Big News!!!

For those of you who haven't heard the news yet....I am PREGNANT! Seth and I found out on November 2nd that I was pregnant again. I must say that I am very thankful that it happened so quickly. December 20th was my due date from my last pregnancy and I was praying that I would be pregnant again before that day. I know it sounds odd, but I thought it would make that day a bit easier. December 20th was a rough day but I am very thankful for this pregnancy. My due date is July 8, 2011. Today I am 13 weeks and 2 days along. It has really seemed to fly by! We have had several doctors appointments and 3 sonograms. So far everything looks perfect! We go back on January 6th for another sonogram. I will be a day shy of 14 weeks. I have heard that there may be a chance we could find out the gender at this appointment, especially if it's a boy. If we don't find out then I think it will be early February when we find out. I am ready to find out so I can shop! We don't care what we are having as long as it's healthy! Seth has been so great during this pregnancy. He has put up with me worrying about every little thing. I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband. I hope to find the time to update this blog a bit more..... although I have said that SO MANY TIMES OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS! It is really hard to update when I am working such long hours. I don't even think about sitting down a the computer when I leave work.
I hope that everyone had a great Christmas. Seth and I were blessed to spend lots of time with family and we got lots of great gifts!!

I'm not good at this blogging thing...

I wish I had more time to sit and update this blog...... I feel awful for not making time to do this. Things (as always) have been super busy! October seemed to fly by but we did have a great time. We managed to make time in our busy work schedules to meet up with friends and enjoy some Texas Rangers Baseball! I am so proud of our Rangers and I can't wait til the 2011 Baseball season! Go Rangers!
We also spent many weekends in Austin for UT football! Our Longhorns aren't doing that well but.... I do enjoy our visits with Seth's parents. October also brought my Granny's 75th Birthday and my sister is no longer a teenager!! 1 more year til Nat will be celebrating her 21st birthday and I will be "trying" to celebrate my 30th! We are trying to plan a trip to Vegas for the big events!! Other than that, Seth and I spent our time working long hours and losing MUCH needed sleep!!
I can not believe that the Holidays are right around the corner. Only 9 more school days til Thanksgiving break!! I am in need of a break. I also need to get a jump start on my Christmas shopping. I don't have a clue what to buy people. The older we all get the harder it becomes!!!

Sad...

The last couple of days I have been very sad about the loss of our baby. I know I will have good days and bad days but, I can't help but think that I should be almost six months pregnant. I know that this heartache will only increase as the days get closer and closer to December 20th. I just wish there was a way for me to be okay, a way to make these feelings of sadness and hurt go away. I have been blessed to have some amazing people share their stories with me and that always makes me feel better and gives me hope for brighter days. But, there are still mean people who have never experienced the heartache of losing a child who feel like I should be okay. I wish there was a nice way to explain to people that I am a wreck without coming across rude. I don't know how long I can act like life is wonderful when it truly is not. Don't get me wrong, I know that things could be much worse for me and I should be thankful for all that I have....but right now all I can think about is wanting to be a mom. I can not wait for the day that Seth and I can call ourselves parents.

Back at Work....

I had planned on updated this blog a lot more than what I have...... things here are super busy.
I returned to school on Aug. 16th and students returned on the 23rd. I can not believe that the summer is OVER! It flew by! Anyways, this year is already proving to be A LOT MORE CHALLENGING than last year. But....I am loving it. My students have all grown so much over the summer, it's just amazing. I have already started my yearly journal of super cute stuff that they say. Kids are so funny. If I have learned anything at all it is, WATCH WHAT YOU SAY IN FRONT OF YOUR KIDS, THEY REPEAT EVERYTHING AT SCHOOL!
One thing I didn't miss over the summer was BEING SICK. That's right, it's only week 2 and I have already been to the doctor to get a Z-pack! I just hope it helps. I have felt awful the last 3 days. I guess taking vitamin C daily isn't going to stop me from catching germs!
Oh and Seth's job is the same....nothing new to report. He still enjoys his job and likes his co~workers. He has already established his lunch and monthly golf group!

