Life's Little Surprises

We got the surprise of our life today:  baby #2 is going to be a BOY! Woohooo! OK, so it wasn't a complete surprise... This pregnancy from the get-go has been SO different from Jo. I was sick until 16 weeks with Jo-and not just sick but dangerously ill. This time I had occasional nausea just until 10 weeks. Piece of cake. There have been times I have almost forgotten I was pregnant! So this one has definitely been different. Not to mention all the crazy wives tales and tests I have done!! I checked the Chinese Gender Predictor: Boy. I did the needle/string over the palm test: Boy. I did the chain/charm over the palm test: Boy. I did the needle/string over the belly test: Boy. But I don't really believe in any of those tests... unless I can physically SEE parts (or lack thereof...), I am not buying clothes!

Tada! Boy Parts!

This morning it was confirmed for us: we saw boy parts! When the technician casually said "...and...It's a boy"~ I started crying. I had a feeling it would be, but you never really know for sure! I was thinking there was a chance we would be that couple with 4 girls and no boys... which would have been fine but both of us wanted a little boy to play sports and protect his sister. Of course there's the whole "carry on the family name" and pride issue for Adam too. So needless to say we are THRILLED with our little man.

Here's our handsome little man at 16 weeks gestation <3

Much to our surprise we got plenty of 4D Ultrasound images to adore. I can't help but wonder what he will look like when he is born. That's going to have to be one of the surprises of his arrival :) 

We also chose to keep another element of his arrival a surprise: his name! There's not really any reason other than we like the idea of keeping some suspense in the mix. It's one of the few surprises we can control! 

*Other Updates* Along with learning that our little man is indeed a boy, I was also assured that (assuming no complications or health concerns) I will be allowed to hold our little man immediately following his arrival until I decide it is OK for him to go be weighed and cleaned up and such. That was such a relief. It was a shock that I was able to hold Jo immediately and for as long as I did (about an hour and a half!), but a wonderful shock and I wanted that special bonding time with this baby too. I was also reassured that there were drugs besides an epidural that could be administered to control nausea during delivery. It was mainly fear of continued nausea (and lack of time to make a decision! lol) during delivery that made me make the decision to have an epidural with Jo. I don't regret that decision, but I am coming to terms with the fact that I most likely won't have the opportunity for an epidural this time around, so I wanted to be prepared to ask for other medications now that I knew they were available (and safe). 

That's pretty much it as far as our growing family updates go! Hope ya'll are having a wonderful week! As Jo would say, "Bye, Ya'll!"