Can you make out a face?

I had a belly check today. Baby looks good, I'm doing good. Doc is happy with us. I am 30 weeks or 7 1/2 months. Here is a little snapshot that doc took with the ultrasound. Baby is sideways with her forehead on your right.

Can you make out eyes, nose, mouth?

This one shows mostly cheek and forehead.

A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

So, the pictures below are of Baby Brown. No, this isn't a "V" baby. Looks like a little lizard-alien, though, right?

My estimated due date is March 25, 2011 which puts me at about 13 weeks. This little bug is a wiggler and the doctor said it was a happy baby. It kicked and punched. Brad thinks it's a boy. Maybe. We'll see toward the end of October if we can tell.

Hannah is excited. Brad is excited. I'm excited, but I will tell you that I am exhausted and tired of getting sick.

Miscarriage is a long and painful process. It's a heartbreaking event for a family that was so excited to welcome new preciousness. We're dealing with the loss. I've expressed most of my feelings on old-fashioned paper and I don't want to talk about it, really. I will share a small poem that I wrote last night. I don't want to hear about whether or not the poem is good. It is what it is.

you were precious for seconds
an idea that never came to be
my love lasted for moments
as a life I could see
I'll wait for your return
sweet spirit please return to me
-Amy Brown
8/8/2008

So, Hannah says "I want my baby sister!" one day after watching cartoons. Oh, really? Well, a visit to the doctor and a blood test later and she might just get one at the end of February. It puts me about 8 weeks along, which is early for an announcement, but we just can't keep it a secret with all of the thyroid checks and blood tests I'll be doing. (Don't worry, we've called immediate family already.)

I'm sure people where I used to work will rumor that this is the real reason I quit, but the math can prove them wrong. I would have been days pregnant at the time I tendered my resignation. How could I have known? It was almost a planned pregnancy, for those nosy people who are going to ask. We had talked about starting to try and well, it doesn't take more than one try sometimes. Why does it matter to folks anyway? We're a married couple and these things happen to married couples, you know? It happens to unmarried couples also, as a matter of fact. A new baby is a blessing whether we were watching a calendar or not.

We'll tell Hannah a little bit at a time. It might help to wait until I have more belly to help with the visualization.

We'll keep you posted here and on Twitter with doctor's visit updates. I know when I was pregnant with Hannah, I would spend a good 30-45 minutes on the phone in the parking lot trying to keep everyone up to date on developments. Speaking of, we'll keep my weight gain private and personal this time. I'm starting out in a "healthy" place and we'll leave it at that.