Our Ray of Hope

"Rainbow Babies" is the understanding that the beauty of a rainbow does not negate the ravages of the storm. When a rainbow appears, it doesn't mean the storm never happened or that the family is not still dealing with its aftermath. What it means is that something beautiful and full of light has appeared in the midst of the darkness and clouds. Storm clouds may still hover but the rainbow provides a counterbalance of color, energy and hope.  (Quote taken from babycenter.com)

In January Micheal and I miscarried our first baby and have spent the last nine months trying to overcome this great trial and all of the sorrow that came with it.  At the end of July we were given a ray of light.  We found out that I am pregnant again!  I was 4 weeks pregnant and we had just had an initial appointment with a new fertility specialist!  The last 8 weeks have been full of anxiety and worry but they have also been full of hope, excitement, happiness and healing.

We have been so incredibly blessed over the last 8 weeks as we have gone through our first trimester.  As I said before we had gone for an initial appointment with a new (actual) fertility specialist.  He did a baseline ultrasound at that appointment and that was when he told me I could be pregnant.  They did blood tests that confirmed this.  He then saw me WEEKLY through week 10 and did WEEKLY ultrasounds and blood work.  I was able to see my baby every single week from week 4-week 10.  It brought me so much peace and comfort that I never would have gotten from an Army doctor!  I know that the Lord's hand has been in our lives and that he planned the timing of our pregnancy with our doctor's appointment so that we could have these weekly assurances.  It was exactly what I needed after miscarrying my first baby. I'm so grateful to my Heavenly Father for loving me so much and blessing me in this way.

On Tuesday I will be 12 weeks and beginning my second trimester! The baby is looking great and has a strong heart beat.  We've even been able to see it wiggling around and waving it's little arms and legs!  It's been amazing to see how much the baby has changed from week to week. Our due date is April 1, 2014.

Unfortunately we aren't able to keep seeing the fertility specialist past week 10 since he really is a specialist and not an Obgyn.  I went to a doctor on post at week 10 and have another appointment scheduled for week 15.  I don't know when I'll get another ultrasound, but we should be able to see the gender at the next one!  And now we get to really exercise our faith and just keep trusting that the Lord is going to keep blessing us and our baby.

This was week 10.  You can see the little foot and the umbilical chord.