Secret Revealed

As you may know by my previous blog entries, we took our first pregnancy test at the end of May. We decided to reveal our secret to our families at 7 weeks! I really wanted to tell our families in a creative way so Ryan and I brainstormed for awhile before we finally settled on two different ideas. We told my family first.

I headed to Kansas the weekend of Father's Day (i would be spending that week on Tabor's campus). I stayed overnight with my Mom on Friday night in Salina. She knew we had been trying for a baby so of course she asked if I was pregnant. And I lied straight to her face. (forgive me Mom). I had it all planned out when I would tell her, my sister and Dad and really wanted to wait for that. I attended Dallas and Megan Pruitt's wedding the next day (Saturday) and planned to tell my family that evening. I had asked my Dad to come to my sister's house to celebrate Father's Day with an ice cream cake. Dairy Queen ice cream cake has always been a favorite in my family, I think my Dad was more excited to eat that than to see me. ;)

My mom waited in the car (per my request) when I ran in to get the ice cream cake. I had them put it in a paper bag so no one could see it. We went to my sister's house, talked about life (i think my sister asked me if was pregnant too, sorry I lied Ang) all the while me feeling more and more nervous. Looking back, I don't know why I was nervous, I knew they would be excited, I guess I just wanted it all to be perfect.

Finally, I called everyone into the kitchen to dive into our cake. Dad did the honors while Mom and Angela went talking in another part of the kitchen. I wanted them all gathered around the table but I thought it would be a bit obvious to draw attention to that. So I stood by the table while Dad tore back the paper sack. Here is what he found:
He looked up at me with big eyes and said "Who's pregnant?" I raised my hand, smiled and then pointed to Mom and Angela and asked him to bring them to the table. They came, stared at the cake for a few minutes and started screaming. Here is what I saw:
I just love this picture! I do wish I was holding the camera horizontally so I could have captured my whole Dad and Sister's face but I am thankful nonetheless. The rest of the evening was filled with questions, giggles and lots of hugs! It was truly one of the best memories I will ever have with my family! The only thing missing was my wonderful husband. My family called him shortly after the secret was revealed to wish him a Happy Father's Day. Such a special time in my life!
My Mom hasn't stopped smiling! In the weeks to follow, she asked me every time we talked if she could tell this person or that person. I hated telling her no, I was having a hard time myself keeping it a secret. But Ryan and I really wanted to wait until we were close to the 2nd trimester to tell the world. I did allow my Mom to tell some other family members just so she wouldn't explode. It is incredible to speak so freely of our baby now! Thank you God for getting us this far, we trust You for the future months!

So how did we tell Ryan's family? We thought they were coming to visit us the weekend before Father's Day so we planned to tell them in person. However, a change in their plans challenged us to be creative once again. We didn't want to just tell them over the phone so we decided to send them a onesie in the mail. Ryan bought it (i was in KS for my job) and put it inside a card we sent to his Dad for Father's Day. Special instructions said to open it with his Mom. The card read: "You won't be the only one celebrating Father's Day next year. We have news. Call us!" I didn't think I would be home when they called but God worked it out that I had come back from KS just in time. It was so fun to hear their excitement over the phone! And get this, Ryan even bought a long-sleeved onesie-perfect since we are going to have a winter baby. If you asked him, he would say it was by accident but I don't believe in accidents, I believe in a God who has a purpose for everything!

On the Receiving End

First, I want to begin by saying we have been so encouraged in these past few days by the body of Christ! We know you all are praying, we have felt it! We are resting in God's presence, finding peace in Him and thanking Him for all of you! Thank you to those who have emailed me or facebooked me sharing stories of your own road with laparoscopic surgery. They have reminded me that I am not alone! Thank you to those who have emailed or facebooked me Bible verses and prayers. They have reminded me that our God has given so many promises and that He will take care of me and this child! Thank you to those who have called to ask how we are doing and to just tell us that you are praying! It reminds me of how alive our God is to move your heart to call, if even for just a few minutes. We have been reminded everyday, because of each of you, how vital every member of the body of Christ is! Thank you for carrying us through this scary, uncertain time!

