Bo's 2nd Photo Shoot (AKA More ultrasound pics...)

After spending a couple of hours waiting to be seen, we finally got into the ultrasound room. We also agreed never to bring Annalee with us to a doctor's appointment that's not for her again. So unfair for her - two year olds aren't meant to wait in doctor's offices.

The ultrasound tech was patient with all three of us and took her time getting all the needed measurements. The good news is that we were able to get some decent profile shots of in utero Bo looking his best. The bad news is that the placenta is still pretty low - the tech didn't want to talk about it with us (not that I can blame her), but told me to discuss it with my doctor. So - more on that as we go along and learn more.

But for now - the moment you've all been waiting for...

 

Top to Bottom: Feet, Profile, Profile, "It's-a-Boy!"

I managed to scan the pics in so I could show them in super extra large size too.  You're welcome.  ;)

Keeping Cool & Other Updates

With temps staying low(ish), we're getting some help from Momma Nature to stay cool and relaxed. We were able to open the windows in our lovely loft space and get some fresh air over the past couple of days. The view of the lake is something we're going to miss.

In housing news: So an update on the house situation: we finally got an official contract - our closing date is scheduled for September 7th. We're pretty excited about the big move and keep praying that everything goes well. A house inspection is scheduled for next week - so hopefully our contract home passes inspection with flying colors.

Outside View of our Contract Home - Isn't she a beaut?!

In related news: anyone out there great at painting walls/applying wallpaper and open sometime in early- to mid-September? We'd love your help! I'll even write a tribute to you on our blog! And of course, we'll keep you well fed and supplied with plenty to drink... {tempting, no?}

In toddler news: Anna-bears is doing great so far with all the changes. She talks a lot about "loving on Bo" and when she knows she's been bad and is about to get in trouble, she'll give mommy/daddy a hug and say "I'm just loving on you". Smart girl. It still works with me. #toddlerwins

In baby news: Bo has his next photo op (AKA ultrasound) tomorrow morning. Our low-lying placenta issue means monthly ultrasound checkups for us, which is kind of nice - I love having so many pictures of in utero Bo. And don't worry - we'll post some of his best shots to the blog soon after his photo shoot. 

Taking It Easy...

It's been a chill weekend for us Bratschies - well, at last 3/4ths of us. Don is sailing the Hook race this weekend so Anna, In-Utero Bo and I have been operating sans Don. And although Don has probably been working up a sweat in this blistering hit and nasty humidity, the rest of us have been kicking back and relaxing. We had a day at the Children's Museum - and another day at the park - but mostly we've been staying inside and catching up on Madagascar (again) and Little Einsteins (also, again). Annalee even had her very first root beer float! I think she preferred the ice cream to the root beer though.

Annalee building a skyscraper at the Children's Museum (with her friend, Abel - not pictured)

The heat isn't the only thing influencing us to take it easy, I found out late last week that Bo & I are dealing with low-lying placenta. The doctors don't seem too worried about it - apparently it usually corrects itself within a few months. However, it can cause some big problems if it doesn't move by the time Bo is ready to make his grand entrance - possibly blocking the birth canal and forcing a c-section. As a result of this news, I've learned that I need to keep a slow tempo until the placenta can get its ducks in a row.  (Done and done.)

Also - Bo & I are at 22 weeks! We're in spaghetti squash territory in terms of growth and produce. And for some reason, I've been feeling pretty tired the past week or so - I'm pretty sure he's having a growth spurt. I guess that's another reason to take it easy. ;)

Another thing to note: this boy is KICKIN'! I was joking with Don that I don't even know if I'll have the chance to birth him - I think he'll punch and kick his way out of my womb before my water even has a chance to break.  He kicks hard too... good boy - as long as he doesn't hurt his momma.

On the homefront - we still have a house on the line right now - but don't have an official closing date set yet. In spite of the limbo, we're excited to have room to grow and happy about the possibility. Waiting & growing (some of us, literally)...

I love this cake!

And the little person growing inside that it represents. For our newest little one, we decided to have a little cake party to answer the big question - boy or girl?

