Snowmageddon Round Two

Yep, two MORE snow days this week! As predicted, we didn't get much rest after the last storm. I would say we ended up with around 8-9 inches each time and it's still coming down. I love being cozied up under a blanket watching it get more and more beautiful! I'm thankful that we still live in an apartment so I don't have to worry about shoveling - just clearing off my car.

I've had a little ton of extra time on my hands and I've tried to be productive but it's been pretty challenging! I know I'll look back and wish I would've done more but honestly I really appreciated the chance to relax! Thankfully, Rob is particularly talented in this area. :) 

One of my accomplishments is totally restructuring my lesson plans. Four times. Ridiculous.

I also had time last night to snap a pic of the ever growing bump. July will be here in no time! 

Weekend wrap-up

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROB!!!

Unfortunately, turning 26 wasn't as thrilling as previous years have been. But thankfully he didn't have to work and we got to spend the whole day together. That's the good stuff. :)

Being cooped up together for two days straight had us both itching to get out and per usual, I made myself a to-do list 10 times longer than what I would actually accomplish. So, Rob headed off to ball in the afternoon and I was so anxious to give him a little birthday surprise since I didn't actually buy him a gift this year. (Am I a terrible wife?) So, I immediately started baking his cake. Well, after I flipped on a recorded ep of the Bachelor which I am several weeks behind on...

Ok, I should rewind a little. Last year I took him to the grocery store and made him pick his favorite kind of cake for his birthday. He picked funfetti but the next day I baked a yellow cake which was right next to his beloved funfetti in the pantry. I thought it turned out pretty great (see pic) and he just laughed when I pointed out that I used the wrong mix (which I shouldn't have done and he probably wouldn't have noticed), but I still felt terrible.

Fast forward to this year: I still have that same box of funfetti cake mix in the pantry and I'm fairly sure it would still taste fine even though it's slightly expired. I knew he'd laugh and be surprised. I was extra jazzed up because I found an easy variation on Pinterest to make it even more delicious. So, I whipped it up and popped it in the oven.

Next, I grabbed my stash of streamers that I had dug out of my school things last week in anticipation and got to decorating. Easier said than done. You see, we don't own a stepladder because Rob has zero need and all our normal chairs were in the storage closet which I couldn't get to on account of the snow. I had a little trouble getting them hung but I made due with a barstool which it took much longer than anticipated.

About 10 minutes into my flurry of decorating, I had that sinking feeling when I realized I totally messed up the cake and forgot to put in a key ingredient: water. Actually the Pinterest variation calls for milk but I didn't put that in either. I jumped down and waddled  ran to the oven to find exactly what I feared: that stupid funfetti cake got the best of me, AGAIN. Totally ruined!

So, I let them finish baking and wrapped up my decorating just in time for Rob to walk in the door. I was so anxious for him to see the streamers and knew he would be so surprised.

Wooomp, wooomp, wooooomp... Yes, he was surprised but not excited. I think he actually said he was so mad that he was going to close his eyes so he wouldn't have to see them. WHAT?!?! Apparently he was just upset that I said I wouldn't do anything for his birthday and I went to a bunch of work. He was also probably not pleased that I was standing on a swivel barstool at 4 1/2 months pregnant. Nevertheless, I was not pleased with his immediate response! A couple days later he admits that he does like the decorations and all is well. :) Even if he's just saying that for me. He's sweet like that.

Well, then I took him to see the cake which was a pretty funny scene. He laughed and I saw how upset I was (pregnancy hormones much?) then he even took a bite to make me feel better. Obviously it was terribly dry but he faked it just to make me happy. What a guy! Being all nice and whatnot on his birthday.

After that whole charade, I was extra thankful that his parents headed down Saturday morning! We always a good time and I knew they could help salvage his birthday weekend. They got here around lunchtime and we headed to our fave burger joint, Five Guys.  I tell you what, I'm definitely going to miss that place but my waistline won't! Then we strolled through Buy, Buy Baby which was so much fun! The bought the most adorable little Under Armour onsie (see pics) and I can't wait to see the little guy sportin it around town. He's already the most stylish, sporty kid around.

