Another footballer?

Well I am now 23 and a bit weeks. I have got past the difficult bit where you stop feeling tired and sick but can't feel the baby move yet. You have to trust and be patient. Unfortunately at this time a dear friend who was due on the same day as me lost her baby (17 weeks). It is so hard to see anyone go through this - especially as she had an another interuterine death at 18 weeks last year as well. My heart breaks for her. I am worried how it will be for her as my bump gets bigger and bigger.

Some people are buying sonic aid/dopplers to use at home to listen for baby's heart beat. This worries me because they often get them in early pregnancy when it is too early for a trained midwife to find the heart beat with one. I think it will give more anxiety than the reassurance they are looking for. Later on, I wonder if it stops women tuning in to their baby and its movements, as they trust the machine more than their own body. My other concern is that there is no research into the long term affects of frequent use of these. Sonic aids/dopplers use ultra sound technology. With hospitals all sonic aids and ultrasound machines have to be checked yearly. Research has shown that repeated ultrasounds are linked to lower weight babies and an increased risk of premature birth. See www.aims.org.uk 'Ultrasound/Unsound'.

Now I am getting big kicks and movements so I am reassured that bubba is growing strong and healthy. I told my seven year old son that I thought it might be a footballer like him as it is kicking so much. He asked if that meant it was a boy - he already has two brothers but they are not football mad like him and he is the only one who would like baby to be a boy - the others want to even it out. I would like to give my daughter a sister. I know they will be 14 years apart but I am 10 years older than my sister and though we were not close growing up (I left home when she was 8)we are extremely close now and I am so grateful to have a sister, especially since our mum died. We can be mum to each other.