Baby News

Guess what, everyone?  Baby #2 is on it's way!  Levi is going to be a big brother!  We're going to have TWO kids.  Now that is crazy.  But...BUT...the numbers are still on our side.  One kid to one adult.  Those are workable numbers.  When numero tres comes to town, look out!  More kids than adults could get interesting!  But who knows if that will even happen :)  So we'll just deal with #2 and see where we go from there.

So yeah!  Pregnant again.  We never did stop trying after Levi was born.  I wanted our kids close.  Like, really close.  My max age span was 2 years apart.  I really wanted the first two 13-18 months apart (my sister and I are just over 13 months apart and I love it) but when we didn't get pregnant within the first year of Levi's life, I knew I could write that off!  Nice thing was, when Levi was 17 months old I was SO glad that we weren't adding another little munchkin to the clan right then!  This timing is looking like it will be perfect.

Want to know the greatest thing about the impending arrival of baby #2?  Baby is due in February.  Do any long-time blog readers remember the significance of February when it comes to the timing of our children?  (read here for the beginning of the story) Long story short, as we were struggling through infertility, at one point I felt God telling me to expect a baby in February.  My best guess would be that this was in 2007-08 sometime.  February's came and went and still no baby.  Finally, on February 13, 2010 we had our first positive pregnancy test in over 3 years of trying.  And Levi was born that October.  So, do you see the interesting twist in this story?  I assumed that the February prophecy had been fulfilled in full, seeing as we found out we were expecting a baby in February.  When I figured out that we were expecting this baby to be born in February, I was floored!  How crazy is that?  Now, the wildest thing would be if the next baby was actually conceived in February.  But we won't push it.  So that's the crazy God-story about February.

We found out that we were expecting in mid-June.  Alot earlier than with Levi.  I had been taking my temperature so I kinda knew when I was late and wondered if I could be pregnant but also felt like it just simply hadn't been long enough trying for pregnancy to be possible.  (I assumed that it took us a minimum of 3 years to conceive a baby, rather than other people's one to six cycles) I saw the positive on the test and ran out and told Nathan.  I'm pretty sure I was dancing a bit too :D

It's a strange feeling when you get pregnant so quickly (first year of "trying" was basically a write-off so I'd say this baby took us 8-9 months) after having the first take so long.  It's a feeling of shock.  It's a feeling of disbelief.  It's a feeling of "is it really that easy?" and "I don't have to endure years of negative pregnancy tests first?"  It's a feeling of finally feeling like a "normal" couple and then having your former, infertile-couple self feel a bit jealous of the new you and shun you.  I'm no longer in the infertility camp.  Women who struggle with infertility no longer see me as one of them.  Can I still relate?  Do I even have anything to say to a woman who is in the midst of infertility?  I do remember the emotions.  I do remember the feeling of hopelessness and the questions and the grief.  And yet I'm not there anymore.  So where do I belong?  I also don't feel like I'm completely on the side of being a "normal" couple who might plan the birthdates of their kids or take pregnancy for granted.  I cling to each wave of nausea.  Each muscle cramp.  Each day of dressing my swelling abdomen like a new accessory is a miracle that I feared I might never experience again.

So this is where I am.  Where we are.  How am I feeling? Less nauseous than last time.  Different things work for me to eat or don't work for me to eat than last time.  When I was 11 or 12 weeks pregnant and showing as much as 17 weeks last time (baby #2 is DIFFERENT!).  I am exhausted beyond belief.  Yowzers, I could just sleep forever.  And yet, the thing is that even when my mind isn't tired or when I'm not actually sleepy, my body is just TIRED.  I once read that every day that you're pregnant takes as much energy as running a marathon.  I'm starting to believe that.  Running after an almost 2 year old this time is alot different than sitting on the couch in California last time and napping whenever my body desired.  I am preserving energy wherever I can, people.  Dishes don't get done after every meal (ok, when has that ever happened beyond the first month of marriage).  Laundry doesn't get put away (though part of the reason for that is because Nathan doesn't want me lifting the heavy laundry baskets). But Levi and Nathan are being loved.  And I'm taking care of myself and baby.  And I consider those my most important jobs these days. 

Thanks for reading, everyone.  If you'd like to say a quick prayer for us today, you can pray that I'll have energy to do the things that need to get done and that baby will grow to be beautiful and healthy and a good sleeper.