September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

Our niece Jessica participated in a triathlon in Seattle to benefit the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund today. This niece is also the mother of two tiny sons and works with children when she's not training. Not only that, she's been first in line for four years to host our embryos, since we've never been sure if I could pull it off. She's a model mama!

When we had our ultrasound two weeks ago, the little gipper was measuring 15 oz., which we were told is the 54th percentile. As a Jennings, I must admit that sounds dinky. This week, she should be over a pound and be about 11 inches long. I'm starting to feel her kick, and if I tap on the spot where she's kicking she sometimes kicks back. During one of our ultrasounds the perinatologist remarked that she's an acrobat. Must take after her Daddy!

Also this week, her ovaries are completely developed with all their eggs for life. I am grown from an egg that developed in 1930 and Jack is grown from one developed in 1926. So we figure in another forty years she might use one of her eggs to give us a grandchild. This week she should start putting on fat and growing hair. We are very curious what that will look like, since we have blonde, brown, red and black hair in the immediate family, as well as straight, wavy and curly. Any guesses?

Some have reported difficulty interpreting the ultrasound photo I posted. Here are clues: it's a head shot and she's looking directly at you with her head tipped to one side. Only one eye is visible and, due to the depth of the ultrasound reading, it looks like it's wide open, although in reality she probably had it completely closed. Later I'll post a profile shot.

We are getting a kick out of the pet names people are giving our little gipper. Maribeth is calling her Lolita, Laura is calling her Bunny, and I think Aunt Kathy is calling her BG for Baby Gipper or JM for Jack or Mary. Granny a.k.a. the Queen Mother is calling her the Little Princess. Uncle Mark is calling her Jesusuzy ("Hey Suzy") because she seems to be immaculately conceived and certainly has been long-anticipated.