I realized on that crisp fall day, after hanging up with my
doctor’s office that Thanksgiving was easily becoming my new favorite holiday!
We were due to see pictures of our newest endeavor (Baby#4) November 23, 2011
in the early afternoon. I had the day off due to Thanksgiving break and Mike
took the afternoon off to be with Harper and I in the ultrasound room. I was
incredibly nervous, given my previous experiences in that small, baby-filled
room, but was willing to take my chances. I had been telling Mike since the
morning those two pink lines appeared that this felt like “our month”. I was at
ease with the news of this pregnancy and in my mind that meant that everything
was going as planned. We drove to the doctor’s office feeling pretty anxious,
but no one could deny the tiny bit of excitement that kept creeping up.
As with so many ultrasounds before, I arrived at the
doctor’s office with an incredibly full bladder. I basically danced my way up
to the counter to check in, and over to my seat. I was relieved when the
ultrasound technician called us back only a few minutes later. Mike held on to
Harper at the foot of the ultrasound table with one hand but his other hand
never left mine. The ultrasound technician was able to get a good view of the
gestational sac, but not of the peanut growing inside of it. You can only
imagine the emotions I felt following that news. I was asked to empty my
bladder so that we could try a transvaginal ultrasound (I have experienced this
type of ultrasound WAY more times than a woman should!). Mike and Harper
traveled to the head of the ultrasound table but his right hand never left my
left hand (You can only imagine his discomfort at the type of procedure being
performed on his wife right before his eyes!).
Only a few seconds passed before BINGO! We had a baby! Now,
we were only a little more than five weeks along so we didn’t exactly have a
“baby”, but we had a yolk sac and that was incredibly promising! The ultrasound
technician told us that it was incredibly normal to see only a yolk sac at five
weeks two days and that everything looked great. She gave us wonderful news,
took a couple of pictures, and spoke with my doctor who ordered another
ultrasound three weeks later to double check everything.
Thanksgiving came and went, as did my favorite shopping day
of the year, Black Friday. All the while, I was met with this overwhelming
sense of relief and joy. We had done it! After almost a year and two guardian
angels, we were finally going to have another baby. Although we hadn’t seen a “baby”
yet, we were hopeful and did let close family and a few friends in on the news.
Well, I told close family and a few friends, Mike told EVERYONE he came in
contact with. He was elated! I was being a little more cautious.
As the Christmas season was upon us, we went about our
normal routine for the holidays: decorating, family parties, shopping,
wrapping, general merriment. Even though it seems as though I had plenty to
keep me busy, I was still quite nervous about our ultrasound in a few weeks and
it consumed my every thought.
My ultrasound was scheduled for early afternoon on Monday,
December 12, 2011. Due to this, I planned to take the afternoon off at work.
Due to the exhaustion that had suddenly set in, I decided to take the entire
day. I figured even if nothing else, I would get a little rest, which I desperately
needed. Right….rest, when I was on pins and needles about the ultrasound….Let’s
just say that didn’t happen. Instead I was up and at it early and decided since
I couldn’t “rest”, I would get some Christmas shopping done. I figured that I
would need something to keep me busy before my appointment and just in case,
some wrapping to keep me busy that night (remember, I was restless about how
this appointment would go, given we didn’t see “baby” before).
So I did just that, I shopped. Boy, was I good at it that
day! Shopping is my therapy; it’s what I do when I’m upset, when I’m angry,
when I’m not feeling well or when that friendly PMS sets in (my husband doesn’t
exactly love my “therapy” as it costs him a considerable amount of money
sometimes). I literally had a trunk and backseat full of gifts. However, after
that day, I was almost finished with my Christmas shopping! BONUS!
Mike was not able to get the afternoon off as he had another
mandatory meeting after work….sigh….I had gone this route before, in July, and
it didn’t turn out well. Let’s admit…I was more than nervous at this point
(hence my EXCELLENT shopping abilities that day). Before he left for work that
morning, Mike gave me a pep talk about how this felt right and how everything
was going to be fine. Just in case, he said, he would check in frequently and
keep his phone on his side at all times.
As my shopping drew to a close, I engaged in the normal
ultrasound routine: I drank what seemed like my body weight in water just to go
have someone press on my bladder for 15-20 minutes. I arrived at the office 15
minutes prior to my appointment with yet again, a VERY full bladder. At this
point, I was getting good at “holding it”, but still so very uncomfortable.
Nicole, the ultrasound technician who I have grown to absolutely love, called
me back a few minutes later. She has been my ultrasound tech since our first
ultrasound with Harper and is very familiar with our case so she was just as
hesitant as I was about this “routine” procedure. A little cold goopy stuff and
an ultrasound wand later, and not only did we have a baby we had a VERY strong
heartbeat…162 bpm. YES!!!
You can’t even begin to imagine my, and hers I’m sure,
relief. I’m a crier, I will admit that, but only at the “normal” moments
(weddings, funerals, babies, etc). The waterworks were a flowing that day. I
could get over my fear and start living life as a normal pregnant woman, not
some crazy walking around on eggshells pregnant woman. It was a grand feeling!
Nicole finished up my ultrasound and gave me SEVERAL
pictures of Baby#4 (all of the office policies state that 3-5 pictures will be
given, I had TEN!). I had a follow up appointment with my doctor so, with an
undeniable sense of excitement and one of my biggest smiles, I happily walked
back out to the waiting room. I sat down in a chair and called my very anxious
husband. The conversation went something like this (I remember it well):
Mike: “Hello?” (he wears his heart on his sleeve, this was a
very cautious hello)
Sam: “Hey babe, is this a good time?”
Mike: “Yeah…..”
Sam: “2 arms, 2 legs, 1 VERY strong heartbeat, and a
beautiful baby”
Mike: (insert enormous sigh of relief) “Good. Can you text
me a picture?”
Sam: “Absolutely!”
Mike: “Okay, I’ll talk to you in a bit. I love you”
Sam: “Love you too, bye”
Does anyone else notice how short the above conversation
was?! Yeah, so did I. Apparently, so did Mike because he called back about 30
seconds later with more joy and excitement. I understand his caution, but I
really think he was concerned about bad news as well and the good news didn’t
set in right away. It was cute, really.
My doctor’s appointment was pretty routine: pee in a cup,
check everything out, go over ultrasound photos, ask for any questions. Our
doctor was also able to give us a due date (our previous ultrasound gave us an
estimated, but not an exact): July 21, 2012, right in the dead heat of the
summer.
I left the doctor’s office feeling as though my heart was
going to explode from happiness. This was finally happening to us, it was
finally our turn!
Stay tuned for Christmas and all that it brings as well as
another ultrasound story…Thanks for reading!
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