First Appointment

On Wednesday we had our first prenatal appointment. Like I said before I was pretty nervous about the whole thing. Boy was I nervous about nothing! I went in and was greeted at the door. After we got the basics out of the way (urine sample, blood pressure, etc.) we talked about how I was doing and if we had any questions. Then the glorious moment came when we were going to hear the heartbeat! As she rubbed olive oil on my belly I was getting nervous, I said, "I am afraid you are not going to hear anything!" She smiled with that sweet smile and said, "Don't worry! We will." As she moved around my belly and we heard a few noises, that were not a heartbeat. I was beginning to lose hope. I looked at everyone's faces to see if anyone looked nervous. No body did! Then we finally heard the quick little lub-lub of our babies heartbeat! I am sure I was grinning from ear to ear. There really is a baby in there! I was speechless as she said, "That's your baby!" I looked at Kirk he looked overcome with emotion. (He denies that his eyes got watery, but I am pretty sure I saw tears starting to form!) She said that the heart beat was in the 160's and that both the baby and I are healthy and things are going well. Those were sweet words to hear. I am so thankful that things went so well! I am glad that my fears were taken away and now all week I have had this peaceful calm feeling come over me. I know everything will work out. I can't stop smiling as I remember that sweet sound. The baby swam away and then she tried again we found it one more time, but that stubborn little baby swam away again. It was such a special moment to hear that little baby's heartbeat. I am grateful that I have such a supportive husband and that we got to share that moment together. I obviously can't wait to meet this baby, but I am content on her/him growing happy and healthy for the time being. I feel so much love between myself and Kirk for this little one that will be joining our family. We are so excited to be parents. I can't wait to find out if the baby is a boy or a girl! I want to start shopping for those cute little outfits.... I took a Chinese Gender prediction test and it said the baby was a boy! We will just have to wait and see. Well thanks for reading!

-Lauren

A Few Thoughts From Kirk

Pregnancy sure can be crazy, fun, and all over the place all at the same time. Emotions rise up and fall down in the blink of an eye, and it's sort of been a little hard to cope sometimes. I've prayed a lot, and have thought a lot, so that I might know how to help my wife when she needs help. For the most part, I have found things that help her feel better when she feels sick and hurts, but there are definitely times when I am so very clueless, and sometimes have thoughts of tearing my hair out trying to find out what to do. I figure that I'll find out what to do sometime soon, and that I'll be able to handle anything that comes my way too. We've been getting ready, figuring out how much we need to save to go to the Midwife, and for what we need for other necessities of baby stuffs. It's been pretty good so far, just realizing things are a bit more on the "wow, I didn't even think of that" side. If there's anything I would have done differently, it would have been researching all the things that babies need, and what can REALLY help them grow and learn!

Pregnancy 11 Weeks

Being pregnant has it's ups and downs. I am excited to start on this adventure, but a little nervous too. I haven't felt very sick only from week 8 to 10, which was unpleasant, but ended quickly. This week I have been feeling great! I even had enough energy to go on a bike ride in the canyon yesterday and we are planning to go swimming today. I am eleven weeks as of Monday and will have my first appointment with my midwife next Wednesday. I don't really "feel" pregnant yet. I thought I would have this like amazing bond with my unborn baby, but that is not the case. Some days I even wonder if he or she really exists. I think I will feel better once I hear the little heart beat. That will really solidify this pregnancy and make me feel like I am not crazy!! I am excited to become a mommy. Kirk and I are a little different than most couples, I think that the baby is a boy and he thinks that it is a girl. We won't find out until the beginning of August. I am excited to know so we can start shopping around for cute clothes. 

So as I mentioned before I am having a midwife attend to my prenatal care and birth. I know what you might be thinking, why? I have this intense feeling that I want my baby and I to have the best birth experience possible. I just know that a midwife can give me the birth that I desire. I was born in a birthing center with a midwife. I feel like it is the most natural way that a little person can come into this world. As I have done my research about what kind of birth experience I would want I knew that a hospital with doctors and interventions was not for me. A lot of people support my decision to go ahead with a midwife and a home birth. I am grateful for those people! They really give me strength and  courage in myself and my body. There are also some people who are afraid of what will happen and do not feel like I am making the best decision. I am also grateful for those people, because they really have made me stop and think. Is this really what I want? Is it really the safest way to have my baby? It just really solidified that I know this is what I want. I have watched The Business of Being Born as well as More Business of Being Born. I have also begun reading many books including Ina May's Guide to Childbirth and Birth Without Violence by Frederick Leboyer. I have loved learning about what women are capable of and how their bodies were built to birth babies in a natural loving environment. I am excited to start on this journey and see what my body can do!

Thanks for reading! 

-Lauren 

The Story of Our Family

I had always had big plans for my life. I wanted to finish school and begin my career before I even thought about getting married. I guess we can never say how our lives will work out, because no matter how hard we will them one way they always turn out another! I met the love of my life a year after graduating high school. We had been in the same ward all growing up, but didn't know each other at all. Once he got home from his mission we were set up on a blind date and the rest is history.

We were married on August 4th, 2012 in the Provo Temple. We are just trying to figure out this life together. I can not imagine life with out Kirk. He is truly my best friend. In April we found out that we will be expecting a baby at the end of December. We are overwhelmed, but excited and glad that we have good family and friends that support us. I wanted to start this blog so that we can look back on our memories and share them with our baby. We invite you to see where life takes us just one memory at a time! 

Lauren