MY SECOND PREGNANCY JOURNEY
Documenting my pregnancy the second time around was no easy task for me. I think I had a total of one journal entry, half as many bump photos, and zero blog posts. Chasing a busy toddler around played a major role in my lack of posting. Not to mention, the second pregnancy seems to fly by even faster than the first. So here I am, holding my sweet little four month old babe on my lap as I try to write to down a few significant moments throughout my second pregnancy.
It was actually around this time last year that we found out we were pregnant. I was apple picking with my friend Liz (you can view that blog post here) and the question of when we were planning on baby number two came up. I told her that I actually had taken a test two days earlier and that I thought I saw the faintest line when I held the test up to the window. I was convinced that it was just an evaporation line and that there was no way I was pregnant. I had taken a photo of the test to show Taylor and he didn't think it was positive. In the middle of the apple orchard I showed Liz the photo of the test and she said, "Kelsey, YOU ARE PREGNANT!" Liz was convinced the test was positive but I still had my doubts. After we finished our apple picking we headed back to Liz's house because she said she had a spare pregnancy test laying around. I took the test at her house and sure enough, within a minute we both saw that second line appear. We still joke about how I found out I was pregnant in an apple field. On the way home I stopped at the grocery store and picked up one of the expensive First Response tests because for some reason I still doubted the two prior tests. I waited until Taylor got home to take the test. I knew he would want to be there when I took it, unlike the first time when we found out we were pregnant with Pearl and I just laid the test on the sink for him to find. (Not a good idea ladies.) I took the test and instantly two strong, pink lines appeared. Just like we did the first time we found out we were pregnant, we took a selfie with the test!
As you can see here, Pearl looks thrilled. :P
From the very beginning of my pregnancy I was pretty convinced we were having another girl. I was more nauseous this time but never actually got sick. I just had a constant feeling like I was going to throw up for several weeks. I also broke out terribly! I'm talking fifteen year old acne. I hated it. Once I entered my second trimester both of those symptoms went away and I felt back to normal. Taylor will tell you that as we got closer to our 20 week ultrasound, I would flip flop my gender guess every other day. Going into the ultrasound, I kept saying I was 80% sure we were having another girl. The minute the ultrasound tech put the probe on my belly she said, "Well, this is couldn't be more obvious!" She said she has never seen a little boy flaunt IT so much! I laid there in shock! A little boy! I looked over at Taylor and he was grinning from ear to ear. I could tell he was already so proud to have a son. Growing up in a family of all girls, I was nervous to have a boy. Looking back, I realized it was so silly to be anxious about that.
As my pregnancy progressed, the main difference that I noticed between my pregnancy with Pearl was how gentle Gray was. His movements were soft and tender. Almost as if he didn't want to make me feel uncomfortable. I feel like this has a lot to say of his personality. He is so laid back and easy going. He rarely cries and has a happy and content attitude all of the time. Pearl in utero, would kick punch and flip all day long leaving my sides sore by the end of the day. And this has so much to say about our Pearl girl. She doesn't stop moving and is such a spunky little thing.
I feel very blessed to have had two healthy pregnancies and to have carried two very healthy babies. I know that is something some women long for in the worst way and I will never take that for granted. So many people see me and ask how far apart in age my kids are. When I tell them they are 18 months apart, they proceed to say "Wow, two under two, you have your hands full!" I'm doing my best to embrace the craziness of this stage of life because I know I will look back one day and miss these moments terribly.
Photos by Brooke Courtney