It's a...

Boy!!!

Everything looked absolutely perfect. Stretch wasn't cooperating at the beginning and curled himself up in a ball while the tech tried to get measurements. Then I started having a Braxton Hicks contraction, and he got even more squeezed up, but finally things readjusted, and the tech was able to get all the measurements he needed. Stretch is measuring right on schedule, his heart looks good (no aortic stenosis!), and there was no sign of cleft lip, which were the two main defects we were concerned about. He's weighing in at 8 oz., so half a pound already! The tech switched to 4D for some of it, which was awesome, but all of the pictures came out fuzzy.

The tech showed us one angle and said, "Imagine the baby is sitting on a glass table. Neither of the legs are in the shot. Here's the bottom, here's the top of a thigh, and here's the penis!" It took a minute for it to sink in, but then I turned to C and said, "I was right after all!" Hehe. As soon as we left, I called Marian to tell her, and she started screaming. My parents (especially my dad) are thrilled to death (Mom thinks Dad is more excited about his grandson than he was about any of his own kids). My paternal grandmother started crying on the phone she was so happy, and my maternal grandmother was pretty excited, too! Only one of my brothers has called so far to wish me a happy birthday, but he demanded the news as soon as I answered and then admitted he'd been rooting for a nephew. I can't wait to surprise C's parents with the news tonight (they are visiting for the weekend and had no idea about this appointment)!

So a healthy baby boy. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present. And even though I told C I didn't want anything for my birthday, he picked me out a gift all by himself (the first time he's done that) and surprised me this morning with a beautiful diamond necklace. I am so incredibly blessed to have such a loving husband, a wonderful family, and a healthy son on the way!

NT Scan and 12 Week Appointment

Well, after all of my anxiety and waking up at 4 AM due to nerves, everything looked absolutely wonderful! The heart was beating at 171 BPM on the u/s and 174 BPM according to the doppler at the doctor's office. Stretch was kicking its little legs, doing flips, jumping all around, and waving its hands around to the point that the ultrasound tech couldn't get the measurements she needed. Finally, after a lot of poking and prodding with the wand, she got Stretch into the right position, and everything measures normally. However, I definitely have a bruise from the u/s wand. Worth it!

My doctor's appointment was pretty uneventful. Standard exam, pap, etc. She was only able to find the heartbeat faintly and briefly with the doppler, but it was there! I'm so glad I had the u/s first or I would have been worried!!! I did, however, learn that my blood type is O-. That means I'm RH- and will need the special shots to keep my body from building up antibodies. It's not a big deal now that they have the shots, but it was still news to me. I always have to be unique, don't I?

All in all, it was a wonderful morning! Since everything went well, I'm feeling much better about telling people our amazing news so I'll begin telling friends tomorrow. My dad was overjoyed to begin spreading the news around his office... who knew he was such a gossip?

In an effort to keep this shorter than my more recent posts, I'll conclude with one of my favorite pictures from today:

Introducing Stretch Marks!

Hi there! That adorable little baby blob you see above is our first experiment in cloning child. Stretch Marks is expected on September 13, 2010 and is currently 7w2d old. The name needs some explaining. You see, my husband, C, has always wanted to nickname any future kid "Stretch" or "Skid" in order to give them the name Stretch Marks or Skid Marks. I have always fought him on this for obvious reasons. As a compromise, this little one will be Stretch Marks while in utero. So far, Stretch has blessed it's mama with all kinds of joyous symptoms, from the stereotypical morning sickness and sore boobs to fatigue and GI... well, let's stop there. C has been mostly wonderful in taking care of me, though he gets more joy out of making me gag than seems entirely proper. Stretch's existence is still mostly a secret. Now that today's appointment revealed this beautiful blob with a heartbeat of 146 bpm, we're a bit more comfortable in letting people in on the secret. Expect more stories, pictures, letters, and oversharing to come in the next 33 weeks as little Stretch continues to grow!