This boy is a kicker...23 weeks and growing

So over the past 4-5 weeks, the baby has started to kick, punch, squirm, and do all of the other funny things that babies do when they're hanging out in their mommy's belly. Well for the first couple of weeks, he either was getting bashful when I was around or I just couldn't pinpoint the feeling because I didn't feel him kicking.

However, over the past week I've started talking to him more and more often. I would talk about anything such as sports and how I think Ron Artest is going to ruin the Lakers...yay!!! and how Andy Roddick played the match of his life against Roger Federer and still lost, or I would read to him from the 45 baby books that currently reside at the Cox home, or I would talk to him about his crazy future big brother.

In any event, as soon as I started talking to him more and more, he started kicking like crazy and I was able to really feel it. It was the coolest feeling in the world...and then last night I was talking to him and I put my hand on Gem's belly and said "give me a kick little man" and the second after I said it, he kicked my hand...it was awesome. Anyway it's been really amazing feeling him grow and seeing Gem's belly grow.

And without further adieu, please see the first baby kick video, look to the left of Gemma's belly button, it happens quick...

The Name Game - 21 weeks

Coming up with boy names has been quite challenging.  We had a list of girl names ready to go - Ella (a combination of our mother's names) being our #1, followed by Sophia and Olivia. However, the boy names have not come easy.  

Our challenge stems from finding the right name that goes with 'Cox' as well as eliminating any chance of grade school teasing. For example, Harry Cox or Tanner Cox (I'll stop there to keep this G rated), but if you really think about this, the list is endless.

Anyhow, we do have a couple of names in mind, and will probably determine which name to go with once we meet him.  However, we are always open to feedback!

In the meantime, my 20-21 weeks have been pretty amazing. The baby's kicks and punches have been more frequent and pronounced. He's growing quickly and the bump is getting bigger and bigger by the day.  My pre-pregnant, deep innie belly button is right on the cusp of popping out. Dressing in the morning has been quite a challenge as some things just don't fit like they used to, and jean options are getting narrower by the week. Overall, I am happy to say that I have passed the half way mark - and we are elated to start the nursery decorating!

  

It's a...

So Gemma and I went to the Doctor's office yesterday to get the 2nd trimester screening and also where we were going to hopefully find out the sex of the baby if it cooperated. After getting there 25 minutes early, as usual for us:), we were in the waiting room for maybe 3 minutes when they called us in and we went into the exam room. Within another 2 minutes, the Doctor was there and we were off, the ultrasound was going and we were looking at the little one again. It was so amazing to see the growth spurt in just under 2 months since the last time we were at the Doctor. And then it happened, the Dr. looked at the screen and said that we were having a baby BOY:) It was such a surreal feeling because you wait to here those three little words but you completely underestimate the feeling and emotions you experience when you find out. More importantly, all of the measurements and pictures looked beautiful and as you can see from the picture of the little man up above, he's got a pretty good looking little right hand:) Gemma and I are so excited and want to thank everyone for all of the prayers and support. Although she's going to be outnumbered 3 to 1 in the Cox household now there's really nothing like the love between a baby boy and his mommy, believe me I've seen it with the mama's boy that is our beast Yorkie. So now it's time for the fun part, the shopping, the painting, the baby proofing, the registering, the teaching our dog how to not attack small plush animals or babies, the classes, and most importantly...what we're going to call this little man. I've been getting requests from many and there's a lot of great choices so stay tuned for the naming news coming shortly hopefully:)

19 1/2 weeks

On occasion, I can feel very faint taps from the baby. Especially after big and hearty meals, it feels like a goldfish is swimming in my belly...it's unreal! Unfortunately, Matt has yet to feel the baby kick - but I am really hoping in the next couple of weeks he will be able to feel 'TBD' Cox.  Speaking of which, we are scheduled for our 20 week ultrasound this week and hope to finally find what the sex of the baby is. I just pray and keep my fingers crossed for signs of good health. More to come later.....

Donna Martin Graduates...from the hospital

Nowadays, I cry frequently. Occasions of happiness, sadness, madness, etc. Tears of joy (Matt’s surprise blog below), and most recently, tears of fright. This is obviously symptomatic of increased hormone levels as I was not a big crier before.

Case and point. I watched an episode of "Tori and Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood” where they documented the birth of their 2^nd daughter, Stella. It was quite detailed in that they had cameras rolling throughout Tori's C-section. Even though this was her 2nd go around, she was in tears throughout the episode because she was scared of the birthing process. Instantly, I was emotionally connected with my old 9-0 buddy. Once they laid Donna Martin on the operating table and that canopy went up, (see above photo) I began to cry from the same anxiety. I gave one hard look at Matt and said “There’s no way I can do that”…

I realize once the moment occurs, I will do anything to get the baby out…but the thought of bearing a child is scary. I admit, this anxiety stems from a low threshold for pain and a fear of hospitals. But I just have to constantly remind myself, millions of women give birth, and if nervous nelly Tori can do it (twice) I can do it too.

Almost 19 weeks

So it's pretty late right now, well pretty late by our standards nowadays:)  It's around 11pm and tomorrow Gemma will hit the 19th week mark, I know, it's going by so quickly.  And I know that this blog is dedicated to telling all of you about the baby and its progress and hopefully there will be some pretty big news next week when we go to the doctor, but I wanted to take a moment and talk about my beautiful wife.  

I just wanted to say that I couldn't be more proud of her and how she has taken this pregnancy in stride.  Obviously we are so blessed to be given this opportunity and we can thank God enough for that but going through pregnancy is a big change for most people and it can be a rough go around for some.  Well...she has been a absolute trooper.  First of all, she looks amazing...glowing...if that's how to describe it.  For those of you who know Gemma, and I think that's everyone, her skin pretty much glows all the time but I think it does even more now:)  Second of all, I can see the maternal instincts coming out already and I can't wait to see her as a "mommy" because I think she's going to be such a caring and loving mom to our beautiful baby.  And finally, she has been such a supportive and loving wife throughout the entire process, even volunteering to do dog duty when I have late nights at work.  And for those of you who know our dog Parker, that can be quite a chore at times:)  I guess I just wanted to say a big "thank you" and "I love you" to her for being such a strong person and for doing pretty much 99% of the work throughout this process.

...and I promise she's not standing behind me right now, in fact she's been in bed for about an hour:)  Talk to all of you soon.

M.

What will he or she look like?

For fun, I went on one of those "morhping" web sites to see what mine and Matt's baby would look like.  I do not suggest this because the results hold absolutely zero resemblance to either of us.

Is it me, or does the boy (left picture) resemble Brangelina's 2nd adopted boy, Pax?