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11/09/2004
Flipping out
Yesterday, to reassure my loved ones about the congenital anomalies scan, I sent out an update:
We have exactly enough kidneys, some interesting-looking pieces of brain, two legs, two feet, two hands, and one arm. (Okay, we probably have two arms, since we do, in fact, have two hands, but Batman was obstinately keeping his left arm hidden, with only the hand peeping out for counting purposes.) The presence of the nose was confirmed, and it appears to be centrally located for style and convenience.
I also sent a picture.
My aunt called this morning to tell me she'd liked the picture. "Your baby's cute...!" she said.
"Thanks," I said.
"...But his hand looks sort of like a flipper."
As God is my witness, she said that.
I put it to you, gentle readers, and I fully expect you to be as speechless with indignation as I was. You be the judge: does the baby's hand look flipperlike in the least?
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Oh no, not at all.
Well, um, maybe just a teensy bit like a flipper.
OK, you are too funny, lady! Your aunt really wins the big award for weird and unsolicited comments. How can she tell the baby is cute from an ultrasound? It's like she felt compelled to balance out the "flipper" comment with one about cuteness.
okay, I have to admit this. I am absolutely retarded with these images. They look like those things that, if you look at it one way, it's a woman with a hat, and if you look at it another way, it's a witchy old woman with a big hooked nose. No. I did not say that your flipper-digited child looks like a witchy old woman with a big hooked nose. I'm only sayin'.
You should have said, "Well, Batman is half baby half dolphin, so we are expecting some aqautic features. If you look closely at the picture you can also see a blowhole." Then name the baby Flipper and honor her at the baby naming for being the one to suggest it.
Actually, don't do any of those things. But, you know, think about them a lot.
Well, I don't see it! What in the world was she talking about?...some people, sheesh. When I showed my mom the ultrasound of my now 2 1/2-year-old son, she said "Oh, he's going to inherit his dad's nose." She was actually looking at his ELBOW that happened to be in the vicinity of his face. My husband's nose is big, true, but it's not that big.
I hope, one day, you put together a coffee table book with all your pictures. Seriously. Consider it. I'd totally buy it.
Oh, yeah, and the baby's cute...flipper and all!
Bat is beautiful, even with a flipper. You should have said to your aunt, 'well we were just thinking how much Bat seemed to resemble you...."
Where I come from that type of scan is called a "fetal survey." Much less scary sounding.
As an avid scuba diver, that's a fin, not a flipper. ;)
How on earth did you get such a beautiful view of Batman's face? He/she *is* quite cute. At my last scan all the face pic shows is eye sockets and the teeth forming up in the gums. I was thinking of sending it out as her first Halloween picture. Spooky.
he's beautiful! Maybe next time batman can show Auntie what a real "flipper off'r" looks like.
Ya know those dolls that when you lay them down there eyes close but they havecute round faces and perfect lil lips. yea I see resembelance there but no flipper.
You should tell your aunt that the mail man has webbed feet.
You know, I didn't realize until you did this post, but I have had Congenital Anomalies Scans with both my babies, because of assorted risk factors I have. Only nobody called it that. They called it things like, "Extensive Untrasound," "Intensive Ultrasound," "Level II Ultrasound," "Detailed Ultrasound." I can't believe I missed a chance to wig out, not once but twice! And I so totally could have used that because I didn't worry at all during either of my pregnancies! As God is my witness!
ROFL! You never cease to crack me up! Tell your Aunt that the baby has grown out of the "flipper-hand" stage, but thanks for the oh-so-very-helpful-feedback.
Holy Shit that made me laugh!!
Thanks, and I think he's gorgeous, dahlink.
I'm so glad to hear that the scan went well.
Oh my God! You bred with Patrick Duffy and now you are having the "Baby from Atlantis"
a loooooooong time delurker...flipper, flipper, faster than lighting...YOU FEKKING KILL ME! Thank heavens your "sanity" is in tack...and it is!
Your baby is beautiful!
I want to take this opportunity to say PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider really honestly truly using "Batman" as Batman's legal middle name. Or even a second middle name. I would be SO happy if I had a middle name like that. It's not lame like family names (e.g. "Horwizer" or "Leibenfish"), and it's way cooler than the standards ("Ann", "Lynn", "James", "Paul").
Seriously. You would be my total hero, and worshiped by all of Batman's friends. Consider the additional benefit of freaking out your family members.
Maybe she didn't mean it looked like 'A' flipper, but like FLIPPER, the dolphin?
nono.. I'm sure that wasn't it.
Grape juice almost came out of my nose when I saw that picture. I was drinking grape juice at the time, my brain doesn't seep grape juice. Cute kid :) You know, for an unborn fetus.
Well, with all that water that surrounds your little Batman, what did your aunt expect? ;-)
A co-worker told me that it looked as though my baby had a tail. WTF is wrong with people?
Batman's adorable, by the way.
Hmmm--Batman's flipper is in Follistim colors. But where's the logo?
I didn't see anything "flipper like", maybe you should suggest she gets her eyes checked.
So what if his hands are "flipper-like"?? You have future college tuition to pay-- this sounds like an athletic scholarship to me!
