Baby #4

I am almost 20 weeks along, which doesn't seem possible. We had our first, and I hope only, ultrasound on Friday and discovered that baby #4 is a girl. I am elated. Maeve is happy too and is excited to have someone play Littlest Pet Shop with her. The boys are mostly indifferent, although before the appointment Finn said that he wanted a brother. I am hoping that this little girl will be a good personality match for Finn. Maeve and Oren are two peas in a pod and often gang up on my sensitive Finnegan.

The baby looks healthy as far as I could tell and was using her arm as a pillow. She was a little over 12 oz, although I don't put much stock into ultrasound measurements. I am able to feel her movements more frequently now and know that it's only a matter of time before she's up in my rib cage. I feel like my belly is growing at an astounding pace and I am hungry all day. I try to have some control over my portions because I do not want to gain 55 lbs this time around. I'm not sure if it's possible for my body to stay within the 25-35 lb recommended weight gain, but I'm going to try. I've got exercise covered because Oren has started sprinting when we are out in public. Last week at Kohl's I saw a woman try to hide her laugh because I was running through the picture frame section trying to catch Oren. Stinker.

We have mostly picked out a name for the baby. I say mostly because the kids hate the name and insist on calling the baby another name on our list. We'll see. I tend to change my mind several times. We're going to get odd looks and criticism for whatever name we choose so it ultimately doesn't matter.

I need to start sewing diapers and figure out where to put the baby's clothes. We'll be able to use everything from Maeve because the seasons will match. I am very happy about that since it did not work that way with the boys.

I also need to start thinking about childbirth. Childbirth is a beautiful, wonderful, empowering experience, however, I would like to click my heels together and have her magically appear in my arms. I'm undecided as to whether I need a doula. Mathew was excellent the last time and very attentive to my needs. He doesn't say much though and I think I need to hear more encouragement and a calming voice of reason. My inner dialogue during Oren's labor went something like "why is this taking so long and OUUUCHH." Granted, labor and delivery was only three hours, but it was a whole hour longer than Finn's labor and delivery. I think that extra hour was all transition and constant contractions. Fun times. It's funny now that I think about it. My labor with Finnegan was calm and quieter and that matches Finn's personality. Oren's labor was a lot of moving, switching positions, and vocalization, all of which fit his personality. Interesting.