Christmas Miracle

Natalie was hamming it up for Tim the other night.

Well, a lot has been going on in the past two months. About a month or so after the miscarriage, I was noticing something wasn't quite as it should be. I took a pregnancy test, and it came back positive. That was strange to me, because we were trying to prevent that as requested by the doctor. They called me in for blood work, and everything was indicating that I was pregnant. I was quite confused, as you can probably imagine. Two weeks ago we went in to have an ultrasound. That was eight weeks after the miscarriage. In that ultrasound they found what appeared to be a baby developing at 5 weeks gestation. We were quite perplexed, of course, because in our minds it should be about 8 weeks. The doctor asked us to come back today because at 7 weeks they should be able to see a heartbeat. The doctor said there was a good chance that there were just leftovers in there because of the earlier miscarriage, but that my numbers (hormone levels) looked good.

During those two weeks, I started having pretty intense pregnancy symptoms. I was quite sick, nearly all the time, and tired. That finally got better yesterday after a chiropractor appointment, for which I am so grateful! (Have I ever mentioned that I LOVE my chiropractor).

Anyway, today was the big day. I started having a few signs of a miscarriage in the morning, so I was prepared for the worst. We got there, waited FOREVER, and finally had the scan. It showed a strong, clear heartbeat! Our miracle baby is really there!

We are not totally out of the woods. The doctor we saw after the first ultrasound said that until 12 weeks, you really cannot predict whether or not a pregnancy will stick. Conceiving right after a miscarriage does raise the risk of losing the baby slightly. The doctor today didn't seem concerned about the symptoms I was having. So, now that I am posting this I may still have to "untell" everyone, but we are excited. We know that the Lord makes all things good in His time, and while the miscarriage was difficult, we are so happy to have this miracle baby growing away inside me.

What fascinates me is that this baby is only one centimeter long, yet he/she has a strong, audible heartbeat. I am seven weeks along, and many people do not think twice about killing a baby at this gestation through abortion. The doctor's office I go to is pro-life, and while it is slightly more expensive than other options, I am so thankful to know that they will never advise something that would put my baby at risk.

Please pray that this will be a healthy baby, and that I will be able to carry it to full term. I am, of course, quite nervous about having the same problems again that I had with Natalie. There is a 30% chance that it will happen again. That's fairly low, but still scarry. I just have to trust that the Lord knows what is best!