I Can't Believe It! We're Having A....

(Disclaimer: If you want to subject yourself to my lengthy blathering-on about the whole process of finding out what our baby is, please read on. Otherwise, skip to the last line and come back again tomorrow.)

We had our second ultrasound on Friday. It was so amazing to be able to see this baby moving around, with the little black shadow of a heart beating away. WOW. What an incredible experience.

We took Samantha with us this time (first time ever taking someone else besides just Scott and I). I think she had fun, but all she really said afterwards was, "That baby sure has a BIG head!"

London is different than some other places, in that the technician who does the ultrasound doesn't actually disclose any information while you are there. He/she simply takes a bunch of pictures, shows you the baby on the screen, pointing out features of interest, and then sends you on your way with instructions to talk to your doctor to get additional information.

I have been dying to find out the gender of this baby, since, well, the day I found double lines on the stick, but I made it very clear to everyone that even though our ultrasound was on Friday, we wouldn't know anything until my appointment today. Or possibly Monday. Because, knowing how fabulous she is, our doctor would be very likely to call when she got the report from the lab.

So, you can imagine my SHOCK when the phone rang at our house on Saturday morning, and the voice on the other end informed me it was our doctor calling with the ultrasound results!

She made sure I was sitting down before breaking the news: "You're having a girl."

Everything else she said after the word "girl" is kind of a blur, mostly due to the fact that I started bawling right there on the phone. I managed to hang up, and ran to tell Scott, who had heard me crying and thought something terrible must have happened.

I'm not sure if he was more excited about hearing the news, or relieved that there wasn't a death in the family.

We sat the kids down right away to tell them that they have a little SISTER on the way! Everyone was thrilled.

Samantha started crying (probably because I was still crying).

Brett started doing a happy dance on the sofa.

Jesse said, "This is perfect! Now we'll have one of each!"

(By this he meant - in case you're not sure how four-year old brains work - we already have a boy baby, and now we're going to have a girl baby. One boy baby. One girl baby. Perfect!)

Even Nathan joined in by giving Scott and I kisses (voluntarily) - which he never does! I think he could sense the excitement in the air. Scott always says he's a big kid in a little kid's body.

We called around to share the news with family, and after a fun day together at home we celebrated with dinner at Boston Pizza.

Three days later I still can't believe it. I visited the doctor today and saw the report with my own eyes. I think it's finally starting to sink in.

Oh. My. Goodness. Somebody pinch me. We're having a girl!

Front Page News

If you're in London and get a chance to look at the London Free Press today, there's an article about Play On! with a picture of Scott. It's not huge, but it is on the front page.

If you're not in London, check out the article online (minus the photo):

>>> click here <<<

While you're at it, check out the new Play On! website and let me know what you think.

www.playon.ca

Oh, and in case you haven't talked to us in the last 48 hours... this blog has gone PINK for a reason... :)

(No, it's not October)

Harlem Globetrotters

A couple of weeks ago Scott took Brett and Jesse out for boys' night at the John Labatt Centre to see the Harlem Globetrotters.

Jesse had received the movie, "Scooby-Doo Meets the Harlem Globetrotters" for Christmas, so they were pretty much prepared for what kind of show to expect that night. (I am sad to admit that our kids get a good amount of their education from Scooby-Doo Mysteries.)

They had fun night and came home all pumped up. Brett couldn't stop dribbling his souvenir Globetrotter basketball for days, and Jesse asked to have our Little Tikes basketball hoop moved up to his bedroom so he could play more often.

Here is a picture of the boys with Airport Greenup - the tallest player on the team (6'8").

Kiwanis

Samantha had her first experience competing in Kiwanis this past Thursday. She performed a piano piece called, "Dance" and she did a great job!

Way to go Samantha - we are so proud of you!

(Click on the video below to hear her play)

Who Stole Our Sweet Baby and Replaced Him with a Terrible Toddler?

Well, Jesse has officially been absolved of his role as the family Trouble-Maker. Yes, The Toddler has taken that over quite nicely. He is walking now, and getting into more mischief every week.

Our other kids are adapting to this new way of life with The Toddler pretty well. They usually remember to keep the toilet lid down and the bathroom door tightly closed. They keep marbles and small pieces of Lego and K'nex picked up (with reminders). And all phones, laptops, wallets, and other valuable or breakable objects are kept higher than 2.5 feet off the ground (that's Mom & Dad's job, mostly, although Samantha is good at helping too).

We no longer have nice things such as picture frames or candles displayed on side tables, coffee tables, or shelves that are below my eye level. In fact, a couple of friends came over the other day and asked, "What's with all of the purging? Are you guys moving???". After about 10 minutes spent with The Toddler, they said, "Never mind, we get it."

Our beautiful wedding lamps are going out with next week's garbage as a result of one (or two... or ten) too many topples with The Toddler.

There are some benefits to this stage of childhood. For one, I don't have to sweep the floor as often, as The Toddler loves to eat any forgotten leftover food he finds under the table. (What do you mean you don't find 6 hour old pieces of crusty toast and jam appealing for an afternoon snack?)

And the fact that he answers "NO" to every question he is asked never fails to provide entertainment for the rest of us.

Yes, somehow, despite all of the trouble he gets into, we all still find him irresistibly adorable.

Nevertheless, I often find myself counting down in anticipation to that glorious and precious time of day commonly referred to as, "NAP TIME."