Friday, August 12, 2011

The First Time We Saw You

So I haven't been posting lately because I have been sick as a dog and when the boys sleep, I sleep.

One day a couple weeks ago I slept all the way home from Santa Elena in the micro and then once we got home I fell asleep again in the boys' room (Jimmy was in there playing with them too.) That wasn't normal, so the next morning I decided to take a pregnancy test. Since it took us a couple years to get the boys, I quit buying home pregnancy tests long ago. We found out about the boys through a blood test. I had taken a home pregnancy test when we got pregnant the first time and it was a very faint line, which made me very worried. Then when we were in Wichita this past May I had a chemical pregnancy over Mothers Day weekend and we bought one to test and see if there was any hCG still in my system. So, I associate these sticks with loss, not with life.

The only tests I still had were very expired. For some reason I took one of them and it showed a very bold positive line. I had never seen that before... so I took another one and the same thing happened. Stink! I still couldn't go tell Jimmy and put him on this emotional roller coaster with very questionable expired (and possibly halfway melted in this Petén heat) tests. So then I had to go get a new one... I found a fancy digital one where you can actually read the result. I hurriedly took the test and the word "pregnant" popped up. Crazy!
{Sorry if this photo is a little gross, but it means a lot to me, so I'm letting it fly}

I ran into the boys' room where they had just woken up and yelled, "I'm pregnant". Jimmy said, "What?!"

We were so thrilled. We want a large family and decided to start trying again over a year ago. I still can't believe we got pregnant this soon! After our chemical pregnancy (which was a life that we cherish) we were broken hearted. Each night since we've been back in Petén we have prayed together as a family asking God to bless us with another member... and He chose to answer that prayer this time with a yes!

A couple days later I started spotting old blood. I thought the baby was gone. I had thought the same thing about the boys at 7 weeks when it was bright red blood and a lot more of it, so I really am a basket case when it comes to pregnancies. We went in to see my OB/GYN in Santa Elena. He is a really nice man, but I don't think he has done that much to stay up to date on things and I honestly don't know who is older, me or his sonogram machine. He said that the sac looked small and that I was having a threatened miscarriage. Then he told me to take progesterone tablets. The whole experience really irritated me. He was talking politics with Jimmy the entire time, I thought the sac looked great, and I know for a fact that progesterone tablets are worthless, you have to take a shot or suppositories to get any benefit. I had been in that same room at 5 weeks with our first baby and its sac didn't look as good as this and he had told me that time everything was fine. I don't think I'll ever go back. I realize that threatened miscarriage is a generic term they have to use at this point when there is no way of knowing what the outcome will be, but it is very scary to hear.

So Jay and the team were here by this time. And I continued to spot off and on from week 5 to week 8. It was always old blood (just in case some other frightened pregnant lady googles these same symptoms like I did). I felt bad for the team because I'm sure they could sense our concern for our baby. That was part of the reason I didn't go with the team to the villages.

During these weeks, several times our Kekchi friends got together and prayed for our baby. I am so thankful for these men and their prayers. Their favorite joke was that this time we were having twin girls. Everyone came up with the same joke and would giggle after they would say it.

This whole time though, I was getting sicker and sicker and my middle was getting thicker and thicker. Morning sickness is very comforting... especially when you have it all day long! Something inside me was growing and my hCG levels had to be going up.

We were supposed to go right when the team left to Guatemala City to see my OB/GYN there who specializes in high-risk pregnancies but then our vehicle broke down and we had to wait several days for a new part (crazy story for another blog). Finally at 8 weeks 3 days I got to see my favorite OB/GYN, States doctors included (*Other than Dr. G, the best RE ever of course*).
{Dr. Najarro (a photo from 2009)}

I am so thankful for Dr. Najarro. He is a God-send. He comforted me so many times with the boys, I knew I could trust him this time too. We went in and told him I was pregnant. He was very excited for us. We shared my symptoms, he looked a little concerned.

Then we began the ultrasound. I had a hard time sleeping the night before worrying we wouldn't see a heartbeat and then if we saw 2! When the sac first popped up there WERE 2 blobs in the sac. First I was thrilled to see something in the sac this time, but then I thought two...??!! Then he moved the probe a little and we both (Jimmy and I) realized it was just the yolk sac... our silly fears. Dr. Najarro was laughing at us! My next thought was why can't I see the heartbeat flickering. About that time he flipped a switch and we heard it! "What a blessing" I said. Dr. Najarro said, "Yes, it is."
{8w3d}

He continued to measure everything. He thought for a long time and checked a couple more things. Then he said that he was so happy with how the baby looked that he wasn't even going to consider this a high-risk pregnancy. What an answer to prayer... the answer we wanted!

There are a couple of explanations for why I was bleeding, but I will spare you. You could still see blood in my uterus on the ultrasound, so there might be more spotting. He told me not to worry and to take it easy. He kept looking at the boys when he would say that! When I was pregnant with Jonah and Silas he would always tell me not to eat too much. This time he kept saying, "You are so healthy!" I think he was surprised because he thought the boys were going to destroy me. Those little guys ate every ounce I gained during the pregnancy and then some, so I can take no credit for that.

Our date to meet this new little life is March 19th. This time since it is one baby we will give birth in Guatemala City. We will have to live there the last month. My uterus only made it 7 months last time, but it was holding 15 pounds of baby stuff, so we are confident it will make it to 9 months with a singleton.

Only God can give life and we are so thankful for Him choosing to bless our family with another child. We are overwhelmed with joy!

CUTE ITEM OF THE DAY:
We tried to explain the baby to the boys, we weren't sure how much they would understand. As soon as Silas heard he came over on his own and kissed my belly. They both kiss my belly several times a day. Whenever Silas finds something neat he comes over and lifts the bottom of my shirt to show the baby. He is very excited about it! We asked the boys what they wanted. Jonah says a sister and Silas points to Jonah each time so I think he wants another brother like him.

5 comments:

  1. Okay...Tell the boys, that their Becca thinks they are the sweetest things ever!! I'm totally crying tears of praise for this new life!! I'm already on the lookout for his/her's monkey!

    ReplyDelete

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