Whoa Nelly!

No, that wouldn't be a good name...but, what would be a good name for a...GIRL????? Yes, that's right, we are officially having a girl in August, assuming I can keep this baby inside that long. This news is both exciting and terrifying at the same time. Having a son and three nephews, I have absolutely no experience with baby girls. I also have nightmares about middle school girls and their behaviors, dress code, morals.....and some of those have been raised by very well-meaning morally sound people that appear to be doing all the right things! The whole idea scares me. But, nevertheless, that is what we are having.

I found this out at 15 weeks and 5 days. Quite early, huh? My regular OBGYN sent me to a high-risk perinatologist due to the pre-term labor with Tanner and my age. They primarily want to keep track of my cervix size so they have a baseline measurement and can keep track of any changes this time. This doctor does EVERYTHING via ultrasound practically. Her machinery is top-of-the-line and I didn't even have to drink any water. There was a flat screen straight across from me that showed me WAY more than any ultrasound I had with Tanner. I saw measurements of most bones, all three vessels in the cord, the bladder, stomach, both hemispheres of the brain, and all fingers and toes! Then, of course, when Tobin wasn't there, they showed me the obvious female parts which made my mouth fall ajar until the tech said. "Honey, are you OK?" I do very much wish he had been there, but we had no idea that we would find out the sex so early. Who knew her equipment would be so much better? I was very fun telling him when I got home though. I stopped off at Target and bought a little pink blanket and handed him the bag when I got home. His face was priceless!

The really cool thing about this visit was the level of counseling and one-on-one Q and A. She was able to access the medical records concerning the lab work that studied the placenta and cord blood from Tanner. No abnormalities or infections were noted which was wonderful news. That was something that I had not thought about, yet does affect this pregnancy. I was informed that I have to have not one, but two Glucola tests for gestational diabetes during this pregnancy. Apparently there is a big difference in the way your body processes or makes insulin at weeks 24 and 30. I am to have a bedtime snack every night because the baby cannot go for more than 8 hours without calories. No one mentioned that during the whole pregnancy with Tanner! She talked me into a cystic fibrosis blood test which will tell me if I am a carrier of that gene, but she was not successful in convincing me that the amniocentesis was crucial. She did inform me that there is a 30% chance of delivering early again.

Tanner and Tobin are doing well. Tanner is crawling now and pulling up on the furniture. He is eating pureed meat in combination with something else, all baby jar food so far. I still have my annoying post-nasal drip, but the high-risk doc prescribed Singulair which has been a big help with the cough. The daily nausea and loss of at least one meal has not let up whatsoever.