If you’ve been following along on my blog and social media, you’ve probably noticed that I’ve been a bit quiet lately. While you may have already seen the news on my Instagram earlier this week, I wanted to take a moment to update all of you faithful blog followers, and let you know that we are expecting again! Baby #7 is due in October and we are beyond excited to be given another precious gift.
For those of you who have been following along with our journey, you’ll know that for the past ten months or so, we’ve been undergoing testing to find answers as to our recurrent miscarriages. In September, all the tests came back completely normal, which was both good news and bad. Good, in the sense that nothing was wrong. Bad, in the sense that there was no “easy fix” or answers as to why we kept losing babies.
After our third miscarriage, I was diagnosed with “subacute thyroiditis” which was described to me as a “virus” that attacks your thyroid. While this thyroid issue had nothing to do with our first three miscarriages, it likely played a factor in the fourth miscarriage. This is one of the things that we have been regulating over the past seven months in hopes that when we did get pregnant again, the thyroid wouldn’t further complicate the pregnancy.
Now that we are pregnant with baby #7, I have been closely monitored by the hospital’s Recurrent Loss Clinic. So far, in addition to the thyroid medication and extra doses of hormones, we’ve had two ultrasounds (one at 5 weeks and one at 7 weeks) and a couple rounds of blood work to ensure my HCG levels and thyroid levels are where they need to be.
So far, everything is looking absolutely wonderful! (To quote my doctor, “Hallelujah!”) And we will continue to do these checks every couple of week until the end of the first trimester.
Several things feel very different this time around, and at last week’s ultrasound, we were beyond excited to see a strong, healthy heartbeat! I have also been very encouraged by the presence of morning sickness (aka, all day, never-ending, wake me up in the middle of the night sickness.) These are two things that we haven’t seen in any pregnancy since the twins, so I am rejoicing in all that that means!
Although this pregnancy does feel very different, we also know that you can’t take a moment of it for granted. We are trying our best to love and celebrate every single day with this newest Mannegren, no matter how long we may have with them. We are right at the eight week mark (the time I tend to miscarry the babies) so we appreciate your continued prayers for little one’s growth and development. Already this babe is meeting and crushing milestones, and we pray that he/she will continue to do so.
Thank you for all of your support, love, and encouragement over these past few years. We have felt such a strong sense of peace throughout this last month and know your prayers are coming in from around the world!
In both death and life, God is so very, very good. Thank you for rejoicing with us in this precious miracle.
For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
Psalm 139:13-16 (ESV)