Baby Lowery #3: 11 Weeks

Baby Lowery #3, our precious rainbow baby, is set to make his or her debut right after the New Year---our official due date is January 5, 2020. After going through a miscarriage at the end of February, our plan was to wait until later this summer to start "trying" for another baby to add to our family. Imagine our surprise when we were in Florida visiting my sister and bro-in-law in May and found out we were pregnant again!

*side note---it's very un-like us to have a surprise pregnancy. we are crazy planners and my other 3 pregnancies were planned pretty well. But it also makes this rainbow baby that much sweeter.

We plan to wait and find out baby's gender at delivery, which we have never done before and we are really excited for that experience! Our kids are CRAZY excited to add another sibling to our family. Holt is convinced it's a boy and Evie says it's a girl, but we are telling them that we will be happy either way ;) They talk about the baby almost every day and they ask to look at the app on my phone with all the videos on what the baby looks like this week. I'm going to be an absolute puddle once this baby is here and I see them with their new brother or sister. They are going to do so well!

I haven't been feeling the best so far this pregnancy, which honestly I am so THANKFUL for. Losing a baby changes your perspective on the first trimester morning sickness. I do ok in the mornings, I usually take a nap when Evie naps (and Holt has quiet time) but the afternoons are KILLING ME. It's been pretty rough. I actually started taking Diclegis a couple of weeks ago which is helping some. The key for me this time is keeping something on my stomach and Dr. Pepper (I swear it's the Magic Juice of pregnancy). Bless my sweet husband--he has picked up the slack without complaining! He comes home from work, cooks dinner, feeds the kids and puts them to bed. He's pretty much amazing.

I won't lie. after finding out we were pregnant again, we were excited but it was a very CAUTIOUS excitement. I walked around the first few weeks almost holding my breath because I was afraid of what that first ultrasound would show. When I started feeling nauseous I was so thankful, but I had that last time too so that didn't necessarily ease my mind. I didn't see my doctor until I was 8 weeks pregnant. Thankfully, we have a sweet friend at our church who is an ultrasound tech at a local clinic and she offered for me to come in and have a quick scan. We initially went in at 6 weeks and we could see the baby but it was too tiny to see if the heart was fluttering. We went back one week later and the whole time I just prayed. She started scanning me, we saw the baby, and IMMEDIATELY saw it's little heart just fluttering away. PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW. I cried. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. Tears of sadness for my other baby that I didn't get to see her heartbeat. Tears of thankfulness.

I saw my doctor at 8 weeks and we took the kids with us to our first appointment (the day after Memorial Day, during the Flood of 2019). We told them right before we left where we were going and the surprise and excitement on their faces is a moment I will never forget. We saw the baby on ultrasound again, saw the heartbeat, everything measured right on track for my estimated due date. It was a great day. I go back next week on June 26th and we continue to pray for a healthy report.

how far along:  11 weeks 2 days
maternity clothes: some. belly has most DEFINITELY popped out already.
stretch marks: I got a couple small stretch marks with Evie, and I'll be interested to see if I get any this time--especially since the belly is already out.
sleep: I've been sleeping pretty well. I usually nap when Evie goes down and then I'm still tired and sleeping all night. I'm ready for my energy to come back!
food aversions: ugh. most things. especially meat. gross. and no coffee again this go round.
food cravings: not necessarily a craving, but the only thing I have found that sticks with me is a cheeseburger with french fries. I have literally had Braum's for lunch every single day during the last week.
started showing: Yup. Embracing it, wearing some maternity clothes and honestly a little glad I already look pregnant instead of just looking like I ate too much
gender prediction: At this point, my initial thought is a boy. Just based off of the food that somewhat sounds good to me and the fact that I'm not crazy sick all day long like I was with Evie. But, who knows? I'll be interested to see if my prediction changes throughout this pregnancy!

the story of our sweet baby lowery #3

one week ago, our world stopped in a haze of grief and sadness. what we thought would be a doctor's appointment full of joy, turned out to be one of sorrow.

the week of Valentine's Day, we found out we were pregnant with Baby Lowery #3 and we were so excited. I went in the following week to check my HCG levels and they were great---measuring at 30,000. We scheduled our first appointment for Tuesday, February 26 at 9:30am. We went in and my doctor wheeled in the little ultrasound machine. We got the first look at our sweet baby. After a few minutes, my doctor said, "I am so sorry to tell you this, but I am not seeing a heartbeat." It didn't really register in my brain what that meant until a few minutes later.

my doctor is truly amazing. I am so grateful for him. He left the room to give us a few minutes to process what was happening and then came back in to discuss some things with us. He was very sensitive to what was happening, and the first thing he told me was that it wasn't my fault. He gave us three options:

1) wait and let my body miscarry naturally--although we had no idea the timeframe that would take
2) he could give me some meds to jumpstart the process and let my body miscarry naturally
3) we could schedule a D&C

we walked out of the doctor's office numb and in a fog. We drove home and just sat in silence, crying for a good while. I called my Mom to tell her the news---she had no idea we were pregnant yet. That was a hard conversation. She called me back 10 minutes later to say she was packing and heading up here.

the rest of that day was a haze. Daniel picked the kids up from "school", brought them home and we all cried together as we told them the news. Evie was just crying because the rest of us were crying. Holt fully understood though. He cried and cried. And then he stopped and prayed, "God, please let my mama have another baby in her belly so I can have a brother or a sister." *cue more tears. GAH*

I decided I wanted the D&C. I don't believe there is one right option to do---to each their own. But for me, this is what I wanted. I had a lot coming up on the calendar with Rhea Lana's and I didn't want something to happen then. I didn't want to have this looming over my head and just wondering when it would happen. And honestly, I didn't want to feel pregnant anymore.

the hospital was able to squeeze me in the next day for my procedure. Wednesday, February 27th at noon. My mom arrived and was a huge help with the kids. We decided to go to dinner Tuesday night because I wasn't up for cooking. We had the most amazing waitress and someone ended up blessing us and paying for our meal. Whoever you are, if you're reading this, that meant more than you know.

