The next ultrasound was big! On December 11th, Brook's birthday, Annie and Brook discovered their little BEN had a face! A head! All the other body parts too (in miniature)! What a birthday surprise! But that wasn't the only birthday surprise...

Brook's dad had always wanted a grandson and the ultrasound photos provided undeniable evidence of something...

Yep! That was the evidence! It looked like BEN was definitely going to be a boy! Pop would have been so happy! Annie told her parents at Christmas using Skype over the Internet (and proudly showed them the becoming-noticeable bump of her tummy). Now the word was out!

When Annie and Brook returned for another ultrasound on October 6th (only 2 weeks later) little BEN had become a definite embryo! Annie and Brook did not yet tell anyone. They decided to wait until Thanksgiving. Meanwhile they began making plans and preparations. Little BEN was growing fast, as they would find out on their next appointment!

Annie told Anne in early October and Ute (who was visiting) before she left later that month. Brook told Perry early as well. As planned, they broke the news to most on Thanksgiving (although Annie's parents didn't find out until Christmas!) and Brook's family was told during Thanksgiving dinner! Everyone was excited!

As they began to visit the OB/GYN to learn more and have checkups, their little BEN began to show more of itself in the form of ultrasound photos (and occassionally videos). At first, as in this picture on September 22nd, it was just a little dot adrift in its own environment. But it didn't take long for that little dot to grow and grow!

This little guy's story began sometime in mid-August of 2008 when his parents Annie and Brook had been married for only six or seven weeks!

Annie found out around mid-September that their little blue-eyed nugget was on its way. On a wonderful evening (September 20th, 2008), she sprung the news on Brook on their bridge (for that story you have to read a different blog) by giving him a little magic rock (once again, you must read their other blog) with a tiny little pearl embedded in it. Brook was so happy (nearly in shock) that at first Annie wasn't sure he was happy about the news (silly Annie doesn't know her hubby too well, does she?) but that moment had grabbed a permanent special place in his heart. Since they knew their children would all have blue eyes as they did, they nicknamed the little person-to-be "BEN", for "Blue-Eyed Nugget".