Last night, we finally made our huge announcement! We had been keeping it a secret since August, so it was a relief to finally tell everyone. I know many people expected a new house, a big move, or a career change, but there were a few who expected a pregnancy announcement. And those few people were right!
I know many of you follow me on social media, but I had to make the news blog official, too. This was definitely the funniest addition sentence we've ever written! We weren't sure how we were finally going to announce our 5th and final pregnancy, but we decided a little bit of humor and a whole lot of love was the way to go!
We were completely done having children. Baby fever was long gone, we gave almost all of our baby stuff away, and we were moving forward in life with BIG school-aged kids. But there was still another chapter left in our parenthood journey...we just didn't realize it! The shock lasted a few weeks, but we eventually realized we were given a gift: One last time to enjoy a pregnancy and a child that we never ever expected to have.
We held off on sharing the news with everyone partially because I'm so sick (hyperemesis - AKA extreme morning sickness - for the 5th time), but also because we feared judgement. Then we realized that the opinions of others don't matter. We have a big family, but we take care of our own, and our home is overflowing with love. We have four wonderful kids already. They genuinely care about others, they are kind, loving, and compassionate, they love unconditionally, and they give back to the world every chance they get. We have no doubt that baby #5 is going to be every bit as wonderful, and he or she is already so loved!
Our teenager, tween, and 7 year old were absolutely ecstatic when we told them the big news, and even shed a few tears of joy. That speaks volumes about the kind of kids we are raising! And sweet Liam now gets to experience life as a big brother, and teach his younger sibling how to live a life filled with joy! So yes, we have a family that is bigger than most, but we are incredibly blessed!
So here we are, counting down the days until we meet our beautiful plot twist. (Five kids. FIVE!!!) If you did the math, you probably realized that I'm already halfway through my pregnancy. It was difficult to hide it at times due to the sickness, so we stayed home for several months, and I only went out when we absolutely had to. Of course, with 4 older kids, that was fairly often, but we stuck with necessity, and avoided most social obligations. The bump finally started to grow, and we couldn't really hide it anymore!
I'm now 20 weeks, and we will be finding out the gender for the first time ever today! We figured that after waiting until delivery with four babies, a surprise Down syndrome post-birth diagnosis, and a surprise 5th baby, we've had our fair share of surprises. This time we want to know what to expect, and we want to buy gender-specific clothing and items, since we have to replace most of what we had!
We are so overwhelmed by the love and support we received in just 12 short hours! I know we received a lot of questions already, and I will be sure to address all of them over the next week or two. Over the past few days, the morning sickness has improved a bit. Based on my previous four pregnancies, it probably won't go away until I deliver, but it will continue to decrease until I only throw up about once a day. And that, my friends, is an improvement! The 24/7 nausea is just something I have to live with, but thankfully, four kids keep me busy, and my pregnancy is flying by!
So there you have it, friends. If you've been wondering about the limited posts, the lack of visits to your blogs, and how days and even weeks would go by between my posts, this was the reason. I had a very rough couple of months with hyperemesis, and it was impossible to focus on anything else. I'm looking forward to getting back into a regular routine again now that I'm starting to improve, and just being able to enjoy the GOOD things about being pregnant one last time!
WOO-HOO! CONGRATS!!!!!!
ReplyDelete(Ha ha, but that +2 got me confused- I thought twins! I read the whole thing twice then I realized the 2 were you and daddy!)
God Bless!
The +2 is her and baby 😁
DeleteCongratulations! No judgment from this momma of 6! I hope your sickness eases up a bit. #bigfamiliesrock
ReplyDeleteWow! Congratulations! I'm so excited for you!
ReplyDeleteAw, congratulations! That's so exciting. I'm glad your kids are happy about it too. Sorry about the awful "morning" sickness; I'm glad you are feeling a bit better now.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
Amazing news - I am over the moon for you! I thought it was twins too haha! I think one will be enough ;) I wouldn't worry about judging - everyone loves a new baby and I can't imagine what people would judge about anyway - it is fantastic news. Sorry to hear about the sickness - I had it with C too and they put me on medication for it, not sure if they have that in the US (can't remember what it is called). The only thing that cured it was walking around in the cold air. Best of luck with it, I know it is a challenge! Can't wait to follow your story xx
ReplyDeleteCongrats!!! So happy for you1
ReplyDeleteI am just so excited for y'all! Congratulations again, Momma!!
ReplyDeleteI'm sooooo happy for you guys! Congratulations! I can't to find out what it is!!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations...so happy for your family!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations times a million! You are such a great mom and this little babe will be blessed beyond measure! Also, yes, you are raising amazing children!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations!! This is so exciting and I'm sure baby #5 will fit right in just like the others did. God always has a plan! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy for your family!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! The baby is lucky to be born into your family. I wish you and baby all the best.
ReplyDelete