Big Surprise!

On September 23 I visited the Urgent Care. I had been feeling bad over about the last four days or so, but I couldn't pinpoint the problem. I was tired and achy... it didn't feel like the flu, but I still knew something wasn't quite right. I also had been feeling a little jittery and overly-anxious for no reason at all. By that Friday, I also kept having to pee! All of these odd symptoms were starting to really bother me. Something was off, and I wanted to get it checked out before the weekend started.

While I was at a MOMS Club playgroup, I called the clinic. It was around eleven on a Friday morning, and OF COURSE they didn't have any available appointments, but they did refer me to the nearby Urgent Care. I left playgroup, took Eliette to school, and Cadence and I headed up to the Rocky Mountain Urgent Care. I practically had a panic attack in the parking lot of the urgent care, and I instantly prayed that, no matter what was wrong with me (diabetes?), it would be treatable.

The staff at Rockey Mountain Urgent Care was fantastic. We had been there once before, when Elliette ran into the wall over the summer. The medical assistant was kind and reassuring. I told him how I'd been feeling and that I thought I had diabetes! My blood pressure was pretty high, but I was in panic mode at that time... of course then I started wondering if I really was having a heart attack... He gave me a cup to pee into and then took Cadence and me into the exam room. I was feeling super stressed by this time, so I decided to lay down with Cadence (it was her nap time) while we waited to see the doctor.

We had almost fallen asleep when the PA walked in. I was happy to see that it was the same PA that fixed Elliette's big cut. She was sooooo kind at that visit, and she was just as nice this time. She briefly went over my medical history, and then we talked about how I was currently feeling. I told her about everything, from the tiredness to the anxiousness to the sudden urge to constantly pee. I told her I thought I had diabetes! Her response: "Well, we did a urine test, and your levels were great, so you don't have diabetes. However, with the symptoms you described when you came in, I decided to also run a pregnancy test, and it came with a very strong positive." I almost fainted at her response! At first I didn't say anything but "Oh my gosh" over and over, and then I said all kinds of crazy things: "This doesn't happen to me... this happens to high school kids who aren't being responsible." "We don't have spring babies; we have fall babies so that they are the oldest ones in their classes." "Due in May? Great, Eric will have been in Afghanistan for a couple of months by May." "I wasn't expecting this. I haven't taken any prenatal vitamins." "Ohmygosh. I can barely handle the kids I have." And I went on and on. And the wonderful PA let me ramble until I couldn't think of anything else to say. After a bit more talking, I was feeling a little calmer, and I called Eric while she stepped out to write me a couple of prescriptions (prenatals, and the most important: zofran!).

Eric was thrilled and so supportive when he heard my news. He kept saying things like "This is great." However, I was panicked about the timing of it all. How would I handle the girls plus a third c-section and new baby when he was halfway around the world?! At that time I did not see the blessing that we were given, and I admit that it has taken me a while to embrace the fact that we're having another baby. We told our parents that day, but we asked them to not tell anyone until we were ready. 

I waited to tell any of my friends/family. I felt like this was the biggest thing in our lives that we had not planned for. If you know me, you know that I am an over-planner! Once we started telling people, I have felt so much love and support. Combine that with various sermons on "God's blessings that aren't always our timing" and a change in Eric's deployment schedule to allow him to be here for the birth, and I am slowly realizing that God's plan/timing isn't always our timing... His plan is perfect. I am so thankful for the little person growing inside of me. 

We can't wait to meet our newest Blanchard! I've been to a few doctor's appointments already. I'm around 16 weeks now, and I'm due May 25th. We are going to find out what we're having in mid-January. Oh, and here are a few answers to the questions that we're asked most often. Q. Were you trying for a boy? A. We weren't trying at all! Q. But you do want a boy to complete your family, right? (this is usually followed by "I bet it's a boy." A. We have EIGHT girls on my side of the family, and there are two on Eric's side, with only one boy. The chances of us having a girl are also higher since we have two girls already. We will be happy with a boy or a girl. Sometimes if I'm feeling extra over protective of my daughters' feelings, I follow up with "Please don't discount our girls." 

Sometimes if people are really persistent, I'll try to appease them by saying not that we're hoping for a boy or a girl, but that we're hoping for a redhead. We don't have one of those on either side of the family yet!