The Rest of the Story ... part 3

After the first ultrasound, we talked about doing an amniocentesis.  If finding out would have made a difference in labor & delivery or postnatal care, we would have opted to do it.  As it was, the amniocentesis wouldn't make a difference one way or the other for Ben's care, so we decided against it.

I went back for two other level II ultrasounds.  Both times, I was only able to see the ultrasound tech and not the doctor.  Both times, I had to wait for hours to get into the appointment and then no one talked to me about what they saw.  It was frustrating.  They asked me to come in for another ultrasound "to check fetal growth" but I refused.   I spoke to the nurse about the ultrasounds I had done so far, and she confirmed that (1) the echogenic bowel had resolved (2) the baby was measuring fine  and (3) my amniotic fluid and placenta looked good.  They had seen no further signs of Down syndrome - or anything else - so I felt comfortable not going back.  My OB/GYN's office could do follow up sonograms.

The last few months of pregnancy were good.  I was tired a lot, and the kids and I watched a ton of Phineas and Ferb, but we also went swimming several times a week and took a trip to visit family in Hawaii.  I loved feeling the baby move!

I nested.  I cleaned out our closet (halfway) and set up the pack and play.  I washed all the baby boy clothes that people gave me, sized them and put them in bins.  I dug through boxes in the garage to find baby toys and bottles.  I made one trip to Babies R Us to grab some pack and play sheets and bottles.  Evan and Corrie each picked out one toy to give their new baby brother.

And his name!  We had no idea what to name the baby.  Emmett and I went out to breakfast one morning and looked through a baby name book.  We came home with a list of 8-10 boys' names that we liked.  I stuck it on the fridge and we discussed it occasionally.  Whenever guests came over, they would weigh in with opinions.

It's funny to me now, but I kind of stopped thinking about Down syndrome.  I knew that the screening tests have a lot of false positives, and everything on the sonograms looked good.  I didn't do any real research or anything.  I just figured things would be fine.  And in the grand scheme of things, Down syndrome didn't seem that bad.

Thanksgiving 2011

When we moved to Texas, we met two great families. (Really, we met lots of great families. But at the moment, I want to talk about two of them). The dads worked at the same university as my husband. The wives are stay-at-home moms. And their kids are close in age to Evan and Corrie.

For two years, these families have been our "Texas family." Emmett carpooled to work with one of the guys, I did Zumba with his wife, and our daughters were best friends. The other family goes to our church, and we were in a small group together. Evan considers their boys his best friends. We are beyond thankful to know these men, women and kids.

Sadly (for us), both of the dads have accepted teaching positions at other schools. One family moved to Kansas in June, and the other one is leaving next week for Mississippi. We're bummed.

This Thanksgiving was really special because we got to see both of those families. The Kansas crew drove back to Texas to see us (also to meet Ben and to pick up some items they had left behind). The Mississippi-bound crew came over to play football in the yard and eat turkey. I can't imagine the past two years without these people. I am whole-heartedly thankful that God brought them to the Rio Grande Valley just when he brought us.

The Plague

We are down for the count. Fortunately, no one has strep or the flu, but we all have something yucky. Evan's coughing is out of control - he's on the nebulizer 3x/day, plus taking allergy meds and steroids. Corrie's got a fever and sore throat - she's on an antibiotic and Mucinex. Emmett and I both have sinus junk. And Ben is the champ - hanging in there with no cold sickness yet!

We are praying that he stays clear of all this yuck. A heart problem and respiratory sickness are not a good combination.

And still no photos. I really have to look for that battery charger! Not that anyone would want to see photos of all us sick people.

Here's another cutie Ben photo, just for kicks:

Halloween 2011

We enjoyed Halloween. I have no photographic evidence to support that statement. We (I) have temporarily misplaced the battery charger for the camera, so ... I can't show you anything right now. (For that matter, I have also misplaced my car keys. I got the kids all ready for soccer practice tonight, and then couldn't find the keys ... we played soccer in the yard for a while).

Ben had no costume - just a cute orange Halloween onesie. Corrie opted to be Rapunzel (mostly). She wore her Rapunzel dress, some fairy wings, a tiara, and a headband holding some long yellow yarn. Evan was Steelix, a Pokemon that sort of looks like an evil gray caterpillar with spikes. We made his costume out of cardboard. I don't know that a written description would do it justice. One kid walking past him said, "Hey! It's scary-looking Pumpkin head man." Evan was a little offended.

Evan likes ... umm ... unusual costumes. Two years ago, he wanted to be Martian Manhunter. "Only blue. Not green." That was another crazy homemade costume - blue face paint, blue shirt and pants, red ribbon belt and vest, plus a black cape. I don't think anyone knew what he was supposed to be. Last year, he really wanted to be a dragon. We were traveling in October, so I finally convinced him to let us buy him a costume. He was a knight.

Corrie was a princess last year, too. Halloween 2010 was the first time she dressed up as a princess. She embraced princess dresses with great enthusiasm - I think we own at least 10 princess dresses and countless accessories by now.

Would it be awful if I posted pictures from last year? Then I'll throw in a cute one of Ben for good measure. Maybe we'll re-enact Halloween once we find the battery charger. :)

Evan with his friend B (AKA Captain Hook)

Corrie with her friend B (AKA Mulan)

Ben (AKA Cutest baby EVER!) Don't you just want to kiss his tummy? :)