I’ll be home for Christmas.. 👶🏼🤍
Baby number 2 is due, December 2023!
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For this child, we have prayed! What a gift! 🎁 #thankyoujesus #babycochrancountdown

We have dreamed of giving Brewer a sibling for SO long! Lots of prayers were answered the day we found out that he is going to be a big brother!

We are SO extremely thankful for this blessing that the Lord has given us!

Thank you ALL so much for every kind word and message that we have received this week, upon sharing the sweet news of baby #2!

This baby is already so blessed by all of the wonderful people in our life like YOU!

Today, I’m going to share some more details about how we got here! The journey was some what different from our journey with Brewer.

I’ll tell more about that, share the videos of Harry & Brewer finding out the baby news, talk about how we shared the news with family & friends, and then I’ll answer some more fun baby questions! Sound fun?! Yay!!

Before I go into our journey, I want to say, if you are struggling to grow your family, my heart is with you. Your feelings are valid and we are praying for you!

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We always knew we wanted more than one baby, God willing!

When we decided to have Brewer, it happened quick! One cycle and we were pregnant! We were extremely, extremely blessed because we know that is not the case for SO many families.

You can read more about our story with Brewer, here: We are Having a Baby!

After Brewer was born, we always said we wanted our kids about 3 years a part. Last summer, our thinking sorta changed and we thought maybe we want them a little closer. So early last fall, we started trying for baby #2.

The fall months rolled by, no baby. The holidays rolled by, no baby. A month into the new year, and still no baby.

We know 5-6 months is NOT a long time to be trying for a baby! We know lots of couples who try for years before they get their miracle baby.

5-6 months seemed odd considering how fast it happened with Brewer. It left us a little concerned that something could be wrong. I’m also a believer that YOU know when something isn’t right and I just knew that something wasn’t right!

So at the end of January, I reached out to my doctor (who I am so thankful for!) just to say, hey, I know we haven’t been trying very long but considering how quickly things happened with Brewer, I’m just a little concerned.

She responded with, they are typically not concerned until you have been trying for a year but she offered for me to come in and have some lab work done, so I said yes!

I went in on day 21 of my cycle to have my progesterone level checked. On day 21, you should have already ovulated (in a 28 day cycle that is- give or take a couple days) and your progesterone level can indicate if your body successfully ovulated or not.

I was in and out of the appointment in 5 minutes. A nurse did a simple blood draw to check my progesterone level and I was told my results would come through on my medical app later that night! I was also told that doctors like to see the level at a number 10 to confirm ovulation.

I came home, got my results later that night and my number was a 3…

I spoke with my doctor within the next couple of days and I was just like, how can that be! I knew something wasn’t right but I never would have guessed that my body just wasn’t ovulating because my cycles always seem so normal. She informed me that can still happen even though things appear to be normal!

So what’s next… lots and lots of prayers!

(Side note: I bought baby #2 a prayer journal back in the fall! I wrote one prayer in it and prayed it many times before finding out we were pregnant! So excited to continue writing in this journal just like we do for Brewer!)

My doctor recommended a medicine to help with ovulation, called clomid. We discussed the one possibility… any medicine that you take for ovulation can carry the possibility of ovulating more than one. When Harry & I heard that, we were like, WOAH! But, the doctor was prescribing me a very low dosage and she said it’s not a common thing. We had a peace about taking it, so we proceeded! (By the way.. we’re only having one! Lol)

The medicine is to be taken a few days each month. So I began that medicine late February. We checked my progesterone level again in March and my number was at a 10!! That was a blessing in itself even though, I didn’t get pregnant that cycle. So I took the medicine again another cycle.

And then…

4 days after Easter, on April 13th, I took a pregnancy test that morning and it was positive!!! I fell to my knees in prayer. Only God, only He who is able! He made it happen!

I surprised Harry that night with 2 baby Bundt cakes for baby #2 being due..

See the video, below:

Lol.. the journey above gives a little more context to Harry’s reaction! He was shocked!!

And the next day, on April 14th, we shared the most exciting new with Brewer that he is going to be a BIG brother!!!

We surprised him with a big brother book inside of this Toy Story (his favorite) bag!

See the sweetest little video, below:

That sweet little voice!

One more video:

We have dreamed of this moment! We had a deep desire to give Brewer a sibling. He loves his cousins and friends SO much! We knew he would love a brother or sister!

God heard every prayer. Every single one of them. And He answered them all in HIS perfect timing! He wasn’t a day early or a day late!

So in all, it took us about 7-8 months. That is NOT a long time AT ALL. We know couples who have tried for way longer, for years. Our journey gave me a TINY glimpse of what it’s like to see a negative pregnancy test after negative pregnancy test. It’s not fun when it’s something you truly desire.

I’m glad I listened to my instinct when I reached out to my doctor for help. We are so thankful that God used the gift of a simple medicine to help us! It was all in HIS timing!

This (small) wait season grew me though! It brought up lots of unique conversations with other women who have had their own struggles. That was special to me, getting to walk and share God stories with others. If this hadn’t been our journey, those conversations wouldn’t have happened, so I’m thankful!

It made me become so much closer to Jesus. We were living on faith, we knew His plans were greater, and we just had to trust that! We were uncertain what the future held for growing our family but we were open to whatever the Lord would call us to. We even had conversations about adoption which we were totally open to, if God were to call us to that. It was days after that conversation, the Lord blessed us with another pregnancy!