We also spent some time at Town Center Plaza and eventually made our way to Minsky's for dinner. Delish. Sunday we strolled through the mall and then headed to a new fave spot - Johnny's. It was such a nice, relaxing weekend!

Honestly, I know I say this all the time but Rob and I are so blessed and thankful to have amazing families. So many people have in-law horror stories and dread spending time with family but we are incredibly fortunate to have the opposite experience.

Well, I'm off to grade some papers and watch the Oscars red carpet! Apparently we're supposed to get a pretty serious snowstorm AGAIN on Tuesday ... hopefully that means more blogging to come. :)

21 weeks

At 21 weeks, I am ...

feeling great!

definitely growing.

still suffering from back pain in that one spot so I'm going to the chiro every week now.

not questioning even a little bit that there's a babe in there. :)

watching my belly button get shallower by the day.

having little more heartburn.

wearing more and more maternity clothes.

still loving being pregnant!

Two snow days!

Horray for no school! Or work for Rob! 

Well, actually he did go into work today. On his birthday. At 6:55. In the morning. After waking up extra early to scrape off his truck and allowing extra time for travel. Only to get there and see an empty parking lot! Apparently someone dropped the ball and didn't contact him because she thought someone else had already informed him they weren't going to open until noon. 

I would've been furious and made sure to let my employer know exactly what I thought about the situation but Rob handled it with some serious class. You see, he's a nice guy. Painfully nice, even. After a quick text to a coworker to confirm what he already discovered, he called me to offer to get me a bagel from Bruegger's on his way home. WHA?!? Who is that calm, cool, and collected in such a situation? And thinking of others, no less? Did I mention it was his birthday?

We all know I wasn't going to miss out on breakfast but instead of Bruegger's, he swung by and picked me up and we headed out on quite the adventure to find donuts. We have this freaking awesome silly tradition of getting donuts on a snow day which my quick-witted husband cleverly nicknamed "snonuts".  

We drove around a bit checking out the roads and some cars stranded in hilarious positions. Seriously, where were you trying to go? And why were you out during a snowstorm in your Prius? People in general are just dumb. 

Unfortunately our favorite joint, Lamar's, was closed because of weather so we stopped at the gas station down the street and got some essentials. (see pic below) This is what you venture out for during a snowstorm, right? Whoops, I guess we might be some of those aforementioned dumb people, too. 

FYI - the donuts and choc milk were for me (obviously) and the beef jerky chew and Slim Jim were a little birthday treat for Rob. At least he had something to enjoy as my efforts to make his big day special were a total disaster. Read more on my next post ... 

The storm really was much worse Thursday than Friday and we thoroughly enjoyed being snowed in. We lounged on the couch - him relishing the start of baseball season and me avoiding schoolwork. The snow paused for a bit so we cleaned off our cars then trekked up to the gym which was the true workout! 

Hands down the best part of the day was the view out our bedroom window. Yes, the snow was beautiful but that's not what I'm talking about. You see, people in apartments down own shovels and when the plows come through they only block the cars in worse. People were using brooms/dustpans, rubbermaid containers, buckets, anything they could to dig themselves out! This lady above was a real treat though. The three pictures above look like they were taken in quick sequence but that's far from the truth. She went straight in and out of her garage no fewer than 50 times and it took probably a half hour for her to finally figure it out and free herself! Oh, man it was ridiculous...

Oh, and we can see the intersection of 135 & Quivira and it was just one car after another getting stuck. Again, why do you think you can drive your Mini Cooper in a foot of snow?

