Well, I had to change the title of the Blog again. No longer is it the Billy Blog. It has now become "The Babies Blog". That's right. Antoinette and I just found out that we're pregnant with #2. From here on out, Billy, the star of our show, will have to share the spotlight with news of the new little one. Anyway, what do we know so far?
Baby #2 was confirmed about three weeks ago with a pregnancy test. Antoinette and I haven't been to the doctor yet for the first appointment, as Antoinette is still looking for a new doctor for this time around. As of this post, we have calculated Antoinette at a little over 7 weeks pregnant with a due date of Tuesday, November 9th, 2010. Antoinette has been a bit a bit drowsier compared to her previous pregnancy, or at least we think she is. Her nausea has been at a minimum again with no signs of horrible morning sickness as the 1st trimester has pushed past the halfway point.
With this baby, known only to us as Baby X, we plan on finding out the gender so when we know, you'll know. Names could take longer as we're not in a rush to work that part out. With Billy, we were picking out baby books within a week of finding out, just in case we had a girl. This time, we'll take our time working out the details and we we'll probably settle on three or four names, deciding ultimately when we see the baby for the first time. That could mean that you won't know the name until you meet him/her.
For the new baby, much of the updates will be recaps on previous posts about Billy, since the general development of a fetus hasn't changed over the past year. The new baby is about 13 mm's in length now, or about the length of the pinky fingernail on my index finger. While that seems small, it represents a doubling in size over the past week. Its weight is just 1/30th of an ounce. The baby has arm and leg buds that have clearly separated into what will become hands and feet. Seems crazy that Billy was this big just 18 months ago. Those "hands and feet" had a paddle like quality to them as the fingers and toes began to distinguish themselves, but they have already become individual digits just a half mm long, or about half the length of your pen tip.
The heart on the new baby is bulging from the body and has divided into two equal halves. The brain is continuing to develop and will ultimately form two clear halves of its own. Air passages are forming and the eyes are starting to add pigment. While the face is in the early stages with the hint of a nose just beginning to form, the internal organs are developing nicely, with a pancreas and appendix already in place.
I'll continue to keep bringing updates about Mom and Baby in the Blog updates of the future, so stay tuned.
When we found out about the new baby, Antoinette's Mother and Sister were just a week away from visiting, so we decided to hold off telling anyone except my parents until then. She didn't want any early word to leak back to them before she had a chance to tell them in person. Living the distances we do apart, this could be Antoinette's only shot to tell her Mother news like this face to face. When they arrived, Antoinette had prepared a huge gift wrapped box and told her Mother it was a belated Christmas present. When she opened it, out popped a half dozen blue and pink balloons with a note attached listing the due date of the new arrival. Every started screaming and crying and it was a great moment for everyone involved. I know it really made Antoinette's day to see her Mother and Sister so happy for her.
As for Billy's Grandma and Auntie's visit, it went very well. For the two of them, it was a chance to spend as much quality time with Billy as possible. Grandma took every opportunity possible to feed him, hold him, play with him, and put him to sleep at night. There were times she was beating me to his bedroom in the morning when he woke up crying. I have no doubt that she enjoyed every minute she had with the Billy and he enjoyed every minute just the same. After they left, Billy would crawl into the guest bedroom looking for his Grandma or toward the futon looking for his Auntie.
During the visit, we had a bunch of stuff to get done. Namely, we needed to celebrate Billy's 1st Birthday a month early so that Grandma and Auntie Laura could be in on the celebration. So the party started. Billy got to open up all of his presents, which included a bubble making alligator, a push toy/ride along toy, some spinning top looking toy, a large ball, a turtle that swims with him in the bathtub, and a 7 piece shovel and pail beach kit. He also got to dip into a chocolate cupcake and smear it all over his face. There will be pictures of this magical moment in the attached slide show.
Of the toys, I think the bubble making alligator is his favorite. When you turn that thing on, you can cover the entire living room in bubbles in about 30 seconds. He just stands there and watches them fall like snow all around him, getting angry when you stop. Other than that, I think his favorite toy is the giant box that we surprised Grandma with. Billy's been playing with that thing like crazy. He'll crawl back and forth through it for about 15-20 minutes straight before getting bored. Pretty funny stuff. Get the kid toys and all he wants to play with is the box. Go figure.
Another major milestone was achieved this past month, and its one that shouldn't be overshadowed by anything else as far as Billy is concerned. The little guy took his first steps. While Grandma was here, Billy took two steps to Momma before collapsing. Since then, he will routinely take 3-7 steps before falling down. He's officially let go and now just needs to get a little better at it, but the hard part is over. He let go. And on March 18th, 2010, just shy of reaching his 11th month of life, Billy started to walk.
But that wasn't all for the little guy. Grandma got to take him to the beach to break in his new shovel and pail set. On a beautiful 73 degree day with nothing but sun in the sky, we drove the Jeep onto the beach, parked about 50 feet from the water's edge, and set up shop. To his Mother's dismay, I let the little guy crawl around in the sand, which he was very unsure of. Before long he was covered in the stuff (partly because I was burying his legs and feet in it), building sand castles with Grandma, and chasing the birds in the arms of all of us. It was a bit chilly to actually head out into the water, but we all had a great time.
After eight days, Grandma and Auntie Laura had to head back to cold and blustery Chicago (sadly right when the weather really started to warm up to a consistent 75 degrees). Since that time, Billy has passed a couple more important milestones, including a dramatic increase in hugging and high fives, pointing at things that he wants or is interested in, putting giant gumballs into his toy gumball machine (the start of putting a square peg into a square hole, etc.), and stacking blocks instead of just knocking them over. While many of these seem subtle, they are quite important in the development of a child and are considered milestones, none the less.
Between now and the next Blog update, a whole lot will change for both of our children. For the new baby, growth rates are exceptional, as the fetus will grow about 500% in length and 1300% in weight. For Antoinette, the 1st Trimester will be nearing completion and our first doctor's visit should be under our belt. For Billy, his 1st Birthday will come and go and with it, a host of changes follow close behind. He should be walking more, his growth will slow, separation anxiety should be kicking in, he should begin using utensils to eat, he will be allowed to try a dozen additional kinds of food, his car seat will be turned around face forward, and many others. I can't wait to update you all when that time comes...
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