I had my anatomy ultrasound last week, and asked the ultrasound tech to write the gender inside a card I brought. That night Kyle and I went out to dinner to celebrate my birthday + Valentine's day, and also to find out the gender of our baby. Like we did with Drew, we waited until the end of dinner and then ordered dessert. We gave the waitress the sealed card with a pink and blue candle, asked her to open the card in the back, and then bring our dessert out with either the pink or the blue candle. She was so excited to help, and executed the reveal perfectly. She had another waitress take pictures of us opening our eyes to see the pink candle, and the manager even picked up the tab on our dessert. Such a fun evening for Kyle and I!
Contrary to what many people assumed, I was originally actually rooting for another boy. The practical side of me just saw all the benefits of having another boy (we've already got all the boy gear - clothes, toys, etc), and I really wanted Drew to have a brother to be his buddy. I've also been honing my skills the last year and half at raising a boy, so I was all ready to sharpen my boy-mom skills.
But God knew the very best thing for our family would be for us would to have a little girl. So I'm now totally on board. For His glory and our good, we're having a girl! Now I'm all sorts of excited for our family, and can't wait to learn how to be a girl-mom. Kyle is over the moon, and that brings me a lot of joy. And a little jealousy...I liked being the only lady in his life! I've been assured my jealousy is hormonal and will pass :-)
Baby girl's name will be Mary Ann Hansen, and she will go by Mary. Baby Mary's grandma's name is Mary Ann (Kyle's mom), and Mary Ann's grandma's name was also Mary Ann. We also like the name Mary because of the biblical context, and it fits nicely with Drew. Extra bonus is that my mom's middle name is also Ann, so baby Mary will share the same middle name as both her grandmas. As for nicknames, we often call Drew "Drewdle Bug" so lately we've been calling Mary "the lady bug".
Now that we know the gender and the name, I am finally getting my tush in gear on the nursery and baby projects. Because this isn't our forever home and we are just squatting with my dad, we wont be painting walls or anything like that. Just the basics, with a focus on functionality over ascetics. That being said, I am still a woman and I do love to craft! I've been stealing away little moments of time to plan out and work on some sewing and art projects for Mary (and even a few for Drew). While completely not necessary and a total luxury, I do love crafting (especially sewing right now) because it reminds me that I have other interests and skills aside from diaper changing and sippy cups. I also enjoy being able to start and finish a project and have something to show for it. Whereas raising children takes a lifetime to see results, making a baby bib takes 30 minutes. Kyle understands my desire to create and learn and always encourages me in my latest projects, for which I am thankful!
This has no relation to being pregnant but it's been on my mind so I'm sharing it. I just finished a short book called Loving the Little Years (highly recommend!), and it really encouraged me to stop being so afraid to be fruitful. One of the stories in the book really called me to the carpet and helped me realize that often times I shy away from trying something new because I can't guarantee how it will turn out...or I've tried it before and it turned out terrible! Coming from a perfectionist background, it's easy to see how I could be afraid of tasks or projects that might expose that I'm not...perfect. Anyone else with me? When I started thinking about the recipes I pass up, the projects I pass over, the people I skip having a conversation with...all because "what if?". What if it tastes gross? What if the project is a total fail and waste of money? What if that person wants more of my time then I'm willing to give? What God revealed to me in all of this was that I spend too much time worrying about the end result of my fruit, and not enough time just enjoying to act of being fruitful. Make the gluten free cake that tastes like cement, create the project that wont even sell in a garage sale, have the conversation that drags on until I say something dumb at some point. Be fruitful! Don't worry about the end result! To that end, Drew and I made a cake this week. It was truly, really gross (but full of sugar so Kyle and my dad ate it happily). But Drew and I had fun! I let Drew eat the batter (before the raw egg part of course), pour the flour (all over his pants, and some in the actual bowel), and we watched it bake in the oven while playing with cars on the floor. I wont likely remember that my fruit was "rotten" so to speak, but I will remember being fruitful. I'll remember Drew covered in flour, and I'll remember that I tried something new. And now I also know that olive oil is not a suitable substitute for vegetable oil.
Some bump pictures since the last update: