Ultrasound Pictures

Our little girl with her hand under her chin. The ultrasound tech said she was a "poser". I hope that will make for good photography once we meet in person, and not be indicative of a dramatic personality. Those perfectly straight arm bones were a major good sign yesterday! (Add that to the list of things I didn't know I'd be thankful for before going through this Trisomy 18 stuff a couple of times.)

If there was any lingering doubt, there is no longer. Even I know that's a girl!

One very cute (and not at all clubbed) foot! They were hoping to get a good shot of the toes to show that they were all where they were supposed to be. Foot and hand deformities are a big indicator of genetic issues. So this full on shot of a foot was a gift!

And the best one we got---- with the arms finally away from her face.

Yesterday's much anticipated follow-up ultrasound with Geisinger came with a feeling of peace surrounding it. For some reason, as I've prayed about meeting with the specialists again for another look at our baby, I just felt a calmness about what we'd learn. There wasn't the anxiety that surrounded our similar experience with Joshua, or our first visit there 5 weeks ago. It was strangely reassuring to know that it looked as though I was the cause of this little panic....that somehow my body chemistry negatively impacts the blood test that got us there in the first place.

Our appointment was wonderful....truly. I said a prayer on my way to the hospital yesterday morning that God would put us in the hands of someone who was really good at what they did, and that the baby would cooperate for some good pictures. My prayer was answered on both accounts. I don't recall the name of the ultrasound technician who took care of us, but I can tell you that she was a gift. She was kind and talkative and very careful to point out everything she was looking at and looking for. We also had a medical student standing in. I believe he was more interested in learning about ultrasound skills than about our baby in particular, but he was also very nice.

There is no longer any doubt that we'll be bringing home a baby girl to love...she wasn't shy about showing off. We had mentioned that we were interested in knowing, and so our tech went right for it. We told her that we had been given some suspiscions about the gender, but that no one was completely convinced. She very quickly said, "I sure hope they told you that you're having a girl, because you most certainly are." So that sealed the deal. Pink and purple and Barbies and dolls and makeup and drama and prom gowns and weddings it is. Heaven help us.

The gender confirmation was fun, but what we really wanted to hear was Dr. Schucker's opinion after reviewing all of the pictures that our tech had captured. She looked at everything, and then rescanned to get more pictures of the baby's heart, and then told us that she sees nothing to indicate a concern of Trisomy 18. The baby is growing appropriately and dating within 3 days of my October 5th due date. She said that by now, the growth of the baby's arms and legs would most likely be stunted by now. She also expected that heart issues and deformations of the hands and feet would be present. We got beautiful, clear images of all of them yesterday. She told us that there's no reason for us to be seen at Geisinger for any more follow up and that there's no reason that we need to deliver the baby at a specialized hospital like Geisinger. While I'm so very thankful that such a world class hospital is literally right in our backyard, it's not the kind of place that you want to be told you HAVE to deliver your baby at due to fear of complications. So I was grateful for that news.

And so we headed home. Jason was feeling like a proud Daddy and wanted to take the pictures to his office to share with all of the ladies there. I loved seeing him happy and relieved and proud of his baby daughter. Our daughter kicked me all the way back to Lewisburg, as if to say, "See, I told you Mommy. I'm going to be just fine!" We made some phone calls, sent some emails and said a lot of thankful prayers. I don't take lightly the fact that we've somehow survived a brush with disaster twice now, and I also realize and appreciate that life is miraculous and so very fragile all at the same time. It appears as though, by the grace of God, we're going to be welcoming a baby girl into the world in a few months....and then bringing her home to love forever. What an incredible blessing.

So, I feel a shopping trip coming on. Any joiners for the land of pink and purple?

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I can't possibly leave Joshua out of this post. Although he wasn't very interested in the pictures of his baby sister last evening, he was definitely a character. He and Daddy had a very fun evening of cutting the grass, after which we watched in amazement as Jason spent the better part of a half hour chasing a bird out of our garage who was looking as though they wanted to set up shop. After that, Joshua sat down to finish his Rita's from Tuesday night. Jason had his dinner at the same time. All of a sudden, Joshua looked over at Jason and said, "Daddy, we're both having treats together." He held up his Rita's cup and clinked it against Jason's drink and said, "Cheers!" Now where in the world would he have gotten that? Cheers. What the heck. At least we have someone to lead the toast when the baby gets here.

Or perhaps we could rent him out for other formal engagements that need a toast. Weddings? Retirement dinners? Remember folks....we have a wedding to save for now! We're going to have to get creative.