Ah! It feels like forever since I have put anything in my journal! Life has been running at full speed and nothing less!

We had the BIG ULTRASOUND on Tuesday and it was wonderful. The perinatologist and his tech were so great. They looked at everything and talked about it as they went along. It was so very reassuring and thorough! The bottom line was that the baby seems to be perfectly fine. There were no markers for any genetic problems.....shoot they even looked for dwarfism!! The baby was moving all over the place, and the tech was laughing about how active it was!

I thought that finding out that all was well would be the highlight of my day....but there was even more. We are having a baby GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are in total shock after 3 boys, and didn't believe the tech at first! LOL! But, both she and the perinatologist said that it was definite, so it looks like we will have a beautiful daughter to join our 3 little boys!! Unreal!

The next day I went shopping with a friend and purchased my first pink baby outfit!! Totally fun and foreign to me! I got two little pink gowns for her!

On Friday I spent the day in the city shopping for layette stuff........girlie layette stuff, I might add. I got pink, purple and flowered onsies, socks, pants, and t-shirts. I think I am set for the first few months now!! Today my MIL brought the cutest little purple outfit and some hooded towels that have flowers on them!! No blue for this little girl!!! LOL!

My worries have eased up considerably since the US, but I still find myself slipping back into the old habit. Now my mind ache is about pre-term labor, even though I have never experienced it with my other 3 babies and have no reason for it to happen with this one. Still, I find myself thinking of it and anxious to get into the 3rd trimester. I need to let go of it and turn it over to God.

At the end of the US, the perinatologist, Dr. Rowe, spoke to me as he gently cleaned the jell from my belly "I know that you last son was born with club foot, and then you had 4 miscarriages, and you have lots of worries. I want to tell you that she is a beautiful, healthy baby girl." I started to cry and said, "I prayed for God's blessing on this baby, and when he blessed us, he really outdid himself!" and Dr. Rowe replied, "Isn't God wonderful? He is so good to us and loves us so much. We have an awesome God". Yes we do!

Her name is Amelia Grace. Amelia was the name of the toddler in my dream. Grace is the name of my mother's sister, who I loved very, very much. She passed away in May 2002. My mother is Italian, so I wanted to honor my Italian heritage. We will call her Mia as a nickname, which in Italian means "mine". So, fittingly, she is My Grace from God.

Morning sickness is pretty much gone!!!!!! I still have a bit of queasiness daily, but it is so much more tolerable. Usually eating or drinking a bit puts it at ease. As for the flu, so glad that is over! By Saturday, I was feeling like myself again. Hopefully that is the worst of it and the remainder of this pregnancy will be a time of wellness!

Potty training is still in the works. Quinn wears underwear all day, but still refuses to poop in the potty. He has the pee-pee part down and rarely has an accident where that is concerned. Now we just wait for the #2's to follow....hopefully soon!!

The baby is moving around at fairly predictable times now. Lots of kicks and rolling, and you can see them from outside my belly. Bill put his hand there and held it for a bit and felt movement too!! Very cool and so reasurring!! I still marvel at the fact that this baby is real. I am more than 1/2 way to delivery, and time seems to have picked back up to speed now that the nausea and major, obsessive worry are behind me.

We talked about names and decided on them. With the others, it seemed that finding the right name was really difficult. With this one, we talked about a few, and just KNEW the right boy name and girl name. I dreamed about the girl name.........in the dream, my oldest was playing with a little brown haired toddler and walking her around the house. He called her by name, and watching them was so very sweet. When I woke up, I knew that would be the girl name that we would use if this baby decides to break the mold.

We also will not tell anyone the names. We didn't tell anyone with our last son, and it was so fun to surprise everyone.

I spent the whole day yesterday out looking for Christmas gifts and was able to get most of my shopping for the boys complete!! Also was able to get a bit for Bill. I even caved in and bought a few baby items that I will be needing.....breast pads, onsies and a few bottles for my breast pump. I also ordered a changing table pad online since I had lent mine out. I don't want to scramble for this stuff at the last minute, so I will buy a bit here and there. I don't need much else, as I have tons of baby clothes, a crib, sheets, etc, etc.

Now if it is a girl, I will need to buy a few girlie clothes.....................only time will tell!!!!

6 days until US day!

Urgh! The flu hit me on Tuesday. I think it had been coming on since last week. I had one day of chills and a feverish feeling, with a scratchy throat, then 3 days of a constant headache, then Tuesday morning the vomiting and diarrhea hit. By 2p.m. I was down for the count with muscle aches and major weakness. Today is the first day that I feel somewhat normal. I am still a tad weak, but all in all feeling soooooooooooo much better.

I got myself a bit dehydrated and yesterday had a ton of BH contractions. Some of them quite uncomfortable. I started chugging ice water all evening and through the night, and they are gone today. Whew!! Major relief. I lost 3 pounds, but I am sure that will come back on quickly! :*)

So far the rest of the house has not come down with it......I would imagine that is just a matter of time.

I have been feeling lots of baby movement, so I am relieved about this. It is so great to have that confirmation that all seems well.

US in only 1 week and 5 days!!!!!!!!!!!!

Halloween was a blast! My boys dressed up as Ninja's, and were so excited. We had a party after school for all the kids at a friends house....the kids ate mummy wrapped sausage, pinwheels, witches brew, homemade candy apples and an assortment of other treats. Most of my friends have 3 or more kiddos, so there were about 23 kids running around in costume! We took a great group photo that I will download to our family photo page in the links section.

After much eating, running and playing, it was time for a hay ride and Trick-or-Treating! Everyone loaded up onto a huge flatbed filled with bales of hay and soft blankets, and off they went. I opted out of bouncing around in a trailer for several hours, so I went on home to hand out candy to the Trick-or-Treaters.

When the kids got home, they had LOADS of candy and stories to tell. They added a few kids on the journey, so the grand total for the hay ride was something like 26 kids and 8 adults. They sang songs at the nursing home, and their last stop landed them at a haunted house. They had a ton of fun. Quinn came in the door and said "I am NOT afraid of monsters. I am brave!"

All seems well with baby so far. I am feeling lots of movement...mostly in the evening. Morning sickness is still clinging on by a thread. I got sick yesterday morning, but felt pretty good the rest of the day. If I avoid sweets (which I did not on Halloween), then I am fine. I started walking in the morning and seem to have my second wind! What a relief! I remember with my 3rd son, morning sickness let up at 18wks 5days, so I am right on schedule!!

Only 2wks, 2days until the big ultra-sound. But who's counting?