Registry Madness

Now that we have our gender confirmation, my husband and I finally completed our registry.  I had already begun listing the more expensive, gender neutral items online, but we actually went into the store with the scanner gun and registered for everything else.  Let me be the first to tell you:  that was an exercise in patience.  Even with all of the big ticket items (car seat, stroller, co-sleeper, glider, breast pump) already registered for online, it took a long time and a lot of thought to complete.  Registering for a baby is so different than a wedding registry.  No one worries about safety reviews and personal recommendations when it comes to picking out china patterns and bed sheets.  With a baby registry, I felt like every single thing had to be the best, in addition to being within our budget and style preferences. 

Luckily, I went armed with the Baby Bargains book, which was a huge help.  I also brought a snack and water on the advice of others, which I’m glad I did, since we went to both Babies R Us and Target (which were fortunately right next door to each other) because we’re registered at both places.  Thankfully, we are finally done with this baby planning aspect, and can move forward with decorating the nursery!     

Ultrasound Follow Up

Wow, time has totally gotten away from me.  I had meant to write this post as soon as it happened, but somehow it’s a month behind. 

Anyway, due to our baby girl’s position at our anatomy scan, we were scheduled for a follow up ultrasound to measure her heart.  Baby was finally right side up for once, although still transverse.  The ultrasound tech was able to point out the four chambers of the heart, and how everything looked good. 

The next day, however, my OB’s office called and said that although everything was normal, the tech didn’t get good enough pictures of the left and right ventricular outflow tracts (L/RVOT).  So, I was scheduled for yet another ultrasound at my next routine visit. 

After all of that drama, baby is perfectly healthy with a beautiful heart.  And, after 3 successive ultrasounds that all confirmed the same thing, I’m pretty confident in the fact that she is definitely a little girl! 

Road Trip

Two days after our anatomy scan, my husband and I went on a little road trip for an impromptu family reunion.  We had scheduled the big ultrasound for right before this mini-vacation, so that we could tell all of my family in person whether the baby was a girl or a boy.  There were also a few people who hadn’t been told about the pregnancy yet, because I wanted to take this rare opportunity to tell them in person.  So, we got in the car (along with the dog) for an 8 hour road trip to meet up with some of my family in Kansas.  We had a great time, and I loved seeing so many members of my family in one place.  We also took tons of pictures, and everyone was absolutely thrilled about our baby news! 

However, between a pregnant person and a dog, the trip took much longer than it should have due to all of the pit stops.  Also, even though I was only 21 weeks pregnant, it was already pretty uncomfortable to be in a car for that long.  My leg kept going to sleep, no position was comfortable, I had to pee all the time, and it seemed like stopping so often caused us to make hardly any progress.  Plus, I’d get hungry and wasn’t in the mood for “road food” like chips or snacks, which caused even more unscheduled stops.

But it was definitely worth it.  Next month though, we’re going on vacation to the east coast for my graduation ceremony, and will be flying.  I have a feeling that flying at 27 weeks won’t be any easier than driving at 22 weeks.         

It’s a…

GIRL!  My husband and I were totally shocked when the ultrasound tech said girl.  We didn’t have a preference either way, but both of us were leaning toward the baby being a boy.  We were even further convinced when the tech at our NT scan (12.5 weeks) said that she would guess boy with about 75% accuracy.  We knew that it was a little early to determine gender with any certainty, but both of us just kind of assumed that it would be a boy. 

At this ultrasound (20.5 weeks), we had the same ultrasound tech as our NT scan.  She asked us what she had guessed then, and when we said boy, she told us, “well, I hope you didn’t buy anything blue, because it’s a little girl!”  Both the tech and the doctor said that everything looked good and was right on track for about 21 weeks.  They did mention that our baby girl already has really long legs, which I know she gets from me, although both my husband and I are pretty tall. 

We’re so thrilled that our baby is doing well and is healthy, and we’re beyond excited that we’re having a baby girl.  I’m still a little skeptical about the gender, but I’m not sure why.  I just feel like I need just a bit more confirmation or something.  However, the tech wasn’t able to get all of the heart measurements of the baby, because she was turned upside down almost the whole time (imagine that, our baby is uncooperative).  So, we have a follow up ultrasound to get the final measurements to complete the anatomy scan, and I’ll definitely be asking for them to confirm the gender for me.  If they say girl again, I’ll probably be convinced, lol.  If they say boy, I swear I’m not buying anything that’s not gender neutral!   

Half Baked

I can’t believe I made it to 20 weeks!  It’s crazy to think that I’m halfway through this pregnancy already.  In honor of this milestone, my body decided to celebrate by finally letting my stomach “pop.”  I’m actually looking more pregnant than chubby now, and I am loving the look of a real baby bump. 

My husband and I have also made all of the necessary notifications (there were some major delays), and have done all of the prenatal testing, so the world can now know are expecting!  I’ve been waiting for this day for so long, but at last, I can tell any and every one that I’m pregnant!

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And, for those that asked, here's my 20 week bump pic:

  

First Big Baby Purchase

Since everything went well at our 16 week appointment, the husband and I decided to take a trip to Babies R Us in a neighboring town to look at nursery furniture.  We looked around at the different options for baby items, and discussed what we liked and didn’t like.  Really though (at least in my mind), we were there to pick out a crib.  I had some very definitive ideas in my head about what I wanted in terms of manufacturer, style, safety, and color.  My husband usually defers to my judgment when it comes to the baby stuff, but he surprised me when he had an opinion on the wood color of the furniture.  I wanted espresso-colored furniture, and he wanted cherry. 

We eventually narrowed our choices to a crib and dresser set that was available in chestnut, dark cherry, and white and another set that came in oak, espresso, and black.  Since the color selection was limited in each of the furniture sets, we ultimately chose the set made of the stronger mahogany wood, rather than the one made of pine.  We ended up with Munire’s Baby Cache Heritage crib and dresser/changer combo in dark cherry.  So, I’d say it was a pretty good compromise for the two of us on our first big baby purchase.

Now that we have furniture and are starting to plan the nursery, everything is starting to feel much more real.  I’m so excited to finally stop worrying and to start buying stuff for our baby!    

NIAW

Even though I’m currently pregnant, I feel the need to post about something that is still near and dear to my heart:  infertility.  Infertility (IF) affects 1 in 8 men and women, and it doesn’t go away after becoming pregnant.  It’s a lifelong struggle and is usually one that couples deal with silently. 

April 24 through 30 is National Infertility Awareness Week (NIAW), and despite my small following, I wanted to bring awareness to the cause on my blog.  To learn more about NIAW, IF, or how you can support those with IF, please visit http://www.resolve.org/national-infertility-awareness-week/home-page.html.