The Third Child

The third living child sure gets the shaft.

Many of my embryo adoption friends are pregnant with their first baby(ies). I see them excitedly beginning to build their registeries and feel a little guilty that Violet's entrance into the world will have far less consumer fanfare.  My bank account thanks me, of course.

Granted, it doesn't help that Violet will be born in a comparable season as her older siblings (late May in Texas vs. July in Virginia).

I have saved almost everything from the twins:  clothes, cribs, bouncy seats, swing, pack n play with bassinet...  My list of things to buy is so short, I feel no rush to buy anything.

Before Violet is born, I will need to buy only a minimal number of items:

1.  Diapers (usually still have wipes on hand)
.
.
.


Actually, that's all I NEED to buy. :-)



I 'd like to also buy a few more items before she (or he!) makes a debut, but if we were in a bind, I could manage without:

1.  Bassinet sheets. The twins went straight into a shared crib when they were born so we didn't really use the bassinet feature of the pack n play much with them.  I plan on having Violet sleep there at my bedside for a while.
2.  Miracle swaddling blankets
3. Batteries for the swing and bouncy seat.
4.  Wubbanubs for pacifiers.  Actually, I think these may be Birth Day gifts from the twins to Violet.
5. Violet's gifts for the twins, whatever small items we decide upon



And, eventually, I'll need to buy a few more items:

1. A crib mattress and maybe new sheets
2. A single stroller.  We loved our Baby Jogger double stroller, so maybe a single from the same brand?
3.  An additional baby carrier.  I'm leaning towards a Lillebaby carrier as they can be less hot in Texas summers than other carriers, but we'll see.  I already have a Baby K'Tan for the first few weeks. Who knows if we'll even like babywearing!  Helpful hint:  You can use a 20% off coupon to a certain bedding and bath store and buy this carrier online.
4.  Maybe a water sling or some sort of water-safe baby wearing item for the pool.  Again, we'll see how things temperaments play out with babywearing.


Of course, there may be some frivolous purchases after the baby is born. Like when I walk through a certain red spot store and spy an adorable baby outfit on clearance...

I'm really gravitating towards elephants for a nursery theme. Not that I am decorating any time soon.   It's a rental and Violet won't even be in that bedroom right away.  And, depending on when we get orders for our next move, I may not decorate at all.  Anyway, Grandma quilts so I've been spending time on Pinterest looking at elephant baby quilts.  And daydreaming. You know how Pinterest can prompt that.

So that's that!  The ultra-simplified, pack rat, slightly more experienced parent wish list. 


The third child, surrounded by far fewer items than "first child" contemporaries.


The third child, surrounded by an increased number of arms waiting to envelope her in loving embraces.

Gender Prediction

We have opted to find out Violet's gender at birth.

We have now had three MFM appointments and they've noted in our file that the gender is a "surprise".  That being said, at the December appointment, Bryan saw "female" written in our file. He spent the last month firmly convinced that "Violet" was indeed a girl and keeping everything a secret from me.

Until yesterday.

Yesterday was my January MFM appointment.  We had a pause in the appointment after the tech was done with her measurements but the doctor wasn't in the room yet.  Bryan told me his story and we viewed the computer screen together.  Sure enough, it said "female".  Right next to my name and birthdate.  That's right, I am female!

And the baby remains a surprise.

Out of curiosity, I've looked up the old wife's tales for gender prediction.  Some I won't do as they are just ridiculous. Dangle my wedding ring on a string above my belly to see how it rotates?? Please, just no.

I am eliminating the heart rate one. Cora and Mac had identical heart rates for most of my pregnancy with them (including labor which freaked out the nurses thinking they were missing a baby).

I haven't had any cravings.

My only food aversions have been texture related not taste related. Yogurt and I are still on questionable terms.

After an extensive five minute internet research, I can only really think of two remotely plausible gender predictors.

1.  Baby is low. This means boy.  Speaking of positioning, it is amazing how much force a 14 oz baby can exert on one's bladder...

2.  Baby was on the "girl" side during my first clinic ultrasound.  (There is a newer study done comparing gender in pregnancies with baby positioning in 6 or 7 week ultrasounds.  This study has been very reliable in my embryo adoption group, though not 100% reliable...)

For comparison, I can say Cora and Mac were on their respective girl/boy sides during my six week ultrasound with them.



Well, there you have it.  We are either having a girl or a boy!