Boy oh boy... it's a boy! Needless to say, that was a shock to mommy's system! I was so certain I was having a girl that I hadn't really allowed myself the possibility of it being a boy. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed because I really was. I cried in the doctor's office, I cried all the way home, I cried to my mom on the phone, I cried after dinner, and I cried again in the middle of the night! I later realized though that I wasn't crying for what I have as much as I was crying for what I won't have-- i.e., barbies, tea parties, dance recitals, pink dresses, etc. The problem is marketing! They make little girl stuff so darn cute that of course a girly-girl like myself is going to fall head over heels in love with it! We can also blame Disney and their princesses; God knows I fell for that stuff hook, line, and sinker!
But, God has blessed us with a little boy so it's hard not to be excited about that, especially when you look at his little face and fingers in the ultrasound pictures. I can just picture a little version of Adam playing sports and helping daddy clip Sunday coupons (daddy's favorite weekend activity!) Of course I will love my boy with all of my heart, but it was just difficult to change my mindset when I was so sure I had everything figured out. This is a reminder that nature is the ultimate boss, not me!
Our son will be the center of our lives and I can't wait to welcome him in March. We know we want two kids, so in a couple of years we'll start trying for our second and hopefully next time we'll get our little princess (who will have a perfect, wonderful big brother to look after her!)
Now that we know we've been rethinking our name choice. This boy just doesn't feel like a Dominic to me. I don't know-- but it just doesn't seem to fit anymore. We've picked a few others that are in the running... Anthony and Paul are top on the list. I'll be browsing name books and websites over the next few weeks to see if there's anything that really pops out at me.
Until later, our baby boy is baking in the oven!
Chantel
2006-11-02 (20 weeks)
Say cheese baby! It's picture day!
November 2, 2006
Well the big day has finally arrived-- 20 week ultrasound day! I'm anxious and excited and ready to find out whether we are buying pink or blue. I still think it's a girl, but as the day has drawn closer I don't have as much confidence in that as I did two months ago. I've been trying to prepare myself so I won't be disappointed if it's a boy. The more I think about it, the more I realize that I may have an initial period of disappointment, but I will get over it quickly. I like the thought of a cute, chubby-cheeked little Adam running around. Mainly, at this point, I just want to know one way or the other!! I hope baby cooperates and we can get a good picture. My friend Kristy tells me to eat chocolate and drink coke beforehand to get the baby moving. If I must... I guess I will
I'm still sold on Juliana Grace for a girl, but if it does turn out to be a boy, I'm second guessing our choice of Dominic William. I definitely want to keep William in honor of Adam's late dad, but I have a few more ideas to consider for a boy now. I like the idea of using Adam's middle name-- Paul. Paul William DiMuzio. I also really like Nathan-- Nathan William DiMuzio. I like Roman too but my mom nixed that one because she's a long time Days of our Lives fan and apparently there's a character on that show named Roman.
Until later, when we find out if the cookie we're baking is male or female...
Chantel
2006-10-24 (18 weeks)
Kickstart my Heart
October 24, 2006
After weeks of impatiently waiting to feel some movement from the baby, I finally started to feel some substantial kicks this past weekend. They were also coming more consistently, so I'm hoping this is the start of the kicking era. I felt the most movement yesterday (Monday). I felt some kicking in the morning when I first woke up, then in the mid afternoon after enjoying a nice half cup of coffee, later in the evening while watching t.v., and then again when I got into bed. The funny part is that Chip is already enjoying playing games with her/his daddy. Everytime I felt the movement Adam wasn't there, except for when I got in bed last night. I had my hand on my stomach as I tried to fall asleep, and Adam was reading next to me. I felt two or three good jolts, so I grabbed his hand so he could experience it, and of course, they immediately stopped. That's my girl (or boy)-- already picking on daddy! Picking on my own dad was, and still is, one of my favorite past times. I'll have to teach Chip to punch her daddy's newspaper while he's trying to read (I even pulled that one on my dad when he was here visiting last month. Old habits die hard!)
The ultrasound is scheduled for November 2nd. We are all beyond excited-- we've been waiting the whole pregnancy for this! I just hope Chip cooperates and shows us the goods, though I doubt any baby of mine will be camera shy. We took a poll at the Book Club Friday night as what people thought the sex might be, and the votes were overwhelmingly for a girl. I still believe it is, but we'll see for almost-certainty next week!
Had another bout with sickness and emotional turmoil Friday night. The greasy meat from the tacos I ate for dinner came back to haunt me around 4:00am. I was about as naseous as I've ever been, and of course, in grand Chantel fashion I started crying because I didn't feel well. Adam, always the trooper, just held me and let me sob as I felt increasingy silly, but couldn't stop the waterworks. I sure am glad I'm having most of these emotional fits at home where only Adam gets a first hand view of my looniness!
Until later, the cookie's in the oven...
Chantel
2006-10-17 (17 weeks)
Disney Fun
What great parents we are. We've already taken our child to Disney World! This past weekend we took what may be our last weekend getaway for quite awhile. We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, which was fantastically cool. Our room had a king sized bed and overlooked the pool. Friday night, we went to dinner at the Rain Forest Cafe. There an hour and a half wait for dinner, so Adam suggested we get hungry little mommy a snack to tide her over until our table was ready. Daddy-to-be rules-- he got us NACHOS to share-- man I LOVE nachos!! Once we finally got to the table, my joy was abruptly zapped by the absence of fajitas on the menu. Earlier in the day I looked up the menu online and saw fajitas, so of course I'd been anticipating them all day long. Denying a pregnant woman the food she craves is dirty business. I was dismayed enough to even shed a few tears (hey, this is a pregnancy thing, not something I'd normally do, ok?) Adam made me laugh by promising to make the sizzling fajita sounds when my dinner was served. He even offered several times to leave so we could find some fajitas, but it was past 8:00 at that point and I was starving. Dinner turned out to be great once I got over my disappointment.
Saturday we hung out by the pool most of the day. Now, at $250+ a night, you would think this "deluxe" resort could manage to heat their dang pool! The pool in my neighborhood is warmer, and that's saying a lot. Saturday evening we went see the fireworks over the Magic Kingdom at the Contemporary Resort, then had scrumptious desserts at the restaurant on the top floor. Sunday, we went over to the Grand Floridian resort where Adam had booked me a special "mommy-to-be" massage. Aaaahhh, it was heavenly! I get massages pretty regularly thanks to that pesky car accident last year, but this one was extra special because it was the first time I had been able to lay on my stomach in about a month! They had a special maternity pillow with the belly carved out. I must get myself one of those! The rest of the day we hung out by their pool, which WAS heated very nicely. A wonderfully fun weekend indeed.
As we were at the resorts we saw, of course, many families and small children running about. It's so strange to think that will soon be us! I loved seeing the little girls in their princess costumes though, and am very excited to take our kids to Disney World someday. I remember my first trip to Disney World and how special going there always was to me. I always wanted to live close-- cool that my kids will!
This week we have our monthly doctor's appointment. I have to tell them whether we want to do the AFP testing or not. Adam and I are pretty much decided against it. At first I thought, of course, since it only involves drawing blood from me, but the more I've talked to people about it, there are too many potential problems to ignore. False positives occur 5% of the time. I can't fathom spending the rest of my pregnancy (and basically, having the whole experience ruined) because I'm worried to death that my child might have major problems, especially since they're problems I can't do anything about. I know some people might consider abortion with a positive result, but of course that is not even a thought in our minds. So I'm left wondering, what's the point? It won't change anything either way. In my heart I know our baby is fine, so the potential pain that test could put us through just doesn't seem worth it.
