On
Monday, October 29, 2012 at exactly 12:31 pm I found out the most life-changing
news I could possibly imagine—Andy & I are going to have a baby! As you may
imagine, this news came as quite a surprise! After all, we’ve only been
enjoying wedded bliss for 3.5 months! While we certainly hoped for a large,
healthy family sometime down the road, we had no idea that our little family
would be growing so soon! Well, apparently that rainy drizzle on our wedding
day really was a sign of fertility, because guess who’s going to be a new momma
sometime in July of 2013? Yep, this little lady! And guess what? We’re SO
excited about it! Andy & I both believe this was part of God’s plan, and
we’re trusting in him! We just know that because God’s watching over us, he’ll
bless our family beyond imagination! So buckle up and get ready, y'all, because
Baby Parr is on it's way!
Our Big Surprise:
As
the days in October rushed onward, I noticed that I was feeling unusually
fatigued, and extremely sensitive to certain odors. This become most pronounced
on Saturday, October 27 when Andy & I were helping my sister and her
husband prepare their home for the arrival of their second baby boy, Owen. As
we were helping hang pictures and move furniture, I suddenly felt unusually
tired and a bit dizzy. Then, during dinner, I was absolutely repulsed by the
smell of baking pizza! Assuming that I was simply suffering a stomach virus, I
thought no further about my symptoms until later that evening when I snapped at
my sweet husband. I absolutely hate to argue with Andy, but before I knew it I
was explaining how frustrated I was with him over the slightest “mean tone” in
his voice! I know, I know--I was behaving ridiculously, but I felt genuinely
upset, and just couldn’t explain why. On Sunday afternoon, I continued to feel
nauseous and was only comforted by a pack of saltine crackers! By the time
Monday morning rolled around, I felt like something odd was going on. I was having
mild period-like cramps, but wasn’t on my period. And then, it suddenly hit me.
I felt pregnant. Something inside of me just…knew. As soon as my classes
were over for the day, I rushed to Meijer and picked up a pack of pregnancy
tests. Then, moments later, hands shaking, I read the results! For at least 30
minutes I was in absolute shock! How would I tell Andy, my parents, my
sister, my friends?! Then other thoughts began racing thru my mind—Could
the birth control I had been taking harm our little one? Had I been eating
enough veggies? How would I balance baby and school?
Anxious,
I desperately wanted Andy to come home early to reveal the big news.
Unfortunately, despite my pleadings that I was "feeling ill" and
needed his care, Andy couldn’t get off work early. So instead, I washed
dishes, did laundry, studied, and visited with my sister who had ironically
come to Lexington for her own pregnancy appointment. It was beyond difficult to
keep the news a secret, but I did, and later that evening finally revealed the
news to my shocked husband! I asked Andy to open a dresser drawer and inside he
found my little surprise—two positive pregnancy tests! After several moments of
talking and praying, our surprise was beginning to set it, and so we decided to
visit Carino’s to celebrate! We were both in a state of excitement, shock, and
disbelief, but knew that the signs were obvious, and Baby Parr was on its way!
Recap of Our First Trimester:
The first trimester has quickly come and gone, and boy is
this little Momma relieved about that! While I occasionally suffered from
nausea, dizziness, and a mood swing or two, baby & I have had pretty smooth
sailing so far! I'm thrilled that the 24-hour fatigue is finally waning, but
most importantly, I feel so thankful to set aside at least a few of my many
worries for our little one, after all, we've reached a big milestone--the
second trimester!
We enjoyed sharing the wonderful news with our families, and
even planned a big Christmas reveal for our extended loved ones. We typed the
following cute announcement on Christmas-themed stationary, and after packaging
the cards in envelopes, we dispersed them to our relatives. In synchrony, they
opened the envelopes to find our big surprise!
"We're just as excited and happy
as can be, because Andy & Ashley are no longer two, but three! Surprise!
We're expecting a baby on July 7, 2013! Merry Christmas and Warmest Wishes for
a Happy New Year, From Our Expanding Family to Yours!"
Aunts, Uncles, & Cousins burst into squeals and laughter
at our exciting announcement! Needless to say, they're all thrilled about the
soon-to-be newest addition to the family!
We also posted the same announcement on facebook on
Christmas Day with the following picture:
We loved it and
hopefully so did our friends!
On the medical front, we're thrilled that our first
appointment went wonderfully and are anxiously anticipating our 16 week gender
scan on January 14. Shortly thereafter we're planning on hosting a small gender
reveal party where we'll find out Baby's gender along with our guests :-) Stay
tuned for updates! In the meantime, please remember us in your prayers, and
enjoy this weekly update and slew of "bump" pictures! (Weekly update
idea courtesy of Laura and her wonderful blog:
http://www.andyandlauraplusone.blogspot.com **Thanks so much
Laura!)
How far along: 14
weeks
Total Weight Gain: -8
lbs (My belly sure is growing, though!)
Stretchmarks:
None
Sleep: Pretty solid,
despite waking at 5 am a couple times randomly.
Best Moment This Week:
Sharing the news with all of our friends and family!
Movement: I've
noticed a couple odd "flutters," but pretty sure it's probably just
increased blood flow ;-)
Gender: January 14 is
our scan, but we won't find out until a bit later, with the rest of our family.
Labor Signs:
Nope
Belly Button:
In...hopefully it stays that way for a while ;-)
What I Miss:
Subway sandwiches & sledding
What I am Looking Forward to: Finding out whether we'll be adding a boy or girl to our
little family!
Milestones: Ending
the first trimester!
Baby is sprouting hair now & is the size of my clenched fist!
Baby is sprouting hair now & is the size of my clenched fist!
6 Weeks (sorry for the poor
photo-quality!)
9 weeks
10 weeks
11 weeks
12 weeks
13 weeks
*14 week photo to be posted soon!
Baby Parr at 10 weeks (look at that
wonderful umbilical cord!)
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