Hip hip HOORAY!!

Guess I should finally share here on my blog :)

We announced in mid-July that we were expecting baby #2. I would have waited a bit longer to share the news, but I had pretty much fallen off the face of the earth with extreme sickness, so people were starting to wonder. After being admitted to the hospital overnight for fluids and meds, I decided we had to make it public. I was having to cancel photo sessions right and left, and things were just falling apart. 

I was very sick with Barrett, and prayed sooo hard that this pregnancy would be different. BUT my body and pregnancy just don't get along. This time has been much worse too. With Barrett I was sick, and also admitted to the hospital once, and on Zofran, but I was still working full-time as much as I could at the Art Center, and leading a mostly normal life. This time around, it has taken me down!! I started feeling yucky in late June. The end of Barrett's swimming lessons couldn't come soon enough, because it was really getting hard to go sit there in the sun that last week. We were able to celebrate 4th of July with friends, and I felt pretty good. Then, I had a session on July 5th in Ark City, and threw-up as soon as I got home. That was the beginning, AND also the last time I would leave my house (except for doctor's appointments and hospital stays) for almost two months! Today-August 20th, Barrett has his first soccer practice, and it will be my first trip out of the house and into town/the public eye since July 5th!! 

Being home on the couch all day with nothing to do, might sound dreamy. And for one or two days, maybe it is. But I am not gonna lie, doing it every.single.day for close to two months is horribly depressing! Especially when you're unable to eat or drink anything, and even on an empty stomach you are getting sick between 8-10 times a day. I would count down the time to bed, knowing sleep was the only relief I could get (if I could sleep through the stomach cramps). I would go to bed by 8pm and sleep until 8-9 in the morning. So sad when I would wake up and see the sun, and know I had to face another day of sickness. I would cry myself to sleep almost every night. 

Through it all, my family, friends and clients have all been so kind and supportive! Bring meals by for the boys, taking Barrett for the day to play so I can rest. Sending cards, emails and texts. I was so very touched! I had to cancel over 20 sessions in July and August, and every client was so understanding. One client even sent me this link to a blog she'd just read about  Hyperemesis Gravidarum. I had never officially been diagnosed with this, but as I read the post I sobbed! It was as if I'd written it myself! Exactly what I was going through, in a way I never could have expressed myself! I passed it along to family and friends, to give them a better idea of what I was dealing with. It helped so very much to know I wasn't alone. 

My husband has been amazing! This has probably been just about as hard on him and it has on me! Not only does he work 40+ hours a week, but he comes home and does EVERYTHING around the house. I couldn't even walk into the kitchen for about 4 weeks in late July-early August. The thought and smells would send me over the edge. So he did all the grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, dishes, laundry. He's learned a whole new set of talents! He's been so supportive, and I love him even more every day for it! 

AND my little man! That one jumping for joy in the pictures above! He has been my sunshine through this last couple months! He is so sweet and loving to me. He gets me anything I need, and kisses and hugs on me all the time. I am so thankful that he's old enough to be helpful during this. I can't imagine if I'd had another baby or younger child! Sure, Barrett has been playing WAY TOO MUCH iPad and eating ice cream sandwiches for breakfast, but we're surviving! 

So....that's what we've been up to around here! I'm into my 2nd trimester now...14 weeks, and looking forward to the sickness hopefully wearing off! Ready for Fall weather, Fall activities and being able to finally enjoy this pregnancy!