Yesterday I shared the story of a pregnant teenager who chose to parent her son. Today, I will share Jenifer’s story, a pregnant teenager who chose adoption.

Jen was 17 when she became pregnant. Her boyfriend broke up with her during the pregnancy because he was so scared. Jenifer ended up placing her daughter in a semi-open adoption.

Did you consider all your options or did you immediately think adoption when you found out you were pregnant?

A... more

In continuing with the teen pregnancy series, today I’d like to share the story of a teen mom.

Meet Tabitha Tabitha became pregnant for the first time at 16 years old. She married her high school sweetheart while she was pregnant. She gave birth to her son two days after her 17th birthday in 1997. She freely shares the triumphs and tribulations of being a teen mom with us.

Did you consider adoption? For about 1 hour on a very bad day. Neither of us could find jobs and money was scarce.... more

I’ve heard teen pregnancy considered an “epidemic” before. According to trends, reports, and statistics more and more teens are becoming sexually active which leads to more teens becoming pregnant. It’s a good possibility that if you are in an unplanned pregnancy and reading this blog, you could be a teenager. I though it would be interesting to explore teen pregnancy and talk with a teen that parented as a teenager as well as a teen that has placed a child for adoption. So I’ll be beginning a series on teen pregnancy over the next few posts/days.... more

Somewhere in the third trimester of your pregnancy you probably should go ahead and think about packing a bag with the items you will need to have ready so that when you do actually go into labor, you are prepared and do not have to fumble around packing your belongings. It’s also a good idea because you are able to choose the personal items that will make you feel more comfortable, not have someone else do this for you which could happen if you do not have a bag packed and have to head to the hospital rather quickly.

But what should you take... more

In a previous post, I talked about a Hospital Action Plan, which is a plan that expectant mothers making adoption plans can use to dictate how they wish for their hospital experience to turn out regarding things such as contact with their baby, if they want the adoptive parents to visit them in the hospital, etc.

But today I want to talk about a different kind of plan – a birth plan………

Childbirth... more

You are sitting in the doctors office plumply pregnant, when all of the sudden your doctor says, "I think the best course of action at this point would be for you to begin bed rest!"

Bed rest!!!! Those two words that every pregnant woman dreads to hear. Unfortunately, it happens! One in five pregnant women are ordered to bed rest that lasts at least twenty weeks by their doctors.

I suffered through two pregnancies that both required bed rest. With my second son I was lucky and able to serve my bed rest sentence... more

Morning sickness – it’s that dreaded sign of pregnancy. For some, it might be one of the “clues” that leads you to confirming that you are pregnant.

So, what exactly is morning sickness? It’s a feeling of nausea that is sometimes accompanied with actual sickness. Sometimes you may just feel nauseous while other times you may actually get sick.

Morning sickness is caused by the sudden increase or change in hormone levels. It is more common in the first trimester of pregnancy. It can strike any... more

From time to time, I will cover topics regarding maintaining good health during pregnancy. Sometimes when you are faced with an unplanned pregnancy, you may forget the simple yet important things like eating properly and getting enough rest.!

Have you been having any cravings during your pregnancy? Cravings are a funny thing and often times our bodies crave odd foods and combinations such as the infamous pickles and ice cream. During my pregnancy with Charlie, I craved Reese’s Shivers from McDonalds. I didn’t just crave them during the... more

As I was reading the newest posts today, I came across Karianne’s post in the Fertility Blog entitled “When Not to Be Pregnant” and it got me thinking about when I was pregnant. I gave birth in September and October so both times I was big and pregnant during the summer heat. Where I live it’s humid and gets into the high 90’s during the worst part of the summer. This is no fun to deal with when you’re moody, cranky, and carrying around an extra twenty to thirty pounds!

Like... more

As I said before, there is no time table for grief and you can stay in one stage for days/weeks and then move to a different stage and then you might even track back. All of this is healthy and ok. It’s hard to get to a healthy balance of grieving and living.

When grief is too intense or last too long it can cause prolonged problems as the sadness evolves into dark depression and anxiety disorders. Extreme reactions may include:

Feelings of panic and frenzy Emotional numbness that does not go away Going to extremes to avoid thinking of the loss ... more