so today we heard our baby's heartbeat. a good strong 160 bpm. it sounded like a locomotive especially with my own swooshing sounds included in the mix. and apparently, according to an old wives tale - a heart rate above 140 bpm is a sure sign it's going to be a girl, although my linea negra says otherwise. because according to that old wives tale, a line that doesn't stop at the belly button but continues up to the sternum, is a sure sign that it's going to be a boy. and of course there is also the other old wives tale - that if you weren't ever nausea or had morning sickness, its definitely a boy.

who knows? but all we'd really like to know is that he/she is a healthy growing baby, as it should be. i had dreams last night that we wouldnt hear the heartbeat and that i gave birth to a still born baby. it was scary. all of it can be pretty scary. if its not one thing its another - miscarriage fears in the 1 st trimester, to still births, to sids, and then what? fears of amber alerts of your kid? how do parents do it! kudos to all of you..thank you mom, thank you dad. don't get me wrong, im happy to be joining the club of parenthood...