Everyone does this with their ultrasound pictures... right?

No one has ever been more excited to stare at a grainy black and white image as my husband and I were when we first saw our son floating around in his baby world.

There we sat, holding hands, staring at a giant screen in front of us. As the ultra sound technician slowly moved the scanner over my growing belly (largely attributed to baby, partially as a result of guilt-free crème eggs), I couldn’t believe that the little jelly bean squirming around before me was my unborn child. He was perfection from the start. Twelve-week-old, stock standard issue (to everyone but me) ultrasound picture perfection.

Sitting here now, more than three years later, I think back on my pregnancy with my first son as such a magical roller coaster. I close my eyes and I see me. A different me. A me about to embark on the most amazing experience I could have ever imagined. A me, that had no idea of the love that was about to fill my heart, of the worry that would consume my head and the connection to one small person that would signal the end of my life as I knew it and begin the start of something much more.

Just as an FYI, you should know that this post is sponsored by Mater Mothers. But all opinions expressed by the author are 100 per cent authentic and written in their own words.

For the remainder of my pregnancy, I carried those flimsy little ultrasound pictures with me everywhere. I had one next to my bed. I had one in my wallet. I sat a copy next to my desk at work and I’d daydream about his arrival. Every day, I would stare at the printout of my little person and try to attribute his features to either my husband or myself, from a six centimetre by eight centimetre profile shot.

I studied him far more than the uni books I was supposed to be focused on at the time. I’d glance at him throughout the day as I’d run through possible name choices in my head, and through my lunch break I became an expert in all things pram-related and feeding-focused. I used whatever time I had to peruse endless forums filled with other equally excited mums-to-be for the latest reviews on baby monitors and carriers.

We decided to find out the sex of my first born (and my second for that matter). We had endless conversations wondering if we should find out, shouldn’t we? For me, it was never really a question. I’m not good with surprises. I had decided very early on that having a baby was enough surprise for me and true to my ever-present need for organisation and order (ha! that quickly went out the window a few months in) I wanted to be able to properly nest bub.

The memory of laying on the table my 18-week scan has stayed with me till this day. I can still see my husband’s face light up with excitement and joy when we heard that we were to have a baby boy. I know he would have been happy with whatever the outcome, but being a blokey bloke, the idea of having a little mate of his own was just everything to him.

Although, I’d been planning for our baby for months, knowing he was in fact a ‘he’ and no longer an ‘it’ made things even more real. ‘He’ inherited a wardrobe full of pale blue goodness and I spent hours picking out the perfect colour for his room. I added his newest photos to my collection and would show anyone that would let me. To their credit, my friends all ‘ooh’d and aahh’d appropriately. Even at the 17th viewing.

Throughout my pregnancy, like many mothers, I also took regular photos to show the progression of my growing belly. I look back on them every now and then and see myself standing in a half-painted room, with boxes of newborn nappies sitting patiently in the background waiting for their time to shine.

Almost like a slow motion flip book, I see his nursery come to life as my belly gets bigger and bigger. I see the excitement and nervousness in my face as my stomach slowly takes over and I see a person living through one of the most special experiences of their life. I see the books piled up, nightly readings on all things baby. I see cots taking shape and piles of baby clothes freshly laundered and waiting for their wearer.

And so, at 42 weeks pregnant and having overstayed his welcome in the baby hotel, the time was finally here to meet the little man I had been staring at in photos for months. What I realised very quickly is that babies don’t adhere to any plans you have made about their arrival and they will do so how and whenever they choose.

Eventually requiring to exit via the sunroof, the first time I laid eyes on my first born was as he was being lifted out. I knew it all along. Baby perfection.

There were endless tears. Even some from him. I couldn’t believe that he was finally here. I don’t think I even properly looked at him until he was hours old. I just lay with him on my chest, breathing in his newness, knowing that he was in the world.

After spending so many months staring at so many photos, it didn’t matter what he looked like, who he resembled. What mattered was that he was here, and he was mine.

Three years on, I can still see him in the ultrasound images I carried around with me for so long, now lovingly glued to the pages of his baby book. As he gets older, he will see the first pictures taken of him but I’m sure he will never fully understand what those fuzzy black and white stills meant to me.

Pictures taken before he took his first breath. Pictures taken before he took mine away.

What are the beautiful moments you remember from when you had your first child?

In the lead up to Mother’s Day, Mater Mothers is celebrating the wonderful mums in our lives with the Beautiful Moments campaign and we want you to be a part of it!

We’re calling you to share your own unique stories, memories, photos and videos with us so we can recognise all of the amazing mums and their families out there.

By sharing your photos and videos with Mater Mothers you will have the chance to win some great prizes! Share your beautiful moments with Mater Mothers today.Facebook.com/matermothers

For over 50 years, Mater has been there to share in many beautiful moments that last a lifetime. Mater provides maternity services for insured and non-insured mothers and babies in South Brisbane and Redland.

Mater Mothers’ Hospitals are leaders in the provision of high quality maternity and newborn services for the people of Queensland and northern New South Wales. Providing exceptional care and support of women and their families, Mater Mothers’ Hospitals offer integrated services covering obstetrics, gynaecology, neonatology and maternal fetal medicine.

Almost 10,000 babies are born at Mater Mothers’ Hospitals every year. Mater welcomes a new baby into the world for every 32 births in Australia — that’s one in every seven Queenslanders.