It's a .......... !

Pretty suspenseful blog post title, huh?! Let me just say that today has been absolutely AMAZING. I headed over to my appointment at 3pm, and I was actually really nervous and stressed! Go figure! I think that in the back of my mind, I've just been worrying about something being wrong with the baby. That, and I'm just Me.

I explained what I wanted to do to the ultrasound tech as soon as I sat down. I wanted her to turn off the monitor when she started looking for the gender. She agreed to printing the gender reveal pictures separate and putting them in an envelope. (The pictures were a little taller than the envelope, which meant she just had to tape it closed ... oh the torture!)

She started out with looking at the placenta and measuring different stuff. I got to see Hershey's heart beating at a fast 150 bpm! I even got to see Hershey's brain, stomach, kidneys, and all sorts of cool stuff like that! It was amazing!

Then the ultrasound tech began taking fun pictures, which I love and adore with all my heart...

Look at that precious profile! Hershey has a button nose! :) 

Another profile one just because I'm obsessed with this lil' cutie!

When Alex saw this picture, his response was, "Oh good, Hershey has your  skinny feet.
I didn't  want Hershey to never find wide enough shoes.."

This picture might be my favorite: evidence of the classic giant "Lindner  lips." But according to Alex and my mother-in-law, my lips are even larger than the traditional Lindner lips. Basically, Hershey was doomed! ;-) 

Don't these pictures just make you go "AWWWWW!!!!" I'm already convinced Hershey is THE CUTEST child ever. :) Seriously though, I can't stop smiling over these pictures! Where's the important picture, you ask? Patience, grasshopper... :)

Little Hershey was very cooperative when necessary but squirmed around like crazy! It was so cute because at the beginning, Hershey's face was directly beneath my belly button. :) And he/she kept grabbing his/her little toes. Eep, it was adorable! The ultrasound tech also wanted to get a picture of the baby's hand print, but Hershey wouldn't stop clenching her/his hands. In fact, throughout that process, Hershey repeatedly thrust those fists into the top of my belly. Needless to say there was some serious movement goin' on from the outside of my belly!

Overall, the appointment went great. :) All looks good with little Hershey, which was a huge relief to my crazy brain. After that, I met with my O.B. doctor which was also good. ...Although my blood pressure was crazy high compared to what it usually is! Clearly I was a wee bit anxious to find out if it was a girl or boy!

My next stop was Walmart. I browsed the baby clothing - something I've been desperately wanting to do since I found out I was pregnant! I picked up a cute baby girl and baby boy onesie, and I grabbed a neutral bag with tissue paper.

With trembling hands, I searched for a cashier who "looked" nice and friendly. I found a lady who was probably in her late 60s, and I timidly asked her for a huge favor. I explained that my husband and I were expecting our first baby and that he couldn't make it to the gender reveal appointment. I told her I wanted to find out with him if it was a boy or a girl. Then I handed her the envelope (with the tape still intact!) and said she'd find the gender inside. It was then her job to pick the appropriate onesie and wrap it up really well so I couldn't cheat. She thought the idea was adorable, so she kindly helped me out.

Let me tell you; turning around while she took care of all this and not peeking was the hardest thing ever!

I got home and I did a little dance into my in-laws' room, where Alex and my mother-in-law were talking. I brought this with me:

And it's a ......

I had Terri videotape us opening it - just so we can always remember. :) And so Hershey can watch it years from now and see how excited we were about her/him. ...And also just how much of a crazy, giddy nutcase his/her mom was.

That being said, drum roll please! ......

It's a BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

definitely a boy!

I was actually really surprised! You see, after the ultrasound tech determined the gender, she kept "accidentally" letting it slip by saying things like, "Aww, there she is moving her little feet!" and things like that. She did it infrequently enough that I was certain she was genuinely just slipping up! That sneaky little lady!! Then in the Walmart checkout, I thought I caught a glimpse of the baby girl onesie sitting out. So at that point I was definitely confused!

At the end of today, I'm just really happy. :) Alex is already the best daddy ever, and I'm so excited that we have a son. That's right; a son. :) His name? .... We're currently leaning towards Carson Davis Lindner. We'll see though; that may change. :) (I'm also in the process of trying to upload the video of us opening the onesie. But because of my technology impairments, it may have to wait until my tech-savvy husband can figure it out!)

---Next day----
Okay, hopefully I sort of figured out a way for you to watch the video!