Boots or Booties?

If it's a girl, BOTH. Which is one of the reasons why having a girl would be nice. She could wear pretty things sometimes and overalls and cowgirl boots other times. And once she has enough hair to look like a girl, she's not limited by any color scheme. Boys are significantly more limited, though, both in terms of colors and traditionally acceptable clothing. Throw in the factor of ME, and matters only get worse because I only like limited kinds of boy clothes. Not real crazy about a lot of the stuff that gets slapped on boy clothing. I guess because the design of the clothes itself is so limited (compared to all the different style dresses and outfits for girls), designers feel the need to put things ON the outfits... like race cars and bulldozers and sports balls. I think it's silly to impose stereotypical grown-man interests on an infant who, given his choice, would be far more interested in a pacifier than a lawn mower. One of these days I'm going to see a onesie embroidered with a remote control and bottle of beer.

Our mothers have brought us our old baby blankets and a few outfits they saved. It was fun to see all Sean's infant stuff, his last surviving "blankie," the duckie shower curtain that infuriated him because he'd wanted G.I.Joe, etc. I hung the stuff out on the line just to take pictures; this caused one of those subtle freak-out moments-- it was so ODD to hang baby clothes and blankets up. Really bizarre to think that come April, baby things will be just as frequently handled and cleaned as adult things. This was a tangible taste of what is to become everyday reality in just 24 weeks. Scary, scary thought.

My mom's been working on making the baby its OWN blanket. She probably thinks she's just being grandmotherly, but Sean and I see it as a wise move for other reasons. To be frank, sometimes we're just not so good at sharing. Those baby blankets in the picture above are OURS. Not the kid's.

Sean's maternal grandmother also made a blanket for the baby. So in the end, the kid will have two of his own; this is a good, good thing. Good job, Grandmas!

I've now finished the 16th week. If we had an ultrasound this week, we could tell if it were boots, booties, or both. It's funny for something to be knowable, but not known. [Shouldn't I just be able to google it???] The baby's the size of an avocado, and about to hit a growth spurt, doubling its weight in the next few weeks. It's quickly gaining on Wilbur.

(Side note: Wilbur is sensitive about his size and prefers to be thought of as petite; this does not conflict, in his mind, with his Hedgehog of Fury facade. He's complicated. To keep him happy, I promised I'd inform folks that the avocado is especially small for an avocado. Only then was he willing to pose next to the piece of fruit for one iota of a second).