It's A Boy!

Pretty much the first thing we saw on our ultrasound last week was a penis. Baby was not shy about showing off his junk, and he seemed to do so with a sort of amniotic pride. I had been preparing myself for months that Baby 2 was possibly, probably, inevitably going to be a girl, though, and even though Boy was my gender of choice- right then and there, hearing that I was having another boy, I felt a twinge of... something.

Regret? Disappointment? A small dot of sadness? This is it, I thought to myself, hearing the news. As our projected family planning stops at the second child, I'm most likely never going to have a daughter. Sure, I know things can change, accidents happen, lotteries are won, and so forth, but, more than likely, this is my second and last pregnancy. Over the past couple months, I'd convinced myself that this second baby was a girl, and I was really beginning to warm up to the idea. There would be certain relationship aspects that I could share with a daughter that I just won't have with my boys, and when I think about those imagined girl-bonding moments, now forever gone, I get just the tiniest bit teary-eyed.

That being said, I WANTED this baby to be a boy. Life just suddenly got a whole lot simpler as compared with the "It's a girl!" alternate reality. Planning for Baby 2 will be a cinch. They'll share a room once the new little guy sleeps through the night, and I have all the other boy stuff required. No additional shopping necessary, except for new bottles and binkies. And the double stroller, which has been a point of contention between me and Chris. He thinks that I don't need a double stroller, and that Andy will just walk nicely alongside me and the baby on days we go to the park, mall, library, what not. Um, have you met Andy? What's the first thing you think of when you picture him? Is it "That kid needs to be strapped down into something otherwise he'll run headlong into traffic and/or alligators?" Yeah. Exactly. That's what I thought.

Okay. Aside from the major convenience factor- Andy gets a BROTHER. They'll be only two years apart and hopefully grow up being great friends. They'll even be in high school and college together for two years each, which is fun. (I'm assuming one of them won't be held back or skipped ahead, both distinct possibilities, if you've ever witnessed Andy simultaneously doing something brilliant while trying to eat a napkin.) I just gave Andy his best man for his wedding (I hope she's nice!), and Baby 2 now has an automatic idol. Andy, the kid who eats napkins.

Plus, I love having a son. I really do, and I know it's going to be even double the fun with two. I'm biased because I don't have a daughter (and never will, remember?), but it just seems like there is something really special about little boys. They are fun and wild and sweet and just the right amount of stinky.

I'm trying to imagine what Baby 2 will look like, and I keep coming up with Andy. I can't imagine having another boy that doesn't look exactly like Andy. What other combinations of me and Chris could possibly exist? I can't imagine that there's a wide variety of possibilities, what with our similar dago good looks. But, we'll see. I couldn't imagine what Andy would look like AT ALL and was shocked at his perfect, albeit "been through hell," little face when I first laid eyes upon him. I guess I'm in for another surprise- or, just maybe, another little Andy. I have no idea.

So, that's it. Another little boy. It's a relief to know and to attached a pronoun to the baby. HE looked adorable in his ultrasound. He was moving and touching his face and at one point had his hands clasped together near his face as if in prayer. "Please God," I heard him whisper, "Let everything be okay. That other little boy out there just sounds loud and awful. And I really hope I can live up to the dietary expectations these people have regarding cheese."