*So, the below blog post consists of 5 posts that I did at the respective
dates and saved them until now. I figured I would just put them all in one post
and go from here. It is a bit long, but… that is just how it is!
January 2, 2013- Today is brought to you by the letter P.
4 weeks pregnant
4 weeks pregnant
Congratulations! If you know you're four weeks pregnant, you found out the news earlier than most women probably do -- and you might be totally excited, or you might be still getting used to the idea. Either way, it’s likely you’re not feeling any different (for now, at least), since most early pregnancy symptoms have not have kicked in yet. Be sure to celebrate this amazing news with your partner but don't tell the world yet. Your first call is to your doctor to schedule your first prenatal visit when they can confirm your pregnancy. And even though your baby-to-be is still tiny, he’s already undergoing important development at week four of pregnancy, so start taking a prenatal vitamin. Look for one with at least 400 micrograms of folic acid and remember to take it daily. We know you’ve got a lot on your mind, but since folic acid is proven to help prevent birth defects, this is super important!
your baby's the size of a poppyseed!
At 4 weeks, your baby, now known as a blastocyst, is practically microscopic -- a teeny ball of cells. She's busy settling into her new home (your uterus), prepping for all the crucial development she'll be doing over the next six weeks.
your baby at 4 weeks
- The ball of cells is splitting into the embryo (your future child) and placenta.
- Baby's neural tube, the building block of his spine, brain and backbone, is already formed.
- The amniotic sac and fluid are forming into protective cushioning for your baby.
So, by this point, I suppose we will have told everyone the awesome news. I am praying we will have told everyone- for that means that thus far, everything has worked out. But, in order to keep things fresh on my mind, I wanted to go ahead and start "journaling" everything. SO, here goes... technically day 1 (Jan. 2, 2013) of "how we found out"... I did this with Logan and want to do this again to eventually print off and put in a scrapbook as I did for Logan. So, here goes. Maybe a bit TMI, but I warned ya!
So, we have been
trying to get pregnant for over a year. Not too long considering there are
people who are never able to get pregnant and it takes some people more than 10
years. So, we just knew that whatever God graced us with was His will. Yes,
sometimes that is harder than others, but most times it actually wasn't. So, the
month of December was good, took the medicine like I was supposed to, we did
what we were supposed to, etc. Then, I had to go get my blood drawn to see/
make sure I ovulated. Well, the following Monday, they called and said the
tests showed contradictory to me ovulating. So, I was a little
bummed, but overall was just like well, that is God's will- whatever happens,
happens and is His will and is for His Glory. So, we went on with the month.
Holidays, etc. Then my boob started hurting (the left side of the left one-
always the same). Well, this is not uncommon because it always does near my
period. So, I just waited for my period. Well, closer we got to that day the
more irritable I got, I didn't want anyone to come near me, etc. So, Wednesday
morning before work, I was like well, might as well do a test to rule it out.
So, I did. And, it was positive. And, I really did not believe it. The moment I
saw the positive sign, it was like time stood still. My heart began pounding,
but at the same time it stopped. The room was ever-so- slowly spinning and I
could not move. I was trying to get out the bathroom door to get to William to
get him to look at it, you know to verify what I was seeing. But, my legs would
not work. I hit a glass on the counter and as my heart was pounding and
seemingly not beating at the same time, I could not even move to react to catch
it. He heard it hit, break into what seemed a million pieces and came running
in there. He immediately was like "what's wrong"? I don't think I
could even talk. I just waived the test at him. He said something like well
what does that mean? I was like it is a plus sign right? And he responded, yes!
Which I responded something like well what do you think that means? And (keep
in mind we are each standing on either side of the broken glass), he responds
with "High-five"... All I remember is trying to jump over the glass
because I just wanted to be in his arms and he was not happy about the
possibility of me steeping in it. After that, we just rejoiced in the news and
just started hoping and praying that this really was a "positive"
result and that we could actually verify that at the doctors soon. I ended up
taking a second test and it was positive as well! I called them when I got to
work and they did want to see me asap and not wait till the 6 week normal
appointment mark due to my several female issues, so we are going to the doctor
Tuesday, Jan. 8th at 730am... so we are praying for awesome news that day!
Until then...
January 8, 2013- Tears
5 weeks pregnant
5 weeks pregnant
Five weeks is a common time when moms-to-be find out they’re pregnant (though some won’t discover it for a couple more weeks still). That’s because by now you probably realized you’ve missed your period. Plus, heightened pregnancy hormone levels may be giving you some symptoms that are tough to ignore, like sore breasts, nausea and fatigue. (Those same hormones are the ones your pregnancy test picked up to give you a positive result.) These are just the beginning of the slew of changes your body is about to go through. No need to worry though: many moms-to-be say the first trimester was the toughest part of pregnancy, so you’re probably getting the rough stuff out of the way early. In the meantime, be sure to take care of yourself and get plenty of rest, eat right and test out some ways to deal with the queasies (eating small, more frequent meals is one good one). Maybe even ask your partner for a massage. After all, you might not have a big bump, but at five weeks pregnant, your body is working fast and furiously to grow baby, so you deserve a little TLC, right?
your baby's the size of an appleseed!
Your embryo is now measurable -- though at week five, it's a wee .13 inches -- and she's gearing up for much more growth. In fact, in the next week, she'll almost double in size. Grow baby grow!
your baby at 5 weeks
- The embryo doesn't look like much more than a tadpole right now, but at five weeks, she's already starting to form major organs (heart, stomach, liver, kidney) and systems (digestive, circulatory, nervous).
Well we went to
the doctor, so excited, nervous and SO ready to see that little spec on the
screen. Well, the little spec was there, Praise God, but there are some issues.
