FAQ: Baby and Pregnancy Edition

Today was our 20 week ultrasound, except really I'm 22 weeks along, and apparently the baby is measuring at more like 24 weeks.  All is well, all body parts accounted for, so wonderful news there. I think Georgia would've gotten a kick out of going to the appointment to see the baby on screen, but Joe and I were just a little nervous about the possibility of anything negative being discovered right in front of her face, and then having to deal with the awkwardness of it all.

I don't know how recently ultrasounds became commonplace during pregnancy, but I don't think they were around when our parents had us, and I feel like they really missed out. Sure, the still pictures look blurry and alien-like, but when you see your baby moving up on the screen, it's amazing. Joe and I held hands and watched with bated breath. 

Here are the answers to your burning questions:

1)  Yes, this was planned. 
If ever there was a doubt that Joe and I had lost our minds, it has been erased by the many bulging eyeball reactions and hushed questions about whether this third baby was an accident.  Apparently I have been reading way too many Mormon mommy blogs, where 3 kids is just a starter set.  I am finding that especially in the big city corporate law firm world, 3 kids is apparently your one-way ticket to crazytown.

2)  No, this was not planned. 
I'm talking about the 3 kids all having August birthdays, that is.  We did not synchronize our watches to achieve such symmetrical results.  For those who've lost track, Georgia's birthday is August 9th, June's is August 18th, and the baby is due on August 8th.  Our first two kids were late, so they say this one likely will be, too.  If it comes one day late, it will share a birthday with Georgia.  If it comes on time or early, then for a brief, brief period of days (barring unforeseen premature birth events), we will have three kids aged three and under.  Yikes. 

3)  It's not about a boy. 
News flash: we have no control over the sex of our children.  Nor would we want to.  People ask all the time if we were "trying" for a boy, and while I totally understand that some people legitimately do hope for a baby of a certain sex, I can honestly say that Joe and I do not care a lick.  In fact, more often than not we picture this baby as a girl, simply because that's what we're accustomed to.  (Sorry about that, little fetus dude, if you are in fact a boy.)  We did not find out the sex at our 22 week ultrasound because we've enjoyed the delivery room surprises too much.  It's just fun to not know.  (And I know that's mind blowing to some people, who could not feel more strongly in the opposite direction.  It's all good.  I love reading your blog entries about the ultrasound anticipation, because it's such a different feeling than what I've experienced.)  Funny thing, though - the ultrasound tech told us she just needed to confirm the sex to make sure everything was okay anatomically speaking, but that we should look away from the screen and she wouldn't record it anywhere in our file.  It is kind of wild to me to think this one random woman out there knows what we're having, but we don't!

4) No, we're not moving.
Sometime this summer, Georgia and June will start sharing a bedroom, and the baby will eventually move into what is currently June's room. 

5)  I'm feeling pretty good, thanks for asking. 
Part of the reason I've been able to take on three pregnancies is that, so far (knock wood!), my body has put up with them all pretty well.  I try to carry on with my life like a non-pregnant person as much as possible, minus the drinking.  I had some first trimester nausea and knock-down tiredness, but nothing bad, really.  Didn't even throw up once.  (I hear such horror stories that I know to count my lucky stars.)  I'm going to physical therapy for chronic tailbone pain, but that is something that bothers me even when I'm not pregnant.  There are certain things about being pregnant again that seem to go easier, like your body is saying, "Oh wait, I remember how to do this," and then there are certain things that make you feel like you've gone back to the well one too many times, like your poor body is just too stretchy and worn out.  Namely, I'm having round ligament pain, which isn't fun and makes me feel old for some reason, even though it's clearly just a pregnancy symptom. 

6)  June is pretty oblivious to the whole thing so far.
Based on prior experience, I'm guessing that sometime in the coming months as my belly continues to grow, June will catch on to the concept that there's a baby in there.  She loves baby dolls, so she'll be down with that.  (At least until she realizes what having a new sibling in her life really means, that is.) 

7)  Georgia believes the baby is a girl named Lollipop. 
Georgia isn't too focused on the baby but gets excited about it when it comes up, apparently having stored no memories of how much June's arrival overhauled her entire world.  She has taken to making announcements to strangers and in classes or hair salons to let everyone know that, "There's a baby in mommy's tummy!"  She thinks it would be just peachy to share a birthday with the baby.  She prefers that the baby be another little sister.  She's so convinced that the baby is a girl that we have to keep reminding her of the possibility that it's a boy, just so she doesn't freak out if we come home from the hospital with a brother.  Either way, the child's name will be Lollipop as far as she's concerned. 

8) No, we won't be hiring the same doula. 
Yeah, so, about the hospital...  Joe's pretty much ready to pack our bags and check in today, just in case.  Hardy har har.  I'm not advocating for a home birth (good for you if you are, but it's not for us I don't think), but I'm also pretty much fine with a repeat performance of what went down last time.  Will I get an epidural?  Oh Lord, I don't know.  Can we save that discussion for a different day?  Fact is, there is no easy way to get a baby out. 

9) I guess we'll buy more pork chops?
This would be the answer to, "WHAT ABOUT THE PORK CHOPS?" and similar questions relating to the fact that having a family of 5 will mean needing room for 5 in our vehicle, room for 5 in our hotel rooms, dealing with amusement park tickets that are sold in groups of 4, and foods that are packaged in inconvenient numbers.  Cracks me up.  I don't know, but somehow we will make due.  I should probably be thinking about college tuition and orthodontia bills, but my freak outs are more centered on the immediate present and how I'm going to deal with three kids all crying at the same time, whether everyone in our house will ever be asleep at the same time, and "the bundling."  Oh my God, the bundling.  I am afraid we may not leave the house for 6 months or more next winter due to the amount of bundling effort and time involved to get out the door. 

Well, that concludes this edition of FAQ's.  Did I forget anything?