It is a ..................

The day after Ryan's birthday we had an appointment to find out the sex of the baby. Saying we were excited may be a bit of an understatement! We decided to take Chaz along, although he wasn't terribly interested. He wanted to know what the baby was but didn't understand why we have to drive all over town to find out.

First we went to my regular doctor. I had some concerns because this was a Friday and they tend not to do ultrasounds on Friday. I questioned it when I made the appointment (just to check) called the morning of the appointment (just to double check) and mentioned it at check-in (just to triple check) Well, I guess the third time was the charm (OR NOT!!) the receptionist looked at me like I had three heads and said "Oh, well we don't do ultrasounds on Friday." Yeah, I thought my husband's head was going to explode. She continued with "Dr Birch can do an ultrasound but you probably won't be able to tell the sex of the baby. I'm sorry about that. We are just going to have to reschedule you."

You see we had a lot planned around the finding out the gender of this little tike, we had friends and family coming over for Ryan's birthday/baby reveal party, a cake on hold at the bakery AND we were leaving for vacation in a week so there was no time for a reschedule. I quickly said "Um, that isn't going to work." The receptionist and I both just kinda sat there and stared at each other. I remember staring contests from when I was little and I wasn't backing down, somehow I was going to find out the sex of this baby....today! Finally after what seemed like 10 minutes of staring, she said "Ok, hold on. Let me call your doctor and talk to her" Um, yeah. You do that.

I went over and sat with my fuming husband and it-is-getting-very-close-to-lunchtime toddler and tried to keep my composure. I was certain they would fix this little problem.... right??

After what seemed like an eternity the regular nurse came out and called my name... Hmmm, the receptionist had not come back to update me.. I wonder what this means. My husband followed (feet stomping like a ticked off child) my three year-old was wired and ready for lunch...Oh this was going to be fun! Just a few feet into the hallway I quickly asked my nurse "Did they tell you about the ultrasound issue??" I'm pretty sure between me and Ryan she could tell we were a wee bit frustrated. She said "Yes, don't worry. We will get it fixed." THAT is the answer I was looking for!! She told me they had me scheduled for 2pm at the hospital but would try to get me in at the Springdale clinic before 2pm. Ok, now we are talkin'!!

She weighed me and quickly discovered the 15+ weight gain they reported 2 weeks ago was grossly inaccurate. I wondered when they told me this a few weeks ago but I was just to tired to question. Actually, as of two weeks ago I had only gained a few pounds, this is obviously a result of the 8-10 weeks I spent tossing my cookies. Now they are estimating I have gained a whopping 5lbs so far. Since I am not sick anymore it should start packing on accordingly.. Oh goody!

My doctor came in and told me the wonderful news.. They could get me in at noon in Springdale, it was currently 11:45 (in Fayetteville) so we were going to need to book it.

Dr: "Blood pressure looks good. Weight is good, but you need to keep gaining. How are you feeling?"
Me: "I'm still very tired, much more grumpy than I was with Chaz and I already can't get comfortable when I sleep. BUT other than that, I'm good."
Ryan: "Yeah, cranky"
Me: "Thanks for that."
Dr: 'giggle'
Chaz: "I'm hungry. Can we go? When can we see the baby? This is takin' awhile"
Dr: "Ok, let's check the heartbeat and then you guys can get going....Excellent. 160s. Great!"
Ryan: "Must be a girl. I have no idea why, that is just what I hear"
Chaz: "Momma, what is this light for?? Can I check your teeth??" (if you know what light he is talking about and swirling around... you are probably cracking up right now)
Me: "Oh my, I think our time is up here."
Dr: "He is cute and you guys are funny, as always! 'Chuckle'"

Did I mention enjoyable?

So after a quick race out the door, we tore across town to the second clinic. Unfortunately, we had to go through full registration which only added to the restlessness of the boy. Ryan decided to take Chaz to the bathroom and just as they left the technician called me in. I told the receptionist to send my boys back when they were done. I quickly noticed a look between her and the technician.. What was that? Can they not join me for this monumental event? Is the world against me today?? The technician told me .. and I quote......

Tech: "How old is your child?
Me: "Three, almost four"
Tech: "Ummm. Ok. When he gets back here he is going to need to be quite and your husband will have to keep him still and we can no longer be responsible for children. If your child acts up I am going to have to ask that your husband leave with him"
Me: "Uhhhh. Ok"

What kind of people come to this place? I would never let my kid be a beast in a place like this (I would rather him never be a beast but there are places where I care a little less) AND what kinds of things have happened here to call for a quote like "we can no longer be responsible for children" How bizarre?!?!

This ultrasound was a full diagnostic, which I wasn't expecting..and it took forever!! Ryan became very impatient, as did the boy. BUT neither became unruly. Thank goodness because according to the "rules" they would have had to leave. After we viewed my cervix, fallopian tubes, diaphragm, etc (very interesting...NOT) ... we were ready to see the baby. He was moving a ton so when we got to see the bottom two pictures he was kicking. I could feel it and see it at the same time, super cool!!

This one is a little creepy to me but the bright white "V" shape is the arm, the four white dots in the top middle are the knuckles (the baby is making a fist) and the top left white is the head and the black dots are the eyes.
And the money shot.. If I were telling this story in chronological order, I would have told you that the moment the tech put the ultrasound wand on my stomach she pulled it back and said "Oh, ummm....did you want to know the sex??" Glad we did because as you can tell HE isn't very shy. Yep, another boy!!!

In order to explain this picture you need to look at it as if you are under a chair looking up at the baby sitting on it.. the white stick on the bottom is a leg and the nub in the middle is the "manhood" The tech laughed when Ryan and I both let out a "YES!!" Needless to say we both wanted another little boy. Chaz said "Cool, it is a baby brother" and immediately went back to coloring. Again, less than enthused with this entire process. I have to give the tech some credit. Once we got talking she loosened up and realized my child was not one of these "devil children" she speaks of.. She ended up being pretty nice to us.
I have to share the below. These are the ultrasound pictures from Chaz. What I would like to point out is the top left picture... You see, our new little boy come by his modesty naturally.. 1) if you knew my husband on college float trips you know and 2) his older brother.. The top left is a lap shot of Chaz..The white half moon in the left middle is his belly, the two white lines are his legs (ankles crossed) and the dark spot with the white dot is his "manhood" Again, not shy.
We are over the moon for this little one and he hasn't even joined the outside world!! Now if I could just get some energy and not be so cranky, we would be golden. OH and a big wish to a mild summer (probably not going to happen but I thought I would toss it in for good measure)

Please continue to pray for this little family of ours. I believe the prays we have had along the way have had an incredible impact on our family. It has been a very tough 9ish months in our lives but we are on the uphill climb. We greatly appreciate all of our friends and family. You guys mean the world to us!!!