First appointment and sharing the surprise

We had our first appointment on Wednesday, January 9 at 11:30 a.m. I left work early and picked your Dad up from his office. I've been very nauseous lately, but I was starving. The only thing I could think about was biting into a warm spicy chicken sandwich from Wendy's and then stuffing my face with their sea salt fries. I know it sounds gross (even now), especially because I never eat fast food. But I'm already having some very weird cravings.

When we got to the office, I had to take another pregnancy test to confirm that I was in fact pregnant. It was positive! The doctor then told us that she would do an ultrasound. I was excited and nervous at the same time.

You'll understand one day when you become a parent because you become automatically so worried about your child. I kept thinking about all the things that could be wrong.

First appointment-January 9, 2013

But then there you were on the screen and looking very healthy with a strong heartbeat. You only measured .8 cm. I can't believe something so small is making me so sick! The doctor said everything looked great and gave us an August 23 due date. You're going to be a summer baby. And I'm already dreading the Mississippi heat.

We decided to tell everyone after our first appointment. We kept going back and forth on who we should tell first and how we should do it. We really wanted everyone to enjoy the surprise as much as we did. 

So we decided to film some reactions. And this is what we got...

Your Aunt B.Z. was the most excited. She loves all her nieces and nephews.

We knew EE would be so excited. She's been waiting to hear those words for a long time!

Aunt Amber had the best reaction.

Your Aunt Lauren has always asked me almost daily if I was pregnant yet. I think she was in shock.

That's your cousin Thomas. You can't tell but he was very excited too.

Your cousin Riley was 9 years old at the time. She's always been very mature. 

You'll learn soon enough that she will always boss you around, but she does love you very much already.

I hope you enjoy these videos as much as we enjoyed sharing the news. I already can't wait to show you when you are older.

Love,

Mom

And then you were there.

You're here. Well, you're there...in my stomach.

Wow! Did I really just say that?

After a whole two years of wishing and waiting and hoping and praying, you are there. And all of the worry and hopelessness is over just like that. I can't believe it!

On December 28, I stayed home from work because I was feeling a little dizzy and sick when I got out of bed to get dressed. All day I felt very tired and I don't think I moved from the couch once. (Something I'm taking full advantage of before you make your debut.)

Then, Saturday I woke up and felt a little sick again. Your dad went to the gym and while he was gone I started thinking about a couple of other symptoms that I've been having and it just kind of hit me. I was very reluctant to come out and say what I was thinking because we've been disappointed so many times in the past. But I prayed about it and just felt very convinced that I should talk to your dad about how I was feeling.

He came in from the gym and I was sitting at the bar, and I just blurted it out: "I think I'm pregnant." A very small smile appeared at the corners of his mouth and he asked why. I went on to tell him about everything and how I was feeling, and we decided that I would take a pregnancy test in a few days.

On New Year's Eve, I felt very sick all day with nausea. Your dad picked up a test on his way home from work and we didn't waste a single second. The test only takes two minutes to give the results. During those two minutes, I was thinking about the jumping up and down, crying and hugging and kissing that was sure to unfold. But when the time was up we looked at the test and were very puzzled. Is it positive? Is that a blue line? I don't know I can't tell. So are we pregnant?

It wasn't exactly the scenario that I planned. But after digging further into the instruction booklet and looking at some examples online, we were able to verify that indeed you were in there.

And then it just felt...peaceful. No jumps for joy, no yelps of excitement. It just felt right. I took another test on New Year's Day just to be sure, and it looks like you're still in there.

 2013 is going to be a good year.