And then there were three

Jon and I recently found out that we are going to be parents!!! We are extremely excited about this new chapter in our lives and we feel very blessed.

I took the first pregnancy test on September 12. It was early in the morning and I was on my way to work. Jon was still sleeping. It came back positive, and I was in shock. I didn't want to wake him up and tell him then... (he's not always in the best mood when he is woken up). I went on to work, unable to think of anything except the positive test. On my way home, I stopped and got another test. I also picked up a card for Jon and a book for "daddy-to-be". When I got home and took the second test, I gave Jon his gift. He never got to the book. As soon as he read the first line of the card, "We're expecting a baby", his jaw dropped. His response (with wide eyes) was, "Really?!?" I cried, while nodding yes.

I had my first doctor's appointment on September 25. I was 6 weeks along at this point. My doctor did an ultrasound, but we couldn't see a baby inside the sac. Thinking that we should have, she sent me for bloodwork to test my levels of hCG. She also mentioned that their u/s machine isn't very good, so it may just be a little early to see anything. I had to get my blood levels taken twice 48 hours apart. The idea is that they want to see the levels double within 48 hours, or at the very minimun increase by 65%. This indicates a normal pregnancy in the correct location. I was also scheduled for another ultrasound at the hospital (with a better machine) on October 1. I received my blood results on Tuesday, Sept 29. The did rise, but only by 55%. She said we would like to see more, but the ultrasound was most important.

On Thursday, October 1 I went in for the ultrasound. Within moments, I saw the baby's heartbeat!! The technician said everything looked great and she took a picture of the baby for me to give to Jon. It was such a relief to see that heart beat!

The next morning (Friday, Oct 2), Jon went with me to the doctor. She did one more ultrasound so that Jon was able to see the heartbeat also. And, she turned up the volume so that we could actually HEAR the heart beating. It was an amazing feeling. Since then, we have been on cloud 9, thanking God and asking Him to bless us on this journey and prepare us for this next chapter.

That catches us up for now. The next post shouldn't be as long. Thanks for joining us on this journey!

Much love,
Mary Beth