Oliver's new word

Telling the Girls

I shared my happy news with my students today. Here are the best/most common responses to finding out (after, usually, shrieking):

1. "I'm just so excited!" (And they really, really do seem so excited.)
2. "Are you excited?" (Yes, very.)
3. "Why didn't you tell us sooner?" (Worry, worry, worry.)
4. "What're you having?" (A baby, so far as we know.)
5. "What do you want?" (A baby, a human one, preferably of the female persuasion -- and in that order.)
6. "Did your husband know when you got pregant?" (Well, gee, it sure would've been harder if he hadn't known.)
7. "Will you name the baby after me?" (No. Actually, none of the names on our list have ever been students of mine, at least that I can remember. And at least one name I really like got cut from the list because of a student I've had. Sorry, ladies.)

11 Weeks

I saw my midwife for my second appointment yesterday. Everything looked and sounded fine, and I got to hear the baby’s heartbeat with the Doppler monitor. It took a few minutes to find, and when I laughed we lost it, but it was there. Either that, or I ate something crazy. I set up the next appointment and also got the order for my 20-week ultrasound. My birthday is the day after 20 weeks, so I think we’re going to schedule it for that afternoon. What a fun present.

We’ve managed to tell all of Wes’s family now. I talked to his sister tonight, who seemed really excited by the news. This is the first grandbaby/niece/nephew on Wes’s side, so everyone’s assuming new titles with this arrival. We’ll see the whole family around 32 weeks for my brother-in-law’s wedding in Philadelphia, so everyone will get a pre-delivery peek at the belly.

I found out that another teacher at school is pregnant. That makes three of us all due August through October. It’s exciting to have someone else to share the nausea and headaches and ultrasounds with (especially since the woman due before me is on #3). It makes me a little nervous about what’s going to happen at work. I fear that I won’t get the weeks out or reduced hours I’m hoping for with this many women out for maternity leave. Hopefully I’ve made myself indispensable enough that my director will meet my requests, but Wes and I will have to really talk if she won’t. Ah, so many things to think about – and fortunately, plenty of time to do so.

Family Matters

So my family finally knows. My mom visited this weekend, and Wes and I surprised her with the news when she got to the apartment on Friday. Lucy was wearing a “Big Sister” t-shirt. Mom didn’t get it, and I had to spell it out for her. Needless to say, she was surprised and really happy for us. It was fun to call my dad and siblings, all of whom greeted the news warmly. My mom looked out for me all weekend – asking about my nausea, encouraging me to eat more greens and protein when I felt up to it, looking out for ice on our walks with Lucy. It was fun to have a couple days to “talk baby” with her. Wes had off Friday and Saturday, so he got to share in the fun before working on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Now it’s just a few more weeks ‘til I can spill the beans at work. It’ll be nice for all of my friends at school to know, and I’m sure the students, especially my seniors, will be excited by the news. I still try to remind myself that we’re not out of the woods yet on something spontaneously going wrong. I am only 9 weeks pregnant, after all. But it’s getting harder and harder not to imagine the end product and smile.