Baby #3

Compared to others, I’ve been blessed with very easy pregnancies. I was queasy, but not really nauseous with Lily. With Zeke I was terribly nauseous for three weeks and then it was smooth sailing. I’ve always been grateful, and I’ve tried not to take it for granted.

Lily has wanted another sibling so badly. She’s been praying for another baby – specifically, she’s been praying for a sister. It was hard for me to tell her that I had miscarried in October. We hadn’t told her I was pregnant yet, so we waited until I had recovered to tell her about the miscarriage. She was so sad, and then it was as if a light switch went on inside her. She looked up at me and told me how she had been praying for a baby sister but she needs to pray for a healthy baby sister. I love her faith!

All through February, I was so grateful when I had morning sickness. Everyday I counted my blessings when I woke up queasy, because it meant things were going well with this pregnancy. Mornings that I felt fine, made me nervous. I wanted the assurance that this was a viable pregnancy.

We waited until I was 10 weeks along to tell the kids. We put together a Scavenger Hunt for them. At the end, they found custom shirts in the dryer. It took a few minutes for them to figure out what Zeke’s shirt meant, but Lily was so excited when she put it all together! We had the kids wear their shirts over to my parents’ house to announce the news to them. But Zeke tripped on the way into the house and ended up skinning his hands. While I tended to him in the kitchen, my sister got “the secret” out of Lily. So it didn’t go quite as we had planned, but everyone was still excited for us.

I took the kids to my doctor’s appointment. Normally the doctor isn’t able to hear the baby’s heart beat on my first appointment, but this time she did. Lily and Zeke were so excited to hear it! And I was so relieved to hear a healthy heart beat. (I had cried when I saw the ultrasound for my last pregnancy and realized instantly that there was no heart beat.) I had been praying that I could hear the baby’s heart beat.

When we went in to see the ultrasound technician, she was very nice and printed off a picture for both Lily and Zeke to have of the baby. They both held their pictures so tight. They were so proud of them!

There is a concern with the placenta’s placement. Right now, I’m not allowed to lift more than 15 lbs. (That means I can’t take out the garbage or lift either of my children. I don’t mind the garbage part, but it’s hard not to lift or carry the kids. Zeke is having an especially hard time with this restriction.) The doctor says the placenta corrects itself in most pregnancies by 20 weeks. However, if it doesn’t, we’ll be having further discussions about what that means for my pregnancy and delivery.

For now, I’m grateful that we’ll be welcoming another child into our home this October.