So I realize it's been a little while since I've written, it's been a busy summer for us at the Aldrich home. I need to take some time to go over all our fun adventures, but this post is about other news.
This story is full of twists and turns, and I definitely didn't see the ending coming. So be prepared.
After a many months of thinking, discussing and praying, we decided we wanted to add to our family. We were really excited. We got a positive pregnancy test quickly and I found a Midwife in Boise that I wanted to see. I had previously been seeing an OB, and he had delivered my girls, but I just wanted a change of pace with any future children.
I scheduled an appt with a sense of hope, but also nervousness. You see, with the girls, I was pretty sick very early in my pregnancies. Usually by 6 weeks I was taking prescription anti-nausea pills and I was still having trouble doing day to day tasks. But I wasn't having that yet. So I was worried that the test was wrong, or that I wasn't very far along at all.
With that in mind, we went to our first appt. We met with our Midwife, Kristi Rhodes, CNM. And she was/is amazing. I immediately felt a connection with her and she was answering my questions without me even having to ask them. I felt so great about how things were going. She gave us paperwork for some bloodwork and urine cultures, and after that, we returned for an ultrasound.
With the girls, I had my "due date" moved based on ultrasound measurements. So I was fully prepared to have that happen again. We began the ultrasound and immediately there was concern. We weren't seeing anything. No baby, no yolk sac, no amniotic sac. Nothing. They looked for a few more minutes, but were quick to say that this is pretty normal and we could just be too early to see much. They wanted to run an HCG test from the blood I had given, and for me to return in 48hrs for another test. They were hoping that I would have moderate levels (maybe 500-1000 HCG) and that they would double after 48hrs. They did warn me of a chance of ectopic pregnancy since we didn't see a baby in the uterus. I didn't worry much because I thought I was just too early, or maybe that I wasn't really pregnant. So we went home with a promise that my midwife would call with the first HCG results.
We didn't hear anything for a few hours, and I tried to not worry, I knew there was a chance that she might not get the results that night. But at 8:30pm I got the call. The call that changed everything. She called and said that the results were not what they were expecting. My first thought was "I'm not pregnant, it's ok...." But she continued to tell me that my HCG came back WAY too high. 150,000 to be specific. To not see a baby and have THAT high of levels, is a sign that something is really wrong. And so she told us to come back the next afternoon and the OB would do another ultrasound and we would get our options. She explained that their biggest concerns were a molar pregnancy (a tumor), which would require a D&C (removal of everything from the uterus, and clean sweep). Or if it's ectopic, it would mean surgery, possible loss of Fallopian tubes and/or ovaries. She didn't want us to worry, but she wanted us to be prepared. If we had any of these conditions it could mean waiting to get pregnant again for anywhere from 3-12 months.
I kept it together until we got off the phone, and then cried as I told the story to Andrew. We decided that it was time to explain the situation to our parents since we would probably need their help with the kids for the surgery and recovery. A few other family members and close friends knew the news, and they were quick to offer kind words and positive thoughts throughout the difficult time. That night I didn't sleep well. I just wanted to know what we would have to face.
The next day went so slow. Andrew worked in Twin Falls and I went out to spend some time with the kids and some friends. I got a call from my midwife saying they reran my blood test and got a much lower number of 30,000 HCG. They weren't sure why it changed, however, she was still concerned because we should still be able to see something with such a high level. She said she'd see us in a few hours.
At 3:30pm we arrived at the OB office and they were running behind. We waited and tried to stay positive, and we were finally taken back at 4:45pm. The staff was amazing and understanding during our visits. We met with my Midwife and the OB (Dr. Glen Lovelace). We went over dates, last period, negative pregnancy tests, the positive test. etc. Which we were informed that even dollar store tests are REALLY accurate [that made me feel better since I used dollar store tests :) ]. We talked about the completely different HCG tests and our concerns. Dr. Lovelace said that although pregnancy tests and HCG tests are good, the only thing he trusts, are ultrasounds. They are visual, and they give more confirmation that anything else. Sadly, I didn't have much hope to see anything.
3 seconds into the ultrasound everything changed. We saw something. We were all shocked and my midwife and I said, almost at the same time, "We didn't see THAT yesterday!!!" I thought for sure it would be a tumor (a molar pregnancy). So I asked, "Is it a baby?" A hundred emotions and thoughts were running through my mind. I really didn't know what to hope for.
To my relief Dr. Lovelace said "Yes, would you like to hear the heartbeat?" At that moment tears of joy welled up in my eyes. The heartbeat was wonderful. Dr. Lovelace measured our little baby, and the measurements came back exactly what they should be. About 8 weeks pregnant.
Dr. Lovelace went on to explain that the shape of my uterus made it difficult to find the baby (not that he had much trouble) and so it must have been missed with the first ultrasound. He assured us that based on what we were seeing, my HCG levels of 30,000 were spot on (the lab must have messed up on the first test), I was 8 wks pregnant, and everything looked great. He left to let me get dressed and my Midwife, who had tears in her eyes, gave me a hug and congratulated me. We were so relieved.
And so. Baby #3, who should be called Baby Peek-A-Boo, exisits. He/She is due at the end of April 2014 and we could not be happier. I thought that, at best, we would not need surgery, but have to wait for months to get pregnant again. I fully prepared myself for surgery, trusting in Heavenly Father's plan. We are grateful that our trial of faith was short and the outcome was perfect.
As we walked out to the car, I said "How. How can there be a baby in there?" And Andrew's quick response was "Heavenly Father must have answered everyone's prayers, and we are blessed." So to those that prayed for us, thank you. To those who had no idea, and prayed for those who were struggling, that was us, so thank you. To those that offered kind words and hugs, thank you. To those that love us, thank you. You may not have known about our situation, but we felt your love and we know we have amazing people in our lives.
We made the decision to share our news, earlier than planned, because we felt so blessed. We will cherish this pregnancy, maybe a little more than our others, simply because this little baby is already given us so much. I can't wait to see what this pregnancy holds, but I really hope that for our family and friends (who lived through the terrible 24 hours of "what-ifs" with us) that there are no more games of hide and seek.
Until Next Time,
Happy Blogging!