First, my "numbers" were not very high, thus them telling us I did
not ovulate when I apparently did... which he said there could be a couple
explanations for this... Second, I have a hemorrhagic cyst which
I really am not sure of the impact that can have on a pregnancy, if any. But,
nonetheless, it is there, has been and he had hoped it would be gone by now,
but it is definitely there. And, third, which has the most impact, is that I am
bleeding - internally apparently- I have had no bleeding at all externally, so
I really had no idea. But, I am bleeding and that can obviously lead to
miscarriage. He says I have a high chance of miscarriage due to these things. I
don't exactly remember all he said during the visit after that point, for I
was, well lets just say loosing it. He started me on a progesterone pill to
help support the pregnancy. He described it as there have been no studies or
evidence that the progesterone can hurt the pregnancy, but it can help carry the
pregnancy. But, if something happens and there is a chromosomal issue
that would normally miscarry, it is not like it will allow you to carry full
term, just a little longer than it would normally miscarry. BUT if it is
something as to just needing a little support, some extra hormones, or whatnot,
it can potentially help, support and I assume save the pregnancy. SO, I have
started the prometrium right away and will go back and see him in one week. We
are praying so hard for this zygote/ baby but ultimately it is God's will that
will be done. We are praying that next Tuesday when we go back to the doctor,
the baby will have advanced as normal and that these issues/ problems will be
gone. Lots of praying but I did have this verse on my daily reading and God
knew it was meant for me today...
January 14, 2013- news from an unrelated doctor
Meanwhile, my
thyroid has been crazy and my regular doctor could not seem to be able to have
any answers except to keep changing my dosage (higher one month then lower
dosage the next, followed by going back to the higher dosage the next month).
It was unreal and annoying and I knew something could be fixed. So, I went
looking for an Endocrinologist. I found a really good one in Conyers and
proceeded to see them. He was awesome. I have 3 doctors that I actually love
and feel know what they are doing. This new guy is one of them (also included
are my Neurologist and OB/GYN). So he determined what the problem was regarding
the thyroid and we are trying a new combined dose (combining essentially the
higher and lower dose). BUT of course that is not all. Some of the other
numbers on my blood work were not good. He said the best explanation to it is
that I have a tumor in my parathyroid. He did not want to jump to conclusions
but said this was the likely cause of the results. So, I had some more blood
drawn and will know more this week. Also, I go to the OB tomorrow. Trying (and
failing) to not be anxious/ thinking about that. I have not bled at all, but
the bleeding was internal, so we are just praying that we go tomorrow and we
hear and see some fabulous-only-God-can do news! Either way, we will praise His
name. Until then...
*Update- the results from the parathyroid
issue were kinda mixed. We got one good test result and one bad test result.
SO, they will retest in a few weeks.
January 15, 2013- AWESOME news!
6 weeks pregnant
6 weeks pregnant
Has the news sunk in yet? At six weeks, your pregnancy is still new to you, so it’s normal to feel a little emotional. Add that to some pretty uncomfortable early pregnancy symptoms (which include hormone fluctuations that can feel like PMS -- on steroids!), and it’s understandable to feel downright miserable. That’s probably why you have a whole nine months to adjust to pregnancy -- and also because baby needs all that time to get all her working parts in order. What’s amazing is that of many of the crucial areas of baby development have already started at 6 weeks including circulating blood and sprouting eyes. Now that you're pregnant, you probably have a million questions on your mind. Be sure to write them down so you have them ready to ask your OB at your first prenatal visit. Until then, we hope we can answer a bunch for you.
your baby's the size of a sweet pea!
The average embryo at week 6 is about .25 inches and will double in size again next week. Wow!
your baby at 6 weeks
- Obviously, she's growing like crazy!
- She's also circulating blood with her increasingly more sophisticated circulatory sytem.
- She's about to get cuter too, since she's starting to sprout a nose, eyes, ears, chin and cheeks.
- And she might even be wiggling her (paddle-like) hands and feet.
Praise God! That is all I really have to say. We went back to the OB today to check up on our little sweet pea and Praise His awesome name that we had a good report! The baby has developed nicely, we saw the HEARTBEAT! And, the internal bleeding is much less and it shows that it is being reabsorbed into my body. So, fantastic news! We are so excited and elated! Now, we go back in three weeks. Hopefully an awesome three weeks and nothing like the last week (trying not to think about the issues). So, I am still praying and relying on God through everything but with prayer, hope and knowing He is in control, I know it will all be awesomely amazing! We cannot wait until three weeks so that we can go back in there and see the progress and hear the heartbeat, and when we do, we will be so excited to tell everyone! But, until then…
5ish weeks
February 5, 2013- What a GLORIOUS Day!!!
So, the three weeks finally came! It did not seem near as long of
a wait as the dreaded 1 week in the beginning! After spending over 2 hours in
traffic and arriving late, and getting an awesome RED “LATE” stamp on my chart,
we finally arrived at the doctor. I was excited and a little nervous. William
was still stuck in traffic and I was SO hoping he would make it. But, the
doctor ended up doing the ultrasound and the baby (not only looks like a baby
now) but in his words looks “perfect”!!!! AND the hemorrhage is GONE!!!! Praise
God! It was so surreal to see that little miracle up on the screen. Then, I got
to hear the heartbeat and again it was perfect! You would think I had never
experienced this before, but each experience is different – different than with
Logan and I have forgotten a lot! After the ultrasound, they did the blood work, they are doing some DNA tests that will test for Cystic Fibrosis, etc. We will get the results back in a week or so... SO, we are just praising God for His
awesomeness, for this little miracle and looking forward to 3 weeks from now
when we go back to see him/her (I have to go every 3 weeks instead of 4 due to my
issues). So, until then…
Love this.... literally am overwhelmed with joy for you and William! Congrats! :)
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