Today Nico is 20 months old and will have a little brother or sister in about 27 weeks.
Yes - I'm 13 weeks pregnant (well, 11 weeks according to the scan but it used the baby's size which isn't really an indication considering Nico was tiny).
We had our first scan yesterday, to check how many were in there (just one), that it was ok. Hearbeat, check. Skull and brain, normal. Abdomen, normal. Stomach (his not mine), check. 4 limbs, check. Risk of trisomy 21 (Down's syndrome), 1:10534.
It looked like a tiny bean, a bit like Mr Peanut without the top hat, monocle and cane. It (yes it's an 'it' for now, until the 19-week scan which will hopefully tell whether it's a 'he' or a 'she') was asleep until Dr Alistair Roberts, the sonographer, asked me to cough. There - I did it and woke it up! Thankfully we didn't hear any crying so it wasn't too bad. So it suddently stirred and turned around and we got to see pretty cool 4D shots.
I guess that was the confirmation that I am pregnant, and not just going through a really long period cycle with urges to vomit through the day and pee through the night.
FAQ:
- When am I due? Either 20 Jan (initial estimate) or 31 Jan (estimate based on the scan's measurements. Should have timed it with the summer holidays so Bas could be at home with me...
- Was it planned? Yes. We do know how to use contraceptive methods. We just didn't think that it would be so fast. But I guess we should have known, it was like this with Nico.
- How do I feel? Tired. Sleepy. Breathless. Hungry. Missing raw and smoked fish & meat. Going through a lot of toilet paper.
- Do we know if it's a boy or a girl yet? Not yet, give it another 8 weeks and we'll be staring at the screen, eyes stretched wide like a couple of possums in headlights, trying to look for the plumbing.
- Do we want/think it'll be a boy or a girl? Ideally, one of each but we won't pawn it off if it's a boy. This pregnancy hasn't been as easy as Nico's so far, so people reckon it's a girl. I personally blame it on Nico for making me more tired.
- Have I told work yet? Not yet. Guess I'll ask for the maternity leave forms on Friday. Can't decide whether I'll leave them on Vaughan's desk for when he comes back from Australia or be good and give them to him in person...
Nico is still too young to understand that he's no longer going to be the centre of Mummy and Daddy's world, which can't be a bad thing.
And he's on TV!!!
He's the baby in the pram on the left-hand-side, and that's me holding the pram. We spent half-a-day on Mission Bay beach shooting the ad for Westpac. So that was his first wage. And no, this does not count as child labour so I don't want to see a CYFS officer knocking at our door.
Nico is really enjoying puzzles, dancing and music at the moment. Harder to keep entertained while I work from home and the TV and DVDs are looking more and more appealing each week.
He managed to get a nasty strain of norovirus from daycare (again), which causes gastro, and infect Mummy, Daddy, Oma and Uncle Thijs. He was like a little plague-carrier.
Daddy and I went out to Cibo's on Tuesday so Nico stayed with Oma. It was soooo nice to finally be out as a couple again. And Oma enjoyed having him over, enjoyment which I think is reciprocated.
In September - trip to Queenstown to visit Lola & Mana and family who will come from Noumea. Ba Ngoai will be there as well, so it'll be nice for Nico to see her in the flesh instead of just via Skype. Time to start shopping for the warmest clothes we can get our hands onto!
