A General Update

This week we have reached the 5 month/20 week stage. Firstly I have to say I'm just very grateful that we have made it this far without any terrifying scares or major concerns. Other than some very mild "morning" sickness and nausea, plus some more recent developments such as occasional back and bump pain and increasing tiredness, I've so far made it through incredibly easily. I don't believe for one second that this will continue for the entire duration but the longer the better. We've been lucky so far not to have had any major panics stemming from bleeds or other worries, I only hope this is the case for the rest of this pregnancy and any subsequent ones as well!

As we posted over the weekend, our 20 week scan happened on Friday, technically at 19+5. Little Bean was most cooperative, lying in a very helpful position so our sonographer could see everything she needed to and more. I'm glad we're so far managing to raise a well mannered, helpful child! As well as confirming that all appears to be as it should and Bean is growing at a healthy, steady rate, our sonographer also told us that Bean will be a little BOY! Although I'll admit this came as a complete shock, for some reason I'd lately been convinced he was a girl, we are simply happy to have a healthy baby and nothing else matters - appendages or none!

In addition to the good news from the scan, all my own test have come back as I'd hoped - either negative or positive as required. The midwife at the hospital did give me a mild panic by saying rather casually that I'd flagged up as having Rubella - before hastening to add that this just meant my childhood innoculations had worked. Thanks, I didn't need the few seconds of believeing I'd somehow contracted measles last week! I also found out my rhesus status and am relieved that I don't need any extra jabs, fantastic news as far as I'm concerned. Sorry Vikki! Bean's test also showed we are super low risk for Down's Syndrome (1 in 8200) and normal risk for neural tube defects. Although neither of these results completely rule out the respective problems, I am happy enough with them as is Scott.

The news that Bean is in fact sporting an extra appendage that we didn't think he had, has created havoc on the naming frontier. We were pretty much settled on a girl's name (which is being kept a secret for the future) and now have been thrown back to square one with a sizable bump. There are very few boys names either of us actually like, and the number that overlap is infitessimally small. We each have some thoughts but I don't think either one of us is singing and dancing over any - certainly not any that the other of us is prepared to entertain anyway. Still, we have several months remaining and I'm sure one of us will fall in love with a preferred name of the other or we will stumble upon a name neither of us have yet thought up and both fall in love with that Otherwise expect to be reading tales of Baby or Bean from September onwards!

Not much left to add I don't think. I remain baffled at how everybody seems attuned to my yoga hour and manages to text or call during it when there's the rest of the day when I'm doing pretty much bugger all. Bean is increasingly active and has decided patterns of activity such as first thing in the morning, during car/train journeys, after large meals and when I'm lying in bed at night. Scott is yet to feel these kicks and punches but as they continue to streghthen with each passing day, I'm positive it won't be much longer before Bean makes his presence felt to a wider audience. Speak of the miniature devil, the little tyke has just given me a little thump to let you all know he's here too!

Wow, that's a long post so I'll sign off before you all need to take time off work to read it!
xxx