I absolutely LOVE the Fourth of July! I think it has a
little bit to do with the fact that it is literally THE ONLY holiday during
summer vacation that I can enjoy, and a lot to do with the people I enjoy it
with. Ever since Fourth of July 2009 (a.k.a. Harper’s 1st Fourth of
July), a small group of friends and us camp for the entire weekend and do
absolutely NOTHING! It’s bliss….However, this is not your everyday average
camping trip. You see, we camp in a friend’s parent’s backyard….literally five
miles from home. We treat it like any normal camping trip and take everything
with us, but know that if we forget something, it takes ten minutes to run home
and back.
We set up camp Friday during the day and spend the whole day
lounging around the pool and indulging in board games and books. When Friday
night rolls around, the real fun begins. The boys are home from work and camp
is ready…now we can cook around a camp fire, share funny stories, and play
telephone (one of our favorite childlike camp fire games, with an adult
twist!).
This most recent Fourth of July (2011) was spent like many
holiday weekends in the past: camping, reading, playing, and lounging. However,
I had this nagging feeling something wasn’t right. I chalked it up to the fact
that I was probably just coming down with something and vowed to enjoy myself
to the fullest extent. Because of said “yucky” feeling, I didn’t enjoy any
adult beverages the first night…ah…well, we still had two more nights there and
I was sure I would feel better in the morning. That was the funny part of the “bug”
I had suddenly come down with, it rears its ugly head in the morning. I couldn’t
shake the feeling that something wasn’t right and spent most of Saturday
sitting and/or laying in a chair reading the occasional good book and playing
with Harper.
We were preparing our annual Saturday night pot luck dinner,
when it dawned on me. This wasn’t just any “bug”: this was nausea, hot flashes,
a stuffy nose, and tenderness in my chest. Wow, I was an idiot….here I had been
thinking for nearly two weeks that I was just getting a mid-summer cold.
As my friends were enjoying their frozen beverages and a
good game of Farkle (one of our faves), I decided to tell them how I had been
feeling and why I thought so. I LOVE my friends, but they didn’t believe me for
one minute….I was always that woman that thought every bout of nausea was a
possible pregnancy. And, given what we had went through in February, and the
people that had stood by our sides, my friends were afraid of my taking a test
and being disappointed in the results. So…it took me about four hours to
convince them that I wouldn’t be partaking in any frozen drinks until I knew
for sure.
Here’s what I love about my friends….one of them had an
extra pregnancy test at home “in case” a friend ever needed it! What a girl! We
went to her house and grabbed the test that would eventually change my life for
the third time.
The seven minute drive back to the campsite was the longest
of my life. My husband knew I had left, but didn’t know why, and I wasn’t going
to take a test until I could get back and discuss my suspicions with him. On
the drive, however, I thought about how fun it would be to surprise him with
possible good news. When we pulled back in the driveway, my friend went back to
the campsite and let me pee on my stick in peace.
I hadn’t even finished doing my business before two VERY
pink lines appeared….Uh-oh….here we go again! I think the same type of shock
from baby #2’s pink lines set in times about a million that calm, warm summer
evening.
My husband is no dummy….he knew something was up so he was
waiting for me when I walked out of the house. There was no denying the
surprise on my face, nor the smile. We were once again faced with an
oh-so-familiar road….another baby!
Mike summed everything up in one simple sentence, shortly
after seeing those defining pink lines we had been faced with twice before, “But….we
weren’t even trying!!” That’s the beauty of my husband: he is Captain Obvious
in his finest. Of course I knew we hadn’t been trying, but that was our plan
all along.
Our friends know us better than probably anyone and while we
tried, they picked up on something immediately. Of course, all of the girls
knew what I had been up to so they swarmed me as soon as I walked around the
corner. While we didn’t have much time to discuss our surprising news, we did
make one decision: we weren’t going to tell anyone until we had seen the
doctor. Let’s just say that didn’t happen. While we are good at many things,
Mike and I can never keep an exciting secret for long. This secret lasted precisely
seven seconds.
Our friends were, of course, thrilled for us! The entire
night consisted of questions and answers we didn’t have and sheer joy at the
thought of another baby to love and spoil. In all reality, the rest of the
weekend was spent trying to absorb our latest news. Mike was THRILLED;
literally, he couldn’t stop smiling. It was cute, really. I loved how excited
he was at the thought of being a parent again.
I was really having a hard time believing that the line
could show up that quickly and started to get skeptical about the validity of
the test. So, because Meijer is open 24 hours and I wanted to be absolutely
sure, four of us girls trekked to Birch Run around midnight. I bought a pack of
two pregnancy tests, and twizzlers to celebrate. I decided to wait until
morning to test again so we returned to the campsite, test and twizzlers in hand
to enjoy the rest of our night.
The next morning, I couldn’t pee in peace. I think there were
five big, and one little, bodies waiting anxiously outside the bathroom door.
Yet again, wasn’t even finished, before those lines showed up. I couldn’t deny
it this time….God had decided to give us another miracle!
After our relaxing weekend spent with people we love, we
were forced to return to reality. Tuesday morning was spent trying to get a
hold of my doctor’s office. Due to our loss in February, I knew she would most
likely order some bloodwork and want to see me. Here was the thing…I wasn’t
exactly sure when we conceived because I didn’t really have a normal period in
June and I had taken a pregnancy test in May which came back negative. Also, I
have a fantastic friend who is in the medical profession who convinced me that
the quick (and VERY dark) positive would show up for one of two reasons: I was
further along than originally thought OR we were expecting more than one!
GREAT!!
As I suspected, bloodwork was ordered. I anxiously awaited the
results and the sound of the phone ringing one mid-July day was music to my
ears. The nurse had good news: my hcG levels were through the roof, like
12-13,000 and I was going to retest the next day. Hallelujah! I tested again
the next day and yet again, anxiously awaited that phone call. This time, my
levels were 26,000 and climbing. Uh-oh…twins?! That was the only thought
running through my head because there was NO way we could have conceived
earlier and I not detected it. Due to my increasing levels, my doctor ordered
an ultrasound and checkup for the next week. YES! I was going to be able to see
my baby and know that everything was fine! I COULDN’T WAIT!
Mike was ridiculously excited; I really wish all of you
could have seen him. He was glowing more than I was and I was the pregnant
lady! To celebrate our good news, he decided that he and I needed a getaway. We
dropped Harper off with her grandparents and went on a Mommy & Daddy
camping trip. Time to ourselves?! Really? And a WHOLE weekend?! WOW…..
We enjoyed ourselves and were able to bask in our latest
news. Mike treated me like royalty and I was over the moon to be expecting a
child again with a father that I couldn’t have hand-picked for our children, he
was THAT good!
Our weekend was, of course, way too short and we returned
once again to reality. We picked Harper up from her grandparents and went home.
My appointment was on a Tuesday so I only had a few days to wait……a few days
for something like this made me feel like a child waiting for Christmas. COME
ON TUESDAY!!
Stay tuned for the story of an ultrasound and doctor’s visit
that would change my life! Thanks for reading!
No comments:
Post a Comment