Finding Out It's a Girl + Her Name

Let's face it, I'm just not good at keeping my own secrets. If you confide in me and ask me to keep your secret, I'm good. I believe that's your info to share - not mine - and I'm all ears for you. But when it comes to keeping my own secrets, good news, etc., you can almost always guarantee I'll spill the beans before I actually wanted to!

With Barrett, we found out he was a boy at our 17 week appointment when we talked my doctor into doing a quick ultrasound right there in the room. We kept the secret between the two of us for just a couple of short days until our gender reveal that weekend. That same weekend, we also shared his name with family and friends.

With Baby Girl Hinton, we just couldn't wait that long to find out the gender. This pregnancy has been very different than the first and we both just had a gut feeling that it was a girl. So, we opted for the genetic testing this time around (we opted out with B) and these tests can tell you the gender of your baby with 99% accuracy. After 11 agonizing days of waiting for the results in the mail, that white envelope with big, red lettering that said, "GENDER RESULTS," finally arrived. Luke let me open it. The first page was a letter from my doctor saying that all genetic testing came back negative for any abnormalities and that the gender results were stapled to this letter. I took a deep breath and flipped page 1 over. Page 2 was a plain white piece of paper with bold, black lettering in the middle of the page that read, "Congrats!! You're having a GIRL!!!" I smiled really big and laughed. Luke said, "Girl??" and I said, "Barrett, you're going to have a little sister!" We were cheering and laughing and poor B started to tear up. He didn't understand what was going on or why mom and dad were being so loud. Someday, it'll be funny that Barrett cried when he found out he was having a sister. :)

So of course, we've decided to share Baby Girl Hinton's name too. Her name has actually been picked out since before we had decided on Barrett's name, around 9 weeks into our pregnancy with B. But it wasn't hard, considering that Luke and I have been together so long. Of course, baby names have come up over the years. But once we paired her first and middle name together, we knew it was the name God has chosen for our little girl, whenever He was to give her to us.

So without any further delay, the name we've chosen for our sweet little girl is...



 

Riley is my husband's middle name. How my all my kiddos keep getting named after their daddy is beyond me. I must like him or something. ;) But seriously, I've always loved the name Riley and think it's so sweet that she'll get to share this with her dad. And Scout is the name of the protagonist in the book To Kill a Mockingbird, one of my favorite books of all time. Since I was a sophomore in high school, I've known that I would name a little girl Scout. In this book, Scout is smart, has a strong faith, and believes in the goodness of people. She loves to ask questions because she truly wants to understand and is more of a tomboy than a girly girl. She's always reminded me a lot of myself as a young girl and has many of the characteristics I've always envisioned my own daughter having.

 

We can't wait to snuggle and kiss and hold our Riley Scout!

 

17wks 5days

 

But now thus says the Lord, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine."

Isaiah 43:1 ESV

 

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.

Jeremiah 1:5a NIV

Back At It!

I can't even begin to tell you all how excited I was to click on the "create new post" button this morning! I haven't written a new blog post in just over a year and I've really missed it. Once Barrett was born (3.12.15), blogging became one of the lowest to-dos on my list and eventually just fell off. I took advantage of every last second of my 3-month maternity leave and then jumped right back into my fulltime marketing job. But once I was back at work + had a baby in MDO/daycare, Luke started a new job, I started a side business, we took on leadership roles in our Sunday school class, life just...happened.

But a couple of months ago, I started to realize that I'd done exactly what I told myself I wouldn't do. I forgot to make time for me. I got wrapped up in being a wife/a mom/a marketing manager and a restlessness began to stir in my heart. I had no outlet. My life was diapers and cooking dinner and email marketing campaigns on repeat. And then one day, my sweet husband said, "Babe, why aren't you writing anymore?" Y'all, this is why God gave me Luke. He just gets me! So, here I am. Back to writing and putting all of my thoughts and stories on virtual paper so that they don't stay all cooped up inside. I'm so excited I can barely stand it!!

I can't wait to document more of pregnancy #2 (YES! For those of you who haven't heard, baby #2 is on HER way! We couldn't be more excited!!), recap Barrett's first year, and loop everyone in on all of the Hinton happenings these days. Thanks so much for following along!

Baby H: Weeks 25-28

Week 25

This week was Thanksgiving! We had a weird Thanksgiving holiday this year because my parents decided to pack up just the two of them and drive up to New Mexico to tour a ranch they were looking at buying. Because of this, my sisters and I all spent Thanksgiving day apart - either with our significant others and their families or with friends. On Saturday, we did all get together for a second round of Thanksgiving at my aunt's house in Katy.

{Thanksgiving, round 1 - @ Luke's grandpa's house in Portland, TX}

{Snapped a couple of Christmas card pics in front of our house before heading to Katy for Thanksgiving, round 2}

{And one with our first two babies!}

Unfortunately, I got food poisoning after Thanksgiving, round 2, but it only lasted one day. It was rough, but I could handle one day. I was thankful it wasn't any worse! I do also remember that week 25 brought with it my first experience with uncomfortable pregnant sleep. I started tossing and turning more and waking up to use the bathroom became more frequent. And I realized that the tightening I'd been feeling in my stomach for the last few weeks was actually Braxton Hick contractions, ha! I blame it on being a first timer. :)

Week 26

I had an uneventful dr. appointment during week 26. I was in and out quickly - everything looked great! Barrett decided during this week that he was going to become a fan of kicking and rolling around pretty much 24/7. At work, my stomach would start going crazy in the middle of meetings. In the evening, he would roll/punch/kick like a little ninja, especially when I laid on my side. I also experienced my first swollen ankles this week. Lucky, I learned that I could get rid of these fairly easily by adding a little more activity/walking to my day and putting my feet up in the evenings. 

