Ellie's Going to be a Big Sister!

Well, we can't believe it but it's TRUE! Ellie is going to be a big sister in September! Randall and I are absolutely thrilled and can barely keep this little secret in until the first trimester is over. We've been good about sticking to our rule to "keep it off Facebook and not tell the whole wide world until March 27th." It's been hard since we just want to shout it from the rooftops but we know we need to be smart and wait til it's safe to share with everyone.

Now, this doesn't mean we haven't shared with tons of our closest friends, family and a lot of great friends at church- but at least it hasn't been put on Facebook yet! Another reason we are determined to wait is because I don't want my work to find out before I have my one-year evaluation (April 10th). I know legally UMW can't and shouldn't be influenced by my pregnancy, however, knowing my supervisor, I know it would influence his evaluation. While it's unfortunate, it's just the way it is. I think we can safely put it on Facebook without UMW finding out for two more weeks...I hope!

I found out I was pregnant on February 4th and quickly made an appointment with Dr. Mercado's office for February 6th. At the appointment, they took another test to confirm the pregnancy and told me their ultrasound tech was booked for the day and I could come back later for a "dating" ultrasound to see how far along I was. I told the nurse I was flexible and would be happy to come back at any time. She left to check the tech's schedule and came back with a huge smile saying they could take me right then because another patient had cancelled. I got to see our little baby for the first time and it was breathtaking. I wasn't sure how I would feel seeing the our second baby. My pregnancy with Ellie was so highly anticipated that we held our breath every time the phone rang with test results or an image appeared on an ultrasound- we longed to see a baby and a heart beat.

With this pregnancy being a total shock (although we were certainly trying we NEVER thought it would happen naturally without having to see a Reproductive Endocrinologist again) I didn't know what I would feel or how I'd react because it wasn't preceded by 2 years of emotional roller coaster rides. But seeing that baby on the monitor made this pregnancy real, until then I couldn't really believe that I was pregnant. It just didn't seem possible after what it took to get Ellie that this could happen naturally for us. When the image appeared and I saw that heart beat for the first time my eyes filled with tears and I laughed- I was overcome with complete joy! This baby has its own incredible story and is just as special to us in its own right because to us this pregnancy is just as amazing. I believe both pregnancies and children are our gifts from God- true miracles. I left that appointment and kept the ultrasound photos to myself- I knew it would be an awesome gift to give Randall on his birthday about a week later. I just told him they confirmed my pregnancy but they couldn't fit me in for an ultrasound and left it at that :).

We decided to wait until the following Tuesday to tell our parents. It was Randall's 30th birthday and we had our parents and Hunter over to our house to celebrate and make ice cream sundaes. As we planned, we waited for everyone to arrive and then we acted as though we forgot to put Ellie in her party outfit. Randall rushed upstairs and changed her and brought her back downstairs for everyone to see our news spelled out on her shirt. It took just a few seconds before everyone knew just what we had been hiding...and the excitement and tears flowed! Happy day!