Baby News

Ever since being about 9 weeks pregnant, and having a second ultrasound that showed that there was actually a baby in there, and that we were not in the middle of our 3rd miscarriage in a row, I have waited for this day.

I briefly considered being amazing like some of my friends and waiting until the day of birth to find out the gender of this baby.  But really, who was I kidding??  I haven’t ever made it through a birthday or Christmas without knowing some of my presents and I’m not gonna make it 9 and some old months through nausea, puking, back pain, stretch marks and other awesome pregnancy related happenings to find out the gender of who I’m gonna meet.  These kids of mine have plenty of personality to keep me surprised the rest of my life!

So, the day finally came this week.  The gender ultrasound.  Or at least that’s what it was to me.  My order read “20 week anomaly scan” and my doctor referred me to a different hospital that houses a more sensitive sonograph machine.

We arrived early in the morning to the walk-in ultrasound clinic and were promptly received and  routed to a waiting room.  Eli, Lucy, daddy and I waited.  Eli and Lucy were GRUMPS with a capital “G” from about the moment they climbed into the car in Thika.   Not quite what I had envisioned for “our” happy day, but I rolled with it.

Here we are with the doctor, as he was reading the ultrasound.  I have never had such a detailed ultrasound through these last 4 pregnancies and 2 births.  It was kind of cool.  He looked at the different portions of the brain, measured leg and arm bones, checked for the nose bone, ruled out cleft palate, identified the 4 chambers of the heart, ensured that all of the organs were inside the body and checked the spine to make sure that the neural tube was complete and closed.  It was really cool!

Looking at the different parts of the baby's brain

 

And, being quite skilled at his craft, he kept the suspense of the gender to the very end, and then pointed out 2 lines, identifying them as “f.g.”  Huh??  I was thinking for sure, those must boy parts hanging around there.  And now that I think  about it, I remember thinking the same thing during the ultrasound for Lucy.  Nope no boy parts there.  Those lines were female genitalia, as the doctor  very quietly said, “Girl”. 

For sure I thought we’d get a great reaction out of Lucy who had been rooting for a partner in crime since finding out that there is a baby rolling around in my tummy.  Just a slight grin and head turn from her.  Eli just sat  blank stared.  He’s in shock over the fact that there will be 2 little girls to deal with.  He seemed much cheered by my telling him that he was all the more special for being “the only boy” and that for sure this new little sister wouldn’t want to steal his toys…..she’d for certain go after Lucy’s toys.  Now he’s back to his usual self!

Everything looks great, I feel great, and it was exciting to see this new little one.

Here is a picture of the baby  in the 3D mode of the ultrasound.  Here, it looks a bit like that cartoon from the 80’s:  Skeletor, but you can see her holding her hand up to her face.  When we saw the picture at first, Ian exclaimed that the baby, “Looks like your brother Andy!” and I said, “Wow, it has big lips like Eli did!”  I can’t wait to see how she changes and develops between now and 2 months from now when I go back for another scan.

a side view of the baby's head on the left, with the arm and hand on the forehead on the right

 

Thank you to all of you who have shared in this long baby journey with us that began before Africa and will continue long after.  We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Ahh, the doctor’s office

I don’t really mind the doctors office.

At least I never did before.

I’m a little nervous about tomorrow though. I have an appointment with a dermatologist to check over my leg where I had the melanoma removed 2 DAYSbefore we left for Africa.

I guess it’s the whole idea of going to someone with a name I can’t pronounce (granted, that happens in the States too), in a Hospital I’ve never been to, in an almost completely foreign country (we’re getting to know it, so it can’t be completely foreign now can it?).

I’m going at 2pm, on the 2nd floor, in room 222. That’s a lot of twos if you ask me.

I’m wondering what you do in a skin check in a foreign country. It’s kind of a really intimate, personal thing if you think about having to bear yourself completely for some stranger.

At least my doctor in Portland was this grey haired grandfatherly type.

Let’s hope that I get a good report and that this cancer stuff is well behind us.

Hanging skin

We’ve had a busy Holiday season.  Visits with family from Idaho, Virginia, Germany and soon Montana. 

 

Visits from the “Arctic Blast”

 

And visits to see the kids’ great-grandma in her new home just down the street. 

 

She didn’t fair so well after leaving the hospital and moving back to her independent living (the independent part was giving her trouble).

 

Anyhow, we visited here as a family last night.  She was lying in her bed in her approximately 200 sq. feet of living space.  Nicely done up 200 sq. feet of living space though.

 

Eli wanted to get up on the bed with great-grandma.  I obliged.

 

Important note at this point is that great-grandma will be 94 years old in February.  She looks like most people that age.

 

Eli proceeded to play with the loose skin hanging off great-grandmas arm.  What a sight.  I think he actually asked her something like, “What’s this?” 

 

She was a good sport.  At least she didn’t run out of bed.

 

She also told me earlier in the day in a panic that she was dying.  I said, “Yes, but probably not today.” 

 

And then I checked to see if her toes were gray yet.  Learned somewhere that the toes turn a different color right close to the end.  G-gma got a kick out of that one.  Really.  No joke, she’s still got some humor in there.

 

Anyhow, we’re happy to have her so close so that we can visit her often, but said that it came about this way.