Sarah's Pregnancy Story
Posted
Thursday, October 13, 2011 11:57 AM
July 18
When I woke up feeling a little “off,” my husband and I went to Walmart and bought a pregnancy test. It sounds cliché, but the three minutes after I took the test really did feel like the longest in my life! When I looked at the stick, my brain could only register one letter at a time until I read the full word: “pregnant.” I was in total shock!
August 6
When I was seven weeks pregnant, I had my first ultrasound appointment. It was so incredible—I loved being able to see and hear our baby’s heartbeat! The ultrasound helped my husband and I feel like the pregnancy was real. I couldn’t stop smiling; that little jelly-bean-shaped blob with a tiny, flickering heart was our baby! And in a matter of months, our little one would be in my arms.
November 18
I was 22 weeks pregnant, and we were very anxious to see how our baby was growing. At my second ultrasound, we were given the option of finding out the gender. We decided not to find out, but I have to say, it took a lot of willpower not to peek! My husband thought the baby would be a boy, but I had a feeling it was a girl.
February 18
My husband was offered a job in our home state. Since the salary would allow me to be a stay-at-home mom, it was wonderful—except the minor detail that I was only two weeks from being full-term! On February 18, when I was 35 weeks pregnant (and really uncomfortable!), we moved to our new home in a different state. Talk about messing with the “nesting instinct”!
March 9
At 38 weeks, I was diagnosed with preeclampsia, which can be life-threatening. So my doctor said my labor would need to be induced as soon as possible. On March 9, we arrived at the hospital, and they began the induction. After 12 hours, my doctor said my cervix wasn’t dilating enough and my blood pressure was out-of-control. When I wasn’t further along the next day, my doctor said she would allow me to get an early epidural to relax me and hopefully help me dilate.
Finally, at 9:06 a.m. on March 11, my beautiful daughter, Rylan Marie, was born. She was 6 pounds, 10.7 ounces, and measured 20.5 inches long. I feel incredibly blessed that both Rylan and I beat the odds—we had no complications and both ended up completely healthy. We’re so happy to have our perfect baby girl with us, and I’m so excited to be Rylan’s mom!
>> Do you want to share your pregnancy story with The Bump? Email Bump Kathleen at kmulpeter@theknot.com.