William and I were very excited to be able to hear our baby’s heartbeat for the first time. William told his boss that he had to go to the doctor for a check-up… he just didn’t share who the check-up was for.

William grabbed his camera and we headed down to the office. Having already gone through my maternal/newborn rotation, I am familiar with the procedures and equipment involved in prenatal care. As we walked back to the exam room, the nurse picked up the handheld doppler machine, she placed it on the counter and left the room for a minute. “Is that the machine for hearing the heartbeat?” William asked. “I was expecting a large computer on wheels that they would have to roll in here.” Once we heard that sweet sound – beating at 160 beats per minute – it didn’t matter how big the machine was.