Grant's Going to be a Big Brother!

Big News! I am pregnant! So, this post will be "Catching you up to date" part 2. (The first one was the first ever post we put on this site back in Sept. 2009, where we described the beginnings of our pregnancy with Grant.) We are so excited to share this news with you. My due date is October 25. Here is what has happened so far!

I suspected I was pregnant on February 12. I had some slight heartburn, and I haven't had that since the day I had Grant, and I never had it before I was pregnant the first time, so I was suspicious. I knew it may be a little early to find out, but couldn't shake the feeling that I could be pregnant again! So the next day, Doug and I decided to buy a test, thinking I would just take it, it would be negative, and I could stop thinking about it. Since I surprised Doug with the news after taking a test the last pregnancy, we thought we'd do it a little differently this time. I went in the bathroom, took the test, then left it in there to get the results. Doug went in first a few minutes later, so he could see it before me this time. He also took the video camera with him to catch it all on film. When he saw the digital word "pregnant" on the test, he grabbed it and ran it out to me--all while still taping. We were both so shocked, happy, surprised, and excited! We hugged, cheered, and kept looking at it. We then told Grant he was going to be a big brother! With as long as it took to get pregnant with Grant, we expected a similar experience with #2, so of course we are so excited we don't have to go through that again!

The next day was Valentine's Day, and we still couldn't believe it, so of course I took another test just to make sure! I called and made a doctor's appointment for that Thursday, Feb. 17. At that appointment, they confirmed the pregnancy with another test, and I also had blood taken to test my thyroid, which came out fine. We then had an ultrasound on March 9. I was just over 7 weeks at the time. Everything looked great, and we saw the little heart beating away on the screen! We had another appointment yesterday, at 11 weeks, and we were able to hear the heartbeat using the Doppler device. It was quite a relief to hear it and know that everything is going well so far! We go back to the doctor again in another 4 weeks, on May 5.

We told our parents and siblings a few days after we found out in a special way. We bought Grant a t-shirt that says, "I'm the big brother!" We just had him wearing it and waited for them to notice it. They were all so shocked and excited when they figured it out!

Already, this pregnancy has been quite different than with my pregnancy with Grant. Not sure if that means anything--some people say maybe it's a girl? Of course we don't care either way. Having a boy has been so much fun, and we'd be so happy if Grant had a brother so close in age, but of course getting to experience a girl after already having a boy would be great too! We will find out what it is again with this pregnancy--probably in mid-June.

I have been much more nauseous with this pregnancy. While I don't get sick, I just feel blah, nauseous, and tired all day. Of course, chasing after a mobile little boy sure doesn't help! I haven't had as much heartburn so far (even though that was the earliest sign), my face/skin is breaking out like crazy, I already have different cravings, and there are a few other different, unpleasant symptoms I won't share with you. I just can't wait to be out of the first trimester soon, and hopefully my energy will come back.

I also had to stop breastfeeding Grant after that first doctor's appointment. The doctor said usually it may be okay to breastfeed while pregnant, but since nursing releases something called oxytocin, which can cause uterine contractions, it was best for me to stop, since I've already had a miscarriage and preterm labor. So I had to pretty much stop cold turkey that next day. It was painful--both emotionally and physically, but Grant didn't even seem to mind, and he took to the bottle and formula fine. I'm just glad I was able to nurse him for almost 10 months.

It's so weird being pregnant for the 2nd time. We go to our appointments with hardly any questions, whereas with Grant we had lists of written questions we took with us to the doctor. And while we still worry--as any pregnant mother does--I feel we are a little more relaxed this time. I really want to enjoy this pregnancy and not rush it. I want to cherish the moments we have with just Grant, before adding another little one to our family. With them being around 18 months apart, we hope they are close and have so much fun together! I'm sure the time will go so fast, though, considering how fast time has gone since Grant arrived. He will already be 1 in a few weeks! Please say some prayers for a healthy pregnancy, and a baby that arrives full term this time! We will continue to update this blog with both Grant updates and pregnancy updates, so check back! Thanks for all the support!