Scan at 10am.. I want to take DC out of school.

[Pinkflamingo121318]

Basically that.. would I be unreasonable to take them out for a couple of hours, then straight to school from the hospital.

DC are 4 and 5.
I want to take them with me for the scan.. it's the sexing scan and I'd love for them to be there.

It is 10am so they'd be back at school by 11:30 at the latest.

This will be our last baby and can't afford to have a 4D one during a half term.

This is a wind up

Every day is a new day.

Jazzy's idea is good. Get the sonographer to write it down, without telling you, and open the piece of a paper as a family together later.

Feel like I'm just another voice in the overwhelming chorus of please don't do this, but for what it's worth from several sides:

As an NHS employee and as others point out at the end of the day the purpose of the scan is to rule out issues. I know ideally they're a happy occasion and I'm sure staff will do their best to make it so but the primary purpose isn't for you to build fond memories but to be reassured that continuing the pregnancy is a viable option/to ensure the health of you and baby. If anything was not as hoped then having younger children isn't fair on you, the children or the NHS employee who then has to try and find a way to explain something adequately to you whilst being mindful of how much your children can pick up on.

As a mother (to be!) I'm currently pregnant with my first, now 38 weeks and we had one scan more recently that showed a completely unexpected issue- I then had to wait in the hospital for 3 hours to speak with consultants etc, it was hard enough on my own... I can't imagine having to emotionally contain myself and also having to have occupied a 4 and a 5 year old during those hours. No one expects to have nasty surprises at scans but sadly people do.

As a general note- those waiting rooms are often overcrowded and I'm usually kept waiting well past my scan time (up to 1-2 hours) and as much as I can't wait to be a mummy I have to say watching younger kids running around the waiting room clearly bored to tears doesn't make it wildly relaxing for me! This and I doubt very much school would allow you time off as the appointment is not in relation to either child and is after school starting time?

Instead of taking them with you why not plan a really lovely way to share the scan pictures with them OP? That way you can have the privacy of finding out all is (hopefully) well and then you can make the moment special at home and if finding out the sex/revealing is important to you then you can tie this in too? Much nicer and more appropriate environment for all of you rather than in a clinical space.

No way should you take them to your anomaly scan. What if a problem is detected? It’s not a show it’s a health check for your baby

We had no choice but to take DD1, anomaly scan was evening and we had no childcare. But DH and DD stayed outside until they had done the main checks, then came in afterwards. Would have been so awful to hear bad news with a 3yo there.

Not if you can help it.

I had to take DS to my 20 week scan - didn't have a choice as childcare let me down at the last minute. He was coming up for 4.
Because I'd been having regular scans due to previous problems, there was less of a chance of something being wrong that we didn't know about.
However, still took an iPad and earphones so he was engrossed in that while sonographer was talking to me - so if it had have been bad news at least he wouldn't be able to hear it.

Incidentally, you don't always find out the sex at the 20 week scan. When we had our 20 week scan for DS1, his legs were firmly crossed in front of his genitals, and we were told that they had absolutely no idea what sex the baby was.

No way.

My two had to come with me to a scan as I had no childcare and it was half term. We had literally just told them a few days before the scan.
Our baby's heart had stopped beating.
I was an absolute mess (I still am) and my children witnessed all of it.
It was horrendous.

Don't take them. It's fucking shit.

REALLY inappropriate.

I had to take my DCs to the hospital for my scans but they stayed in the waiting room (they are older though and reception were fine with it)

After they had done the actual purpose of the scan anomaly checks THEN DH popped out and got DD to come in (DS was still in 'ugh babies' mode at that point so he didn't come in!)

If I'd had my way I wouldn't have even told them I was pregnant until after that scan, I was an anxious wreck convinced something would be wrong (we were very lucky though and baby is healthy), they only knew because DD noticed me getting sick and was really scared I was ill

So sorry for those who have had awful scan experiences

FFS it's not the sexing scan. It's the point where potentially fatal abnormalities are often picked up for the first time. It's a medical procedure, not a spectator sport.

What an odd idea. Highly inappropriate, for the many reasons listed above.

Please no! Although I'm sure everything will be fine, my best friend found out that her baby was incompatible with life at the 20 week anomaly scan.
She very nearly took another of her children with her but changed her mind at the last minute.
The devastation would have been even more unbearable if she'd have had to deal with her other kids there.
It's not a sexing scan.

YABVVVU.

As PPs have said, it's not a 'sexing scan' it's to identify potentially serious anomalies with the baby.

Tell them when they get home from school

I am staggered that you think that this is appropriate . I expect the school would take a dim view of it as well.

The children won't be allowed in with you, therefore your partner would have to stay outside with them, making the exercise utterly pointless. Also, he wouldn't be there with you if they found something.

You haven't really thought this through have you.

We had to take our daughter (who was a few months shy of being two at the time) to our 12 week scan as we had no other option. Sitting with her going wild in the family/bereavement room for a couple of hours after as we had been told I'd had a missed miscarriage and there was no baby was one of the worst times of my life.

Please don't take them out of school for this. As others have already said, it is an anomaly scan, not a 'sexing' scan. You aren't even guaranteed at being able to find out the gender. We chose not to find out when I was pregnant with our daughter, and the sonographer wouldn't have been able to tell us even if we had wanted to know, as she had her legs crossed and bunched up the whole time they were scanning me.

And yes on a much more trivial note (and it really is trivial compared to all the things they are really checking for!) they may not see the gender anyway. We had a 20 week scan where they could see most of the measurements they needed, but we had to go back a week later to complete the lower half (including sex) because baby was in an awkward position. Have to admit I was a bit deflated as DD particularly was desperate to find out, and I couldn't really relax yet as not everything was checked yet. Then at the second check they could only give a guess at the sex anyway. It was only because I am having growth scans that we could actually find out at 28 weeks.

And it is a medical appointment, not a family day out

Anyone else wondering if dc figure in the birth plan?

Why would interrupt their education for this?

They are far too young and would be bored and annoying. Don't even think of it.

I agree with everyone else. You shouldnt do this.
There is always a chance that they will pick up something seriously wrong at the scan, and this could traumatise the chidren and be very difficult for you. Its really not fair to do this.