We also watched the weather forecasts and had a good laugh at the funniest meteorologist, Bryan Busby. I can't even say his name without cracking up! They showed lots of images of the interstates which became parking lots full of people who thought they could get somewhere they obviously were not capable of. There were even lots of jackknifed trucks and trailers. Yikes! 

Welp, here's to a four day weekend! 

20 weeks

At 20 weeks pregnant ...

- I can't believe this pregnancy is halfway over!

- I don't have a picture of my progress. This is because I didn't do my hair/makeup the entire weekend!

 I have only missed one other week so far and that was over Christmas.

- I have slightly clearer skin. Thank goodness!

- I'm still not wearing maternity clothes. I've tried a couple of times but the pants just don't stay up well. I prefer the old rubber band trick for now. I've also tried the BeBand which works pretty well. It's just a pain to readjust every time I go to the bathroom. 10,000 times a day.

- I'm definitely showing. I was worried about not being very big earlier but I have definitely made up for lost time!

- I still don't have any wild cravings. I guess I've been eating more salty snacks, but overall nothing weird.

- I'm having increasing pain in my lower back. I've had trouble with this spot off and on before but it's fairly constant now. After my appointment today I decided to start going every week, partially because I won't hit my allotted number of visits in a calendar year because of the move. I love getting adjusted!

- I still have a heightened sense of smell which was already keen in my opinion.

- I have been feeling the baby move occasionally. No firm kicks or punches - mostly just somersaults and "pops" here and there. :) There are times when I can see a bulge from the outside, then feel him reposition, and a minute later the bulge is gone. So cool!

- I'm trying to work out but it's tricky. Kristen and I have been going on walks occasionally and I hope once the weather is nicer I can spend lots more time outside. Something about the Spring weather just makes you want to be active!

- I've had lots of odd and vivid dreams. I guess that's not necessarily different than usual...

- The cat's out of the bag. I told my seminar class today and their reactions were so funny! One group had no idea when the hangman answer was down to "Mrs. Simms is pr _ _ nan_". One of the girls was staring at my stomach the whole time hoping my scarf would swing out of the way so she could sneak a peek at the bump. They were pretty excited!

- I'm very worried about Rob finding a job. I know he will but the world would be such a happy place if everyone and everything moved at my pace. :)

- I'm also worried about where I'm going to deliver this baby and where we'll be living at the time. However, I need to deliver in-network at Overland Park Regional Medical Center but our apartment lease ends Memorial Day weekend. It sounds ridiculous but we might have to come back a week ahead of time and rent an extended stay hotel room or something and twiddle our thumbs until it's time. I laughed the first time Rob suggested it, but honestly I think it's the most likely situation at this point. We've also kicked around the idea of extending our lease until August. 

Everyone cross your fingers for a snow day this week!!!! (FYI - teachers totally get their hopes up and enjoy snow days more than students. I didn't believe this until I experienced it from this end ...) I'll be back with a picture update soon. 

Weekend Wrap-Up

Happy President's Day! I'm thoroughly enjoying my day off today and trying to check off lots of to-do items. Yes, blogging was one of them!

Our weekend started with me working at school until dinnertime on Friday. Womp womp wommmmp. But, I did get everything graded and feel good about accomplishing so much! Plus, Rob was busy and we were planning to meet in downtown OP for pizza so there was no reason to drive all the way home. 

The pizza was delicious, especially since I used a coupon. :) It was a great way to celebrate Valentine's Day! His gift to me was maybe the best ever - through one of his patients here he found a chiropractor in Ankeny who is maybe looking to expand AND Rob contacted him! My gift to him was these adorable baseball pacifiers (below) that he's been dying to buy forever. Jury's still out on what we're going to call them: paci? binky? buddy? (Rob ruled out the last one since it's a nickname for his dog's favorite toy. Agreed.) Check out this link for some hilarious alternatives!

