Getting our kicks
Last Tuesday I felt my first unmistakable kick and since then I've been feeling him more and more throughout the day. Either he's becoming more active or stronger or both. The kicks haven't kept me awake or woken me up yet but they have kept me from taking full advantage of the snooze button the past few days, as the alarm apparently wakes baby up too and he starts kicking.
Last week baby was limiting most of his kicking activity to the late afternoons when I'm still at work, so Kevin wasn't able to feel the kicks. I think the first and only time he's been jealous of me during this pregnancy was when I told him that I'd gotten to feel kicking and he wasn't able to yet. Fortunately he didn't have to wait long though and was able to feel the little guy kick for the first time on Saturday, and most days since.
Alejandro
Friday our good friends Marko and Nicole got a wonderful, life-changing phone call. They've been hoping to adopt a baby for awhile and got the wonderful opportunity to do just that when a birth mother in Arlington chose them from among several potential adoptive families for her newborn baby boy. They had to rush out to get a carseat, bassinet, and all the other baby essentials, but on Sunday they got to take little Alejandro home.
We had already asked them to be godparents for our child, and they returned the honor by asking us to be Alejandro's godparents. We got to meet the little guy Tuesday and he's beautiful! We'd have been excited for them whenever they adopted, but it will be really fun and special that our sons are so close in age. No doubt they'll get into plenty of mischief together!
How do you spell relief? Wish I knew...
I've had a few episodes of heartburn recently but today's has been especially painful. I haven't read Dante's Inferno but I'm beginning to suspect one of the layers of hell might involve severe heartburn. I've taken Pepcid and Tums (practicioner-approved) and the heartburn's better but still there. Very much hoping this is an occasional thing and not a sign of what I have to look forward to for the next 16 weeks. 16 weeks could feel very, very long at this rate!
Making introductions
We've had a name idea for awhile but were still mulling over it, but now we've decided to make it official. Our little boy will be Daniel Scott Williamson. Why did we pick that, you ask?
Daniel is my maiden name so it honors my dad's side of the family (Mom's side is covered since her maiden name was Williams and our last name is Williamson). In particular, the name will be a special connection between our little boy and my paternal grandfather, DadDad, who served in World War II and was called "Danny" or "Daniel" by the men who served with him. I've looked up to him since I was little and remember choosing him as the subject of an essay on "someone I admire" in junior high. He's 92, so our son probably won't get to know him well, but I hope he'll be proud to hear about his namesake.
The family connection aside, we also like the name Daniel for its meaning. It's Hebrew for "God is my judge" (the "El" suffix being the Hebrew name for God), and in the Old Testament Daniel was a Hebrew prophet who rose to great success as an advisor to the Babylonian court because of his skill in interpreting dreams. Eventually he was persecuted for his faith in God and sentenced to death by being sealed in a lion's den, but emerged unscathed because of God's protection.
Scott is Kevin's brother's name. Kevin and Scott's middle names both honor an uncle, so we're continuing that tradition with our son's middle name and honoring Kevin's side of the family.
So, our baby is Gunior no more. From now on, he's Daniel.
Next week
Monday we have our next appointment with the midwife and it'll be an eventful one. In addition to another sonogram, I'll also have to take a glucose tolerance test to screen for gestational diabetes which will entail drinking a sugar solution then having a blood draw an hour later to see how my body is processing the glucose. Good news is I don't have to fast beforehand. Hopefully I'll pass the test with flying colors and won't have to take the more rigorous followup, which involves a series of blood draws over 3 hours after drinking the solution on an empty stomach.
We're looking forward to seeing Daniel on sonogram again, it was so neat to see him moving around last time and get that glimpse into what his life is like right now. I hope he'll let us get a good view of his face this time, last time he had his hands in the way. Come on buddy!
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