Summer is almost over.....

I can not believe how quickly this summer has flown by. Although June was a rough month, emotionally....it has turned out to be a great summer. Seth and I have been able to do some really fun stuff. We went to Galveston with his family a couple of weekends ago. We stayed at the Seascape condos. I recommend them to EVERYONE. Very nice. We spent our weekend at the pool, shopping, and eating great seafood! It's always nice to have a weekend away with family. I just hate that we don't have time to do it more often.

3rd Anniversary

Yesterday was our 3rd Wedding Anniversary. I can not believe it has already been 3 years. This year has had its share of ups and downs but through it all I am thankful to have Seth by my side. He is truly my best friend. Seth and I went to Piranha for a yummy sushi dinner then we got ice cream from the Marble Slab and walked around Down Town. We both had a great time. I have included some pictures of our wedding! Enjoy!

Busy....

The last couple of weeks have been pretty crazy. I have been busy trying to get things set up around this house. We are getting new carpet, painting, and having some repairs done. I will be so happy when it is all finished. Last week we went on a little family vaca! Mom, Natalie, Jake, and I left on Wednesday to head to New Braunfels. Thankfully we were able to meet my mother in law for lunch in Round Rock and my sister in law met us all for some shopping at the outlet mall. It is always fun to get to visit with them. We stayed at the Schlitterbahn resort so we could wake up and walk right out to the water park. Thursday night us girls went to the Gristmill. It was my first time in Gruene and I LOVED it. Seth made it to New Braunfels late Thursday night and we all enjoyed the water park on Friday. We loved the Gristmill so much that we all went back on Friday night. It was yummy!!!

Saturday the water park wasn't as much fun because it was so crowded. I have never seen so many people in my life. Even the lazy river was packed full of people. Not fun!! Saturday night Seth's mom and dad met us at our favorite restaurant, Rudy's BBQ. Again, it was another great visit. I love having all of my family in one place.
After some more outlet shopping we made it back home Sunday night.

Busy...

Things have been busy around here..... last week I was busy cleaning, shopping, and getting things ready for Seth's parents to come stay the weekend with us. They were here to celebrate Seth turning 30. We had Seth's birthday party at Fox and Hound Sports Bar. It was so nice to have our friends and family there to celebrate with us.
I can't believe Seth is already 30....I know it's not a big deal to most people, but he was 20 when we met. How did 10 years already pass?

3 Weeks....

I can't believe that 3 weeks have gone by already. Today was my follow up/ post op appointment. Everything looked good. We had some extra testing done after my D & C to see if there was something wrong that might have caused me to have the miscarriage and all of those test came back normal. This means that I am fine, Seth is fine, and that there were no signs as to why I lost the baby. My doctor said I will be able to start trying again around September. I can not wait for it to be SEPTEMBER! I just hope that I get to feeling better emotionally. Yesterday I cried ALL DAY LONG. I haven't cried that much since all of this happened. I could not turn off the tears. It's just hard for me not to wonder "why me?" My doctor said it was normal to be sad and that I will never get over the loss I have gone through. I just pray that I am pregnant again very soon!! Please continue to keep us in your prayers!

Summer break has been great so far....although it has seemed to fly by! Last weekend was great. Friday I went out with a great friend for a much needed girls night. I had so much fun. Saturday Seth and I went to the Ranger game with my mom, sister, and Jake. The office that my mom works in gets suite tickets each year so it made it a lot more enjoyable for a 3:00pm game!
We had a great time with some great people! Sunday the whole family went to HF water park. It was nice to actually get out in the sun and enjoy myself. Thankfully we have season passes so we will be there A LOT!
This week has flown by but I have also had a HUGE "TO-DO" list to work on. Nothing major, just cleaning, laundry, and grocery shopping. But, it still kept me really busy all week.
Seth and I have decided to do some home repairs this summer....we need to replace some exterior boards, paint, and get new carpet. We are also going to clean out our office and get a new desk. Overall, I just want to get this house ORGANIZED!
So, if you are reading this and know of anyone that does home repairs, paints, or has cheap/nice carpet...LET ME KNOW!

