For a few weeks, I’ve been unnecessarily anxious about our upcoming ultrasound. I was nervous that we would discover a problem. I was nervous about whether Pez was a boy or a girl. And I was especially nervous about Avery’s reaction to the whole thing.
Then on Sunday morning, God blessed me with a wonderful message at church about His sovereignty. He reminded me that He is in control of everything and knows what is right for me and our family. So I felt much better as we walked into the doctor’s office on Monday afternoon.
While I was still a little apprehensive, that first moment I saw Pez changed my entire attitude. I realized that I already loved this beautiful child, and it didn’t matter if it was a boy or a girl. We are going to love this baby to pieces and give it the best life we can.
The ultrasound technician spent a lot of time looking at all of the essentials and pointing them out to us — the kidneys, the lungs, the brain, the umbilical cord, the blood flow, the heartbeat (how amazing to SEE the baby’s heartbeat!), the limbs. Chris was holding Avery and explaining everything to her.
The technician didn’t get very good pictures because Pez was flipping and kicking like crazy! Praise God that everything checked out OK. Pez weighed about 10 oz., and the heartbeat was about 135 bm. I was ready for the technician to get to the good part!
She spent some time trying to get Pez to cooperate. Avery and Chris were talking about something and weren’t looking at the monitor. I, on the other hand, couldn’t take my eyes off the monitor the entire time. And then I saw IT. I clearly could see that Pez was a boy! I called out to Chris.
He didn’t see it at first. Then the technician said, “It’s a boy!” I immediately burst into tears. Avery first had a look of surprise and excitement. Then she realized her disappointment and buried her head in Daddy’s shoulder.
Throughout the rest of our appointment, we talked to her about how special she will be as the only girl and how much she can help her little brother learn so many things. The doctor sealed the deal when she told Avery that she wouldn’t have to share her clothes, dolls and other girly toys with a boy. I think she liked that! So Avery is starting to warm up to the idea of having a little brother.
There is one small concern. The placenta is a little lower than it should be. My doctor isn’t concerned about it yet. She said the placenta should move north as Pez and I grow over the next several months. But she wants to keep an eye on it. So that means we’ll have another ultrasound in about 10 weeks. I’m praying that God fixes everything and that the second ultrasound will just be another chance to see Pez.
Now we need to start pondering boy names!