Before I Was A Mom

Mother's Day is coming up soon. I've been feeling a little emotional. My due date for the last pregnancy is Mother's Day and one of my co-workers is due any day now to have her baby and our due dates were 3 days apart. So May 9th is a bitter sweet day for me. On one hand it will be my first Mother's Day as a mom but also the day I should be giving birth to baby number 6. So hopefully I'm not an emotional wreck that day.

A friend sent this to me today in an email and it brought me to tears. I am so happy to be a mommy.

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.
Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom

-UNKNOWN

The Today Show Segment 4-1-10 Coping with Infertility and Miscarriage

I had tears in my eyes when I saw this segment on The Today Show. Although I am technically "resolved" and am a mother now I still feel the effects that infertility and multiple pregnancy losses has had on my life. I still hold that dream of carrying a pregnancy to term myself and long to have the experience of giving birth. Everything in this segment rang true to my heart. From giving myself shots, to the emotional roller coaster, to receiving birth announcements in the mail, to lost friendships along the way. It does bring some comfort to me that the media has taken a strong stance in making infertility and miscarriage known in the US. Not everyone gets married and has a baby so easily. I wish people would understand that. This is the biggest challenge I have ever faced in my life and sometimes those around me don't understand how devastating it is to lose not 1 baby, not 2, but 6 babies. I have been told that I should just "get over it" already. Although I am blessed to have a beautiful daughter in my life and am finally a mom I will never forget those 6 babies that never made it to this earth.

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It's irrelevant to dwell on the past...

"It's irrelevant to dwell on the past...we can't erase what was meant to be" -UNKNOWN

This is a very tough quote for me because it is so hard for me to let go of my past losses. I understand what it is saying but I still find it hard to believe that I was meant to lose 6 pregnancies.

I can understand that I had my 5 losses so that I would be blessed with Kayla. I totally get that. If I hadn't experienced those 5 miscarriages Kayla would have never entered our lives and become our daughter. I can't imagine my life without Kayla. She is such a miracle.

What I don't understand is why my 6th pregnancy didn't survive. That was my chance to make Kayla a big sister and to finally carry a pregnancy to term. I guess hindsight is 20/20 and everything will unveil itself at the right time. I just wish and hope that is sooner rather than later.

It's Amazing What A Walk Through the Park Can Do

It's amazing what a walk through the park can do.
This past weekend I experienced the insensitivity of someone who takes pregnancy for granted. I won't go into the specifics because it really isn't worth repeating but the comment was crass and very inappropriate. The rest of the night I was a ball of emotions. I was angry one moment sad the next. I can't stand it when people take their pregnancy and ability to carry to term for granted like it's nothing. Don't they realize how lucky they are? Don't they realize I would trade places with them in a heartbeat?


I woke up the next morning feeling depressed and down about my infertility and pregnancy losses. I decided to take my nephew to the park since I was watching him. (my daughter was home with my husband taking a nap). I put him in the jogger and headed out to our neighborhood park. It was a beautiful day out. The sun was shining, there were kids on the swings and families having picnics on the grass. It was a typical Spring day in Arizona. For some reason just being outside lifted my spirits immensely. It was nice to get out and pretend I was a kid again as I went down the slides with my nephew and pushed him on the swings. I felt free from all of the stress of family drama, multiple miscarriages, etc. Maybe I felt so good because I felt like our 3rd baby, our son Devon, was with us that day. He would have been just 2 months older than my nephew Carter. It really is amazing how getting out and being around people and children can actually help you feel better when you are down.


Tonight I had a good cry. A close friend of mine is pregnant again (unexpectedly) and I am happy for her but also sad because I really want that for myself. I'm tired of the emotional roller coaster of pregnancy. I want one of my pregnancies to have a happy ending like everyone else around me. I often ask myself, "what are they doing right that I'm not?" "Why don't I deserve to have a successful pregnancy?" 6 miscarriages in 4 years is unbelievable. I am so thankful for my daughter. I really truly am, but I just can't let go of the fact that I want to give her a little brother or sister and I want to do it myself through my own body. I wish I could let this go but I can't. I love being a mom so much I guess I just want more. I don't mean to sound ungrateful. I thank God every night for our precious daughter Kayla. Adoption has been such a blessing in my life. But I also wish I could participate in those pregnancy conversations with other women around me. Talk about cravings and weight gain and how long I was in labor with Kayla for. Maybe I am just being selfish. Maybe I'm just being dumb. Why do I want the experience of pregnancy so badly? Maybe it is because I have only experienced the disappointment and heartbreaking side of pregnancy instead of the joys and happiness that those have experienced all around me.


