We’ve Been Keeping A Secret…

Happy FRI-YAY, friends & fam! Today, I wanted to let you in on a little secret….the Blonde & Ambitious family is growing again – but this time not by four furry paws…but TWO HUMAN ONES! That’s right:

WE ARE EXPECTING BABY MOBLEY!

It’s been a wild first trimester – and now that I’m into my second, we thought it was time to share the news with all of you. It’s also been hard to keep all my symptoms (*ahem* the constant nausea and exhaustion) hidden from you guys on IG stories, so if you’ve been wondering why I’ve been a little more absent on that front: that’s why! Read on to hear how we found out we were pregnant (when doctors told us we couldn’t), some questions answered, and a little first trimester recap! 

---

BABY MOBLEY COMING SUMMER 2019!

Our Infertility Journey

First things first: I wanted to share a bit about how baby came to be. Adam and I had been trying for a baby for a while now, and were unsuccessful for quite a bit of time. We saw many doctors, I had laparoscopic surgery to look for endometriosis (a condition my mom has, and which can make it difficult to conceive), and after that STILL didn’t find anything and nobody could understand what was wrong, we looked to a reproductive endocrinologist.

We had test after test done (and bill after bill – our insurance doesn’t cover anything in the realm of infertility) – and eventually were able to sit down with our doctor to hear the results of our tests. And they weren’t good. I was diagnosed with PCOS, adenomyosis, a blocked or partially blocked tube (the test on that was a bit inconclusive on whether it was full or partial but it did show it wasn’t completely clear) and anovulatory cycles. Adam had issues of his own, as well, which weren’t positive, either. This meant we were quite the team in not being able to get pregnant. It was absolutely devastating. 

After discussing our next options and setting appointments to move forward with more infertility treatments (looking towards IUI and IVF, and adoption at this point), we started to feel more positive. We were going to bring a baby into our family some way, some how. Before we could continue with these procedures, we had to wait until I got my next period. We waited. and waited. and waited. This wasn’t unusual for me because sometimes my cycles can be 50-60 days long – but I was getting anxious. I was cramping like I was going to start, my chest ached and I was SO tired. All typical period symptoms for me: but no actual period. After waiting what seemed like forever, and getting annoyed at my body for not just STARTING already so that we could move on with next steps, I had a strange feeling while shopping at Target that I should pick up a pregnancy test. 

Now: if you are someone who’s struggled to get pregnant, you understand my hesitation for wanting to buy a pregnancy test. It’s just disappointment on a stick. It’s always been negative, the doctors told us our chances of getting pregnant on our own were next to nothing and it’s $8.99 down the drain. But I bought it anyways. I didn’t even tell Adam I was going to take one. I got home…peed on that little pink stick and….

I immediately called Adam at work and let him know that I got a positive test (his response was: “Are you sure it’s positive? I don’t think it can be positive” LOL) and that I would be going into the reproductive endocrinology office that day to have a blood test and ultrasound. I called the doctor and they fit me in within the hour. Once there, they took my blood and I got to see our six-week-old little embryo on that ultrasound screen. There was barely anything there, but it was enough to confirm that I was, in fact, pregnant. The blood test came back VERY positive and everyone was both shocked and thrilled for us. Needless to say: this is our miracle baby in every way. It shouldn’t be here according to doctors and yet, here we are: almost 14 weeks later with a healthy little bean. 

*I also wanted to note: our infertility experience is unique to us. I know there are others that have struggled harder, and longer, with more invasive procedures and have yet to see those two little lines on a test. I know that sometimes, reading these stories gives you hope. And sometimes they just break your heart a little bit more. I hope this gives some of you hope if you are struggling. And if you aren’t at that point yet, know that I am praying for your miracle, too. I wouldn’t wish the pain of infertility on anyone. It is a gut-wrenching kind of empty and those who haven’t experienced it just can’t understand. Everyone’s pain is personal and subjective, so please keep that in mind as you interact with each other in the comments below.*

Some Questions You May Have

How far along are you?

I am 13 weeks, 5 days! Just a week into my second trimester.

What is your due date?

July 9th, 2019! Bring on our summer baby!

Have you found out the gender yet / is that something you’ll find out?

We do not know the gender yet – but are planning to find out! We don’t care what baby is, we just want them to be healthy! They will do the anatomy scan and tell us gender at 19 weeks – so just 6 more weeks to go! And we WILL be announcing what they are.

Where’s that baby bump?! Are you showing?

