Baby Poe is on the way...

Ok, it's official. We've shared with the world (i.e. Facebook), that we're pregnant. I'm writing this blog, inspired by a friend who did the same, to share our joy with our loved ones near and far.

For us it began on January 3rd, 2011. Being 5-7 days late I decided I couldn't wait another day (against Jamal's wishes) to take a test, and confirm what we'd been hoping and trying for for the last 9 months. I woke up early before Jamal and snuck into the bathroom. The test was positive instantaneously, and I snuck back into the bedroom to show Jamal. We were both elated.

We slowly started telling a few select people, mostly only those who had been side-by-side with us through all the trying. Mostly our immediate family. Jamal had hoped to wait longer and do more of a "big reveal", but I was too excited and ruined some of his plans. Sorry, babe.

A couple weeks went by and I went in to meet with a nurse, get all the "need-to-know" baby info, go over my family history, and so on and so forth. After that, the excitement and anticipation of the first REAL pregnancy appointment grew daily, and the 3 weeks we had to wait inched and flew by all at the same time.

Today was FINALLY that day. First the doctor tried to listen for a heartbeat, but couldn't find it. She said not to worry, as my uterus could be tilted back, or the baby could just be in the back and hard to hear. She did however want to do an ultrasound, just to confirm everything was good. Then, she couldn't see anything with the regular ultrasound and I started to get a little anxious. After this she did an "inside" ultrasound, and we finally saw our little peanut.

It was the most amazing thing to see. The head is on the left, the little body on the right. What you can't see in the picture is the little heart in the middle beating furiously. Then, the most amazing thing happened. Right on cue, our little peanut wiggled it's little bottom, and I was done for. Knowing your pregnant is an amazing feeling in and of itself, but actually seeing your little being is a feeling I can't describe. It was this total rush of instantaneous, completely unconditional love like I've never felt. I've spent the whole day with a smile plastered to my face. My heart is so full!!! This is a journey I've been praying and waiting for for almost a year now, and after experiencing the first of many indescribable moments to come, I am beyond elated.

As of right now, my due date is TBA. Both the doctor and I are most likely wrong in how far along I actually am, me thinking 9 weeks, her originally thinking 10 weeks, based on my last menstrual cycle. She said that from the ultrasound she would guess between 7-8 weeks, so not as far along as I'd hoped, but I will have another ultrasound next week to take measurements and confirm. She also said that my uterus is in fact tilted back, so I'm anxious to see how that affects everything, if it does at all.

I'm so happy to finally share this news with those of you who didn't already know! This is a moment we have been anxiously waiting for, and so far, it has surpassed any and all expectations I may have had.