Getting Pregnant Again...Truly a Miracle

I believe in miracles! And doctors and modern medicine. Both helped me on my journey to getting pregnant again after 6 years. I wanted to share my story so I don't forget what it took to get here! You can go back and read about all my health challenge.s. They started with swallowing problems after my mission in 2006, got really bad right after I had Lexi in 2011, and escalated in 2012/2013. Goodness what a rough ride.

Now skip ahead to 2015, when I've been gluten and dairy free for a year or two, I'm at a healthy weight and have hair on my head, even if it's a little bit, and I'm able to live life normally. Sure, my belly is always bloated and I look like I'm pregnant, but at least I'm feeling pretty good. BUT I still don't have my period, which hadn't showed up since I got pregnant with Lexi. I was encouraged by my health insurance advocate to see a new hematologist at the U of U Huntsman Cancer Institute to get a new opinion/outlook on things. And there's a good network of docs up at the U. So I started seeing Dr. Deborah Stephens, and saw a gastro doc up there as well. Dr. Stephens looked into my weird undiagnosed autoimmune/blood disease, and suggested we try an immuno-suppressant called Cyclosporine. It's a medecine usually used on organ transplant patients, but she thought it might do the trick to get my menstrual cycle going again, hair growing again, and hopefully my body reset and so that it would stop attacking itself.

I went on the Cyclo in 2015, stayed on it into 2016 and noticed a positive change with my health. Hair started growing more. My doc said it would take months to see if it was working, or for my menstrual cycle to start up again, so we were patient. On August 11, 2016, I had my first period since December of 2010. I WAS ECSTATIC! I've never been so excited to bleed. Haha! Of course as soon as I saw that it was back, I immediately wanted to try to get pregnant again. (By the way...we had considered adoption and even surrogacy during those years prior, and even met with LDS family services to see if adoption felt right. It just didn't at the time, so we didn't pursue it any further.)

Dr. Stephens was excited and so happy for me, and said that she didn't see any reason why I wouldn't be able to get pregnant again and have another baby. My OBGYN that I had seen, Dr. Kathleen Langer, said that if I did want to try, it would be a high risk pregnancy and she didn't advise it given my health history. She referred us to a Fetal doctor (high risk pregnancy specialist) there at the same office, Dr. Michael Draper. He talked to us about Cyclosporine and having a baby while on it, and the risks and problems it can cause (such as cleft palate). He told me to wait a few months after going off the cyclo, to see if my body was back to normal and still menstruating without the medicine.

So we went ahead and made the decision and I stopped taking the Cyclo on October 10. My period came back at the end of that month, and I was SO excited! It came back the next month, and the next. I was so relieved that my body was back to working, without the medicine, and it looked like I might just be able to get pregnant!

At the end of January, after the few months he suggested we wait, it was go time! Operation: Make a Baby. :) I started obsessing about ovulation, and trying to learn all I could about when/how, etc. Jake and I got invited on a trip with his work to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in February.

We stayed at a nice resort, and had a really fun time, although I started having a lot of pain a day or so before we were to leave for home. (I felt severe cramping as Jake and I went on a long ATV ride in the Mexican mountains). My next period wasn't supposed to be until the end of February, but that day, on February 11, I started bleeding, and had severe cramps and pains. I remember just crying in our hotel room in pain, and not being able to leave our room.

I had a miserable day at the airports/flights home, and the bleeding continued for 2 weeks after that! I also got a cold, threw up, and was so confused about all this I called my OBGYN office. The nurse asked if I could be pregnant? I said I sure hope not, this would be a horrible way to start a pregnancy, but she said often times bleeding means pregnant and that I should take a test. So I did, and it was positive! I ended up having an ultrasound, which showed no sign because it was just a couple weeks along, but the blood work showed pregnancy level which went down the next week. I had had a miscarriage, at just a few weeks along.

While that was all very upsetting and weird, I was also relieved because a) it meant I could get pregnant! b) that would've been a hard way to start a pregnancy, had it continued. I actually also got really bad chills and a high fever the day I found out I'd miscarried, and then a day after that had a bad pain in my chest/back area. I went to Instacare where they suspected a blood clot, and they made me go to the ER. I took a CTscan which showed not a blood clot-hooray-but only pneumonia! I'd never guessed I'd be excited to just have pneumonia, but it meant antibiotics and on my way, rather than a lengthy hospital stay for a blood clot. Talk about a rollercoaster of emotions and health issues!

After the miscarriage, Dr. Langer, my OB, suggested I wait 1-2 normal cycles before trying to get pregnant again. I kind of listened! I ended up getting pregnant again when I took a positive pregnancy test on May 2! I had been hoping and praying, and being really vigilant about when I was fertile and ovulating. When I suspected and was about to take the test, I didn't want to get my hopes up too high, so that I wouldn't be super disappointed. I was also really cautious, because I was afraid I would just have another miscarriage. So after I took it in the morning after Jake had already gone to work, I simply texted: "Guess what." And Jake replied "You're pregnant." VERY exciting...haha. I said Yep! And so it all started, somewhat hesitantly but excitedly. Every day was another blessing, and another day of the waiting game to see if it would last. At the end of May, I met with Dr. Langer, and we got to hear the sweet first little heartbeat, and see our peanut in an ultrasound. Jake and I went to the temple that night and just felt so so grateful and blessed. And we prayed hard for this little baby.

