Separation and baby updates

The thing I was most adamantly NOT looking forward to has happened.  On Friday, Bryant got on a plane and left for Grenada without me.  I cried.  A lot. 

We had agreed not to talk about it beforehand because we knew it would be hard either way and wanted to consolidate all the sadness.  But when we parked the car at the airport, Bryant handed me his travel folder (I always keep a pocket folder with us when we travel for passports, hotel reservations, boarding passes, etch) while he pulled his luggage out of the trunk.  He put down his luggage, grabbed me in a hug and said, while tearing up, "You're not going to be there to hold our travel folder anymore.  I feel like I'm losing my best friend."  I lost it then for a bit.  We got it under control, walked to the counter and checked him in, then headed over to the security line.  I sobbed while he managed to keep it together, there was lots of hugging and then...I had to walk away while he got in line.  I walked through the airport, tears running down my face the whole time, got back to my car, got in, and sobbed for a good 5 minutes before I could start it and leave.  The whole drive home I cried on and off, then cried some more when I got to my parents' house.  I did okay on Saturday because I told my family I would cry if they asked me about it, but I was not as successful on Sunday.  After Sacrament Meeting, one of my old young women advisors came up to ask me how I was doing and I started crying.  She hugged me and said comforting things until I got my emotions under control again.  But then my old bishop came up and asked how I was doing and the tears started again.  After that, I just walked home.  I couldn't face two more hours of crying every time someone asked how I was doing.  I blame the pregnancy hormones.

Bryant and I have Skyped every night and he has an internet texting app on his Surface, so he can text my phone whenever he has internet.  That has helped a bit, but I still get choked up every time I think about him.  And especially when I think about him leaving.  That "losing my best friend" bit makes me cry every single time I think about it (I may have teared up again while writing this post, FYI).  But I don't regret our decision to have me stay here.  It's what is best for our little girl.

Oh, speaking of which, we're having a girl!  Her name is Lydia.

Bryant and I went in for my doctor's appointment back in the second week of June and the doctor got one shot of what looked like a boy.  However, after that one shot, baby kept its legs firmly crossed and even put both of its hands down there, too.  Our doctor tried for 10 minutes to get another picture and got nowhere.  She finally gave up, scheduled us for another ultrasound the next week with her ultrasound technician and told us not to count on it being a boy.  Well, the next week came and there was a definite lack of any boy parts.  Our little girl was much less modest the second time around!  She also moved around so much that the tech was having a hard time getting the measurements she needed.  She couldn't freeze the frame fast enough, so she started recording a few seconds of video, then rewinding it to get a clear image.  This does not bode well for me, I think!

Also, after weeks of being unsure if I felt her moving or not, I can now most definitely feel her.  So can anyone else because she kicks so hard.  Last Thursday morning I finally felt what I was positive were kicks, and which I swear I never felt before that moment.  Bryant put his hand on my stomach and he could feel them, too.  That was the day before he left and she has been very active ever since.  My little sister felt it and described it as baby tap dancing.  When this girl moves, she moves.  Nothing ambiguous about it.

I'm almost entirely over the nausea now (23 weeks later), but yesterday I had to cave and take an anti-nausea pill.  Overall, though, I feel a million times better than I did before.  Also, I'm loving the lack of humidity.  I often comment on the "cool" weather, only to be informed that it is 80-90 degrees outside.  It feels great to me!

I have many other updates that I didn't have the time to post on here while they were happening--spending time with Bryant and family while he was here was top priority--so I'll be posting those soon.  Also, due to popular demand, baby bump pictures.  Stay tuned!