Give pee a chance

Well, it looks like the baby doesn't want to reveal its gender just yet. No dice during the ultrasound. Although the ultrasound tech did say that when the bean was shifting around, she saw something that would indicate a boy. I believe medically it is referred to as a pee pee. But she couldn't get the kid to move position when she went in for a closer look. The baby was sitting on its legs and no pee pee could be seen either way. I should also mention that during the two minutes the doctor spent with us that he gave his two cents as well. He said , "well if I had to guess, I'd say it's a girl." If I had to guess? What? No one is asking you to guess. Geez man, I hope you never have to diagnose anything more serious than the gender of a child. I can just hear it now, "well, if I had to guess you have a terminal disease and you'd best get started on your bucket list, like right now." We go back to the regular OB next Thursday and hopefully he won't just give us his best 50/50 hypothesis. If that doesn't work, maybe I'll just go to a psychic.

But more importantly, the real reason for the Level 2 Sonogram was to look for any physical Down syndrome markers. According to the doctor, everything looked good and they didn't detect any abnormalities with the baby. While we are of course overjoyed at this news, I do wish the tech and doctor would have been more verbal with us during this process. I would have liked for them to tell us more specifically which marker they were looking for and what they found. The ultrasound tech just told us she was doing an anatomy scan and I didn't even realize she was looking for the Down syndrome markers at all. She kept saying that she wasn't going to do the measurements unless the doctor told her to (meanwhile, I thought the measurements were the markers, as many of them are measurements). Anyway, when the doctor then came in and told us everything was fine, I had to wonder if something had been miscommunicated between them. I mean this is the same doctor that "guessed" the baby was a girl. Of course I'm happy with the outcome, I just wish I felt more convinced of its validity. So I'm hoping that my regular doctor can better communicate exactly which markers the Duke doctors looked at and that will help to prove it to my brain.

In other news, Dave and I voted early this morning. We thought we would be smart and arrive to the polls right when they opened to avoid a line. Apparently, everyone else in the Triangle area had the same plan. We arrived at the community center down the road and there was already a line wrapped around the parking lot. All in all, it took us two hours to vote. And while that sounds like a long time, it was the best voting experience I've ever had. It was a beautiful morning and we stood in line with some good natured people and sipped our tea. Some of the local candidates or their spouses were on hand attempting to win some last minute support. Other volunteers from both sides walked up the lines handing out literature and voter help guides as well. The grassroots organization of this election has been outstanding. And no matter how this election turns out, it's refreshing to see such an impressive turnout. We heard today that 40% of registered North Carolinians have already voted. I'm interested in comparing that number of early votes to the total turnout from previous elections. Change is in the air, that's for sure.

Hmm, what else happened today? Oh yes, I peed myself earlier this evening. That's not something people admit to often I bet. Dave and I were folding baby clothes and diapers we've bought so far, when I sneezed. I was prepared for this to happen eventually, but I thought (hoped) it would hold off until later in my pregnancy. Of course, as luck would have it, I was wearing thin green stretch pants that immediately darkened. There's really no hiding it when you've peed yourself.

"Uhh, I just peed a little. It seems to happen when I sneeze every now and then, " I admitted.

"Nu uh!" Dave said. Why he thought I would lie about wetting myself I do not yet understand.

"No really," I clarified while turning around and pointing at the wet spot.

Dave fell to the ground laughing. Ahh, pregnancy is a never ending delight. After I stuffed the clothes, blankets and diapers into the newly painted dresser, I walked back into the soon-to-be nursery where we are storing all the items we've bought so far. I caught a whiff of something that made me think the kitty had possibly started marking her territory. Maybe with all of these new baby scents, the jig is up and she has been peeing in the room to claim it, I thought to myself. "Oh wait a second, that's just me."