Summer....

Things are getting better each day. I have slept more the last two nights. This is a huge deal because I love my sleep and only getting about 4 hours of sleep a day was not making me happy. I have had people email, text, call, and personally ask how I was feeling and about the baby.... to which I had to reply with the "not so good" news. I thought that would be hard to address but it wasn't as bad as I had imagined. I have seen pregnant women and newborn babies and that didn't bother me like I thought so over all I feel like I am on the road to getting better. I of course know that it will not always be easy. I will have times that I get upset and I will always mourn the loss of my first child but, I know that I will have a baby one day. Seth also seems to be doing much better. I am so thankful for such an amazing husband. This experience has made us so much closer.
Onto a happier topic....I have officially completed my first year as a teacher!! Woo~Hoo
Today was the last day of school for the kids. It had its emotionally rough moments but I survived. There are many students that I will always remember and miss. I am very thankful for the job that I have and I look forward to next year. Becoming a teacher is the best thing I could have ever done.
Now it's time to enjoy my summer! I just wish that Seth had time off from his job. He would have if he didn't start a new job in March.....but I am thankful for his new job and know that we will just have to plan a VERY nice vacation next year.

How quickly things can change...

WARNING: This may not be a "warm and fuzzy" post but I feel like I need to write about what has happened. I feel that it will help me to heal in a way. So, if this post is too much for you, I'm sorry. I promise better days are ahead and I will continue to document our journey!
It is amazing to see how much my life has changed. Just last week I was writing about how great my pregnancy was going. That all changed last Sunday, May 23rd. I woke up in a panic because I was spotting. I spoke to the on call doctor and he said it was common and that I should just take it easy. I honestly felt like there was nothing wrong. But, when I woke up on Monday and was still spotting I knew I needed to see my doctor. Unfortunately my doctor was booked so I saw the on-call doctor in the office. By this time the bleeding had increased and changed in color. I knew this was a bad sign. Thankfully Seth was able to meet me at the doctors office and we sat patiently waiting to see what the doctor had to say. After two attempts to hear the heartbeat, he got me into see the sonogram tech. I knew something was wrong when she started measuring my growth and the babies growth. For a minute I thought that maybe I was okay. I could see significant growth in the baby compared to last time. That all changed when the doctor informed me that the baby had passed. My body had continued to grow and progress but that the baby had stopped growing at 8 weeks. It made me sick to think that our baby had been passed for two weeks and I didn't know. I begged the on call doctor to let me see my doctor. I needed her to come in and explain everything going on. I needed the reassurance for a familiar face to let me know that I, we would be okay. Dr. Neville came in and explained that I would need surgery to remove the baby and that the earliest she could get me into he OR was Wednesday May 26th at 4:30pm. It was so hard seeing Seth breakdown and cry. In the 7 years we have been together I had never seen him cry. It was heartbreaking. Thankfully my mother, sister, and Granny all were able to meet us back at home. We called Seth's parents and told them the sad news and asked if Janie, Seth's mom could come stay with us. She was able to make it by 8pm that night. Having our families here was truly a blessing.
Things started to change late Tuesday night. I began to bleed a bit more and cramping increased. By 2am Wednesday morning the cramps became worse and by 7am I was in full labor with contractions every 3-5 minutes. It was the worst pain I had ever felt and I knew there was no way I was going to be able to wait for surgery at 4:30pm. By 8:30am I was bleeding a lot and passing huge clots. So my mom, mother-in-law, and Seth helped me get up and go to the doctors office. My doctor quickly confirmed what we ALL already knew....I had "passed" the baby at home. I will never forget what that felt like. Thankfully my doctor was able to get me into surgery quickly and remove the extra tissue. My doctor truly did not think that I would progress as quickly as I did or she would have never sent me home to wait for 2 days. I could tell that she felt awful for what my family and I had just gone through. I can not thank our mothers enough for being here for Seth and I. I know that we could not have made it through this week without them both. I am also very thankful for my amazing husband. As awful as this week has been I feel closer and more in love with him than ever before.
Now that two days have passed I am feeling better physically but not emotionally. All I want to do is cry. I know it will take time but I am ready to feel normal again.....if only I could remember what that feels like.
It is also good to know that I am not alone. I have talked to may people who have been through the same thing and all of them have children now. I know that patients and time will help us heal. We will try again when my doctor thinks the time is right.
I am blessed in a way...In February I thought I couldn't get pregnant and I did. Then my body did what it is made to do when I experienced the feeling of labor and contractions. I know that my body works and that one day we will have a child.
I just ask that you all please continue to keep us in your prayers!