That weekend, I drove up to Waco for the last football game of the season, which also happened to be the Big 12 Championship game. It was an especially sweet weekend with my girlfriends/college roomies because I knew it'd be my last weekend in Waco with them before I became a mom. 

Week 27

Luke got home from being gone for about a week or so for work - and it was perfect timing! We got to go pick up Barrett's baby furniture and Luke put it together in his room. I originally had a tough time deciding what furniture to buy, but I'm so glad we went with the set we did. It includes a crib, dresser, and bookshelf and it's a beautiful chocolate brown color. We also bought a crib mattress even tough we were registered for one because dad just couldn't help himself. Once he'd put the crib together, he had to have a mattress for his boy! #toocute

{Bentley is always supervising!}

We also went to the Houston Zoo to experience their Zoo Lights Christmas event with our friends, Sarah and Andrew, and their little girl, Peyton. 

{It's always so fun hanging out with this little one!}

Barrett and I also decided that week 27 meant we were in the third trimester (Ok, maybe just I decided, ha!). I know that different websites say different weeks count as the beginning of the third trimester, but think about it - 40/3 = 13.2x2 = 26.6. Yup, 27 weeks sounds like the third trimester to me! In honor of our last trimester, I took a bump selfie. 

Week 28

I had another doctor appointment this week and again, nothing new to report! Measuring exactly on time, blood pressure was good, and baby's heartbeat was strong as always. This week, Luke and I got a taste of parenthood when we babysat Peyton. Sarah and Andrew had just bought a new house and needed a kid-free day to get some moving and house prep done. So Luke and I took Peyton for the day and it was so fun!

 

{These two were fans of each other}

 

I was given diaper duty, while Luke handled all the feedings. We took Peyton to Target (and bought her stuff like good babysitters do, ha!) and when people told us how cute our kid was, we just said, "Thanks!" It was fun pretending to be parents and I'm not going to lie, I think we were both sad when we had to give her back. I can't wait for Peyton and Barrett to be buds. :)

 

Week 28 was also spent finishing our Christmas shopping and I remember specifically that about this time, Barrett's movements were getting crazy! I could feel him moving all the time. He was kicking me much harder, he was rolling around a lot at night, and when he stretched out head to toe, I could feel him down in my pelvic area as well as up in my ribs. It was about this time I knew we were having ourselves a big boy!

 

 

The greatest thing ever

Baahh!! I've fallen so behind again! Baby H: Weeks 25-28, Weeks, 29-32, and Weeks 33-36 coming soon, especially since Baby H himself could be arriving any day now and I may not get another chance to write these. Lord have mercy! But of course, instead of playing catch up, I've decided to write a blog post about something that has surprised me these last few weeks of pregnancy. :)

At about 32-33 weeks, the people who see me on a regular basis (husband, church friends, co-workers, etc.) started to notice a change in my bump a.k.a. "Whoa that thing came out of no where! It's like overnight you just popped!" Yes, people, there is quite a large baby boy in there *written with a sarcastic tone and rolled eyes.* And around the same time, poor baby started getting knocked around a little more. I felt like I was running into everything! Baby has gotten hit by the car door as I've climbed out of my car in tight parking spaces, I've run into open filing cabinets at work, and the list goes on. I swear, he's going to come out with a dent in his head! But this isn't the surprising part of pregnancy I'm talking about.

{bump}

This morning (mind you, I'm almost 37 weeks), I stopped to get to get gas and a cup of coffee on my way to work. As I was pouring my coffee, a gentleman walked up next to me to reach for a stir stick on the counter and in trying to make room for him, I accidently ran my baby bump into the counter. I quickly apologized. "I'm sorry sir. There's a lot going on right here," I said with a smile and a rub of the belly. He looked sweetly at me and said, "Oh no worries! It's the greatest thing ever." 

The greatest thing ever. I've heard many versions of this phrase over and over again the last few weeks. I expected to hear it from women, but surprisingly, it's the men who keep saying this to me. And they don't just spat it off nonchalantly. It's always said in such an endearing way that almost makes me tear up. It's like all these dads see my big ol' belly and take a couple of seconds to reminisce on the joy of fatherhood and the blessing it truly is.

My boss does this to me all the time. We'll be talking or joking about something related to parenthood and he'll get into this serious mood for just a couple of seconds and say, "It's the best job I've ever had." And on Friday night, Luke and I went to dinner at Lupe Tortilla and ended up having about a 30 minute conversation with a guy named Jonathan who has two little girls, 3 and 7. He kept telling Luke, "It changes you man. I'm not the same guy I was before my girls. It's the best thing that could ever happen to you. I'm so excited for you guys!" Seriously? I don't know why this shocks me so much, but I can't even count the number of dads that have gushed over having children to us.

I guess I just wanted to remember this aspect of pregnancy. Their sweet dad faces that look off just slightly into the distance and reflect fondly over the life-changing experience Luke and I are about to go through, their sweet words and the grace they give this momma-to-be for the way her bump runs into just about everything these days, and the last few days before Luke becomes a dad that I pray will think back fondly over this adventure called fatherhood. Thanks to all you sweet dads out there. You warm this momma's heart.