Did he say...

Yeah, he did. He said it. The doctor was unequivocally sure. When I told the doctor that both of us always thought it was a boy, he told us that Jungle Baby could be a boy, but "there is her vagina". If we still wanted to think that it was a boy, that was fine, but "she is just perfect."

Yes, we were/are a bit shocked. You know when you order a chocolate milkshake and the container is really dark and you take that first sip. Well, you just expect a strong chocolate taste to hit your tongue in just the right spot. But, if you take that first sip and the milkshake-maker made a mistake and you have something weird, like, let's say, strawberry, you are just shocked. You might like strawberry, but it was not what you expected. That first sip is just weird and hard to accept. You might not go back to the milkshake-maker and return the strawberry shake, because maybe you really like strawberry and now the strawberry tastes good. But, you know, you just thought it was going to be chocolate.

I just thought Jungle Baby was going to be a boy. I was sure "it" was a boy. I have no idea why I thought that. And, clearly now, I have accepted the reality that I have zero maternal instincts that work. And,

Jungle Baby is ZOE LU!

Yes, she is perfect. She even looks really cute on the ultrasound video. She has a seriously strong heartbeat and she is going to be super incredible. I never really thought I would be a mom, and really have never considered the idea of having a daughter. I could see myself with a son. But, a little girl has never, ever enter my realm of daydreams. So, of course, I am going to have a daughter. But don't fret, I think about it all the time now, and it makes me crazy happy.

I think about how Zoe Lu is going to take over the world. Yup, she is (and I have zero maternal instincts telling me that this is true, I am simply listening to everyone around me). My parents raised me to be a very strong and independent woman and for that I am eternally gratefully. I plan on going even farther and raising a Super Woman. ZOE LU will be something extra special. She just can't ever want to take ballet. Then, we will really have to have some mother-daughter talks.

So, it seems we need lots of board shorts and bikinis. The best of both worlds!

Look How We've Grown

 This is how Jungle Baby and I started this journey of pregnancy. Pre-pregnancy life was easy: I woke, ate, surfed, worked and even drank endless amounts of coffee and afternoon beers. Oh, how times have changed!
<--------
This photo was about seven weeks into Jungle Baby's fetal development, and don't let my smile fool you! I was a wreck during the entire first trimester. If you can remember, Sick-All-The-Time was always around. I was moody, tired, upset, nervous...oh, the list goes on-and-on.
 
But, we continued to learn and grow together, and with time everything grew easier. I learned how to balance the emergency runs to the bathroom to vomit with my classes and work schedule. I learned to LOVE saltines and ginger ale. And, thankfully the first trimester ended rather quickly!

 Then, I started to get a belly, or baby bump (I am not sure I like that phrase), and I threw up less, I complained less, I stopped emailing Megan frantic emails and I decided that I could do this amazing feat! I was going to have a baby soon and was going to be someone's mom. This is when Cesar and I started the discussion of names, and it only took us two nights to decide. Those nights were fun! We both shared the strong feelings in our guts that it was a boy and Cesar still hopes that it is. He is very afraid of having to protect a girl from eager boyfriends. And, well, I just don't have much in common with girly-girls. Anyway, regardless of what happens with the next ultrasound, we have always been convinced that it is a boy, but strangely decided on a girl's name first and without doubt. So, either way, we just want to see Jungle Baby healthy and happy in December!



Here I am in July, four months into my journey of making a fetus change into a human being. Now, life was great! I defeated Sick-All-The-Time, stopped depending on ginger to make it through a day. My appetite and energy returned to normal. I was happy that I looked a little pregnant and eager to talk about it with anyone who wanted to hear about it.

Despite the rough first trimester, I did it! 





<------ Photo at 4 months

 A couple of weeks later there was not much new to report. I continued with my yoga classes, walked in the afternoons and thought a lot about surfing and how Jungle Baby just might be a pro surfer. To be honest, this thought rarely escapes my mind...I daydream of being a mom with fins on, out in the middle of the ocean, encouraging Jungle Baby to paddle and take a left or right wave. I am not sure what I will do if Jungle Baby has other intentions.

<------ Photo at 4.5 months

 Not much happened over the next month. I expanded a bit in my belly, but still could wear my normal clothes. I developed some nasty "spider veins" on my right leg (of which I do not approve) and just returned to being me. I wasn't feeling anything, not movements, not nausea, not cravings, nothing really. Just felt a bit heavier all over.

In fact, the "nothingness" that was happening now, made me feel really bored with pregnancy. I didn't have much new to say, my books didn't really share anything cool that was changing, and people stopped being so interested. If I wore certain clothes, I didn't really look pregnant, so I tried to wear tight shirts, just to personally remember and to remind people that something was going on. But, mostly, I was just bored of it and ready for something to happen or change.

Well, changes happened fast! I popped! I really, over three days, GREW! Suddenly, I was the topic of town and couldn't stop the hands reaching for my belly. (Thankfully, I welcome the touches and attention now.) It was so interesting - At night, I was HUGE. After dinner, I couldn't sit down comfortably, and all day I had to hold my belly upward to ease the stretching tension. I longed to talk and talk about it to anyone that was nearby. I could literally feel the stretching happening. And, BOOM! there was my now-obviously-pregnant belly.
 <------ Photo Yesterday

I look down and laugh at my belly now, it is so round and solid. I feel like there is an addition added to my front-side, and I just can't take the addition off. I feel fine, just big! I have lots of energy and eat a lot. I get hot really fast, but that is normal. I get tired fast and long for afternoon naps, but that is normal too.


On Tuesday, I will be 23 weeks pregnant. Over half-way there! We head back to San Jose tomorrow night and have the next ultrasound on Tuesday at noon. We can't wait to see Jungle Baby again and to find out if we can say LOGAN (middle-name-in-the-works) or ZOE LOU! I was once extremely nervous when we went to the OB/GYN in San Jose. I didn't want to hear bad news, but now I just get excited and can't wait to lay down and see Jungle Baby on the TV screen. I can't wait to hear its heartbeat and hopefully s/he will open those little legs so we can finally find out if Jungle Baby needs board shorts or bikinis! 

River Yoga & 5.5 Months

 Yoga and pregnancy are supposed to be a great combination. So, I am tiring hard to keep a regular schedule of yoga practice as Jungle Baby and I grow. I have a great friend here, Ireni, who is a talented and creative yoga teacher. She developed River Yoga Hikes. These are great for someone like me: a water-lover, easily-bored by repetition and one who longs for a "workout" more than just a "stretch".  We did our first Yoga Rio (river) last week.

 I still have a hard time with "left" and "right"...as you can see from my tree stand above!

 Ireni!

 We are pretty sure Jungle Baby likes to hang from trees.

 A natural jacuzzi pool!

Let's see, what's new? I am really getting used to being pregnant now. Like I said before, I am a bit bored by it. In addition to yoga, I try to walk and swim a lot. That's fine, but nothing like hours of surfing. But, I am adjusting. I don't feel much different and not much new to report...just counting the weeks and watching them fly by.

I have been told that there is no denying the fact that Jungle Baby exists. Even with baggy shirts, you can see the baby bump down there. I do like that, for at least there is some tangible proof for how I feel sometimes.