T Minus 7 Weeks & Counting

How quick time flies - only 7 weeks until the due date. We went to the annual BBQ at our dive club last night and it was really weird to hear people saying things like, "Next time we see you the baby will have arrived"! The baby is now probably over 40cm tall and will probably have grown nails to the ends of its finger tips. I wonder if junior is settled in the head down position yet?

All invites for the baby shower are now out (best I get a golf course booked soon!).

Junior's First Bed

Of the many lovely gifts we have already received, this is just one of them. My sister, brother-in-law and nephew purchased Junior's very first bed. This beautiful little moses basket was purchased in Lakeside. I couldn't wait to get it home and set it up. Its getting really exciting now seeing everything come together and buying loads of bits for Junior. This is one spoilt little baby already.........

20 Week Scan

At the 20 week scan we were both really excited and itching to find out the sex of the baby (I'd already lost my bet for a PS3 that Tina was carrying twins!). We had an initial scare as the sonographer at Basildon Hospital thought the baby had low amniotic fluid and thus we was referred to Kings College Hospital. After a restless and worrying weekend we headed up to London on Tina's birthday - 11/6/7. At this stage we no longer cared what the sex of the baby was, just that the baby was healthy. After a very extensive scan, Junior was given a full MOT and signed off as low risk and in full health. Our minds were further put to rest when a consultant verified these results. Phew - you will never know how good this felt. As a birthday treat for Tina the 3 of us spent the day in London Aquarium and then went to watch the Dirty Dancing play. 20 weeks down, 20 to go............

When I grow up.......

The proud "Dad-to-be" was determined to be the first to purchase something for the baby and managed to find this little onesie from across the pond. Believe it or not I had this little number stashed away in the wardrobe for over a year before Junior was even conceived. Clearly we had no idea whether our first child would be a boy or girl, but who cares, anyone can drive a Corvette! Ever since the announcement of Junior we have received so many lovely baby gifts already from friends and family.

Now to furnish the room!

With the nursery now decorated the next expense was to furnish it out. After much searching around we finally found a nice Mamma's and Pappa's cot, wardrobe and changer unit set. Several hours later and with the help of my brother-in-law the flat packs were fully assembled and ready for Junior. Another job well done. Now time to start looking at bedding sets..........when does the expense ever stop????

Found NEMO!

Still not knowing whether Junior is a little boy or a little girl we both agreed on an underwater theme for the nursery. The beauty of this is firstly, we both love diving and fishies, and secondly, it is a pretty neutral theme. As you can see we found this really lovely tropical fish border and then finished off the room with some blue and yellow paint. Not bad for a weekends work! Now off to start looking at cots, wardrobes and changer units!!!! The expense has already started..........

Junior's First Holiday

At the tender age of just 18 weeks old, Junior decides its already time for his/her first holiday. So the 3 of us (god that sounds weird) head off to sunny Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands. Unfortunately Tina is not allowed to dive whilst pregnant so she takes care of Junior by the pool while I nip into town to head of for a few dives!!! A great holiday on a lovely island, plenty of food and drink and now nicely relaxed ready for the coming months as mother and baby both grow. Guess I better start decorating Junior's room.......

Happy Birthday Dad!

The proud Dad-to-be gets the ultimate birthday present by seeing Junior for a second time. Last week the sonographer could not get all of the required measurements due to the babies position, so we were back there this week. Junior now measures 65.9mm long and the expected due date is confirmed as Oct 18th. As you can see Junior has now done a 180 degree turn and is head down. Amazing that you can see all the ribs already at only 13 weeks!

The First Picture

And this is how it all began............after a very difficult 9 or so weeks of keeping tight lipped about the pregnancy, the first scan was completed on 4/4/7. Our excitement could not be contained after seeing our baby and listening to its heart beat for the very first time. Finally we could let the world know about the arrival of the newest family member (called Junior for the time being). How we managed to keep it a secret for this long still amazes me.............