Yesterday I had my 20 week scan and we had another chance to look at our beautiful baby. It’s so hypnotic staring at the tiny black and white screen watching our little bundle of joy squirming away. Last time the baby was all blotchy, with a barely recognisable alien head and slightly squished features, this time you could see the detail of the tiny feet, perfect lips and button nose. We watched the beating heart, not much bigger than a 5p coin, pumping away with complete awe. I was aware that our scan technician was talking us through each organ and different measurements, but I think I was in some kind of trance as that bits all a bit blurry. She made her way slowly down the body to check for different indicators that we had a healthy baby. The head and waist circumference, the thigh bone measurement, the flow of the heart, the placement of the stomach and kidneys, all I’m delighted to report are perfect. We are forever asking about the babies kidneys as Ross was born with only one and has suffered a whole list of complaints because of this. We are not totally out of the woods with this one but it’s nice to be reassured there are at least two right now.
Now, not for the most important but I guess the most exciting part: the gender. Note that up to this moment I had always, completely subconsciously, refer to our baby as ‘she’ and had a whole list of girl’s names but couldn’t pick a single boys name I liked. It’s also worth noting that I had pretty horrific morning sickness throughout the first few months, a fact that convinced Ross it was a boy as he had a theory that I was ill due to all the testosterone building up in my system; I’m not sure how medically accurate that is to be honest. Anyway, the big reveal…
We’re having a girl! It’s strange, now I know it’s a girl and I can now refer to the baby as ‘her’, and now I’ve seen her tiny toes, it all seems a lot more real. Plus I can now feel her move! She’s not kicking or anything but I can feel little ‘flutterings’ when she moves, which is weird and amazing at the same time. Having a girl has made me think about so many things I hadn’t given much thought about before, from the deep-rooted questions: do I want her to grow up like me? Am I a strong female role model? Will she be more attached to Ross than me? You know what they say, ‘She’s daddy’s little girl’. To the less-than-deep: will I paint her room pink?
I know a lot of parents decide not to find out before the birth, particularly if it’s their first baby, and that’s great if you have that kind of self-control, but that was never an option for us. I still love all the unisex newborn baby clothes, all the ivory and white sleepsuits and blankets just look cleaner and more delicate than gender specific clothes. I have however spotted a rather fetching R2-D2 onesie and hat set that was always going to be bought regardless of our big reveal.
At our appointment we were given some of my blood results back – all negative but due to some kind of mix up I need to go back to the antenatal clinic instead of the community medical centre in two weeks, as the midwife didn’t have all the results so couldn’t give us back our notes and info. We were also given a ‘Bounty Pack’ folder with all kinds of advice, offers and freebies, which I will be sharing with you all very soon!