Wednesday morning, we took the kids to my best friend's house---she honestly is more like a sister to me than anything and the fact she was willing to watch my kids most of the day was just the sweetest.  I dropped them off and we cried (more like sobbed) together at the loss of our baby. I arrived to the hospital, checked in, and the waiting game began. I'll be honest, I was a little nervous. I haven't had any kind of surgery since I was 3 years old. But everyone was so kind and helpful and put me at ease. I was wheeled back at 12:15pm, Dr. Riche was speaking to my mom and husband after surgery at 12:30pm and at 1:00pm they were waking me up in recovery.

we got home about 2:00pm and I slept for a few hours. My mom was a huge help taking care of the kids and making sure I was resting. Overall, my physical recovery was great. I never had nausea or cramping or anything. Emotionally, we are still recovering and I know that will continue for a while.

while we don't understand why this happened, we know the Lord is still good and He has not abandoned us. Walking through this grieving process has been difficult, but the amount of love and prayer and support poured out on us has been amazing.

they say miscarriage is very common and it's normal for most women to experience at least one. But you never think it will happen to you. To anyone else out there who has experienced this heartbreak, I am so sorry and I am here for you. One of my friends who messaged me told me this: "this club is one you never want to be part of, but you'll find it to be one of the most encouraging and supportive groups ever." I am finding that to be true.

one of the ways we have decided to help with our grief is to name our baby. We will never officially know the gender because it was so early but we decided to name our baby, Hope. Hope has a lot of meaning for us---we have a confident hope that this baby is in the arms of Jesus and that one day we will see her in heaven. We also have hope that the Lord will restore our loss in the future with a healthy baby. Hope is a powerful thing.

Sweet baby Hope will always have a place in our hearts. And for that I am thankful.

Evie: 18 Months

18 MONTHS. YEAR AND A HALF.

Time is absolutely FLYING and this Mama is really not ok with it. Of course we have had another MAJOR LIFE CHANGE in the last couple of months, which doesn't help that, but still! The second year goes by so much faster than the first.

Evie brings all kinds of spunk and sass to our family. This girl is majorly dramatic, screams for fun, definitely stands her ground, and is stubborn as a mule. She also loves to sing, dances to music anytime it's on,  and gives the sweetest hugs and kisses (when she wants to). Her vocabulary is absolutely exploding and she understands so much. Y'all, she even POOPED ON THE POTTY the other day!! Granted, that was a total fluke and hasn't happened since, but still. The fact that she grasped the concept already gives me a lot of hope! Also, the girl could live off of Eggo blueberry frozen waffles. Yes, we reference Stranger Things ALL. THE. TIME. My little "Eleven" LOL!

We still have a paci, but she is slowly weaning off of it. There are a few times we have forgotten it at home on "school" days and she has done absolutely fine without it. Gives me lots of hope because after the first of the year, we are starting the process of "bye bye paci."

She has popped all of her I-teeth FINALLY. Poor thing has been teething those for about 3 months and they broke through the other day. Just in time for her molars to start coming in. *sigh*

Here's what has been happening the last 3 months:

*started MDO

* we have played outside and been to the park A LOT

*playdates with our best friends

* Labor Day with RoRo and Melly

*started Bible Study Fellowship

*Mama and Daddy got to go on VACATION for a week and Holt and Evie stayed with my parents

*we painted pumpkins

*Evie went to her first wedding

*Evie got to pet a baby cow at our church small group fellowship

*Evie got her first haircut

*we had our Family Fall Festival at church and Evie was a little pig

*I started working outside the home with Rhea Lana's! Read all about that HERE

Height: 31 inches (20th percentile)
Weight: 22 lbs 4 oz (45th percentile)

Favorites: *her Bubba *her Daddy---my goodness is she a Daddy's girl! *music *jewelry *shoes *anything sparkly *baby dolls *brushing her hair *Moana (still) *basically she is ALL GIRL!

Sleeping: She is still a pretty good sleeper! We had somewhat of a regression with Daylight Savings where she started waking up at 6/6:15 AM, but after a week or so we settled back into our normal routine. She naps one nap a day still for about 1 hour 45 minutes---just about on the dot. She NEVER wakes or cries during the night, so a couple nights when she has we have somewhat freaked out. Thankfully, I think it's just her molars starting to come in. We are getting ready to break the paci though, so pray it goes as smoothly with her as it did Holt!

Feeding: The girl can eat! Still! She eats a waffle and banana (sometimes two of each) for breakfast with milk. We normally have a morning snack and then lunch is PB sandwich with a pouch and another side (string cheese, goldfish, pretzels, etc). After nap we have another snack with milk and then she eats whatever we eat for dinner.

Typical Day:

7/7:30AM  wake up & breakfast
playtime
mid morning snack
11:00AM  lunch
playtime
12:30-2:30 nap
mid afternoon snack
playtime
5:30PM  dinner
playtime/bathtime
7/7:15PM bedtime

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