Dumbass

Sorry, forgot to say that there is a 1-in-6700 chance of Monkeyspawn having DS. I spose that's a pretty good shot.

Bladder Expansion Control

Yesterday we went for the nuchal translucency ultrasound - basically this is a combination of hormone levels, age and nuchal fold thickness that gets run through a computer system written by some nerd types in the UK that works out the likelihood of you carrying a child with a chromosomal abnormality (most likely Downs Syndrome).

James had an interview in the city just beforehand so I had to drink the required water for the u/s whilst wandering aimlessly through the fascinating city of Perth. I have *definitely* increased my bladder control! When I first was pregnant I kept having to wake in the middle of the night - now I have just been waking up as normal in the morning but with the largest bladder conceivably possible. I am in love with my newly toned detrusor muscle!

Anyway, after battling drivers who couldn't work out that the accelerator is the pedal on the right, we make it to the u/s place. Pretty swish little suite they have there, and what an awesome machine they have! Screw all that twisting your head to look at the screen - this place had a good sized remote tv on the wall angled for you to see what's going on perfectly. Turned out I had drunk too much water...then the little monkey wouldn't sit in the right spot, despite coughing and clearing my throat. So we went for a little wander around West Perth, came back and just when we thought that it wouldn't ever get into the correct position - bam! It stretched out, placed it's hand behind its head and gave us a good look at the nuchal fold.

We got a video, a couple of photos and found out we have a stubborn little rascal hanging around in there. When Jimbo gets a chance he'll scan them and put them up here for you to see (not very exciting, but anyway).

Then that night we went to see The Aviator for a fundraising night - I went to go and get dressed and found that my skirt only just fit me! I have 'popped' just the slighest amount, but enough so that I can tell and so can Jimbo. By the way, the movie is borange. There's three hours of my life I'll never get back again...

Ps - A few people have asked about gender but we won't know cos the genitals all look the same at this stage. A few more weeks, people!

Wooden Roosters

For those who are interested, I thought I'd also just post a quick little thing about Chinese horoscopes. 2005 is the Year of the Rooster and Wood, so here's a little bit on what a Wood Rooster is about:

THE WOOD ROOSTER 2005
This Rooster is different in that he enjoys being a part of the team rather than in the spotlight like other Roosters. He likes the company of others and is a genuine friend. These Roosters work for the betterment of society, working diligently to change the evils of it. They expect quality attempts from others involved with the causes and sometimes expect too much of their co-volunteers, as they do of themselves. Often, because of this desire to help society, these Roosters overcommitt themselves, unable to finish what they’ve started.

I'm a Water Ox and Jimbo is (he loves this) a Metal Pig! Hee hee.

Some other questions answered

I have had a few questions asked, so thought I'd reply to a few of them in bulk (after all, that's the bonus of doing the whole blog thing):

Have you had any morning sickness (m/s)?
None at all. There was one day where I felt a little off, but other than that the only reaction I've had is that I can't deal with the thought of tofu - normally one of my fave foods is a tofu burger on the bbq, but lately that just makes me feel sick to think of!

Have you had any cravings?
Occasionally, just little things like I feel like something sweet and a week ago I really felt like cake, even though I actually don't like cake that much. But nothing like pickled onions with peanut butter or anything weird like that! :o)

Where are you having the baby and any plans for drugs?
Well I am booked in for Mercy Hospital in Mt Lawley, which is on the river only about 5mins drive from our place which means I feel confident staying at home for that bit longer. As for drugs, people that know me will know abou tmy absurd, irrational and completely phobic reaction to the idea of being a paraplegic. This isn't just me worrying about it, I have been terrified of it since I was about 10yrs old. I know, weird. Anyway, I really really *really* don't want to have an epidural for this reason and this reason alone. I know it's irrational, ok! Don't leave messages saying "But Cass, it only happens in so-and-so number of cases and anaesthetists are so skilled at them and blah blah blah", rational thought has no place with this fear. For what it's worth I couldn't think of anything I would rather have! Damn brain, causing me stress.

"You better get all the sleep you can now!"
Ho, ho, ho. Really?! Cos I thought this whole having a baby thing was a walk in the park, which is of course why we just jumped into it so quickly (you know, nearly ten years after being together). Please just stand over near the window so that others may witness as I rip your neck from your torso.

Is the baby going to be a vegetarian?
Of course! As if we'd start cooking meat in the house now! Weirdos. There are heaps of babies born all over the world who are vegetarian every day, we have books, it's all ok. The only concession we're going to make is to ensure that the baby has essential fatty acid supplements and they usually come from a fish source.

Are you going to have blue for boys and pink for girls?
Now come one people, what do you think? This child isn't even having the same name as either of us, so we're hardly the type to go for tradition! The brighter the better and the less like baby pink/blue it is, the better! NO PASTELS!

In other news, today we went out and bought a few little things for the baby whilst doing other shopping -some cute bonds singlets (my first chesty...aww), a baby calender that has stickers for the months so that you can start the calender in any month that the baby is born (you write the dates in yourself) - it's pretty cute, some bright baby facecloth things and the paternal nanna and pop bought a cute-as-hell teddy bear that has been christened 'Ted'.

I also had my blood taken for the hormone level test to coincide with the u/s on wednesday next week re: abnormalities. Will keep you all posted.

I think that's about it for today. I'm at work for the next four days straight (it's my weekend at work) and Big Day Out on Sunday after doing checks/treatments in the morning. Yay!!