Who is the 'Real' Big Brother?

With cameras everywhere and personal information flying around the world faster than the speed of light it is almost impossible to keep a pregnancy secret.

My wife wants to tell her family about the pregnancy in person so we will tell them when we return to Canada next Sunday. 3 years ago when we had our son it was easy to keep the secret. My wife didn't show her pregnancy for a long time, we only used the phone to communicate over distances and neither of us were on facebook. Now we use Skype video to share images of our son with his grandparents, friends visiting us take pictures and share them on facebook and my wife is showing much earlier this time around. We need to censor ourselves almost everyday. We must censor our conversations, we must strategically position the video camera for Skype (usually with a pillow on her lap) and we must contact our friends to pull certain pictures off of facebook.

It is a lot of work, but it will be worth it to see the looks of surprise and joy when we land in Toronto next week.

Breaking News. It's a baby!!!

Now we know. After months of speculation and investigation, the first tangible evidence of a growing fetus have been found inside the uterus of my wife. Using cutting edge technology, researchers were able to determine that a small cellular structure was indeed moving inside a 'flattened-pear' shaped, hollow organ comprised of smooth muscle in the middle of the pelvis. In addition to this visual confirmation, researchers were also able to hear a steady, rhythmic sound. At 162 beats per minute it was first thought that researchers had located a lost iPod playing techno music, but once this information was coupled with the visual evidence of movement it has been conclusively determined that the anomaly is in fact a growing fetus, dubbed Maragitas the Fetus.
So the question is, what can be done to free Margaritas from its warm, comfortable chamber similar to an opium den. The best experts in the field agree that patience must prevail and that given enough time the fetus will become tired of its current situation and will voluntarily extricate him/herself. Predictions estimate this event taking place around February 5th, 2008.

It was nice to meet you baby. I couldn't be happier.

ULTRASOUND TOMORROW

I mentioned previously how difficult it is to get an ultrasound while we are here in France, but on a whim today I called all of the places in town that can do it. Success!!!

Our ultrasound is tomorrow at 11:00. What will we find? It is still very early so we may not be able to determine the sex, but we have decided that this time we will learn that rather than be surprised in the delivery room. Maybe we will find more than one fetus. We have always said that twins would be fun, but when we actually discussed it and talked about the logistics, we were overwhelmed by how much work it would be. Triplets??? Hell no. That would be crazy!!!

I kind of hope it is twins. Alex has already chosen the name if it is a girl, and if I want any say in the matter then I will need to have more than one baby, I am sure.

I will update tomorrow on the ultrasound.

We will see you tomorrow Margaritas.

A Bump in the Night

It is common for pregnant mothers to show earlier on the second pregnancy than on the first. My wife is no exception, however, while I notice the difference only when I look for it, our friend came right out and asked if we were pregnant. She was visiting us in France from Canada and hadn't seen us in months so I assume the difference was noticeable.

Shocked? I suppose so, but now that we think people can tell the difference my wife is inclined to admit it to more people so that they don't think we are hiding something from them, or worse, that we have enjoyed the French cheese so much that the changes are not due to a pregnancy.

Now we are more careful using video Skype, making sure the video is chest high, or that our son is sitting on her lap. We don't want to let out the secret before we arrive back in Canada.

So what is next? We'll see.

Oh, The Miracles of Modern Science

Something like 85% of women get morning sickness when they are pregnant. That is a staggering statistic. The money that can be made from a safe, effective treatment could be huge. Bendectin was made by Merril Dow Pharmaceuticals until they were sued by hundreds of families for birth defects in 1983. Thalidomide was originally developed and prescribed as a cure for morning sickness in West Germany but its use was discontinued when babies started being born with flippers for hands. Since then, Diclectin has been heavily perscribed but the fears remain.

We have tried many suggested remedies found on the internet. Eating dry bread or crackers before getting up in the morning, eating Granny Smith apples, moving slowly and homeopathic tablets called Lux Vomica. If there were benefits to any of these treatments then they were minor and short-lived.

Our most recent discovery, however, has reduced the morning sickness to the point where it is barely noticable. It is a pair of bracelets, like sweatbands, with a plastic bead that is positioned on the wrist, like acupuncture. As soon as they go on she feels better and as soon as she takes them off the morning sickness comes back. They are incredible and worth every penny.

Even with all of this technology at our fingertips and billions spent on pharmaceutical research, the most effective treatment for morning sickness is thousands of years old and is practically free. What a bunch of suckers we are for relying on big business to make us feel better. Why don't we just trust that maybe ancient remedies can be valid?

I am happy that she feels better.

And the results are...

I can't believe how hard it is to get anything done in this country. As I mentioned yesterday, we had a blood test to see how everything is going. Really the only thing we wanted was for the doctor to confirm that we are pregnant. Yes, the home test said we were and yes, she certainly feels pregnant and yes, we are about 5 weeks late and yes, there are some physiological changes taking place. We know we are pregnant but no doctor has ever said so. So that is what we were hoping for today. One problem, the doctor didn't order a pregnancy test, just German measles, something called glycemie a jeun and a normal blood test. We still don't know that we are officially pregnant and we cant get an ultrasound before we return to Canada.

Quels idiots ici ? Pourquoi ne peut-il pas être comme au Canada ?

Merde

Blood tests today...results tomorrow!

We decided to visit our family doctor to see if we can speed up the whole ultrasound process. It has been difficult to say the least to find an English OBGYN, and even more difficult to arrange an ultrasound before we return to Canada. So yesterday we asked our doctor to give us a hand.

For 22 Euros we were handed two sheets of paper. One directed us 2 blocks this way and one block that way to a building that does all sorts of x-rays and ultrasounds. Our piece of paper stated we needed an ultrasound on the 23rd of July (as on the 24th the Tour de France comes through town). We were told to return August 18th, two weeks after we return to Canada. No thanks.

So then we decided to follow the directions on the other piece of paper...one block that way, then a left, then a right. After 30 minutes of searching we finally found the blood analysis clinic. Another building devoted to entirely to blood. Actually, they probably also study urine...oh, a fecal matter. Anyway, we were told this time to return today. We gave blood and left. Tomorrow we get the results.

For what? you might ask. Beats us. All the directions were in French, the nurses only spoke French and, I assume, the results will be in French. All this for another 44 Euros. I am sure we will need our doctor to read the results (another 22 Euros) which will provide us with no new information.

I hope not, anyway. No news is good news. We know we are pregnant. Anything other than that is unwanted information.

I'll let you know how it went.