for her to come home in.  This adorable outfit was the winner this time.  It was the colors I love, love, love: coral and navy (with gold, grey and white... so pretty).  And it was the first item we found that made Derek swoon.  "Awww, loook at the little jeggings!" he said.  I could have melted.  What man even knows what jeggings are?!  You can tell he has a little girl.  He's such a good daddy.

We also bought James and Jolie a little present each: a skirt for Jolie and some super hero undies for James.  When we got home, we had the oh-so-excited kids gather around for the big reveal.  I pulled out Jolie's skirt and said, "This is way too big for a baby; I think it must be for you!"  Then I pulled out Jamesie's undies and said, "And these are cool, but still way too big for a baby; they must be for you!"  Finally I pulled out the teeny little girl outfit and said, "But this looks like it would fit a baby!!"  And they both lit up, and said, "It's a GIRL!!"  No disappointment, not a titch.  Just sheer joy at the sweet little sister they have growing in Mommy's tummy.  They were so happy.  It was so sweet.

We all are so happy.  This baby belongs in our family; we can already tell.  I am so, so grateful that she is measuring appropriately and developing well.  I am super grateful that my cervix is nice and long, and that my body is accepting and embracing this pregnancy.  I am grateful for my beautiful children, all three of them.  And I am so grateful for our wonderful little family... 

Anderson, party of five?  Your table is ready.

Bow or Beau? THAT is the question.

Today is the day!! Bow or beau? We (hopefully) shall see!! :D  Eek!!

I'm pretty excited. So much, in fact, that I made this little digi-pic to share the excitement! Hopefully people will cast their votes. I'm interested to see what the consensus is!

I will very genuinely be so excited no matter the gender. I love that I have one of each; it really helps this be the case. If I weren't the obsessive planning type, I wouldn't find out until birth. But being patient is not really my thing, especially when it's optional. 

If I had to guess or cast MY vote, I'd say it's a girl.  I think I've posted this before, but I very much share Jolie's sentiments: "My a love a baby boy or a baby girl... But it's a girl." Pretty confident. I am, too. I will in no way be disappointed if it's a boy, but I will be surprised.

Derek, however, says he's leaning toward boy. Hm. So someone's gonna be wrong. Derek tends to have better intuition about things than I do, though. This makes me wonder if my confidence is poorly placed and if that 'someone' who is wrong will be me. But then, Derek also tends to contradict me for the sake of it ... root for the underdog ... buck conformity... so it could just be that. I suppose we shall see! I'm totally okay with being wrong. I think he is, too.

I sure hope this kiddo isn't shy! I'm dying to know!! Come on, baby! Help me get you an appropriate pronoun (I hate saying "it")! The other two were pretty cooperative. Let's hope this one is too. And more than anything, let's hope for a healthy, well-developing baby!

Another funny Jolie-ism (James, I love you too!! You just say less silly things lately; you're so grown up, darn you. xo)...  My mom was asking the kids if I have a baby boy or a baby girl in my tummy, and Jolie confidently answered, "giwl." I reminded her that we'd have to see, that the doctor was gonna take a picture of the baby to see if it's a boy or girl. She acknowledged this, but added, "My is gonna be so happy when him says that my knowed!" Lol!  Him = the doctor. So she's going to enjoy being right, basically. Oh, so humble. :)

I'm excited to see if she "knowed" too! Little baby, Mommy loves you sooo much! I can't wait to 'see' you soon!!

Nineteen Weeks and the Case of the Missing Husband

I forgot to take a belly shot this week. Things were just too crazy. Derek was gone to California for work, and the kids and I were on our own. I tell ya what, single parenting is hard!! I was exhausted from the strain of doing it all myself, though I actually surprised myself with my competence. The hardest part was once the kids were down. Basically I bawled every night. :( So maybe single parenting wasn't the problem; it was just having my lover/husband/partner/best-friend far away. I seriously had a hole in my heart all week. I need him way too much.

The kids had a rough go of it, too. Both of them were more emotional and whiney, and they didn't sleep worth crap. Regardless of my feigned perkiness while they were awake, they could tell something was wrong. "Why isn't Daddy home yet? Five days is way too long!" and "My miss Dada." Heartbreaking. We missed our main man.

Something that helped was that several of our friends and family did a great job of distracting and entertaining us. On Sunday (possibly the hardest day; he'd left that morning crazy early) I took the kids to church (by myself! I know!) and home for naps. Then afterward Julie took us out to eat. Yummy, much easier than cooking, and it was a welcome distraction from sitting at home missing Daddy.

On Monday, Polly (who was in Utah visiting her dad) asked if we could meet in Brigham for lunch. It was a stretch for me, as I pretty much never drive out of the valley, but it ended up being easy and delicious and fun. The picture is from this outing; it's a decent shot of my ever-expanding belly. 

I still worked on Tuesday and Thursday, which really helped to lift my spirits and keep our routine. My mom watched the kids those nights and put them to bed for me. It was a huge help to me, tons of fun for the kids, and a definite sacrifice on her part. I am so grateful.

Wednesday night, the neighborhood girls (moms, we're old now) got together here for a girls' night. It was so sweet that they did that and seriously helped me perk up. I seriously love those girls! If I could live by them for the rest of forever, I would be so happy. They're amazing friends and have great families. Our kids all play so well together. Anyone know of a subdivision for sale? We all need a plot!

Soon enough, it was Friday! I cleaned the house until it sparkled, went to the store, bathed the kids, and put them to bed. For the first time all week, the kids slept soundly. I think they knew things were right in the world now that Daddy was coming home. Once the kids were down, I ran through the house quickly fixing any lose ends, powdered my nose, reapplied lip gloss and waited impatiently at the window. I could have thrown up I was so excited.

And then he was home. And my soul was finally at peace. ((Deep breath)) He is never allowed to leave us again. :)