It's a girl!

Just kidding, I really have no idea. I have been very curious about that lately though, so I have done the online Chinese astrology chart and old wives' tales, and they say girl. Of course, that probably means it's a boy. I think we'll be able to find out in mid-December. Maybe earlier, but since I only get one more ultrasound, I don't want to waste it if it's too early.

When people find out about the baby, the first thing they usually ask is whether we're going to find out the gender. I figure if we can, why not??? There will be enough surprises on that day. We won't know what the baby looks like, so at least if we know if it's a boy or girl, we can plan (assuming they get it right).

Back to normal

Now that Rita has passed, everything is "back to normal" in northwest Houston. Businesses are open, grocery stores are getting shipments of food, and gas stations are getting gas again. We're back at work and back at home, and of course since the storm turned, there is no damage whatsoever to our home or anyone's in our area. We could tell there was a lot of wind, but not enough to do any structural damage. Jay & I went to Austin and got to visit with the family for a while. It was nice considering we were planning to go anyway, and we took unknown back roads to avoid all the nasty traffic. Jay's motorcycle riding days are good for something! :)

Well, I'll be 10 weeks tomorrow and I thought I was done with morning sickness, but apparently I was mistaken. I hadn't been sick in 2 weeks, but Sunday in church I just barely made it to the bathroom before losing my breakfast. I guess little Cletus is trying to keep me on my toes!

We have a heartbeat!!!

My very loooooong doctor appointment this morning went very well. They said everything looks perfect, and from here on I'll be going every 4 weeks (until the end--then every 2 weeks). We got to hear the heartbeat, which was going strong at 171 beats per minute. Apparently this is right were it should be at 9 weeks. We even got our first baby picture! It was fun to see Jay's face when he heard the heartbeat and watched the monitor. He's going to be the best dad!

Here is Cletus at 9 weeks--not much to see, but it's something!

Now, if we can just get past this nasty hurricane without incidence, life will be good. Let's all pray for everyone to stay alive and well, and for minimal damage.

Names

I have been thinking a lot about names. It's never too early for that, right? I have several girls' names and several boys' names at the top of my list now, but I know how fickle I am...those will change by the time we even know if it's a girl or a boy. I wonder how people know what the perfect name is. One way I know what NOT to pick is I look at the top baby name lists and steer clear of those. I don't really want a trendy, popular name that the kid will share with a third of his/her class. I'd rather have something unique, but not weird so people will never remember it. I also want it to have meaning. I like biblical names, but the problem is that the "normal" ones are so common. I'd rather have a good, strong and maybe classic name that is on the top baby name list than a meaningless one that I'll second-guess a year from now, but I'm discovering that finding that perfect name will be tricky. There are several that I really like, but they don't go with Hale. Also, everyone associates a name with someone they know or a kid they hated in grade school, so if I share our top names, I'm afraid of getting it shot down. I care more than I should what other people think! But, here goes--these are my top 2 for today. Any thoughts?

Boy
Nathan
Wesley

Girl
Rachel
Naomi

ARRRGGGHHH

Talk about bad luck. I signed up for Aflac short-term disability when I came back to work at Aesbus because Aesbus does not provide 100% paid maternity leave. I found out today that there is a 30-day waiting period for the benefit to take effect, and since I got pregnant before that 30-day effective date (like about 30 days before it), I am not eligible for the benefit. So now I have to pay every pay cycle for this benefit that I will not be able to use. What's up with that? That just sucks. But the good news is that Aesbus does provide maternity leave at 40% salary, so at least I'll be getting SOMETHING. Sigh. Well, if the baby's healthy, what's losing a little money?

Amazing

This is such an amazing picture. I don't know how they did that, but I got it from www.babyzone.com. This is the stage I am now--8 weeks. It's only 1/2" long, but it's amazing how much is developed. No wonder I'm so tired! :)

God is good

We have one more week before we determine whether everything is hunkey-dorey with Cletus the Fetus (yeah--I just don't know if I can really call it that), but I keep thinking about how much God has blessed me so far. I have not been feeling well. Nausea in the morning, and extreme exhaustion in the afternoon/evenings, but that's normal. And it's as if God knew and planned it so it would be as easy as can be. What I mean is, when I left Aesbus in October and went to work for OSI so far away, I was stressed all the time and had been leaving my house at 6:30 every morning to get there. Then most evenings and weekends, I'd be working at home. He gave me this opportunity to come back to Aesbus, and now I have a very flexible schedule and a very short commute. Sometimes I think there is no way I could drive so far so early without yakkin' in my car. I'd have to keep a puke bag in there, and I have learned that most of those plastic grocery bags have little holes in them. They're not good for puking, so I'd probably have to buy some trash bags or something. I'd be dragging at work. I'd be unable to get as much done, and then I'd have to work more in the evenings when I got home. Therefore, I'd lose my crash-out-on-the-couch time. I'd be run down all the time and probably sick. SO, long story short, God is good!

And PS: I don't know how people go through the first trimester when they already have a 1-, 2-, or even 3-year-old to take care of. I am enjoying the lazy time and I'm enjoying being waited on by my sweet husband. :)

One More Week!

Well, from tomorrow. That's what I'm counting down to, because that's when we'll get to hear the heartbeat and know everything's A-OK. I have had lots of morning sickness. Not a whole lot of throwing up, but a lot of nausea. And probably not a lot for most people, but I guess I'm a wimp. the exhaustion is going to kill me more than the nausea!

Now that both our families know (by the way, his family was excited, too), we are getting a little less careful with who we tell. I told my boss yesterday, and I'm glad I did. He was very supportive and said I could adjust my schedule to deal with morning sickness at home if I wanted to. Now I'm thinking forget the 12-week mark; we'll just make it public after next week's appointment. Of course, what's "public" when most everyone knows?? :)