Blessed.....

I must say, I have had a pretty good pregnancy so far. I have had days where I feel "blah" but I haven't thrown up yet and that is a GOOD THING! I would say the hardest part so far has been not being able to sleep. It takes me forever to get comfortable because I am normally a stomach sleeper and I can not get used to sleeping on my side. It is also hard to sleep when I am up every 3 hours to use the restroom. I have finally started sleeping with the bathroom light on because I am sick of running into the wall in the middle of the night. But, aside from the lack of sleep I consider myself pretty lucky. Now I just pray it stays that way.
On Wednesday I have my next appointment. I can not wait. It is so hard waiting a month to go to the doctor. I am also excited because Seth will be going to this appointment with me. I can't wait for him to hear the heartbeat of our sweet baby.
I am also excited because I only have 9 more days of work until summer break. I look forward to sleeping late, and organizing the house to prepare for the baby. My house is so unorganized right now and it's driving me crazy. It will be great to just focus on the house all summer.

31 weeks to go....

A very long 31 weeks to go....
This is a very BIG week for Baby Bean Herrick. Our baby is the size of a prune, but is now taking human shape. Bones and cartilage are forming along with knees and ankles taking shape. Teeth are starting to form under the gums and the stomach is forming digestive juices. (Yuck that sounds kinda nasty) AND...if it's a BOY he is producing TESTOSTERONE.
Which brings me to my next topic....BOY or GIRL. I have always wanted a girl and everyone has told me to look at the Chinese Gender Chart. So, I did and it says we are having a BOY! Of course I would be happy with a happy, healthy boy...... but boys can't wear bows, and tutu's. So, we shall see. Honestly this week I have thought that it's a boy. I have heard it's normal to go back and forth on what you think/feel you are having. I just wish I knew now so I can start shopping.

This week I felt really good until yesterday. I woke up with a bad headache and nausea. I ended up going back to bed and sleeping it off. I know that my doctor said I could take headache meds but I am too scared. This week I have also felt HUGE. I haven't gained any weight but I guess everything is moving around and my clothes are fitting different...NOT FUN.

So, we are pretty much set on names but I still like to hear what other people think...
any name suggestions???

So Sleepy....

I know I haven't posted in a while....SORRY. All I want to do is sleep. I have become very fond of naps right after work. The last week has been good. I haven't had any "real" sickness and I consider myself lucky! My first "Mother's Day" was great. My mom got me the cutest necklace that says, "Mom to Be" on it. I just love it. We spent Mother's Day with Seth's family. It is always great to visit with them. Mard and Janie gave me a rocking chair. I just love it. I can not wait to find out what we are having and start decorating the room. The rocking chair is going to look great in the babies room!

Sunday is my day.....

Ok...I am so annoyed with this blog! I have been attempting to post and it's not working.
So, lets try again.....3rd times a charm????

