It is so funny and incredible to watch God's timeline for your life unfold before your very eyes.
After I posted an Instagram photo of our first ultrasound with a small blurp about our journey, I was overwhelmed with people asking me to share our story. To be quite honest, only family and best friends know it because it was something that was a constant fear for me, and opening up about it somehow made it real. But... because SO many of you asked, I am happy to tell you how our little baby A is such a miracle to us.
At the age of 17, I was diagnosed with endometriosis.
(Endometriosis is a condition where the tissue that normally lines your uterus, grows outside of it and can spread to other organs, etc. causing sometimes major complications including infertility in extreme cases)
I was prescribed every type of birth control you can imagine to try and suppress it, which in turn was making me feel like a crazy person.
It continued to escalate and I had my first surgery in February of 2007.
The endometriosis had taken it upon itself to move my bowels, wrap around my intestines, and squeeze my appendix (which was removed during surgery).
You would think after a tune up like that I would be smooth sailing, right??
Wrong. My second surgery was in April of 2011.
It was at this time that I had doctors telling me the worst case scenerios
"you may need another surgery prior to trying to get pregnant"
"you may need a host of fertility treatments"
and the worst of all
"you may not be able to get pregnant"
Nic and I at this time were engaged, but I think there is something different about hearing those words first hand.
I knew he had dreamed of having kids of his own one day, and so did I; SO BAD.
Instead, I would constitantly talk about adoption because 'the what if' scared me to bad.
I didn't want to talk about pregnancy for the fear that I wouldn't be able to get pregnant and then have that overwhelming feeling of being let down.
Fast forward to this September...
Nic and I started talking about 'trying' both knowing that it would be years before anything came about.
Whether that was naturally, or with the help of doctors, or even an adoption agency.
I was curious on how ovulation tracking worked and why people were so crazy about it; I decided to download an app and give it a shot.
Fast foreward to Halloween...
7 days late.
Not completely rare for me at all, however my boobs were KILLING me (TMI? sorry)
I decided after work I was just going to stop and grab a test, it would be negative but at least I would know!!
I told Nic when I got home that I had grabbed a test, he said let's just wait until tomorrow
(we were having people over that night and I think both of us didn't want to be disappointed with company over)
However, telling a girl to wait on something like this is next to impossible!!!
I said OK, and quickly went to take the test.
The most beautiful plus sign showed up in less than 2 seconds.
I sat there a bawled.
After I composed myself enough, I ran to the garage where Nic was messing around and pulled the pregnancy text out of my pocket and told him he would be a Dad.
We must have cried and hugged for 30 minutes.
This journey has been nothing short of amazing and SO far from anything we could have EVER imagined.
We are both so ready for the ride that God has us on and thank him daily for our little miracle.
15 Week Update
how far along: 15 weeks
total weight gain: 0 lbs!!! I don' t know how this is possible and think something is wrong with my doctor's scale, but for now i'll take it ;)
what i’m wearing: all my own stuff; nothing maternity yet!
stretch marks: None! Although cocoa butter is in constant use (may be a wives tale but I am fully going with it)
sleep: ugh, not great!! I wake about 2-3 times a night to go to the bathroom (which is SO new to me, as I used to pee a total of twice a day); between going to the bathroom, sometimes I just can't fall back to sleep...so frustrating!!!
highlights: I have started to have much more of a 'baby bump' rather than a "did she eat too much or does she need to poo" bump. It doesn't come and go as much as it used to, it's just kinda there which is exciting and makes thinks a little bit more real. Nic and I are also scrambling to get our house in order which has made for some super fun home decor projects. I have one talented guy!
things i miss: Feeling consistently normal. I still have periods where I just need to sleep or crawl in a hole because I feel so awful. These are much more few and far between (thank the Lord).
baby movement: Nothing! When does that start happening?? I am ready to feel this little one!!
food cravings: fruit, fruit, fruit. Especially cold fruit; better yet anything cold. I chomp on ice pretty much all the time these days.
anything making you queasy or sick: Certain smells, which as a nurse is CHALLENGING!! I have had to run to the bathroom after seeing a patient with a pretty nasty wound. Yuck! I have also noticied that if I don't have something in my stomach at all times, anything that is in there will come right back up. Snacks are stashed in my purse, in the car, in Nic's truck, in his pockets... you get it.
have you started to show yet: Finally, I have a tiny bit!! I can probably tell more than anyone else but HEYY... showing is showing!!
gender: No clue... Everyone seems to have one thought, BOY. What do you think??
labor signs: No, no, no.
overall mood: This week has been a good week. I still am so easily exhausted but I am feeling good!
looking forward to: Getting our house in order and finding out what this little bun is!!!
