Like I said earlier, 2009 is an exciting year for us! After graduating from OU in May (after I started 8 years ago Haha), and healing from surgery in April (which after I wrote my 45 page thesis to graduate all in 2 weeks), I knew there was that one other thing we were hoping for this year......... A BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We are so happy to announce Baby Gooden will be arriving on or around March 5th of 2010. We could not be more thrilled!!! It has been a year of ups and downs from New Year's Eve, but there is nothing better than seeing that positive pregnancy test when it's what you have been hoping for all along. When I got pregnant in December, we were so grateful for how quickly God gave us a pregnancy. By the time we got to June, we were just praying for another chance. Although it had not been that long in reality, it had seemed like forever since we decided last November it was time for a baby!
This pregnancy is just another step in God's great plan and we are so grateful to see Him move so much in our lives this year. He knew that in December, I had melanoma that had to be healed before we could welcome a child into the world. So, He quickly took that sweet baby back home knowing His great plan was to get me healed first. We now have the great blessing of seeing His plan all come together perfectly. You see, I always said I wanted to get pregnant in June for a few reasons: First, I would spend most of my pregnancy in the cool months of the year. Second: March is a great time of year to have a baby and I thought that would be just perfect. So when we got pregnant in December, it just wasn't the right plan! Shocked as we were, June 2009 was the month. We were blessed with the greatest miracle in the world.
Of course, even when His plan was pretty clear to me, I still fought a lot of fear with this pregnancy. I had not made it past 5 weeks last time, so when I got a positive pregnancy test at 3 weeks 4 days, I knew I had a long first trimester ahead of me. Nathan and I immediately started praying for a healthy, thriving baby. We praised God for every day that went by and I was still pregnant (and we still do). When I made it past 5 weeks, I was thrilled. At 6 1/2 weeks, we got the first opportunity to see our sweet baby. I was a nervous wreck, wondering what we would find on that ultrasound. And then, there it was. This sweet little angel with a beating heart. It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. The doctor said his or her heart must have just started. How cool is that? To see your baby's beating heart just days after it starts?! All I could think was Wow, God started that little heart. How incredible. I had another appointment in 2 weeks, so I set out to pray for 2 more weeks of growing baby. We made it to 7 weeks, then 8 weeks and then 9. At 8 weeks 6 days, I had my second ultrasound. Once again, we saw this beautiful angel that looked much more like a baby this time! His or her heart was beating away and even more amazing, his or her arms and legs were MOVING! Wow. It was just amazing. All you moms out there, you know exactly what it feels like. There is nothing better than seeing the first few movements of your baby. I felt so blessed.
I am now on my way to 10 weeks and grateful still for each passing day. Now on to the more practical side of it...... first trimester is tough. Whoa. I fought some exhaustion for the first couple weeks and kept thinking, hmmm this is pretty easy. I feel fine. HELLO 7 WEEKS...... NAUSEOUS!!! I have had very similar symptoms to my mom. I feel great in the morning, but by 8 or so at night (and sometimes by 4 or 5) I feel that overwhelming YUCK. Around 8 weeks, I had a few days where the misery was alllllll day long. But, I have to say, it hasn't been that bad and it could be much worse!! And every time I feel miserable, I just keep thinking how grateful I should be for this healthy, growing baby that makes me feel miserable. Haha. This too shall pass! As long as our sweet baby keeps growing, I can't really complain about the other side of it.
We are so excited and I am excited to finally reveal it everyone! I am already too big for my regular pants and it's getting a little difficult to hide this growing belly. Get excited for 7 more months of baby updates all leading up to the most exciting thing ever!
Here is my ultrasound from 8 weeks 6 days. Baby's head is on the left. I'm a little biased, but I think it's a pretty cute little gummy bear :)
We can't wait to meet you little one!
