Week 4, Day 6

So, in an update to my last blog, I wanted to let everyone know that as of tomorrow I will be 5 weeks pregnant. This feels like a big step to me. There's so much that can happen in the next 7 weeks, but each week means we've made it a little longer.

I've experienced a lot of fear so far- afraid of losing my baby from the moment I found out I was pregnant. However, yesterday God began to calm my fears. I realized that He brought us to this point after more than a year of trying and all of the infertility tests. Just under 2 months ago, I felt God tell me that I needed to anticipate that He was about to work. And He did! So, why do I believe that He's not going to continue working? I can tell you, though, it feels like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. I feel confident that everything is going to be okay, regardless of what happens.

So, having said that, I wanted to share a few new tidbits of information.

To start with, my first blood test came back at 50. To those who don't know, this is just a simple pregnancy test, detecting it the same way a home pregnancy test would, but this test can tell you the exact number of the pregnancy hormone in your body. These numbers double every other day. That's why if you took a home pregnancy test and it was negative and then took another one a few days later it could be positive. So, a level of anything over 5 is considered pregnant, and the most important thing is for the numbers to increase like they are supposed to. Having a 50 worried me at first because it seemed much lower than I expected and I feared it wouldn't increase like it was supposed to. However, after getting my 2nd blood test on the Wednesday the 17th, my number came back at 150. So it tripled in those 2 days. That's better than it should do! I now have to go back next Tuesday (the 23rd) and take another blood test. Once my number gets to be over 1000 then they will order the ultrasound. (You can't see anything on the ultrasound until the levels are at least that high.) According to my calculations, though, if the number doubles every other day, then it should be 1,200 at my next appointment. If it triples every other day like it did this time, then it should be 4,050! So, either way, we should get our ultrasound ordered by next week. I think that'll be the greatest moment for us. We'll be able to see the little sac where the baby is and the little spec that it is. We'll also be able to see its heart beating and probably hear it too! I am so excited! I can't wait!

As far as the development of the baby goes, I found out today that the baby's heart should begin beating today and circulating its blood around its body. Also, the vocal cords should be starting to form. I think that that's totally awesome!

Only 246 days to go...

Meanwhile, I started keeping a journal everyday of the things I experience and the development of the baby. I've also started looking more seriously into furniture and decor for the nursery and necessities for the baby. Jesse and I have been talking a lot about what to do for my work after the baby is born. I could easily keep my job working 8 hours a day and paying for childcare, but I don't want to miss out on that much of my baby's life. Meanwhile, we can't afford for me to quit my job completely. So it's a matter of figuring out how many hours I should work and how much time and money could go towards childcare. To just figure out our finances more and plan for the future, I did a very extensive budget today. It's spelled out for the next 3 months and then estimated for the following 9 months. It is my goal to set aside $75 a week towards everything baby. This will allow us to get the big ticket items like a crib or changing table or stroller and also set aside a cushion if I have to cutdown to less hours at work. By the time the baby is born, we could have more than $2, 125.00 saved up! Of course, things always come up, but I tried to budget out ways to save money towards not only the baby but also car maintanance, things for our house (like new furniture), and a backyard. I feel really good about having some kind of plan or foundation set, even if we don't follow it perfectly.

Well, my husband is about to pick me up for an evening with the family. I hope you guys have a great weekend, and I'll keep you updated when something new happens. :-)