Our Unexpected Expectancy

Well, our busy little life just got a LOT busier. On April 1st (yes! That is April Fool’s day, but I promise you…this is not a joke!), Brian and I found out that we are expecting our first child! We are seriously so thrilled, and we feel that God has molded our lives in a very special way that prepared us to take on this next chapter. He was so sneaky in how he shaped everything, but He made us ready…even when we didn’t know it! We have been keeping this little/big secret for too long, and it is time to let you all know!

Let me bring you all up to date on all that has occurred since April 1st……

Well, I wasn’t feeling my normal self, and Brian and I had just driven home from PT Olympics in San Antonio, Texas. I needed to grocery shop like no wife has needed to before, so I loaded up and headed to Albertson’s. Brian asked for me to get him some Tylenol because we were out, so while I was in the drug/pharmacy area, I got this weird feeling in my heart that I needed to buy a pregnancy test. I had never bought one before, and I honestly did not even know how to use one! But the little voice in my heart just wouldn’t shut up, so I threw the box in my basket. You see, the bad part is…I went to the drug/pharmacy area first, so then my mind was swirling around that little white box, and I ended up buying Tylenol, bananas, Gatorade, and a pregnancy test. I had a list of over 20 items…

Anyway, Brian went to work, and I didn’t want to worry him because he had a HUGE test on Tuesday, so I took the test by myself at home, and well….two pink lines warmed my heart forever. 

I said I didn’t want to worry Brian, but at that point, my mind was in a million directions…including on the road to Brian’s work. I called him and asked him to come to the car, and I knew he could tell something was wrong. As soon as he got to the car, I jumped out with the two tests in my hands and screamed, “We’re going to be parents by Christmas!” His eyes widened, and his mouth dropped, and we both stood there in complete silence as Brian confirmed the tests. Then, we hugged, laughed, and cried at this unbelievable, unexpected blessing. Brian was such a good father and husband at that point. He just comforted me and asked all of the perfect questions. We hated to part at that moment, but as we said our goodbyes, neither of us could wipe the smile off of our face.

The next few days were FULL of joy and a lot of fear (I mean…a mental breakdown approximately every 5 hours for two days straight fear). We spoke to our insurance agencies and our doctor and got things straightened out. We went in for a “legit” pregnancy test at Shannon Hospital, and it was confirmed! That Friday, we had our first sonogram and got to see our little bundle in the making. We confirmed a due date (December 4, 2012), and we got set up on the pregnancy doctor plan. Before we knew it, I was popping prenatal vitamins, and we were diving straight into the parent world…

We set up another appointment for May 3rd (about 4 weeks later), and in those weeks between, that first trimester really started to take a toll on me. For all of you mothers out there, you probably know what I mean. The worst part was that we had barely told a sole, so I had to hide my sickness from my friends and family, which made me feel even more sick. Brian was such a trooper and made me breakfast and dinner every day. He even packed my lunch on the few days where the mornings were bad! He seriously has made these first few weeks so much easier. I did have to take Keflex, an antibiotic, for 10 days because the doctor found that I have Group B Streptococcus, which is a special type of strep bacteria that sometimes creep up in pregnant women. Long story short, they just want to make sure that the bacteria is gone before the delivery, and when I do go in for delivery, they will hook me up to an IV that will pump the antibiotic into my bloodstream throughout delivery. It’s really not a big deal, unless it goes unnoticed. All will be fine! I took the pills like a champ and suffered through it! Well, the pills had penicillin in them, so I developd a yeast infection, which we treated right away! But unfortunately, the yeast infection gave me a UTI, which I am currently treating with Macrobid! Phew…lots of infections, but I am being very diligent about keeping them under control. And the baby is completely unharmed!! Enough about sickness, though! Let’s talk baby!

On May 3rd, we really got to see our little bundle, and it was moving like crazy in the sonogram. Brian says she (oh yeah! Did I tell you we THINK it’s a girl? And by we…I mean Brian and me...we really just want a healthy, bouncy baby, but we’ve been using “she” since we found out!) was waving to us! I think he was right…she was just happy to be seen. We heard her heartbeat for the first time…an emotional and mind-blowing experience. I honestly don’t know why God has blessed us so much, but I am so thankful that He has because I am already in love!

During my 10th week of pregnancy, I was a busy, crafty bee. I wanted the reveal we had for our parents to be extremely special. From the beginning, Brian and I wanted to surprise them on Mother’s Day because we just thought it was the most blessed day to tell our mothers that I, too, am going to be a mom. Plus, Mother’s Day landed right on my 11 weeks mark, so it was basically PERFECT timing (Thanks, God!). Being the creative planner I am, I wanted to make sure that our families were shocked and could leave with a concrete memory. I decided to create cards for our moms, dads, sisters, and my brother-in-law-to-be. I made each card the same, but the outside of the card was personalized to each family member. On the outside of the card, I put their name that Baby H will call them (my mom was P Patti, our sisters were Aunti MoMo and Aunti Sarah, etc.). On the inside, I put a picture of Brian and me on the left that had our due date on it. On the right side, I placed our latest sonogram picture, and under the picture, I wrote “Can’t wait to meet you…”

So during my 10th week of pregnancy, I worked hard to get each of these cards finished (7 in total!). Honestly, I think they came out perfect…

On Mother’s Day, both of our families gathered at Brian and I’s house for lunch. We did the same thing last year for Father’s Day, so no one suspected a thing! Brian had us all circle up to pray, and before he began the prayer, he said that we needed to give our moms a card. I ran and got the cards from our room, and I handed the one to my mom as Brian handed his mom’s card to her. We sat for a while and watched their faces. COMPLETE SHOCK….then surprise….then TEARS. Lots and lots of tears. We quickly passed out the cards to our dads, sisters, and Lenny, and they all finally caught on to the surprise. It was a great moment for all of us. My best friend, Emily, filmed the entire surprise, so if I can figure out how to post a video on this blog, I will definitely show you guys how it all went!

It was a great, great first Mother’s Day for me! We told our entire family, and a few days later, we were able to tell our friends (thanks, Facebook!). It’s been a great week, and we are thrilled that our little bundle of joy is surrounded with so much love. We can’t wait to meet Baby H!

God sure does know when to knock on the door to let a surprise sneak in, and I know that He has planned our baby all in His time, and I cannot wait to see what He has left in store for all three of us. Welcome to our pregnancy journey! 

From our (growing!) family to yours,

Questions you may be wondering:
What foods am I craving? Bean burritos. All. The. Time.
How many pounds have I gained? Not an ounce so far!
Am I showing? Nope!
Any names? Oh yes, but those will be revealed much later.