20 weeks

The marker of the coveted anatomy scan, the revealing of the sex of the baby that you carry within. 

Steve has been professing from day one that this baby is indeed a girl, no need to check, done and done. I haven’t felt a leaning either way, so I’ve been feigning indifference and accepting his declaration as my own. 

First of all, ultrasounds never cease to amaze me. The details that are revealed and the intricate measurements that are taken are nothing short of astounding. Medical technology is thrilling. We caught the first glimpse of our baby - head down, hands tucked into the face, snuggled in to the utero home. Life is incredibly awesome, what a gift that we are privileged to witness this knitting together!

When the time came for the reveal, I found my heart skipping a beat; I was anxious and excited. I found myself laughing at my giddy demeanor. Who was I? This was my fourth pregnancy, the third of which I’d been able to view real-time on a screen. I could handle this.

The technician rolled the Doppler over my belly and settled on that tell-tell region, and I turned to her and exclaimed, “Oh my gosh it’s a girl, isn’t it?!” 

Yes! 

We are indeed having another girl – Steve’s suspicion was substantiated and I was surprisingly surprised. He had all but convinced me of his declaration. I had even been haphazardly referring to the baby as ‘she’ and ‘her.’ Now to know without a doubt that she is indeed a she; I’m so in love and enamored with her face, her hands, her feet.

 

 

We did a small reveal tonight at dinner much to the children’s delight. Cake, balloons, candy; what’s not to love? Our favorite bakery was on vacation, and so I had planned ahead and bought a blue bow-tie and a pink headband. I wrapped the proper adornment and had Cutter open it in grand pomp and circumstance. Though he didn’t quite grasp the concept that he had just been outnumbered, he happily adorned the headband and brandished the “It’s a Girl!” balloon for memory’s sake. 

To be sure, Steve has in fact been proffering names as early as the detection of pregnancy hormones began coursing through my body. In what can only be referred to as severe déjà vu, he mentioned a name at the onset that I had not been able to shake. It kept coming up, I kept dismissing it, especially since we did not yet know what we were having. I told myself I would wait until the ultrasound to make any decisions.

The name for our daughter means courage, daring, spirit; aggressive energy; the ability to face difficulty with strength and courage. During the ultrasound today, looking at her parts, her being, and her movements; God spoke to my heart and solidified that name choice again. Without a shadow of a doubt. 

She is our Moxie. 

(Middle name forthcoming).