You've never had a miscarriage before and you just find out that someone you know -- a friend or family member -- is miscarrying their precious unborn baby. What do you say? More importantly, what do you NOT say? When anyone experiences loss, it can be difficult to know how to handle it and how to help. We want to offer comfort and support, but sometimes -- and especially in situations where we have not been where they are -- we may do the opposite. Our intentions are good, but our words fall short. When I was miscarrying our first pregnancy, many people reached out and gave sweet words Continue Reading
First Trimester Essentials
I'm officially past the first trimester and all its nausea. It felt like it went pretty slow, until of course I actually got through it and then it was like, "Wow, I'm really here!" By the end of that first trimester, I was just ready for a really long nap. My first trimester wasn't terrible, but it wasn't wonderful either. There was nausea and fatigue and a lot of worry and fear. There was a ton of bloating and just feeling sick most of the time. But I got through it, mainly from the help of some very important essentials. And that's what I want to share with you today. There are a ton of Continue Reading
Pregnancy Announcement
One of my all-time favorite things about pregnancy so far is getting to tell people about it. It's so incredibly fun to watch people react when you give them the news that they are going to be a grandma/aunt/great-grandma, etc. It's really fun when your pregnancy announcement is totally out of the blue and they don't expect it at all. Like for our first pregnancy -- watch our families react in this video. It's also super fun when your family knows how much you want a baby and know you've experienced loss before. It makes it extra special because people are so happy. I love genuinely happy and Continue Reading
Pregnancy After Miscarriage
When I wrote the post What I Didn't Know About Miscarriage Until I Had One, I talked about the fear of pregnancy. I talked about how pregnancy after miscarriage would never be the same. I was just predicting, and I wish I could say I had been wrong. But I was right. This pregnancy is very different because of my previous loss. How Pregnancy After Miscarriage is Different "No, it's my second." You wouldn't believe how many times people ask if this is your first pregnancy. To strangers, I just respond yes. I don't want them to feel awkward or uncomfortable by bringing up a sad subject. Continue Reading
First Trimester Life
The news is finally out! I have wanted so badly to tell you all about the pregnancy, but we wanted to wait for two reasons -- 1) We wanted to make sure everything was going well and baby was growing, 2) We wanted to tell close family members ourselves before announcing it to the public. It took quite some time to get around to telling everyone. In fact, we finally got the chance to tell Travis' grandparents the day before we announced it to the world. Since I've been dying to talk about it, this post is going to be all about my first trimester. This is going to be a long post because I have a Continue Reading
Coming Soon
I've been thinking for weeks about how to write this post and what I should say. I have very exciting news to share, but I want to do so with a cautious heart. Some will be thrilled with this news, but for others it could be very difficult. And for that reason, many tears have been shed as I type this post. Tears of gratitude, but also tears of sorrow for those who are longing for what I now have. The News Travis and I are going from a family of two to three. We are expecting. I wanted to be cautious and sensitive with this announcement because I know there are women out there who are Continue Reading
When Pregnancy Announcements Hurt
I woke up early and wasn't able to get back to sleep. I did my normal morning routine, and ate my bowl of cereal on the couch while watching the Today Show. I'm normally not up and watching the 8 am hour of the show, but thanks to my early rising I got to see the co-hosts Matt and Savannah bringing me the news. And then out of nowhere, she announced it. I wasn't expecting it, and neither were the other hosts of the show. Savannah pulled the paper from the fish bowl and asked, "Are you pregnant?" Her answer was yes. Everyone cheered and asked questions. And my heart sank. I turned Continue Reading
When We Lost Our Baby … Twice
This post tells the story of my first pregnancy, as well as the first loss my husband and I have ever experienced together. I wrote this post as therapy for myself and to help others who have never experienced this type of loss to have a better understanding. I've also found that I find comfort in reading the stories of other women who have faced this awful nightmare, so perhaps this will remind someone else experiencing a miscarriage that they are not alone. Travis and I decided we wanted to start a family in September of 2014. We began trying to get pregnant in October 2014. When Continue Reading
10 Things to Do Before Starting a Family
Travis and I have been married for almost 9 months now. We enjoy talking about the future. Having a forever home, future careers, and starting a family... As fun as it is to think about getting pregnant or having our first baby, we are not ready for that stage in our lives. Not ready at all. There are so many things we want to do before we change our lives forever. And a baby will definitely change things! For those of you out there wondering if it's time for you to start expanding your family, here's a list of things you should do before you consider starting a family. 10 Things to Do Continue Reading