In my quiet time today, God blessed me with a story about how vital friends who believe in His power to heal are! I was so moved by this story that I wanted to share some of it with you.
Scripture: Mark 2:1-12 and Luke 5:18-26 (Too long to type so grab your bible now and read)
Many things jumped out and spoke to me through these two versions of the same story:
*Jesus was sought out!
*These friends had faith that Jesus would save their friend and were willing to do ANYTHING to get him to Jesus.
*Jesus healed; spiritually first and then physically!
*Jesus revealed His power-so all could see!
*Everyone was amazed and they praised God! They said "We have never seen anything like this!" and "We have seen remarkable things today!"

To be honest, the part that spoke to me the most, that moved me to tears, is the last part of both of these stories. God healed this man spiritually yes, but also physically. These people immediately saw that he could stand and walk. Maybe this newly healed man spoke about his spiritual healing, the Bible doesn't record that. But the crowd didn't need this man to talk about his physically healing. They saw it and praised God! They spoke of His power! That is what I am praying through this situation that we are currently facing.

Ryan and I are praying and I ask all of you to join us, that God will heal me! As I have shared with you already, we believe that God is the Great Physician! We believe that just as He healed this man in the Bible that He can heal me! He has already healed me spiritually by giving me His Son Jesus and offering me eternal life. The best decision I ever made (marrying you Ryan is 2nd) was confessing my sins and asking Jesus to forgive me and be my Savior!

Now I am asking for physical healing. It is the desire of my heart to shout to the world that God and GOD ALONE, has healed my body of this cyst. It is my desire that EVERYONE will praise God for His healing! And if He chooses to heal me through surgery, I will still shout to the world my praise of God's healing! I believe there is power in prayer!

12 Weeks

I had my 2nd appointment yesterday (Monday July 26). It has been an emotional day. First, I want to begin by sharing that our baby is very healthy! We got to see it again today, my goodness, it has changed so much! As you can see in this new picture, it is actually the shape of a human now, instead of a grape. We got to see the head, arms, legs, belly, spine, hands, even a little of his/her face. It was breathtaking! And we also got to hear its heartbeat! It was beating 162 bpm-so what do you think? Boy or Girl? We are going to wait and be surprised! We also got to see the baby move today. It was very active. It is still too early for me to feel it move but looking at the ultrasound today showed us that it is alive and active! Praise the Lord!

But my doctor noticed a small cyst on my ovary at my first appointment (July 1st) and had asked me to see an ultrasound specialist at the beginning of this appointment, before seeing her. She explained to us that cysts are common in some women in pregnancy and that they usually shrink and disappear after the first trimester. So she wanted me to see this ultrasound specialist to check on the status of my cyst.

In all honesty, I have not been worried about it. Both Ryan and I really felt like Dr. Tate was just taking precautions and didn't seem that concerned about it in our first appointment. So we didn't give it much thought. I have prayed about it some, asking the Lord to take it away and heal me. I have been praying more for the health of the baby. So when the ultrasound specialist told us it was still there and pretty large in size, I lost it. I was so thankful that he had showed us so much of the baby before he actually looked for the cyst. That was very encouraging! But once he showed the cyst to us, my tears started flowing.

Next we met with Dr. Tate who did a great job of explaining where we are at and what's next. She told us that she would really like to take out the cyst because of its size and the risk of rupturing or twisting/turning. She explained 2 different ways to take it out, but both involve surgery. One way would be like having a C-section, they would make a large incision and take it out that way. Of course that recovery time is about 5 days in the hospital. The other option, the option she recommends, is by having it taken out through laparoscoptic surgery. They would do most of it through my belly button with a small incision. She said that most women who have this procedure do it outpatient but that she would keep me overnight in the hospital because I am pregnant. The risks to the baby are very small, but there are some risks to me. In this particular surgery, I would need to be put to sleep and there are some risks involved in that. It is hard to explain on a blog.

As you can imagine, Ryan and I have many mixed emotions. We feel sad. We feel scared. We feel a little confused. We want more than anything what is best for the baby and me, but I have never had any kind of surgery so the thought of it scares me. The risk of being put to sleep scares me. The thought of losing this very alive, active and perfect baby scares me. The unknown scares me.

But we live for and love a God who cares for us and our baby! We know He has a plan! We believe that His ways are better than ours. We acknowledge Him as our Healer. We know he loves us and this precious baby! We put our hope in Him. We have found peace in the following verses:
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.
1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your care on Him, for He cares for you.