Sundays are the day that my pregnancy week ends...so Sunday I was officially 7 weeks along. I know this thanks to my favorite iPhone App, "What to Expect When Expecting." This is the greatest App ever. It gives me info about what is going on with our baby and with my body. I love it!! I also love www.babycenter.com This site sends me weekly updates with information. This week I got an email telling me "Things that are UNSAFE during pregnancy!" This is so helpful seeing how my doctor was too excited about the sonogram to sit and go over things NOT TO DO! Don't get me wrong I love having a doctor that is truly excited that I am pregnant after everything that happened earlier in the year.

Now an update on baby bean Herrick..... This week the baby is 0.5 inches or the size of a Raspberry, this is up from last weeks blueberry. This week the eyes, ears, and nose are starting to take shape. Also, the fingers and toes are starting to take shape and no longer look web-like! High Five to real fingers!! Woo~Hoo

Update on Seth: I can tell that he is very stressed out but that may also have something to do with his new job. I am sure it hasn't fully set in with him that he is going to be a daddy. It may take him seeing the baby to fully fall in love. But, I know he will be a GREAT daddy and I can't wait to enjoy this journey with him!

Doctors Appointment

I had my 1st doctors appointment today. I was prepared for blood work, lots of questions, and a lovely exam....BUT I GOT SO MUCH MORE. The doctor wanted to do a sonogram!! It was so amazing seeing the baby on the monitor and of course I CRIED when I heard the heartbeat. I am only 6 weeks along but the baby had a STRONG heartbeat! LIFE IS GREAT! Due date... DECEMBER 20TH! Merry Christmas to the Herricks! Let me know if you want to decorate my house for the holidays or cook Christmas dinner.....I'm sure I will be too busy to want to do either of those things!

Waiting....

First off...I am meant to post this picture with my last post. This is the picture of the 1st of 4 pregnancy test I took on April 16th!

I am quickly realizing that this is going to be the longest 8 months of my life. I am such a control freak and this is the ONE thing I can not control. All I can do is sit and wait!!! I am not enjoying the waiting at all. Wednesday is my first doctors appointment and I don't think it will ever get here. I just want to meet with the doctor and know that everything is okay. It will put my mind at ease for a while. I hear everyone say that "pregnancy sleep" is amazing....my mind is wondering too much to get a good nights rest. I must say, I am fascinated with the changes that are taking place on this body of mine. I didn't realize how quickly things start changing shape, color, texture....it's all amazing!

I will post on Wednesday after my appointment to update everyone on what I find out. I doubt I will find out much of anything. I am only about 6 weeks along.

Pregnant!

I have been thinking about starting a blog for a couple of months now. My original plan was to start a blog to track our progress with fertility. I thought that it may make the process a bit easier if I put my thoughts down for me to read later. I had been having some "female" issues and in February we found out that I wasn't ovulating. After many talks we decided that we would try one round of Clomid before we contacted a fertility specialist. I went to my OB-GYN on Monday April 12th and she gave me my prescription of Clomid. Seth and I decided that we would probably wait until June to start it. Well, God obviously had a different plan for us because on Friday April 16th I found out that I am pregnant. I had been sick for several weeks but never thought that it could be that I was pregnant. After you are told by a DOCTOR that you need help conceiving, you just believe them. Anyways, last week I came home and took a nap every day (that should have been my clue there) and EVERYTHING made me cry. Happy, Sad, Funny....it didn't matter, I was crying. Even then, I thought nothing of it. But, when I went to get towels out of the dryer and realized that when I applied a lil' pressure to my "chest" area it hurt like no pain I had ever felt....I realized, "I MIGHT BE PREGNANT!"
Friday morning I took a test at 5am, noon, 10pm....all of them were positive. (I guess you could say I didn't believe it) Thankfully I was able to get into my doctors office for blood work and that came back Monday. Everything looked normal.
I am still in shock at the thought that I am really going to be a mother. I have prayed for this for so long. I can not wait! Thanks to everyone that kept us in their Prayers. It means so much to us.