I am and I’m not. LOL. It’s hard to tell under clothes unless I’m wearing something tight-fitting but but my body is definitely changing. It felt like bloat a lot at first, but it’s a little bit firmer and less bloat-y now. While I’m still pretty small, I have outgrown all my jeans and am into some maternity jeans and mostly yoga pants. 

What have been your symptoms so far?

NAUSEA. NAUSEA. NAUSEA. Oh man. I’ve been SO sick to my stomach – but the term morning sickness is kind of misleading because I get it in the afternoon and at night the worst. I’ve also been so exhausted (but I seem to be coming out of that a little bit now) – in the first 5 weeks after finding out I was pregnant, I took one (or two) naps a day and had a really hard time staying up past 8:30pm. I have also had HORRIFIC acne from day one. I have been super self conscious and stressed about my skin but there’s literally nothing I can do about it. BUT I will take every single one of these symptoms the entire 9 months if we get to take home a sweet baby at the end of it.

Will this change Blonde & Ambitious Blog?

No, not really. I don’t plan on becoming a mommy blogger if that’s what you are worried about – but the lifestyle portion of my blog may be altered slightly to include some pregnancy or baby-related content. I love including my everyday life in my blog, and this will become a part of it in the future. 🙂 But your weekly beauty and fashion content aren’t going anywhere – so don’t worry! And always remember that you can submit any topics you’d like to see on the blog by shooting me an email. I try to accommodate as many as possible!

A Little FIRST TRIMESTER Recap

It has been such a roller coaster of emotions. Because we’ve been wanting this for so long, we’ve been both excited and cautious. We knew the first trimester was the most sensitive, and we were terrified of doing something wrong to hurt the baby. So while we were SO SO excited – we also played it very safe because we don’t know if or when this kind of miracle could happen to us again. We canceled our Thanksgiving trip to New Orleans to stay home and rest on the couch together and spent a week napping, snuggling, and reading pregnancy books together.

Since I don’t drink alcohol, I haven’t had to give that up but I HAVE had to give up some of my favorite things due to those pesky little pregnancy aversions. I have also struggled with not looking pregnant – but just looking like I gained 10lbs in my hips and stomach. Now that is becoming a little more of a “bump” it’s getting better but STILL – nobody else would really know unless I told them and would most likely just assume the holiday snacking got the best of me.

I knew from other girlfriends I’ve had that have been pregnant that you don’t get to see the baby as often as you want, and that’s true. At our last appointment earlier this week, we just heard the heartbeat. We were in and out. I was lucky to see the baby when I was six weeks, and then again at 8 weeks to confirm growth, but now we wait until we find out the gender at 19 weeks. UGH. I love seeing that little bean on the screen!

Pregnancy Aversions: Asian food of any kind (aka my favorite Japanese Steak House is off the list), anything super sweet, pizza.

Pregnancy Cravings: Salty foods, pickles (so typical I know), cheese and carbs (but NOT pizza lol), specifically: cold cut salami and cheese sandwich (which I cannot eat because no deli meat – it’s been a terrible craving I can’t itch!!!).

Boy or Girl – Intuition: Both Adam and I think it’s a boy – but a few of our friends we told early on think it’s a girl! My symptoms seem to ALL point to boy so far (except my terrible acne, which according to wives tales, should point to girl and the high heart rate also points to girl if you believe in that). Again – we don’t care AT ALL. We just want a healthy baby! 

The Hardest Thing: Worrying about bean being healthy. It’s been really hard not to stress about every twinge and cramp and pain. We trust the doctors – but still, that has by far been the hardest.  

The Best Thing: Knowing that my body is trying really hard to do what it was designed to do: grow this little human. And knowing that by some miracle, this tiny bean exists and we get to be it’s parents. I cry every time I think about it.

Our Favorite Books / Journals: I have loved Pregnancy: The Beginner’s Guide. It’s been great for first time parents and it even has specific sections for men on helping their partners through pregnancy, which Adam has really enjoyed. I like that it breaks down the pregnancy by week and has lots of great info. I’ve also been loving my From Pea to Pumpkin Pregnancy Journal. It’s SO darling, and it’s been a great way for me to write down feelings and thoughts each week and answer the prompts provided if I can’t think of anything.

---

I know this has been THE LONGEST blog post ever – but it’s probably one of the most exciting blog posts I’ve ever written. We appreciate any and all prayers and good vibes you can send us over the next six months for baby bean. We are so excited to meet this little one in July and can’t wait to begin the craziness that is parenting. 

Comment below with all your tips for first-time pregnancies – we are ready for them!