The basics of how it went down - we had our first ultrasound kind of late - I was already at about 18 weeks. Our ultrasound tech was able to determine gender, but instead of telling us there (for anyone who hasn't been to Mt. Sinai, it's not exactly a romantic or personal type of atmosphere...) we asked the tech to put the answer into an envelope and seal it. She handed us the sealed envelope and we stored it at home on our wine cabinet for about a week before we decided to throw a cake party!

After pricing around and seeing what our options might be, I ended up ordering our cake from Whole Foods in the South Loop. Not only did they have a great price for a really delicious cake, but the bakery team is awesome! And they had done a baby cake like this before, so they knew that they had to keep the insides a secret from me (the cake orderer). I've been craving donuts and chocolate, so I ordered a chocolate cake with vanilla butter cream frosting and chocolate ganache over everything. The trick about this is that the bakery team had to color the inside frosting either pink or blue to indicate if we're having a boy or a girl. Then Don and I (&Annalee) would find out with everyone else if we're having a boy or a girl when we cut into the cake. Awesome, right?!

Here's some pictures of us cutting into the cake...

I was pretty sure I knew what color the icing was, but not completely positive - it looked kind of purple-ish maybe. So we consulted the ultrasound photo we had given to the bakery team...

And there it was - plain as day - "it's a boy!" The delicious frosting was blue, not purple!  :)

And here's a picture of our number one reveling in the goods...

Delicious cake, great friends and family - all in all a really great way to find out the answer to that all important question "he or she?". And yes, for anyone out there looking to unload some baby boy clothes - we LOVE hand-me-downs...  ;)

And now to figure out where our little guy is going to sleep...

Daddy's first post (this time around)

Well, Amanda works now and I am Mr. Mom and I get those few blissful hours in the afternoon when Anna is napping so I guess I need to start carrying my weight on the blog posting...
Let's talk gender. And gender parties. I know - sounds kinda weird right? But not to worry... we are going to have a pretty original gender party at our place tonight!

So readers of this blog undoubtedly saw Amanda's post last week - "that new baby's" first photo shoot. Don't worry - you won't be able to tell if it is a boy or girl from those ultrasound pics. We decided to be surprised with Anna but this time we have too much planning to do. We are in the process of moving into a house (after 5 years of condo living this will be our first real house with real grass!!!!) and we need to figure out if we need separate rooms for the kids, etc. Soooo... two people know the gender right now. The tech who put it in the envelope, and the Whole Foods baker who got that envelope and is putting pink or blue icing inside the cake we cut into tonight at the gender party (see, its not nearly as weird as it sounded, huh?)  I'm kinda pulling for a boy but believe God decided to surround me with girls my whole life for a reason... sigh... I will never have my own space.

 

We will post an update this weekend with the answer... pink or blue? Take your guess now!

 

Baby's First Photo Shoot!

After much waiting, we finally had our very first ultrasound of our newest little bundle of joy!

The first few frames don't really look like anything - not very recognizable (at least not to me). I even thought the third one looked like a thumbs up - until I read the caption "foot". Hmmm... good thing I'm not an ultrasound tech.

We asked the tech to keep the gender a secret. We're still not sure if and how we want to find out the answer to the big question: girl or boy? So for now, the answer to that question is safely tucked away in an envelope. And the last I saw, said envelope was "safely" tucked away in Don's pocket.

So - how are things going overall, you ask? Well - so far, so good. I'm feeling pretty good in my second trimester. Made it past the nausea and overall exhaustion of the first trimester as of a few weeks ago. I'm not so terribly huge that I'm confined to maternity clothes yet - but they sure are comfier than my non-maternity duds.

And Annalee is excited for her little baby sibling. We talk about how babies are different from big girls and she's a big girl now. And that mommy is growing a baby in her belly. She talks to Baby and gives it hugs and kisses. She gets confused sometimes though and thinks that everyone is growing babies in their bellies. Most notably, that SHE is growing a baby in her belly. Funny? Yes. But we try not to encourage it (for obvious reasons).

Also - for anyone that knows how our current place is laid out - yes, we know it's small. We're hoping to be in a bigger place before Baby comes along in November, but I know we can make it work at our current address if we need to. After all, they ("they" being the Beatles, of course...) say that all you need is love, right? (And a couple dozen newborn diapers... and maybe some earplugs???)



And now, without further adieu, a close-up of my favorite picture from this morning's photo shoot: