Boy or Girl?

Well friends, Monday is the big day!  Hopefully...baby cooperating and all, haha!

For fun, I thought I would answer some "old wives tales" about gender prediction to see what they tell us. :)

Chinese gender calendar:  Well, this was a wash.  Half the calendars that came up on Google said girl, half said boy.  Guess that's right about accurate for odds. 

Cravings: Started out sweet--ice cream; but the past few weeks it's been salty--ramen noodles, pickles (I've been keeping a jar handy at work) and hot dogs.  They say sweet for girl, salty for boy.  Goodness gracious this child is throwing a wrench in this quiz, haha!

Hair: My hair is not strong, full, and shiny which indicates girl.  My hair was so beautifully thick and shiny with Maverick...

Morning sickness: All day, everyday for 17 weeks.  Now that I'm 18, almost 19 weeks it can catch me out of the blue if I'm tired, stressed, or empty-stomached.  More sickness indicates girl.

The "ladies" (I feel the need to censor, my dad reads this, ha!): I don't remember them being this sensitive with Mav.  Not only are they more sore, but they've been sore since the beginning.  Which indicates girl.

Heart rate:  Again, I've read some mixed reviews on Google.  But it seems the majority of quizzes say slower than 140 bpm means boy, faster than 140 bpm means girl.  Everytime we've heard baby's heart it's been in the mid 140s.

Carrying low or high: It feels lower, and I guess looks lower.  Which indicates boy.

Pillow position: Facing north, indicates boy; facing south indicates girl.  We sleep with our heads almost directly south.  What do you do if you are east or west?  Ha ha!

Mayan Legend: If the age of the mother at conception, and year of conception are both even or odd--girl.  If one is even, one odd--boy.  I am (and was) 28 and due in 2012...girl.  (Can we trust Mayans with any sort of calendar?)

Key: Place a key on your preggo belly.  If your husband picks up the narrow part, it's sugar and spice; if he picks up the wide part, it's snips and snails.  Robbie picked up the wide part.  Boy.

Out of 10 questions...well the first 2 are a draw...so let's say out of 8 questions:  6 indicated girl, and 2 indicated boy.

Can't wait to find out on Monday afternoon!!!


Speaking of which, if you happen to read this before Monday...could you say a prayer for us?  I hesitated whether or not to blog about this, but I feel like it's okay to open up about it. 

So, a couple of weeks ago I took a routine quad screen blood test.  I didn't do this with Mav since I didn't start receiving prenatal care until well into my 2nd trimester.  And honestly, I don't know why I did it this time.  When my doctor first had me sign a paper to accept or decline various tests, I asked her what most of her patients do.  She said most people do the quad screen and go from there.  So that's what I signed up for.

So a week after I took the quad screen test my doctor called to tell me that everything looked pretty good, except that my risk for Down Syndrome came back abnormal for my age.  She said for my age the typical risk is 1/700, and mine came back 1/223 which is 0.04% (or less than one-half percent).

She further explained that quad screens do not diagnose, it just presents a risk statistic.  I'm trying not to focus on numbers, just focus on God.

Honestly, I've been all over the spectrum of emotions.  In my heart I know, that I know God's plan for us is perfect no matter what.  He will walk us through every moment, just as He always has.

I've been meditating on verses that promise God's peace when I'm overwhelmed with worry.  Sometimes I feel guilty for worrying, because I know that I should trust God always.

Sometimes I feel guilty for worrying about having a child with Down Syndrome.  Part of my career is working with children who have Down Syndrome, so I know the immense joy they bring to my life, and the lives of everyone around them.  But as one parent of a child with Down Syndrome told me after I shared this with her, she told me not to feel guilty--it's natural to feel this way.  It's not something we would choose for our child, but if it's what is chosen for them, it's perfect.

Anyways, I'm pretty sure I'm going to be an extra ball of nerves come Monday, specifically about 2pm.  I don't want to be overwhelmed with worry when we walk into our appointment.  I really need God's peace so that I can focus on our beautiful child, no matter what an ultrasound may or may not show. 

Everytime I feel this sweet, precious baby move I know that he or she is a beautiful creation.  And that is what I want to focus on now, and beyond delivery day.