Pregnancy Update

 My last post on here was Simeon's birth story, so it's hard to believe that in the next 5 weeks we will be living another one! I thought I'd give a detailed update on baby boy #2!

A little back story for those who may not have been following along for the last 6 years: we first began trying to have a child back in 2016, after quickly conceiving and the miscarrying, we went on to experience infertility and recurrent miscarriages for the next three and a half years, ultimately resulting in the loss of our first three children; Brighton Grey, Keelan Sabbath, and Addison Jordan. After losing our third baby, I was tested for many different possible causes and diagnosed with Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome, also known as having "sticky blood." Basically, tiny blood clots were preventing blood flow to our otherwise healthy babies, and also putting me at high risk of blood clots and deep vein thrombosis that could be extremely dangerous. The good news is that this is fairly manageable through a regimen of twice daily heparin injections and baby aspirin during pregnancy, though it does not entirely mitigate the risks, and the medications come along with their own risks!

9 months after delivering our healthy "rainbow baby" we were shocked and thrilled to discover we were expecting again! I'm now 35 weeks pregnant and everything has gone incredibly smoothly so far. I'm officially at the point where my doctors have a hint of surprise in their voice when they say "baby looks great!" We now do weekly ultrasounds to be sure that he continues to grow appropriately, that the placenta is staying healthy, and that he's active and healthy! These are the concerns we can monitor for, but as pregnancy progresses, the risk of blood clots also increases, which isn't something that can be predicted or monitored, so the closer we get to my due date, the more it becomes a weighing of risks; staying inside and growing while the risks from APS increase, or delivering early by induction, which comes with it's own risks, especially as it increases the chances of needing a c-section and as you can imagine, serious surgery isn't ideal with a blood clotting disorder! Many of you also know that my induction with Simeon did not go well at all, and it's my feeling that we narrowly avoided a c-section with him, and I'm not eager to repeat the process. If I don't go into labor by my due-date, the risk/benefit balance tips to make it wiser to induce than let him stay inside. So the least risky scenario, and what we pray for, is that I go into labor on my own somewhere around 39 weeks; long enough that he's had plenty of time to grow and gain strength, but soon enough that we avoid the added risks of an induction, and also allowing me the natural birth that I would love to have!

Please join us in praying for protection over baby and me during these last few weeks of pregnancy and during the birth and for me as I continue to parent a high energy toddler while I have very little energy myself!