Guess What?!

That's right...we are having a baby! And I know what you are thinking when you look at the picture...oh my...look at that nose! It's actually the baby's hand. He/She is already working on their dramatic poses. Today was my 12 week ultrasound and everything went so well. Josh said I was beaming. I have to be honest, I don't think I've smiled this much since the day we got married.

(Note: The following is just a background and will probably put you to sleep. Feel free to stop reading at any time.)

As most of you know, we have had 2 miscarriages before (the first at 7 weeks a few days before Megan's wedding, and the second at 9 weeks a few days before my birthday...talk about great timing!). After all of that, we took a little break from the baby business to start paying off all the medical bills we had accrued in that short time frame. (Gotta love ER visits!). When we felt like it was time again...nothing happened, and nothing happened. Long story short, after 3 rounds of Clomid we had success! Also during that time, my doctor ran a series of tests and we learned a few things along the way. I have A- blood type (even though at birth it was marked A+) this means I have to get a RhoGAM injection a few times during the pregnancy and right before delivery to make sure if and when my blood mixes with the baby's my body doesn't have an "allergic reaction" to the baby (to put it nicely). This is actually a really common thing, about 25% of people are RH negative. The second thing we discovered is that I have really low progesterone levels. This is the hormone that sustains the placenta until it is fully developed and functioning at week 12. Again, super common and easily treated with medication. Lastly I have Antiphospholipid Syndrome which is basically an autoimmune disorder that produces blood clots. About 1% of people in the US have this. It only affects me when I am pregnant, and the way the doctor explained it to me, the most common thing to happen if untreated is that blood clots form in the umbilical cord, blocking the baby's supply of nutrients. It is treated by taking a baby aspirin and a daily injection of a blood thinner. This one was a little harder for me. I close my eyes and can't look when someone else gives me a shot, so I REALLY didn't think I'd be able to give one to myself every night. I still have to build myself up to do it, but it really isn't as bad as I thought. I just have a VERY bruised stomach (Note to Shaun: That is your guarantee I won't have topless maternity pictures taken. I know you were very concerned about that!).  So....this go around we are hoping we have all the bases covered!

 So far I've experienced the lovely morning sickness (that lasts all day). I was "yelling at my sneakers" about every 2 hours, so after almost 2 days of that I was put on zofran... a miracle drug. It helped me keep food down, but I still felt pretty nauseous most of the time. This week I've noticed a huge difference though, I have much more energy and a lot less nausea. It seems like each week gets better and I'm hoping that continues. I basically hate food right now, except for random cravings like KFC mashed potatoes and chinese food (I know what you are thinking...I HATE both of those...well not right now I dont!). The window of opportunity with food is very small and I must get and consume the food within 20 minutes or it no longer sounds appealing. I think that makes me almost cry is that I hate ice cream. It doesn't taste good and it certainly doesn't feel good to my stomach. Although I feel and look like I've gained at least 10 pounds, I've only gained 0.4 lbs and I'm pretty sure its because I've cut my 2 bowls of ice cream a day out of my diet. I just hope I will one day enjoy ice cream again! I miss it terribly!

 I still get extremely nervous before each doctors visit just hoping there is still a heartbeat (it's a good thing they usually take my blood pressure after the ultrasound!). Today's appointment was especially exciting for us because as Josh put it, "We are in uncharted territory." It was such a miracle to see our baby move (our little blueberry was VERY wiggly),  hear the heartbeat, and have the reassurance from our doctor that everything looks great!

Josh and I are so grateful for everyone's fasting and praying on our behalf. All babies are miracles and we definitely feel like this one is no exception! It has been such a humbling and faith building journey for us and we are just so lucky to have such wonderful family and friends to support us through it. I can't tell you how many times Josh and I just looked at each other each night and were overwhelmed by everyone's thoughtfulness. (Don't tell anyone, but I maybe cried every time someone texted me that they prayed/fasted/put my name on the prayer roll at the temple.) Really, we are very grateful, especially to our Heavenly Father.

p.s. Sorry if at any point I was ridiculously cheesy or sappy, I'm hormonal and overly sentimental at the moment.