Then the following month, here are my notes at the appointment.

6/20: 2nd appt at 12 weeks.  Good heartbeat, 173 bpm Probiotics ok?yes
 Does it matter when I take my prenatal gummies?
Magnesium powder 
Should I take vitamin D? Probably not 
Avoid riding an ATV? Yep
2 liters water each day

So my pregnancy was awesome. Of course I only remember it being a breeze. :) But I do remember there were some times where I wondered it it was going to kill me, and didn't know how I would make it full term. And now that I'm writing, it's hard to remember those times. It's amazing how we as women get pregnancy and childbirth amnesia! :) Here are some photos from the first trimester, while the secret was excitedly ours.

As far as announcing to everyone, I told Carla (Dalton), very first in our front yard when I was probably about 9 weeks, because she asked if I was still seeing a fertility doc. I couldn't lie, so I told her we were pregnant and she was sooo excited for us! She's been here for every step of my health journey over the years, being our across the way neighbor, friend, AND Relief Society President (who I served as second counselor to for 2 years). I then told my friend Stephanie Sorenson while at the pool chatting. And I told my friend Lisa Carlson while at her house chatting. 😀 

In June, we embarked on an epic road trip across the country to go visit my parents in PA, and then we flew home while Clark and Emma flew out and drove our van home for us. Since we hadn't told any of my family yet, including our girls, we were waiting for this trip to tell them! For telling Cami and Lexi first, we did it at my parent's house in PA in the morning at 11 weeks pregnant. We gave Lexi a new shirt to wear that said I'm the Big Sister, and then I said "Mommy has a baby in her tummy!" They were so excited and happy and giddy. (Although Cami had kind of already known because she had seen my text to Jake the morning I told him I was pregnant, haha, but didn't quite know what to think or whether to say anything.) Lexi put on the shirt and bounced downstairs into the kitchen where all of our parents were. 

Emma saw and read the shirt first, and then told everyone, "Did you see Lexi's shirt?" My mom, standing at the kitchen sink doing breakfast dishes, turned around and gasped and did one of her little screams. She was so excited, it was very happy, and everyone was so surprised and congratulatory. I got an emotional blessing from mine and Jake's dads the next day that all would go well with the pregnancy.

For Jake's siblings, we told them on the 4th of July in the Yospe's backyard during our BBQ. Emma tried to help me get everyone sitting down at the table at one time, and then since we'd been talking about Felix being the only baby left, I said "Soooo, come January 2nd, Felix won't be the youngest member of the Yospe family anymore." Everyone said whaaat?? You're pregnant? That's so exciting! Jana started crying a little, which made me cry, and we hugged, and Kate said it's a miracle, etc. then the guys wanted to know what names we had in mind. 😆

We told Bree that night at fireworks at Thanksgiving Point. Lexi was wearing a cute lil 4th of July 4th outfit, and I said yeah remember when Cami wore this when she was little? Now Lexi has grown out of it. But we'll be able to use it again in a couple years. She said whaaaat? I said yup I'm pregnant! She hugged me and was super excited. She said Grandma, did you hear that? I leaned towards her and said I'm pregnant! She said ohhh wonderful! 

And then to tell Britt, she drove to Utah on the night of July 5th and got to our house with her kiddos. As she was finishing unloading the car, we put Lexi in the shirt again, and sent her down to where Britt was in the bedroom. Britt kept talking, and didn't notice or read the shirt, but Lexi kept bouncing in front of her. Finally I said, "well I told Lex to go get some Jammie's on, but she put this on instead." Then she read it and looked shocked, and said really??! I said yeah, I'm pregnant! And I'm 14 weeks! She of course was super surprised and ecstatic. 

We told Nathan and Allison when we were all together in Island Park at RuthAnne's cabin, and by this time I was still feeling great and in my 2nd trimester!

Jake and I found out the gender at my 16 week appointment on July 20th. We didn't know if we'd be able to, but it was like $20 I think to do it, so we figured why not?? It was a super exciting appointment to see our little peanut and find out that it was a SHE! I'll be honest...I was kind of hoping for a boy, just because I'd love to experience both. But I was SO happy to think of having 3 girls, just like my mom had 3 girls, and what a special bond sisters have. We couldn't have been happier. 

Now the only tricky part was keeping it a secret until we could think of a good way to reveal to our family! We wanted it to be fun for the girls, so we decided to get cupcakes from The Sweet Tooth Fairy, and have them decorated neutral on the outside, and then have pink frosting on the inside. I picked up the cupcakes, and then we kept them until 2 days later when we were all together at the Marshall Family Reunion (Grandma's parent's) in Panguitch, UT. We took them to a school playground where we could sit on some grass, and had everyone gather around while the girls bit into their cupcakes to reveal that they were getting a BABY SISTER!

 It was after this parade, and before the talent show and dinner. I didn't get a picture of Cami and Lexi actually eating the cupcakes! We only took videos. But it was a joyous thing, and everyone was excited!

And THEN I finally announced to everyone and posted it on facebook. Such happy times announcing this pregnancy!