Please join us as we pray for God's healing! We absolutely believe that He is more powerful than any doctor or surgery. We know and believe that if He chooses He can completely heal this cyst from my body! But we also know that if He chooses not to take it away by His power, that He can use a professional doctor to remove it. We ask you to pray for His wisdom as we make decisions. If surgery comes, please pray that the surgery goes well, with NO complications to me or the baby. Ask our Father to give us peace and comfort. Ask Him to fill us with faith and trust. Pray that this baby continues to grow strong. Pray that as we wait, the cyst will not rupture or turn. We are truly grateful for your love and prayer support! Ryan, Baby Lee and I need you!

9 Weeks

Our first appointment was on Thursday July 1st. We were both excited and nervous! To be honest, I wanted to see the doctor when I called to make an appointment. To my surprise, I was already 6 weeks by then. I felt nervous to wait until 9 weeks but she insisted that Dr. Tate likes to see her patients at 10 weeks or around there. You should have seen the smile on our face when we walked in. I think everyone in the room knew I was pregnant!!

I was also surprised when I was filling out my paperwork and signed something that had to do with a sonogram. As you can see, here is our baby at 9 weeks. The small circle above the head is the nutrient sac and the baby's body is below it. Hard to imagine that the baby was just the size of a large grape. Small but still an absolute miracle!

I guess I should share more about the first few weeks of pregnancy. It all began at the end of May. Ryan and I were in Estes Park at the YMCA of the Rockies leading the children's program for a conference that our Chinese Church was a part of. My monthly sister was due during that weekend. And it came.....but only for one day! When we got back we took our first pregnancy test. A one dollar test from the Dollar Tree. Honestly, I had my doubts about being pregnant, especially since I was feeling great. It was Ryan who had faith. He took one look at that test (pic in previous post) and said, "I think that is 2 lines!" (2 lines meant pregnant). I immediately said, "I don't know, that 2nd line is really, really light." So we concluded we would take another test to make sure.

I went to Kansas that weekend with my Chinese friend Ruthie. I took her to Steven and Amy Gramza's wedding, her first American wedding. I saw my Mom and my Grandma yet said nothing. It about drove me crazy! I was so excited and yet apprehensive. I asked Ryan that weekend to buy me a pregnancy test that actually said "Pregnant/Not Pregnant." He got me one for $15, sure that it would not be a mistake. When I returned, I took that test and within minutes, it showed "Pregnant."

That almost convinced me. :) I still wasn't feeling any major pregnancy symptoms. I was expecting to have terrible morning sickness and nausea, but I mostly struggled with feeling tired a lot sooner than I usually did. And I guess I did start using the bathroom more. But I thought that was due to water intake to cool my body down in the summer heat. Even in my moments of doubt, Ryan would say to me, "You are pregnant, honey, your monthly sister hasn't visited you in a month." He had a great point but that first sonogram on July 1st, when I actually SAW our baby for the first time and SAW it's fast beating heart, did I finally allow myself to BELIEVE.

Welcome to our Journey!

I always thought that I would begin to blog about the excitement in the Lee family when we found out we were expecting a baby. Not that our lives aren't exciting already, that's why I named our blog, "Live, Laugh, Love with the Lee's," because in my opinion I think our lives are very exciting. But it just seemed fun to start a blog when we had someone else to talk about too. So without further ado......

Ryan and I are pleased to announce to the world that God has given us a miracle! I am carrying one of his blessed children! Estimated due date: February 4, 2011!



On Friday July 29, I will be 13 weeks. Which means we have passed the first trimester! We Praise God for so many blessings in these first 3 months:
*morning sickness has been very mild. I have bad indigestion (sorry for the burping honey) and a little nausea but for the most part, I have felt so good! Thank you Jesus!
*At my first appointment on July 1st, we saw our baby and saw it's very fast beating heart. What a miracle!
*Our families have been so excited and supportive! In fact, I think my Mom is more excited about this news than when I told her I was getting married.
*With Ryan's summer job (Chick fil A) we have been going to bed around 9:00p.m which makes me feel a little old but has been great for feeling exhausted by supper time.
*Baby Lee's good health

I feel incredibly blessed by the love we have received with those who already know our news. Our baby has already been prayed for by many and I am so grateful for that! As our blog verse says (Duet 6:5-9) we desire to teach this child about Jesus! It is our prayer that someday he/she will believe in the name of Jesus Christ and share Him with others around this world! Ryan and I are so incredibly excited to teach not only this child but the others God blesses us with, about the loving, forgiving, caring Heavenly Father we love so dearly! God has chosen us. This thought overwhelms me but also humbles me to realize my need for Him even more.