Ultrasound pics

Following are some of the ultrasound pics. We got a few more of the side view and one with a foot that isn't all that clear. We could clearly see the heart beating. We got a videotape too. Didn't see anything that would have given away the sex. I'm sure the nurse woulda tried harder had we wanted to know.

It was nice to see two of each limb and only one head. Not that we expected anything different, but things happen and it's nice to know that big-picture stuff looks OK.

This is amazing stuff, y'all. I mean, I know everyone else in the world has babies too. But still, it's amazing stuff.

Here's an annotated pic of the face, just because I felt like it. 

Here's a close-up of the face. 

Here's another picture of the side view. You can see the thigh bone really clearly at the left.

Here's the baby. His (her, whatever) right hand is up by his face.

Names

Boy's name du jour: Isaac Walker. Walker is a family name (Tina's grandmother's name when she got adopted, I think), which is fair enough. We're traditional folk who believe in a family having one clearly identifiable family name, rather than hyphenated names or two last names or different last names. So Tina's taken my last name but by using her family's names in the middle we can keep them around. So that's cool.

Plus...well, George W.

I'm still holding out on Reagan as a first name for a girl. Tina thinks it'll be mispronounced "Ree-gan" but I really doubt it. Look, our last name is Mastilak. I think we just need to give up the idea that we'll have an easy time with names.

I've given thought to changing my last name to Matthews. Not really. Usually when I've just ordered a pizza or something.

UPDATE: Walker was Tina's grandma's birth name. Davis was her adopted name.

Sickie pills, part 4,578b

Well, Tina still needs her sickie pills. She had a pretty rough time of it Saturday - had to come home from work. She learned two things that day: first, she still needs the pills. Second, next time she tries to go without them, she should still have some on hand in case she needs them.

She actually figured out on Friday (the day she tested) that she needed them, but we didn't have any of her regular pills and she wouldn't let me get them. So she tried some of the pills she'd gotten earlier, which were only human-strength instead of buffalo-strength. Those didn't do anything except knock her totally loopy. So she was sick in the belly and woozy in the head. Fun for all involved.

Anyway, she's back on the pills and is doing fine. She actually came to see me play guitar and mandolin at all 3 services in church today. That was cool to do - and really great to have her there for it.

Ultrasound this Friday. Updates as they happen. Thanks for reading!

Boy's names

We're still thinking about names for a boy. Isaac ("he laughs") seems to have entered the fray.

Tina wants a name that sounds like a baby's name as well as one that fits a man. I tend not to worry so much about whether a name sounds like a baby's name. Assuming the regular course of life, he'll be a baby for a few years, then a child, then a teenager - then an adult for three or four times as long as all that time (baby-through-teen) put together. So 75-80% of his life will be adulthood.

When I think of kids, I think of them as future adults. So every minute ought to be preparation for a life of adulthood, responsibility for others, etc. Maybe I shouldn't do so much of that, so I can help my kids enjoy being a kid. I never really enjoyed being a kid, because it seemed like all it was was restrictions and having to wait. It doesn't have to be that way, and I don't want it to be that way. I suppose I'll just have to learn to balance preparation for adulthood with protection from the evils of the world and with immersion in the joys of the world.

And boy, do I want to home-school. But that's a whole 'nother argument.

No major news lately

Blogger has eaten a couple of posts lately, so I've been annoyed at it. But really, not too much has happened. Tina has some aches and pains and refuses any sort of medical treatment, preferring to hobble around like a hobbling person.

Our ultrasound is next Friday.

We also registered at Target for baby shower stuff. (Click on the Baby menu at the top, then Target baby Registry at the bottom of the Baby menu.)

And Tina tries the no-anti-puking-medicine thing again this Friday. We'll hope it works, of course, but we have no idea.

New wheels

Well, Benjabeth has a new ride. We just signed a too-good-to-pass-up lease deal on a Toyota Sienna LE. (I think the one on the picture is exactly the same as ours - same light blue, 8-passenger seating, LE model.)

It's really amazing the cool stuff they put into cars these days: Lotsa power, 5-speed auto, traction control, 3rd-row seats fold into the floor or come out, 2nd-row bucket seats that flop forward or come out. The middle seat slides up real far, just behind the first row, so you can smack...uh, feed the baby when he cries like a baby.

A little pop-down mirror so you can see the people in the car like a school bus driver.

Tire pressure monitor.

Snazzy adjustable armrests.

Folding table between the front seats.

Eight cupholders just for the front seats. More in back. Many more. (OK, I'm a little tired of all the cupholder nonsense.)

Separate radio for the back seat - with remote. (I bet those never get lost.)

Plus, Toyota-smooth engine and quality. All that for $269 a month. Really really amazing.

Experiment failed again

Tina can't go without the anti-barf pill. So say results this morning. Specifically, so says barf this morning.