12th January 2021

I have just one word to say at this point: wow!

Last week we went for our twelve week scan and we saw baby again, which was so exciting! Although we had a scan at 7 weeks, I was still nervous to see what would happen. We got into the waiting room and I was bursting for the loo because I dutifully drank a pint of water an hour earlier. The hospital were running over and so by the time we saw the sonographer, I was really uncomfortable. She took one look at me and told me to go to the ladies!

We went into the room, they rubbed the jelly on my belly and away we went. To begin with Dino jumped high up, as if with shock, and then had their hand over their face for ages! The baby definitely didn’t appreciate their warm little bubble being poked and prodded! But eventually Dino played game and we got some pictures, which are now pride of place on the fridge.

So, we went public with our news about baby a couple of days ago and the response has been utterly overwhelming. People have been so supportive and excited on our behalf, and it has completely blown me away. I haven’t checked, but I suspect that the pregnancy announcement got more reactions on Facebook than our engagement!

Although, one thing that has really surprised me is that some people feel it’s okay to ask very personal questions. Like ‘was this planned?’. I would never dream of asking that question! But thankfully, that has been a super small number of people.

And to be completely honest, I was really worried about the response from people Norris Green and Croxteth. There is no reason why the arrival of this baby should have more of an impact on my job than Nathan’s, but I was worried that people would think I was abandoning ship really early on. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong. The messages have been full of joy, congratulations and excitement.

It’s also good to finally be able to explain why I’m not lifting anything at Foodbank, why I tire easily and why I look pale and queasy sometimes!

In myself, I am starting to feel better, which is a huge relief. I am not as sick and I definitely have a bit more energy. I do seem to be having more headaches and migraines are lingering for longer, but that is probably because I’m not allowed codine any more!

And how’s Dino? Well, the baby is over two inches long, about as big as an apricot. Baby is wiggling around, although I won’t feel it for weeks yet. And they are practicing breathing by breathing in and out amniotic fluid. It is crazy to think how quickly this baby is growing. I love Mondays when the app updates. We get a whole new load of information and get to compare the baby to another fruit or vegetable!

We also have picked paint swatches and made a start on painting the nursery. We have gone for a nice yellow, mint green, grey and white because we are having a ‘surprise’. We have picked nice, neutral colours for the nursery and clothes which will work whoever this baby is.

Anyway, I think that’s quite enough for now! It has been a very exciting week or so and we loved sharing our news with everybody.

More to come soon x