Early November, almost a week before my 27th birthday, I’d had this feeling all day at work that I was pregnant but I was too scared to pick up a test from our local pharmacy and Spar shop, in fear that I’d bump into someone I knew or was served by someone I knew.. which is more than likely with where we live, so I waited until Josh got home that evening to collect a test under the cover of darkness, hoping that nobody would catch us and start any rumours! I’d taken tests before, but this time felt different. I just knew that two lines were going to appear, so I took the test and turned it over to let it work it’s magic. I was too nervous to look, not because I was hoping it would or wouldn’t be but because I just knew in my gut what it was going to say anyway. Josh had the first peek and there it was… those two faint lines. It was so overwhelming, we sat there just wondering whether the faint line really meant I was pregnant or whether it could be a mistake but I read the instructions over and over and even the faintest of lines meant high levels of HCG were detected in my urine sample.. and this could only mean one thing.. we were going to be parents.
The next few days were like walking on cloud 9, I’d never felt anything quite like it. I couldn’t sleep because I was so excited to tell my friends and family. I was constantly thinking of wonderful ways I could share the news but shortly after I began to feel anxious about the future and whether we were able to fully support a child. My worries about our finances were consuming me and I worried that we would never be able to do all the things we’d planned, now that we were expecting. Those worries soon subsided when I began telling my family and friends. I could see how excited they were for us and I kept telling myself that if most other families can do it, then why the hell couldn’t we?
Soon after seeing a nurse, who surprisingly didn’t even check to see if I was pregnant with a urine sample because home tests are so reliable, I started developing some symptoms. The most noticeable one for me was how sore my boobs were and what literally nobody tells you.. constipation! The first week or two of this was incredibly hard. I was waking up in the night with the most horrendous stomach pains that I thought something was seriously wrong but apparently constipation is a common symptom of early pregnancy. I wish someone had told me at the beginning because I would have started eating prunes much earlier on, so take my advice. Buy the prunes and don’t delay! You’ll thank me later…
As the weeks passed, and the constipation disappeared, I did wonder if I was even pregnant. I’d had no sickness, only a little nausea which was neither here nor there, and my first midwife appointment was just a lot of questions, a blood test and a urine sample. I’d contemplated taking another test but for some reason didn’t and awaited the 12 week scan, just before Christmas. This was when it really began to feel real, though I sometimes don’t believe it, even now! To see a little person on the screen growing inside of me was just the most wonderful feeling. It was emotional and incredible to see its little heart beating and it’s arms moving around. What was more amazing was that it was only 5cm head to toe, which still blows my mind that something that small is fully formed, has a heart, fingers, toes, and lungs.
And now here we are, in a little bubble of happiness after a lovely first Christmas in our first home together, just waiting for the next time we’ll get to see him or her. I’ll keep you updated on how we get on! I’m so excited for this next chapter in our lives <3