24 week appointment and an Unexpected Encounter

Last week, I had my 24 week appointment.  It was the kind you dream of as a pregnant woman, and yet are also a little disappointed by.  It was completely uneventful.  Good, in so many ways.  But then it also makes me kick myself for spending 1.5 hours out of my day driving to and from the appointment, waiting in the lobby, peeing in a cup, etc.

I'm measuring on track, and may even be slightly ahead of the game in the weight gain department (hey, I have some catching up to do after all that nausea/vomiting!).  Baby's heartbeat was 150sh.

Baby is moving feverishly.  Watching my belly move is like watching a popcorn bag pop in the microwave.

I continue to feel extremely grateful for this opportunity, and yet am so excited to just get to D-day!

Also last week, I had an unexpected encounter.  A friend asked me to meet a friend of hers for coffee to discuss a possible career change.  As we were talking, the conversation turned to families.  She indicated she had adopted a son, who was now 16 months old.  No stranger to conversations like this - and clearly no shame, either -- I politely inquired as to why she had adopted.  Infertility, she said.

I immediately felt a little saddened by this response, and yet, know it was also the reason we initially turned to adoption.  It is too bad that for so many of us, adoption is our "Plan B," when it turns out it was God's "Plan A" for us all along.

In any event, we continued to talk about infertility and adoption.  I then asked her about embryo adoption.  Her eyes widened.  She'd never heard of such a thing.  So, I told her all about it.  I could see the intrigue brewing in her eyes.  

Later, I emailed her information about NEDC, and told her to keep in touch.

It felt so good to, if nothing else, bring the possibility of some additional hope to someone who thought that pregnancy was a lost cause for them.  Sure, she could do embryo adoption and never get pregnant.  And, if that's the case, then if nothing else, she may herself have an unexpected encounter where she can pass that hope like a torch on to someone else.