Saturday morning I woke up and decided to "take this day" as Rob says. AKA I didn't do anything productive and even snuck in a nap. Glorious. I guess I did get in a workout then we headed to Applebee's for a free dinner (thanks, JoAnn!) which just added to the greatness of the day. During all of my much-needed relaxation, I was able to feel the baby move a few times! It's not a kick but rather feeling him shift positions. Sometimes you can see a big bulge then a couple minutes later it's smoothed out. Rob's still slightly weirded out and I think he'll be so relieved when the little guy can just play catch with him in the backyard. :) 

Speaking of backyard, we spent some time this weekend looking at houses online. This was only after discussing our budget which Rob is in charge of. Honestly, he's so talented at keeping the numbers straight and has the patience to play out every possible scenario. I'm so thankful he's willing to do this chore because I don't have the attention to detail for that sort of thing. Looking at the houses just gets me so anxious for when we'll actually have our own place and we can put down some roots. Wherever we land next will be my 11th mailing address since 2007. Yep, you read that correctly! Special shout-out to those of you who have helped me move so many times. :) 

Sunday was almost as unproductive as the day before but I did manage to get groceries and try a couple new recipes. I'm in that funk where I'm sick of the usual stuff we eat, ya know? I guess since I'm pregnant I'm allowing myself to try a few more recipes which call for half and half, butter, that sort of thing. :) On a related note, I'm no longer worried about not gaining weight. Rob did call me "sturdy" the other day but I chose to hear "Darling, you absolutely have that pregnancy glow". We have such a happy marriage! 

Ok, so here are the links for the recipes I tried this weekend:

Baked lemon herb chicken

Crispy gnocchi with sweet corn, zucchini, and basil

Easy creamy garlic chicken 

Obviously they didn't turn out perfectly, but it was nice to mix it up a bit. I'll sign off with something unexpected: a snapshot of the best $1.97 I've spent in a long time. Yes, that's a microwave splatter cover and I can't wait to give her a whirl! (I also purchased a mini chocolate milk for $.41 but I gulped it down in the car on the way home. Otherwise that would've been my all-star Wal-Mart purchase.)

Telling my students

Several of my students have suspected that I'm pregnant and it's been more and more difficult to hide. I've been snacking in class constantly, wearing lots of scarves and cardigans, and I've been absent here and there which is (fairly) rare. So, I decided that today was the day I was going to announce and after I did, quite a few of them claimed they had "called it" to their friends! But, they were ALL shocked to hear that I was about 4½ months along and couldn't believe that I hid it so well. Overall, their responses were pretty fantastic ...

1st hour (Spanish 2):
I didn't have a ton of time left at the end of class to announce my pregnancy, but I still wanted them to know today. So, I said a little spiel in Spanish then at the end said, "y yo estoy embarazada" with a big smile on my face. It took a few seconds for it to click and a few students (mostly boys) shouted out, "I don't get it.", "Why are you embarrassed?", "Why doesn't she just say this stuff in English", "Did she just say she's embarrassed?", to which a few of my more astute students replied, "No, she's PREGNANT!" then the bell rang. They were all buzzing about but not nearly as excited as my next two classes were...

2nd hour (French 2):
After assigning and explaining the children's book project we began today, I decided to pass around a few dozen examples from years past. I knew that it would distract them from whatever I was saying so call me crazy, I decided to announce then. It worked beautifully!! I put hangman on the board with the words "Madame Simms est enceinte". I went around the room one at a time having students guess letters and a few guesses in I saw it click for a couple girls in the back of the room. I told them nobody could guess until all the letters had been filled in and they were intense about everyone guessing ASAP! They kept telling people around them to put down the books and focus on guessing letters! I told them not to spill the beans but by the end everyone was just dying to guess the last letter. When the last letter was up, they all yelled and cheered and even gave a round of applause! After the commotion had died down a bit one of my innocent students, Lucas, says quietly, "I still don't know what's going on..." and everyone erupted with laughter. He is such a sweetheart and when someone clued him in his first question was, "Are you going to deliver at Shawnee Mission Medical Center? My mom is a labor and delivery nurse there and has delivered three of my teachers' babies." Adorable!