I think only radiologists are certified to make comments like this at all. How come everyone thinks they can understand an ultrasound? I could barely see my kid's spine and then only because it was practically glowing. I am sure your kid will be a concert pianist with that flipper.
Thank you for making me laugh out loud like an idiot in a completely empty office.
My Level ll ultrasound is next week, and I fully expect to see at least one flipper - you see I HAVE flipper feet (syndactyly). They look just like your photo, and they are inherited. I shit you not.
Happy for your baby!
Your aunt has a keen eye. Not.
My ex-BIL, when watching my neice's u/s years ago, said "Oh, look at her teeth!"
It was her spine.
Batman is cute--he already has chubby cheeks, and I am sure a certain aunt will be first in line to pinch them!
Perhaps w/his flipper-like hand, Batman will someday be able to break Mark Spitz's Olympic record?
Either way, the baby is precious...I love the chubby cheeks!
Congrats on a great scan!
Much love,
Nat
We e-mail out our u/s pics too.. (it's so much easier than having to call everyone.. isn't it).. My dad said that the baby looked like a
"DEMON ALIEN"
nice... really nice...
(and it only looks a "little" like a flipper) ;)
Flipper? What flipper? Actually, it took opening the pic and looking at it three times to even see the face, and that's with your helpful labels. I feel like Rachel in Friends when she was the only one who couldn't read the ultrasounds... Baby? What baby?
You're aunt ought to get together with my mother-in-law who makes similar thoughful comments. They can have some coffee and bounce ideas off each other about how to stress us out.
No, definately not flipper hands.It looks like batman has his hand is a fist.
Great - now there's coffee all over my computer screen. The boss just doesn't understand why there is lots of girly giggling in my office in the morning and spewed coffee.
You're funny!
But if he's Batman wouldn't he have a wing rather than a flipper?
Don't you love relatives? It's almost like you think you're related by blood or marriage you can say anything that pops into your mind.
I'm like Rachel in Friends as well - Baby! What Baby?!
SHE is the kind of person we need working as an ultrasound tech, not these boring 25 yr olds who won't tell you anything.
I don't see the flipper, but I clearly see a cape strapped around it's little neck.
Hmmm... it is sort of hard to tell what the hand looks like, since the baby is whimsically wearing a swim fin with her emperor's robes (Milan, take note.) However, I DO know that it is Rude to disagree with one's more senior relations.
I am so offended by the aunt-bashing tone of your post that I am never using the Internets again. No, not even to renew my car registration. No. You've ruined it.
I see a top view of a hand next to a beautiful face and the outline of at least two fingers.
I see no flipper action.
Too funny! And here I was all prepared to be serious and reassure you that little Batman's hand looked exactly like it should. Having read your whole blog from the beginning I should have known better. ;) You got me good this time.
Thanks for the chuckle!
Obviously your aunt has it confused. The Penguin is Batman's enemy and they are in no way related.
I swear these are like the ink blot test. Right now batman looks a bit like Scooby Doo, but who am I to say? Great that someone more technical than me can see stuff there that resembles real body parts... Happy to hear all is well. And, sorry, but yes - a bit flipper like.
Hopefully I too will have baby pics for you to make fun of. And - I am sure you will enjoy doing it.
Scooby doo - heh.
I think everything is fine- you just assumed the wrong Superhero. You're having Aquaman.
Okay, I admit I'm no good at deciphering those in-utero pictures, and so would not be a good judge of Batman's cuteness or deformities or anything. I just wanted to say that when I saw that the image was titled "27w0d" I squealed with delight. You've come so far! You're so close!
Batman looks like he's grinning! Such a cutie.
Yup, just as I suspected. It's a baby. And a beautiful one at that.
Glad that the scan went well.
I always feel a bit claustrophobic looking at late-term ultrasounds. Once I make out the baby, inevitably I see that they are squashed up in some very constricted-looking position and I think, "yeesh!! Get the kid out of there!"
Batman is looking more than just al dente, and cute to boot, what with all his lovely "cornish game baby" subcutaneous fat. And wow – he's got crazy flipper fingers, just like Tommy. Perhaps he'll be a Pinball Wizard. Sign me up as a disciple.
Um yeah...we meant to tell you...that wasn't hubby's sperm? It was seal sperm.
Oops.
Hee! Well, you can always teach him how to honk a horn with his nose and take him out on the road to earn money for college.
I had gestational diabetes, too. There are a lot of things that I think they should rename to keep from freaking us the hell out.
welp, the hand doesn't look like a flipper, but the flipper he's wearing on his hand sure does. thank gahan you're having a c-section, my dear--i think that swim fin would be more painful to deliver than a stubborn shoulder.
i'm jealous because batman's face is so easy to recognize here. the most we ever got was something that looked skeletal at best, which was *quite* disconcerting.
Yes, he almost has a smug smile on his face doesn't he?
Flipper? I don't see any flipper. Your aunt is being ridiculous. :c)
Oh! and most importantly, was anything else noticeable? Like... parts?
Oh My Stars! I am laughing so hard! I accidently happened onto your blog this afternoon! Thank YOU!!!! You Rock!
It's an evolutionary advantage. This kid will be the next Michael Phelps (minus the DWI, of course).
"Why yes, that's a flipper Auntie Dear, thanks for noticing. We paid extra for that. Don't you think it will really come in handy?"