>How We Found Out About You

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**This post is mostly for my own personal journaling. I don't want to forget about this whole thing and so here is a more detailed version of it. If you want to read and comment, great! If not, that is just fine too.**

Dear Baby L,

You are nearly 24 weeks grown in my belly now and telling me all the time about the adventures and foods you love. You love waking me up at 5am to kick my bladder and you don't stop there until almost 7am. I can usually fall back to sleep before then if I am not getting up to work and while I am dozing I enjoy your soft morning kicks. You keep telling me to eat super sweet things and your grandma does not want me to turn into an elephant so do me a favor and ask for more of that orange chicken you love so much. That is a much healthier choice. To date I have gained 15 pounds and the doctors are very happy with that progress, seeing as how I barely gained 2 pounds the first trimester. I want you to grow big and strong so gaining weight is not a problem for me. I want to tell you about how we discovered that you were going to be more than just a twinkle in our eyes so here goes...

Way back in March I have a very late period. Daddy and I were very excited by the thought that we might be expecting a special gift but soon discovered that is not the timing God had in mind for us. After the excitement, and then the disappointment, we made up our minds (more like Daddy made up his mind...) that it was time to start trying for a baby. I had health insurance, we both had great jobs, we were moving in June, and our happiness was through the roof.

The following month we were semi-careful as I really did not want to BE pregnant in Cabo for our honeymoon and that was the same idea God had in mind. We went to Cabo and had a great time. It's quite silly that everyone seems to think that is where you were created, but I know better....you came a few weeks later.

Mother's Day weekend was a hard one. Daddy and I went to a funeral for a family friend. She was the mother to 3 boys and a girl and God wanted her in Heaven. She had been very sick with cancer and though the heartache was hard on all of us, she was no longer suffering. I remember sitting in church thinking that maybe this would be the weekend we would create a baby. It was an odd thought to associate with a death, but I thought of it more as one goes out, so one has to come in, right?

The following weekend I spent with my sister in law and mother in law. We had a girls night out at a bar in Denver and I had a few drinks, but I remember feeling not so well. I was feeling sick to my stomach, had a bad headache and just felt off. I did not think much of it as I did not want to disappoint myself if I was not in fact pregnant. That was the last weekend I had anything to drink and it was the same weekend my period was expected.

That day came and went. And then another day, and another. I kept texting cousin Heidi asking if I should wait a few days or go ahead and take a test. Of course she wanted me to take a test right away so I did. It was negative. So I was bummed and just waited for AF to show up. Another day passed...and another. Finally on Friday May 29th I was at work texting Heidi some more and she was practically yelling at me through the texts to take another test. I wanted to wait until the end of the weekend. I was 6 days late at that point but finally got so excited about the idea that I stopped off at Walgreens to pick up a test.

I walked in the door to see Daddy sitting on the couch playing a video game. I told him I was taking another test and he was like, yeah okay not wanting to get excited for more disappointment. I peed on that stick, set it on the bathroom sink and left the room for a good 5 minutes. I was so nervous to look. I was going to be so mad at my body if it was that late without a baby in my belly. To my great surprise, there were two pink lines! I had to blink over and over, making sure I was not seeing things. And then I could not form the words. So I carried the test out to the living room where Daddy was sitting and waved the stick at him. I had a smile on my face and when he looked at me he said, "Is it positive?" YES! Was all I could get out before he stood up and swept me into his arms. He set me down and kept asking if it was real. So I took him to the bathroom with the good light and there we stared at the very first evidence of you. Two pink lines. When your Daddy looked me in the eyes after staring at the proof, I don't think I have ever seen so much joy and love in his eyes before. I hope to never forget the feelings we had in that moment. It is by far one of the best moments of my life, finding out about you.

I called Heidi to tell her that yes, we were having a baby and it was so late where she lived but we were both too excited to sleep. The best part about this day, other than finding out about you, was knowing that we were going to be moving into our new home the next day. All our things were packed and stacked in boxes. We were taking the news of you with us to the next chapter of our lives and it could not have been more perfect timing.

The next morning I called your grandparents and asked them to stop by the house on their way out of town. I told them we had something to "give" them and your grandma just kept asking what it was. I said it was something they needed and she finally gave in. Once they arrived, they were not even down the stairs before Daddy blurted out that I was pregnant. They were floored! So happy and excited! Grandma was on the verge of crying, but didn't. Grandpa was thrilled! He shook daddy's hand and kissed me. It was the best news they could take on their trip.

So that is how we found out about you. We prayed that God would bless us with children in his time and we waited for that time and the time is now! You will be here so soon! I can't believe how fast that time has gone since that day. It is burned into my memory and now here on these pages. We love you more than anything and cannot wait to kiss your toes and touch your belly.

Love and hugs,

Mommy and Daddy