3rd hour (French 2):
Since second hour worked so well I stuck with the same game plan. Success!!! It played out almost identically except once someone in the back of the room put it together, it spread like wildfire. I told them they couldn't tell but there were whispers all across one side of the room. The other side (and all of my male students) were still in the dark but once the last letter was guessed I asked them to say it in English to avoid another Lucas situation. They were too shy to say though! It was the weirdest thing. They knew what it was, I knew they knew it, but they were so worried they were wrong that nobody wanted to say it out loud. Not even as a group! Anyway, after that was cleared up and it was time to work on their rough drafts, not a single student could focus. They were so worked up and had a million questions and comments! I think part of the problem is that there are more freshmen girls in that class than my others. Anyway, it was heartwarming that I got such a positive response! I was honestly not expecting that sort of reaction from high schoolers. :)

4th hour (Spanish 2):
At the end of the class, I left myself more time than I did in first hour so I decided to give the hangman approach a try. So, I wrote the blanks for "Señora Simms está embarazada" and had them guess one at a time. They all knew right away and were begging to just guess the phrase but I insisted they guess each letter. Bummer because NOBODY knew how to say "z" in Spanish! I was appalled and when it really wasn't fun anymore I wrote "zeta" on the board. They were so excited but it definitely wasn't as fun as second or third hour.

5th hour (Spanish 2):
Although several of my students have been onto me, fifth hour has been the most outright about knowing I'm pregnant. As a matter of fact, when I was absent on Tuesday I left this writing prompt as a time-killer for the sub: ¿Dónde está la Señora Simms hoy? I've done this before and had some very creative responses so I thougth it would be interesting to see what they had to say. WOW, was I surprised! I'm not sure what happened, but all but one student wrote something about how I was pregnant, at the doctor having a sonogram, they want to babysit for me, etc. Adorable! (See pics below) So when I returned Wednesday and called them out on it, they said, "Do you have something to share with us, Señora Simms?" I had some sassy response and denied, denied, denied! I asked if someone shouted out that their idea and everyone else agreed and they all pointed fingers at poor Caroline. Her and Melanie were so sure they were right that they spent the rest of the class period in a slump. They felt so bad that they came in during seminar to apologize and ask if I really was lying! I took them out in the hall and showed them the sonogram and they were over the moon excited!! I made them promise not to tell but realized I needed to tell this class SOON!

I'm genuinely embarrassed (ha) to post this because of the terrible grammar, but I just have to share.

The one student who didn't write about me being pregnant. At first I thought he drew my head upside down but Rob explained that clearly my eye is closed and mouth is open. Hmm. 

Fast forward to today: since it was obvious, I gave another spiel in Spanish about how I was sorry that I lied, explained that I wanted to keep the secret as long as I could but that I wanted to officially let them know that yes, I am pregnant. They were all smiling and excited when 30 seconds later my poor Princesa looked up from her paper and said, "Wait, what just happened?" Oh, the life of a teacher. :)

Ankeny Interview

I left for Ankeny straight from my sonogram which was pretty tough. I was so excited and the last thing I wanted to do was get in a car by myself for 3½ hours! Thankfully I had all my things packed up and I could get out of town before the traffic hit. It was a quick ride since I had so much on my mind to keep me occupied!

I met up with Mom and Dad at Chili's for dinner and showed them the sonogram pictures there. They were so excited! I'm still surprised at how clear the pictures are and how far technology has come even since Kael was born.

Tuesday morning I woke up early and got all ready for my interview at Ankeny High School for a Spanish/French position at Centennial. I reviewed all of my information and had a good breakfast before taking off. I was pretty nervous but kept it cool. I got there early and sat in the office while they finished preparing the conference room. I got to talk with Dr. Hawkins and Julie Blevins for a minute while I was waiting and got a really good feeling about being there. It was good to be "home" even though it was at a different building. I also saw Mr. Cowger and Mr. Richards and the front office lady commented on how I fit in so well and already knew everyone!

