pregnancy
Growing your family, one baby bump at a time. All about the ups and downs of nature's 9 month miracle.
Motherhood: The Ups, the Downs, and Everything in Between (Part 1)
Have a baby they said, it’ll be fun they said. Don’t get me wrong, there are so many times I find myself smiling and having the best time of my life but my story isn’t only going to tell you about the ups of being a mom because there are downs too!
By Danika Toralbo7 years ago in Families
21 and Pregnant
Hi, my name is LeighAnn, I'm 21-years-old and currently about 14 weeks pregnant. I found out about the pregnancy when I was 6 weeks along. When I saw those two little lines, I panicked. It was hard to breathe. I couldn't stop crying over the phone to my boyfriend. He reassured me that everything would be fine. I was filled with every emotion, scared, angry, sad.
By LeighAnn Connor8 years ago in Families
Things No One Told Me About the Second Trimester...
When I wrote my original article about my first trimester woes, I was so excited to be entering the second trimester, hoping to settle comfortably into the magic of pregnancy that I had heard so much about, but that didn’t happen. Although I am now very excited to meet my son, I’m starting to plan and nest. We have started buying baby things and the names list is getting more and more concise. There are still things that haven’t quite fit into this idyllic pregnancy scenario that I had painted up in my head since I was a kid. Everyone from my friends, to my midwife, to the internet had told me: Your second trimester is the best bit, you will have an energy burst, your sickness will go, your hormones will settle! It’s supposed to be the enjoyable bit before the gruelling third where you drag around a huge belly and can’t tie your own laces. Well, as I head swiftly toward my third trimester, here is what I have to say about my second.
By Samantha Bentley8 years ago in Families
16 and Pregnant, Part One
At 16 I never expected my life to literally flip upside down. I was in my “prime” you see. Just got my license, went to state in powerlifting, was a regional qualifier in track. I was a small, shy, and rather awkward, tiny little ball of energy. With all my new found freedoms and independence that came along with turning the big 16, I got my first boyfriend. He was the hot shot popular guy from my sisters grade. Three years doesn’t make much of a difference, right? Of course not.
By Jordan Miller8 years ago in Families
It's Okay to Have an Opinion. Top Story - September 2018.
If you've ever been expecting a baby, then you're familiar with the question. The first one that everyone, even strangers, will ask. The question on everyone's mind; the answer they're obsessed with knowing. Are you having a boy or a girl? Followed up with, "Which do you want?"
By Kelsi Smoak8 years ago in Families
Layla
Pregnancy is supposed to be this beautiful thing, from the positive pregnancy test, seeing baby on ultrasound (or babies), little baby kicks, and finally the birth of your child. It’s a time of joy for most moms to be (and dads). No one and nothing preps you for never feeling those kicks, dreading seeing your baby on ultrasound, and never bringing home your child from a birth that wasn’t so perfect.
By Kiah Packard8 years ago in Families
My Journey Through Infertility
"I do," I said on that beautiful spring April day in 2012 as I finally, finally got to marry the woman of my dreams. We were pronounced married and we walked down the aisle with the biggest smiles, in great anticipation of a weekend of peace, quiet, and each other. Our honeymoon was perfection: quiet, laid back, with plenty of time to do whatever we wanted or nothing at all. Coming back home made reality set in and we soon became bogged down in unpacking, organizing and money struggles--you know, first year of marriage things.
By Erica Hale8 years ago in Families
Infertility
Infertility... Stillborn... Perinatal loss... These are words that haunt thousands of women every day. Families struggle with the fact that they cannot conceive a child without the help of over price medication and injections. They go through the ups and downs of the process... pay an arm and leg for the injection, wait the for the exact time to take the injection, mood swings, the anxiety of waiting for the doctor to return to your from your bloodwork, and then the devastating news that it didn't work and you are still without child and need to start the while process over and over again, hoping that this time will work.
By Amanda Wannike8 years ago in Families
Pregnancy
The first thing anyone says to you when they find out your pregnant is congratulations. Pregnancy is an amazing thing that women can do, we can create life. That’s amazing and yes congratulations are in order. But maybe you just want to hear, “you're pregnant, how do you feel? What can I get you? This is going to be hard but here are some things you can read or questions you can ask or things you can look up.”
By Melissa Carlson8 years ago in Families
The "Mom Shame"
When I was pregnant, people would ask what I planned to do with feeding for my baby. I would answer, "Half and half. I'd do half nursing, half bottle." Now, I wasn't quite sure what I would do with the bottle, I wanted to use breastmilk as much as possible, but if something were to happen and formula was needed then that would be okay, too... At least, that's what I thought.
By Kaitlin Lee8 years ago in Families
