Mike and I had a few conversations during the summer about whether or not we would try to have more children. We were so thankful after I delivered our healthy, rainbow baby Gavin. We really didn't talk much about it after he was born, but when he turned two I really started wondering if we were done. We love our little guys so much and couldn't think of a reason why we wouldn't want another one. Even back when we married at 18 and 19 years-old, I always pictured us with a house full of children. Only two problems were keeping us from jumping right in. Did we want to struggle through months or years of fertility treatments again? Could we handle the worry of another high risk pregnancy with required surgery? We had never prevented pregnancy after Gavin and in the back of my mind I hoped maybe it would "just happen." In August we decided that we would just go ahead and contact my doctor and see what he thought. He ended up prescribing me the medicine over the phone and I started it that same day. I took Femara, the same drug that we use to conceive Gavin. The first month was awful. The cycle failed and I had a lot of bleeding and the most awful cramps I have ever had (that's saying a lot with everything I've put my body through). I was hesitant to even start a second cycle. We did and yet again we did not get pregnant. I figured ok, two failed cycles hopefully only about 8-12more failed attempts and we will be pregnant. I started the third cycle and about 14 days in I started bleeding and had awful pains. We were unable to finish the "trying" days for that cycle. I took a test on day 28, the day before Thanksgiving and it was negative. I didn't even bother to tell Mike it was negative and he actually text me later saying he had hoped it was good news since I hadn't told him it was negative. I thought it was sweet that he was hoping for a positive just as much as me. I was busy baking that day and then we celebrated Thanksgiving Day with our families. The next day I just had this impulse to test again. We went shopping and I picked up a test. I came home and decided to take it really quick before dinner. I could not believe it when the incredibly faint line appeared. I didn't even think of a cute way to tell Mike, I just yelled for him to come see if he could see the line too. We decided it was definitely positive. Of course I cried and Mike just hugged me. We were again so very excited but our usual fear was also there. I tested a few days later and it was definitely positive. We decided not to tell anyone until we had an ultrasound. We usually tell our families, but since I had so many complications with the cycle we wanted to wait. We went in on December 22nd and saw one healthy baby on ultrasound! What an amazing day! We wrapped up the ultrasound picture and gave it to our parents to announce on Christmas Day.
We are still amazed that it only took three cycles to get pregnant this time. Many have asked if it was a surprise baby. I like to think of it as a planned surprise. We never imagined we would be on this journey again so soon. The baby is due on August 6, 2015. The due date is just seven days earlier than Gavin's so I feel good knowing the timeline for everything. Will the baby be born on Johnny's birthday July 20th, Gavin's July 25th, Mike's July 31st, or even Jaxsen and Asher's on August 5th? Most likely we will have another July baby! I've never carried past 37 weeks, so we will just have to see. I have surgery on January 28th to have the cerclage placed to ensure I can safely carry the baby. I'm hoping for no bedrest until the end of the pregnancy after school gets out. It worked out great with Gavin, so we are just praying for the same outcome. I am so thankful for this amazing blessing we have been given. I am staying positive and getting very excited to hear a heartbeat in a few weeks! I just can't wait to start feeling baby kicks again and to hold another sweet baby in my arms this summer.