Before I was called back, Dr. Lindaman came out to ask me if I was comfortable having someone from the Copán, Mexico exchange program in the room. The group was in town and one of the higher-ups was interested in observing an interview, especially with a Modern Lanugage applicant. I obliged, of course and was introduced to him along with Jennifer Aguirre who will be teaching upper level Spanish at Centennial. Jodie Graham, who I interviewed with at the recruitment fair, finished off the panel.

We went through almost an entire packet of formal interview questions before it was time to head upstairs for the next portion of the interview: a 15 minute conversation in French with Madame Pace. On the way I chit-chatted a little bit in Spanish with the gentleman from Copán so it was a little tough to flip the switch to French once we got to her room. Once we got rolling, it was completely comfortable and I knew I was doing just fine. It was actually really fun, partially because it was Mardi Gras, but mostly because none of the panel knew French so we were able to talk about all sorts of things! I revealed to her that I'm expecting and that none of them knew yet and she shared that she'll be retiring after next year but hasn't officially announced it yet. Sometimes knowing another language puts you in a secret club, ya know? :)

When we wrapped up she gave two thumbs up to Dr. Lindaman right in front of me and I was glad to give Madame all the credit because she was my teacher! Again, coming home just feels good.

From there we went straight to Renée Pepper's Spanish IV classroom where I was to teach a 10-15 minute lesson. I was most nervous for this part and it didn't help that the original panel had grown from four to seven! Obviously Renée was there but two more directors from the Copán program were also in the audience. (Read: lots of native speakers and Spanish teachers.) I was sooo thankful that I had practiced on Karen's Spanish IV class the day before and was fairly confident that it was a good lesson. (The Kansas Teacher of the Year suggested the concept after all...) I got myself together and let it roll. And boy, did it roll! Honestly, it went about as well as I could've hoped and I have no idea if I was within the time frame. I even caught Renée laughing at my humor (in Spanish) a couple of times which was a good sign.

Once I was done, the original five of us headed back to the conference room to finish the formal interview portion. I felt pretty confident about my responses and after most of them had left, Dr. Lindaman asked if I would wait for a few minutes so we could go over some details. Of course I wanted details so I sat patiently by myself in the conference room. What I didn't realize was that they were quickly discussing their reactions from the interview and when she came back and sat down, she formally offered me the job!!! I was so shocked, especially when she said it was the first time she's ever given an offer on the spot! We went over the job description, salary, benefits, etc. and I was even more thrilled after hearing that information. I would be teaching Spanish III and French III and a combined French I/II class. My salary would increase about $4000 from Shawnee Mission and I would be hired on step 7. Also, family health insurance is less than $200/month! I am still in shock ... I also let her know that I was expecting because I didn't want to feel like I was deceiving anyone by accepting the job then immediately taking time off. She was very supportive and said that the rest of the Modern Language staff at Centennial are all moms and will be incredibly helpful.

So the last detail was how long I would have to decide. Rob and I honestly hadn't sat down and discussed if I would accept the job if it were offered to me since we weren't anticipating a response so quickly. He had casually mentioned that we would accept but that there is a lot to think about. After all, it was his idea for me to apply and he wouldn't have even entertained the thought if he wasn't open to moving to Ankeny. Anyway, Dr. Lindaman told me she would like a response before school in the morning. As in, less than 24 hours!!! Oh, boy.

While heading out o my car I ran into Renée Pepper who was with the director of the Copán program. I was surprised and thankful to hear such positive comments from them about my lesson. Mrs. Pepper (my former teacher) pointed out how calm I was with such important people in the crowd and expressed how honored she would be if I joined their team. I told her they offered me the position and she told me to email her ASAP once I decide! I know this is a great staff, but it just reminded me how lucky I was to be asked to join them.