This post started is kind of weird. I started writing it earlier today and I guess my emotions have done a 180. Just feeling kind of down right now. Tomorrow is another day. I just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The View, RESOLVE, & The Walk of Hope

I am so glad The View dedicated an entire show to Infertility and Multiple Miscarriages. Too many couples experience this heartbreaking journey. Please take some time to watch this 38 min episode.

To see segment go to the link below:
http://abc.go.com/watch/the-view/167365/252234/the-view-225


If you are going through the struggle to start your family please also consider joining RESOLVE- The National Infertility Association. They were a huge support system for me when I was "unresolved" and I met some amazing women with whom I am very close friends with still today.

RESOLVE Website:

http://www.resolve.org/site/PageServer

Join us for the Walk of Hope March 20th!

http://www.resolve.org/site/Calendar/540182735?view=Detail&id=35161

The Walk of Hope is held to give hope to those facing infertility and to celebrate those families formed through adoption and medical intervention. For 1 in 8 couples in the United States, the dream of creating a family is a long, emotional and expensive journey. Infertility is a devastating disease, touching every aspect of life - physical, emotional, spiritual and financial.
RESOLVE works to increase public awareness of the issues surrounding infertility and the various family-building options available to those facing this disease.

4 Years TTC and Carry to Term

I actually wrote this back in January and forgot to post it for some reason:

ugh I'm depressed now. They just announced that a co-worker is pregnant with her 3rd baby and is due May 1st. I was due May 8th with the last pregnancy. At least I will only have to see her once next week when I fly for my business trip and won't have to attend a baby shower or anything. I don't do baby showers anyways. I am very happy for her but sad for me. I hate this feeling. Guess I will get over it like I have in the past. It just sucks feeling this way.

I have many sleepless nights thinking about why I can't carry to term. It's something I think about every single day. Every night I pray that God will let me have just 1 successful pregnancy and birth. It will be 4 years since we started TTC (trying to conceive) on Feb 14th. 4 years!

My brain won't shut it off . I keep trying to solve the puzzle and it just frustrates me more. The one thing I am holding on to is that I read in a booked called Coming to Term that if a woman keeps trying enough times eventually one pregnancy will stick and result in a live healthy birth even without medical intervention.(although I still use the progesterone and lovenox when I am pregnant) My doctor has said this as well. To anyone reading-If you don't believe this to be true please don't tell me. I still believe anything is possible.

I feel guilty because I know if my husband would have married someone else he would have a baby or 2 or 3 by now. It breaks my heart that I can't give this to him and that I have been pregnant 6 times and not 1 has survived. Just doesn't seem fair.


I do realize I need to focus on what I have and be grateful. It could be so much worse. I am blessed that I have a beautiful baby girl who lights up my life. Although I didn't give birth to her I love her as if I had more than anyone could possibly know. I am experiencing the joys of motherhood.

So yes- I am very lucky in the fact that I am a mother, I have an amazing child and husband, a roof over my head, a job I enjoy, etc. It's just hard to focus on those things when you want the other things so badly and everyone around you seems to get it the easy way.

Feeling Kind of Sad Right Now

A week ago today I lost my little puppy Gidget. She was my baby doll, my cuddle bug. We don't know what happened exactly. She was fine Sunday night and then Monday morning everything just went down hill. She wouldn't eat, wouldn't drink, and was moaning. I took her to the vet and they thought she may have pancreatitis. They took an x-ray, gave her some fluids, gave me some meds and sent me home. Just a few hours later she died in my arms. It is kind of a double edged sword. I'm glad she didn't die alone and I was holding and kissing her as she took her last breath but I'm also heart broken I had to witness it.

See, Gidget was more than a puppy. She was with me through each one of my 6 pregnancy losses. Each time I would come home from the doctor's office with the bad news that another baby had passed away she was there to lick away my tears and cuddle with me. When we adopted our daughter Kayla I remember picking her up and telling her, "See Gidg? This is what we have been waiting so long for!" I may be crazy but I totally felt like she "got it" and understood what I was saying. It's hard to believe that she is gone. I will miss her dearly. I love you Gidgi.

9/25/05-12/28/09