Stork Vision

When I was pregnant with W I knew a lot of women who were opting to get a 3D/4D ultrasound. My doctor's office seemed pretty high tech, so I figured it would come with my general package of prenatal care (yup, I was totally clueless). As it turned out, my doctor never even mentioned it to me. And, honestly, seeing the other people's images freaked me out and all just seemed to look the same to me. Still in "deer in headlights" mode about having a baby in the first place, the idea of seeing a little face smooshed up against my insides terrified me. So, let's just say I was fine skipping it.

The grainy, black and white regular ultrasounds were comparable to watching static on the tv for me - they still are. I can see a beating heart, but any time a technician says something like, "...And there's the arm!" I nod my head, pretending I can see it. Seriously I cannot figure out what the heck I'm looking at in ultrasounds. Just when I think I get it, I realize I'm looking at the wrong thing. Tilting my head, squinting my eyes... nothing makes a difference.

So, here I am, pregnant again, not quite as freaked out, but still not able to understand an ultrasound picture. This all might explain why when I was given the opportunity to get a 3D/4D ultrasound from Stork Vision, I took them up on the offer. Why not, right? (OK, before you answer that, I'll point out the obvious... It's cost prohibitive, I know, and that would have been my concern as well, but since it was a complimentary visit, that wasn't a factor. )

I ended up having two visits. The first was with Matt, W, and his pal Jack who we were watching for the day and is also two years old. We were, of course, 30 minutes late. (Have you ever tried to get two toddlers out the door after cutting short their nap time? And then realized that the express lanes on the expressway were open going the opposite direction?) Once we got there we spilled into a clean, calm, and modern space. It didn't take long before it was strewn with cars, books, and cookie crumbs from the old "keep the kids happy" stash, though.

Baby was not so cooperative during this first visit. He balled his fists in front of his face and turned his head any time we got close for a picture. We left without photos of his face, but an offer to come back and give it another try. Though they encouraged us to bring the whole family, I'm sure they were happy to see us drag the two boys out of there.

I returned a couple of weeks later. This time I brought my mom and sisters and we got plenty of good shots of the baby. He still tried to shield his face a few times, but we saw him give a thumbs up, yawn (a lot), swallow, and stick out his tongue. It was pretty bizarre, yet cool. My mom was so captivated she could hardly sit down.

Where I thought I would see the same infant in other people's 3D/4D images, I saw a baby that looked like W... Eyes set a little wide, that perfect little nose... Could it be? Or is it just what I wanted to see? I guess we'll know in a few weeks, but for now the photos are keeping me a little more excited to meet my Little Guy #2.

There is something that I've heard women say about their baby that I've never understood until now and I can say it too: I'm really excited to meet this little guy. I can't say for sure that the ultrasounds at Stork Vision are the reason why, but I believe they helped.

If you're thinking of getting this type of ultrasound, I'd recommend checking them out. The technicians were really excellent and personable. They both took their time and patiently explained everything. The Chicago location is in a great spot in Lincoln Park and street parking was surprisingly easy. The white couches made me nervous with W and the decor made me feel a little like I was in an Ikea, but overall it was pretty cool.

Disclosure: I received the visits to Stork Vision complimentary, however the opinions here are my own.