Happy Birthday to me!

Mid November 2009. On the day of my 39th birthday I woke to two beautiful little girls showering me with kisses and cuddles and lovely drawings they had done for me. Life was great. I had these healthy little girls, a loving husband, a new house and the sun was shining. There was only one thing hanging over my head that day....my periods were late - I was now up to day 32 again and I was trying not to think about it. I had got to this point last month, only to get my period the next day and hence the roller coaster of emotions had began again.

I won't lie though - it was on my mind all morning. My 5 year old had her kindergarten orientation so I was trying to focus on that, all the while the words were going in one ear and out the other as I thought about what I really needed to do that day. I was either going to have a great birthday or a crappy one - not one where I thought "what if?" all day. On top of that, I was going out with my sister to see Britney Spears in concert that night and I wanted to have a good night so the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to know. As one of the teacher's aides went through what you should and shouldn't pack in a school lunch box (riveting stuff!) I made a decision - I decided once we got out of here, I was going to go and buy a pregnancy test. Just one, so I could get a yes or a no and not obsess about it. If it was yes, it would be a definitive yes so one test would do. After all, could I really achieve the supposedly impossible?

When I picked up my 2 year old from my mum & dad's house on the way through, I mentioned to them that I thought I might be pregnant. It is hard to explain but I kind of just thought I knew I was pregnant. Along with this weird kind of gut feeling, I had really sore boobs - mind you, a common pregnancy symptom though something I never had with my first two pregnancies - so I was thinking that maybe, just maybe, it was a sign. Mum agreed I should go and buy a test as you never know. Stranger things have happened.

I took my little princesses to the supermarket and bought a couple of bits and pieces and ONE PREGNANCY TEST. I was very blase about it all, took my time at the shops, and we even stopped for a babychino on the way home. Even when we got home, I took my time again, unpacked the groceries, got the kids some lunch, fluffed around a bit and then as if an oversight, thought I may as well do the test now. I took the sample, put it up out of reach of little hands and trotted off to work out what I was going to wear that night. Believe it or not, I actually forgot about it for ten minutes or so.

Unlike with all the other tests where I sat and watched the first line come up, desperately willing the second one to magically appear next to it, I had actually not even given it a thought. When I did remember, I wandered into the bathroom, with no real expectation and casually picked it up and glanced down at it. I felt a shiver go all over me for a split second....were my eyes deceiving me? There were two pink lines in front of me, right? It took a few seconds to sink in but when I stared down at the stick, there was no doubt. There was definitely two pink lines there. I called hubby and told him and he was so excited. He asked if I was sure, did I do another test and then I was frustrated because I had stubbornly only bought the one. Either way, I could do twenty tests right about now and it would still say the same thing - blow me down with a feather, I had achieved the almost impossible - I WAS FINALLY PREGNANT! In between IUI cycles and completely naturally.

I phoned the clinic and they were very excited for me and asked me to come in for a blood test in the morning to confirm. They got a message to Dr M for me and she was delighted. She thinks maybe all the insemination attempts she had made perhaps had "opened things up", so to speak and allowed this little miracle to occur. I just believe we are blessed.

I called my parents and they were ecstatic and obviously I told my sister as I was going out with her that night and you couldn't get the smile off my face. Needless to say, the Britney concert wasn't fantastic but I may as well have been listening to two cats howling at the moon for all I cared - I was finally pregnant and our prayers had been answered : )