I’ve been bursting at the seams to share this incredible, life-changing secret with you guys. And now I can finally shout it from the rooftops!!
I’M 17 WEEKS PREGNANT!
Justin and I were in absolute shock when we found out we were expecting. We’ve been trying for a very long time and were slowly becoming convinced we’d need to make the leap to IVF to be able to start our family. Thankfully, God had other plans for us.
To say it’s been an emotional journey would be an understatement. Justin and I have always wanted a big family, and for a while, it felt like the one dream that just kept slipping through our grasp. All of that changed back in September when I traveled out of town for a friend’s bachelorette party with my younger sister, who was four months pregnant with her first at the time. While I was there, I noticed that my heart was palpitating a lot. I didn’t think much of it, but I did also notice that my resting heart-rate was much higher than usual; the magic of smartwatches. Despite this, I chalked it up to traveling and stress.
When I got back home, I decided to take a pregnancy test. A few months earlier, I had decided to stop telling Justin whenever I would take a test. At this point, it had become a routine and much like every other month, I was expecting to be faced with disappointment. I took the first test and after a minute... two lines slowly appeared. I convinced myself it was an evaporation line and that it couldn’t possibly be real. So I threw it away. I think my brain was trying to protect me from false excitement. The next morning, I decided to take another test. There they were. Two lines. Just like the day before. I took a third test. And a fourth. Each one produced the same result and yet I still dismissed them. I figured the whole box of tests must be faulty. The idea that I could actually be pregnant after all this time felt too far from reality to ever be true. Then the next morning, I woke up and decided to take a digital test which I’d heard are very hard to get a false positive on. I took the test, laid it on the table in front of my computer, and kept working. I answered customer emails, ordered my normal round of products, edited a handful of pictures, all the while forgetting about the pregnancy test. Half-an-hour later, I caught the test out of the corner of my eye. I lifted it and saw a single word that instantly changed my life: PREGNANT.
I don’t know if it was because it actually said the word or what but I’m pretty sure I sat there staring at it for a good five minutes. It was super early in the morning and, as luck would have it, it was the first time in forever that Justin was actually sleeping in. I wanted to run in the room and jump on the bed, but he had just gotten back from LA the night before, and I knew he was exhausted. Twenty minutes felt like 20 hours. I left the test in the bathroom and waited for him to wake up. I’ll never forget hearing his voice from inside the bathroom: “Baaaabe?” A second later, he stepped out. I was standing across the room, and the second our eyes met, I burst out crying. It hadn’t felt real until I saw the look on his face -- the tears in his eyes. We jumped up and down and screamed and cried. It was surreal and wonderful, and a moment I will never forget.
Justin and I are big believers that everything happens for a reason. In our hearts, we always knew God had a bigger plan for our family. A plan we trusted would come to fruition when, and only when, God knew we were ready. And while it took a lot longer than we thought it would, I can say with absolute certainty, God’s timing is always perfect.
Our journey is just beginning, and I am so excited to share this ride with you guys. There’s already been some insane ups and downs and emotional rollercoasters - all of which I’ll get into later, but for now, it’s a new year. And we have a new addition to celebrate. Stay tuned! Xo