Good Morning Munchkin!

Your mom has been up for quite some time now, laying in bed thinking of you so I thought I'd get up and write about our/your most recent adventures. Quite honestly, I am not generally a morning-person. I am not grumpy, per se, but neither am I bounding out of bed singing, eager to start the day. It takes me a good hour of slow-motion, a hot shower, food and the spackling on of makeup before I am ready to speak to another human being. Today is different though. I'm abuzz with excitement after having seen you yesterday - but more on that later ...

This weekend your dad and I (and by default, you) went to New York to visit my family there. My mum (your Gram) and John Tonner were first cousins, making John and I second cousins, making his children (Sheila, Tara and Sean) my third cousins. My Nana and Sheila/Tara/Sean's Nana were sisters. (In fact, their Nana was named Bridget!) Confusing, I know. Let's just say that we're cousins and leave it at that. Sheila, Tara and Sean are in their thirties and are just amazing, fun and witty. Apparently we used to visit quite a bit when we were young but unfortunately I have little recollection of that time (I swear that I was born at 13!). Over two years ago (maybe three ...) Tara got married and I accompanied my mum as her date. This rekindled my relationship with my cousins and we have kept in touch ever since. Whew! Backstory completed, we went to see them this weekend.

Pearl River, NY where everyone lives is a very cute town with a massive Irish population. I have heard fewer Irish accents in Dublin, I kid you not. This means that the Sunday after St. Patrick's day a HUGE St. Pat's celebration, large parade included, is held. People come from all over to attend the celebrations and everyone wears green. Many people take the Monday off of work in order to celebrate properly. In fact, local schools have actually been closed the Monday after! Tara and her husband Mike hold a large party after the parade and it seemed like hundreds of their family and friends were in and out of their house over the course of the evening. Tara put on a huge spread of food inside and Mike manned a grill that could barbeque a whole cow outside. What a fantastic party!! I really really missed your Gram that day as I know that she would have been holding court on a stool in the kitchen with a glass ... ahem, bottle ... of wine while people sat enthralled with her stories and laughter.

Next year you will attend the party in person wearing the St. Patrick's sleeper that Tara found for you. Festivities went late into the night (not for your mom who was in bed at 12) which caused your dad and Mike to spend the next day on opposite ends of the couch, snuggled in blankets, watching Sportsnet. It was cute actually, save for their green, pasty faces and the scent of stale beer emanating from them.

While your dad and Mike recovered, Tara and I went to a few stores. I bought you a ton of clothes at the local Carter's store (50% off AND Tara had a coupon - woo hoo!) including the aforementioned St. Pattys sleeper AND a Valentine's day shirt. As you can tell, I love themed clothing, in fact Tara is going to get me an Easter sleeper for you. I fully intend of taking advantage of the fact that you are a baby and won't notice the silly outfits ... or bathtub photos. I look forward to pulling these photos out to show your date before you head to Prom. Yes, I will be THAT mom. Yes, you MAY end up in therapy but regardless, I can't friggin' wait.

The visit was fantastic and though we had a delay at the Newark airport which frustrated your dad, everything went well with our return on Tuesday. We picked up Tucker and Skye at their respective babysitters (Ant/Joe and your Pa) and though they couldn't have been treated better, they were sulky for a day after our return.



This brings us to yesterday, March 25th - a day that your dad and I will NEVER forget!! Your 20 week ultrasound! I went to work for half a day but was sick with nerves the entire time and wasn't as effective as I probably could have been. I was excited to see you but still nervous that something would show in the scan that would be cause for concern. As it turns out, my worries went unfounded as everything went absolutely perfect!

I picked up your dad shortly after 1 and headed to the Met hospital in Windsor. Your dad parked while I registered and once he was sorted, he proceeded to get lost in the bowels of the hospital. I was in the waiting area reading a book when your dad appeared through a door he should never have come from ... in scrubs and holding a scalpel ... to be honest, I'm still not sure what happened and will let him explain. Regardless, he found me and we waited for the word.

I got called in but your dad had to sit in the waiting room until you were all measured. The tech proceeded to measure basically every inch of you and told me what was happening each time which was better and less worrisome than laying there in silence. The tech would say 'I'm measuring the circumference of the head ... now the cerebellum ... now I am looking at the heart ...' and I would follow along as much as I could with my peripheral vision. Occasionally she would get stuck on a particular organ for what would seem like a long time and I would be getting more nervous, but as it turned out - you were just flipping around and shaking your bon bon like your mom does to bad dance music - so much so that she could barely get a good shot to measure whatever it was that she was looking at. The tech also had a hard time getting your dad and I a decent picture because you refused to stay still! I think that we are in for a very interesting time with you if you are this active in the womb!

Although the tech knew, via me, that we wanted to find out your sex she waited until your dad got called in to share the news. The tech (I feel so bad for not getting her name!) then proceeded to show us what was probably a very important graph about where you are in your development (in a nutshell, PERFECT!) when I blurted out 'IT'S A BOY, RIGHT!?!' and she said that yes, indeed - you are a boy.

Well, our dearest sweetest Sean, your dad and I welled up with pride and tears at the image of our bouncing baby boy (literally) on screen. The tech showed your dad everything she had gone through; the umbilical cord, spine, your kidneys, heart, head, hands, feet and your penis. Yes, I am causing you further future embarassment by mentioning your penis in this letter. But there it was. Multiple times. You were showing off for the camera. Everytime the tech would scan down to show your dad a foot or tibia *boom* you flashed your penis. So much so that in the 9 pics that the tech gave us of you - 2, are of your man parts. Ah well, I will support whatever career choice that you make and, in fact, I hear that the Chippendales make good money.

You are looking fantastic and are exactly where you need to be in your development. You have taken our advice to grow strong to heart and we are so grateful. I am also feeling you move regularly now and I know that I am walking around with a very goofy smile on my face every day because I am thinking of you.

As soon as we left the hospital we called your Granny followed by a flurry of calls to the rest of the family and our friends. Everyone is so excited, not because you are a boy but because you are looking perfect and healthy. I know that your Gram in heaven (who, by the way, told me in a dream in December that you were a boy - hence why I was so confident in my knowledge of your sex) is smiling down on us and taking care of you.

Well babe, I have to be getting to work. There is always more to say but I still have a bit of time to say it so we will resume this conversation later.

Take care in there my boy,
love,
Mom