Finally, after two and half hours, I called Rob and woke him up to the good news! He didn't know what to say and was clearly a little groggy still. Of course he was excited but totally blindsided by the overwhelming decision we were about to make.

When I got home my Mom was waiting anxiously and was so shocked when I told her that she was speechless almost speechless! Obviously it's her dream to have all three girls close to home, especially when there are son-in-laws and grandkids in the mix and this was the best news she'd had all day. The only way it would've been better is if I would've accepted the offer!

So, she headed to pick up Grandma and I headed to pick up CJ's for lunch and we met up at Laura's for lunch. Dad and Mandy joined us and we even got to see Kael at recess. I feel like this sort of thing happens all the time and they just don't tell me since I'm not around but they insist it's only when I'm home. :)

Anyway, they were all looking forward to the big gender reveal and Mom had time while I was at my interview to get a cake. How sweet! I even got name suggestions from Kael and Kylee and everyone cast their vote on whether it was a boy or girl.

I pulled off the blanket to reveal the blue cake, then announced the other surprise: I was offered the job this morning!

I don't think anyone was totally floored by either announcement but they were SO EXCITED for both!

Remember how I said the drive there went pretty fast? Well I had even more on my mind on the way home! If every trip went that fast I wouldn't mind living far away quite as much. Maybe.

Anyway, Rob and I spent the evening discussing what to do and essentially trying to think of reasons why we shouldn't accept. I was so exhausted that I went to bed before an official decision was made. Before leaving in the morning I shook Rob and asked if we decided anything. He muttered something and I asked if I was going to accept the position. He mumbled, "yeah, I guess" and I laughed at how anticlimactic this life-altering decision was made. I suppose it was sort of a no-brainer since we never came up with a reason strong enough to prevent us from moving to Ankeny.

So, I called the fam on the way to school then called Dr. Lindaman and HR once I got there. Everyone was so excited and I was an emotional wreck! I'll blame it on the pregnancy ...

The Pattersons sent me a thumbs up pic which I unfortunately I didn't save, but here's the one I sent back. Yes, it was early in the morning. After a long night and a couple of very eventful days.

It's a .... !

Today was the appointment we've been waiting for since we found out we were expecting: the gender revealing sonogram! We were so anxious to find out and the big day was finally here. Rob and I met at the office and sat impatiently waiting to get called back. 

We had the same technician as the last time and she was great. The first thing she asked me to do was remove my belly button ring which I was totally not expecting. I really didn't mind but it's been there since I was 18 so it was a weird feeling to not have it in! The best part was when Rob put out his hand and put it in his pocket - a little gross but he had a poker face like a pro!

Right away she said the baby looked healthy and I was so relieved to see that little body on the screen. Technology is AMAZING. What a blessing to see this little face looking at us (pic above)! We were able to see everything so clearly and she printed tons of pictures for us.

She started at the top with the head and slowly worked her way clear down to the toes, pausing to  measure, check every organ, and count fingers/toes. Babe's about 10 ounces and right on track for July 5!

I was so jealous of Rob's medical background because although we were looking at the same screen, we were not seeing the same thing! He is truly fascinated by the human body and it was so cool for him to recognize each little organ and body part before the technician pointed it out. When she was checking the spine he was extra intrigued and I mentioned to her his profession. She made sure to pause and print a couple pictures which I think are SO cool!

Yep, the pic above is a little awkward being that it's a view between his little legs from below, but it definitely proves that it's a BOY! Rob totally noticed WAY before this shot but he kept quiet until it was officially announced. I guess I wasn't surprised at all since I did think it was a boy all along. We would've been completely happy either way but I think Rob was extra happy. :) 

 

Aaaannnnndddd ... I saved the best for last! How adorable is he?? I love that you can see his whole body including both legs, both hands, and his little profile. AND it looks like he's playing an instrument. :)

19 weeks

18 weeks