Kate and Crew 16: Finding Out

16. Finding Out (April 16, 2014) 

          The week of Kate's 20-week sonogram was busy. It started off, bright and early Sunday morning, with a trip to the airport. Mister went to Las Vegas for a couple days for an annual conference. He would get back late on Tuesday night, then in the morning, they would go to the doctor together. And then both Mister and Kate had classes to teach, and then they would catch a flight to Boston that evening to visit Kate's older brother, James Wills, and his family. 

          Sometimes, it was fun to have the house to herself. Kate particularly enjoyed the freedom of spreading out her projects and working on them without worrying about getting in Mister's way. While Mister was gone, Kate determined to make great strides in their wedding scrapbook, which she insisted on completing before their fifth anniversary! But at the same time, Kate hated it when Mister was gone. She just loved his company and his presence, and being alone with Teddy (who still seemed sick) would be fine, but not easy.

         This time, the distance was especially hard, since it seemed that Mister got sick with food poisoning on his way to Vegas. And Kate had seen the normal toll that conferences took. Invariably, she'd send her husband off, ready to talk and discuss and meet people, and he would come back exhausted and ready to nap for hours. And now he was there, all alone, and sick! Kate knew she couldn't do a thing about it, but she felt terrible anyway. 

          Of course, she had her hands full with Teddy, who was still stuffy and fussy. On Monday, she took him back to the doctor, who declared that he now had not only one, but two ear infections! Poor baby! She prescribed a stronger medication and said it should do the trick. Kate asked about their upcoming flight, and while the doctor was hesitant, she simply recommended trying to get him to eat during the takeoff and landing--to try to keep him swallowing to relieve the pressure. At least, in spite of his illness, Teddy was still developing. He cruised around, crawling everywhere. While Mister was at his conference, Kate noticed all of a sudden that Teddy was able to sit up on his own. It was surprising--only because it seemed so sudden. Kate couldn't remember him trying to sit up. It was as if one day he just decided it was time. Even being gone only three days, it felt like there was so much to catch up on and talk about when Mister arrived late on Tuesday night. 

          Wednesday morning, Kate and Mister hopped in the car, with Teddy in the backseat. Kate grinned at Mister, and he laughed. "You're pretty excited about this, aren't you?" 

          She nodded, "This is the only time I'm ever excited about going to the doctor. Think it's a girl?" she asked, and then said without waiting, "I think it's a girl!" 

          Mister merely nodded and said, "Well, we're about to find out." 

          "I know!!" Kate squealed. 

          At the clinic, Kate felt like she was getting better at seeing the sonogram images. She could easily pick out the face and some features. The little hands and feet were obvious, and the extended legs. It was awe inspiring to see such a tiny little heart beating away pumping blood through this new human being. Jenny was the stenographer again, and remembered Kate from last year. She made some light chat as she checked the baby and took measurements. When she moved to check the gender, Kate didn't know exactly what she was looking at. But it was obviously different than the pictures of her son. And that meant....

         "Looks like you have a little girl!" Jenny said. 

         "I knew it!" Kate grinned in triumph at Mister. "A little girl! Teddy! You're going to have a little sister...are you ready for that? What do you think, dear?" she asked. 

          "Wow," was Mister's response. "A little girl..." Kate could tell that it was weighty news. It would have been good news either way, but for some reason a girl had a more sobering affect on Mister than last year's boy. 

          

         The rest of the afternoon Kate and Mister whirled around in a frenzy of packing and cleaning before their trip to Boston. Mister was coming back after 5 days, but Kate would be gone for about a week and a half. There were baby things to pack and diapers to fit in and the diaper bag to organize and food to throw out and toys to pick up. It was terrible and hectic. When they were safely in the car and on their way (mostly on schedule), Mister turned to Kate and asked diplomatically, "Did you think about packing or getting ready before today?" 

          Kate cringed. She knew she could have done better. "I thought about it...but I thought there would be more time today. I didn't expect to wait around in the doctor's office for 45 minutes and not even see the doctor! And then lessons went longer than they were supposed to... I'm sorry, I know I should have worked on things more yesterday." 

          Nevertheless, Kate and Mister made it to their gate in plenty of time to catch their breath and relax for the flight. Travel from the security line to James and Kelsey Wills' dinner table was simple and easy compared with the earlier part of their day. Even Teddy's ears cooperated on the flight and seemed to cause him no extra pain due to air pressure. 

          Looking around the table at James and Kelsey and their three kids: Kate, Rose, and James Jr., Kate felt even more excited about their new little one. And this time, she got to share the news in person! 

          "Well! We had a sonogram this morning...." she began. 

          "Yes?" Kelsey prodded. "And?" 

          "Annnnd," Kate drew out, "we have...a girl!" 

          Exclamations of congratulations and pleasure and excitement flew around the table. "So does this little girl have a name?" James asked.

          "Yes, she does." 

          "Do we get to know?" 

          "Nope." Kate grinned. 

          And yet, through the wiles of the Wills and the Miller's new joy at thinking of their daughter as someone in particular, Kate and Mister ended up handing out many more hints and clues as to the name than they intended. But Kate doubted that their curiosity extended so far enough for them to investigate to the point of actually figuring out the mystery. It honestly didn't matter too much either way. She just kept thinking, We have a daughter! A boy and a girl. And they can learn to dance with each other! AH! It's perfect. Kate had a pet dream of having their kids dance together, and was delighted that her scheme was working out...so far. Then she backed up and thought, Let's just get her born first...dancing can (will have to) come later.