All I can say is … Wow!!!

When I look back on 2016, I really had no idea everything God had in mind for Nicole and me.

Our New Beginning

Things really started coming together in August, where a series of events unfolded to bring us back together and into a home that was only placed on the market three days before … exactly in the village where we wanted to live. No doubt, God was involved in making things happen.

We started trying to have a baby together right away, attending a special showing of “To Joey, With Love,” which certainly put things into perspective. From our first date (November 2, 2013), having a baby together was a dream we both shared together. As we talked, we both realized just how important this goal was for us.

We didn’t conceive during the months of August, September and October, which started to play with our emotions. Everyone told us, it will happen if it is part of God’s plan. We agreed, but that did not make things less emotional to us. After all, we are in our 40’s, not our 20’s. Time isn’t really on our side.

Honestly, the hardest mentsl part of wanting to get pregnant is the fact that every little aspect Nicole was feeling can be a sign that she is pregnant and that she is NOT pregnant too. October seemed to be filled with those signs and it was really tough when we found out she was not pregnant.

Friends would tell us, “you’ll get pregnant as soon as you stop thinking about it.” Nicole and I really had no idea how to even do that! A baby together is all we talked about, even during our workouts or evening runs through the village.

Then November Arrived

November came and we were certain that we were not going to be pregnant, at least according to the ovulation predictor that told us we missed the “peak” day. We accepted this and decided to focus on December.

A couple weeks later, day 27 passed without Nicole starting her new cycle. We justified this by telling ourselves that she started late in the day, so her cycle will begin the next day.

The next day was Saturday and it came and went without her starting her period. This time we justified the delay due to her having a 28-day cycle the month before … which just happened to be the only time in the years we have been together that she wasn’t on a 27-day cycle.

Then, Sunday came and went without starting. At this point, both of us were thinking about Nicole being pregnant, but neither of us were talking about it. She could not be pregnant, right? I mean, this is just day twenty-nine.

So then, Monday came and passed, then Tuesday… again nothing. We talked a little about what was going on, but we were still convinced we were not pregnant.

When Wednesday came and Nicole had not started her period, she could not wait any longer. She went and picked up a pregnancy test. Then, shortly after 10 am, Nicole called me and when I answered the phone all she said, through a sea of joyful tears was, “John, I’m pregnant!”

Hearing her news made me the happiest guy in the world! I drove to her as quickly as I could, with a bouquet of her favorite flowers in hand. The entire way to see her, I could not help but reflect on just how great our God really is!

While we knew we should wait to tell anyone, especially at our age, that was simply not an option. Within minutes, we told our family, friends and social media. God had blessed us! We are so grateful for His love and blessings!

The December Miracle

On December 22, just three days before Christmas, we visited Nicole’s OB/GYN. The appointment was scheduled months ago, to talk about taking Clomid to increase our chances of getting pregnant. Instead, we used the time to talk to Dr. Perry (who both delivered Nicole’s daughter and is a friend of my mother’s) about the pregnancy.

At this point Nicole is 6 weeks and 6 days along with her pregnancy. She has been really struggling with nausea and weakness, even though she is the most fit and healthiest person I know. Even a lite workout was taking a toll on her recently.

During the appointment, we asked Dr. Perry if we could hear the baby’s heartbeat. He told us it was too soon to listen via a stethoscope, but then told us they could try to do a vaginal ultrasound.

I was thinking he meant in a few weeks, but he told us to sit tight when he left the examination room. Dr. Perry reinforced his statement that there is a good chance we are not going to hear anything, but we were excited for this opportunity.

Nicole was on the table and the ultrasound process started. I was sending text updates to her identical twin (Danyel) in Las Vegas as things happened. She wanted a play-by-play of what was transpiring.

Andrea, the technician performing the ultrasound, announced “there are two sacks.” I saw Nicole smile, but she didn’t react.

I didn’t know what that even meant, since my only son (Eric) was adopted. This was definitely a new experience for me.

I knew it must have been a huge thing, when her twin reacted extremely happy. She eveb accused me of lying about it.

I could see the two sacks on the screen. One of them definitely had something inside it. Then, I heard …

(baby heartbeat, baby heartbeat, baby heartbeat)

The tears began to flow down my cheek. I looked at Nicole and saw her tears too. God is so good!

I asked Andrea why it looks like the other sack is empty. She calmed my nerves by letting us know that she is not focused on that sack yet.

Andrea had to tell Nicole to be still, because Nicole’s excitement was causing the equipment to move. Then, we heard that same awesome sound from the second sack …

(second baby heartbeat, second baby heartbeat, second baby heartbeat)

God is giving us twins! My wife, an identical twin, is carrying our babies. All of a sudden, everything made sense to us on why she has been so tired.

This Christmas

I cannot express the joy I have this Christmas. My relationship with Nicole is stronger than it has ever been, our relationship with Eric and Syd continues to become stronger, as has the relationships with our family and friends.

There is so much more that we have been blessed with in 2016, but they simply do not compare with the blessings we have received with our family.

We don’t always know what God has in store for us. Some times the road we are taking down doesn’t make sense … or it is tough. In the end, as in our case, I could not imagine being any happier with His blessings.

I hope this Christmas is amazing for you as well!

Have a really great day!!!