We will be welcoming this sweet baby in the month of December, the month that we celebrate the birth of our sweet savior! If you’ve been a blog reader for a while, you know my love for Christmas!! I can’t think of a better season to be welcoming our second baby! It’s going to be a sweet, sweet Christmas this year!

God’s plans > Our plans

We are blessed beyond measure!

Again, if you are struggling to grow your family, I am so sorry! We know lots of people who have tried for years and years. We know some who have walked long medical roads to grow their family. We know some who have lost babies. I can’t even begin to imagine your pain or what you are going through! Your feelings ARE valid no matter what your journey looks like.

I promise, God has not forgotten you! Cling to Him for peace that can’t be found anywhere else! He loves you and His plans for your life are greater than you could imagine.. even though things can hurt in the moment.

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There were lots of Bible verses and Christian songs that I listened to on repeat while we were in a (small) wait season. This was one of them..

One of my best friends, Natalie & I were at the Upstate Women’s Conference back in January and Meredith Andrews performed this song! It stuck with me!

And I listened to this song a lot too..

And then..

May 8th, we had our first appointment to see baby! It was this day that it was confirmed, we were only having ONE baby! The heart rate was 151. Baby looked great!

(Side note: I was pregnant with Brewer in the middle of Covid so Harry couldn’t come to my appointments! So this time has been special because he gets to be there too!)

We got in the car to leave and the song above, This is our God, was playing!! It gave me chills!! During silence, He is working if we lay it all at his feet.

We celebrated a great first appointment with popsicles on the back porch!

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So how did we share the news with family/ friends?!

We shared the news in the moment, when it felt natural/ right! I didn’t take lots of photos this time around either! We were just super happy to share and in the moment! 🙂

We used more sweet treats to tell both of our families! ❤

Our families were over the moon excited!!!

The day we told my family, my mom said, she just thought about baby #2 for us in church that morning! It must have been a sign from the Lord!

And I snapped this picture of Harry and his brother, Brooks!! We had been at an event in downtown Spartanburg and went by Brooks and Mary’s house after! The news was spilled for the very first time when Brooks tried to offer me a glass of wine! Lol. So instead, the boys took a shot to celebrate!

From there.. I didn’t do the best job keeping up with photos! Like I said, it was just very in the moment! This is what I did get…

After Harry & Brooks took their shot, Mary & I did a cheers with chocolate! Lol

These pictures of the cousin crew are also from the day we told my family! Susie looks excited! We love that the cousin crew is growing! 🙂

This is Brewer FaceTiming with cousin Ines, showing off his Big Brother book! We are so excited for the growing cousin crew on the Cochran side of the family too! 🙂

I failed to get a picture of the 3 of us but I was home in Clover one weekend and I went to lunch with my besties, Kacy & Brittany!! I shared the news over Mexican food! 🙂

Harry & I met up with AnnaVee and Nick prior to going to a wedding! We shared the news with them and AnnaVee’s reaction was priceless! It took her a minute to “get it.” Lol

We FaceTimed with Chelsea & Sanchez to share the news! Sanchez is so sweet and he prayed over our growing family via FaceTime!

Harry shared the news with some friends in person, we facetimed/ talked on the phone/ sent the sonogram or pictures to other friends and family! 🙂

We are also excited to walk the journey of pregnancy alongside of some friends who are pregnant & have announced their pregnancies! What a gift!

It was special sharing the news “naturally” and just being in the moment! I wasn’t on my phone snapping tons of photos!

I had to share this too! Sweet baby’s first stuffed animal from my bestie, Emily! She gave me this after we shared the news of baby #2! The sweetest!! Thank you Emily for every single prayer you prayed for our family! We know there were many! We love you and your family so big!

Okay, now I’m going to hit some rapid fire questions that we have been getting! 🙂

1. What will the age gap be between Brewer and baby #2? One month shy of 3 years apart! And we can already feel, that is perfect for our family!! We are excited about that age gap! I love that we really got to soak up the baby years with just Brewer! I also get the entire summer with just Brewer again this year and we can *attempt* potty training. I think he will also be ready for a toddler room by the time baby #2 gets here! God has a perfect plan for everyone’s family!

2. When is your exact due date? December 22nd, 2023. I’m hoping for an induction one week sooner like we had with Brewer! I was dilated pretty far along and being induced went smooth! So hopefully that will happen again! We’ll see ❤

3. How far along are you? I’m 11 weeks today!

4. Will you find out the gender? Without hesitation, YES! I am so type A, I have to know so we can plan all the things! We can see it going in either direction and loving it! We want God’s plan for our family because we know it’s going to be bigger & better than we can dream! We are excited to find out soon!

5. Will you share the gender or keep it a secret? Absolutely, YES!! Y’all will know when we know!

6. Do y’all have any names picked out? Not really! We like waiting until we know the gender before we let ourselves get 100% set on a name! We will likely keep the name a surprise again just like we did with Brewer! I make so much of my life public here on the blog which I LOVE but this sort of feels like one thing, we can keep close to heart! There are few surprises left in life! 🙂

7. How old are you and Harry? We are both 31 and will be 32 when baby arrives! Baby is actually due right around Harry’s birthday so Harry could be 31 or 32! They could also be birthday twins! 🙂

8. Are y’all staying in your current house? Yes! This is not our forever house but we do not feel called to move yet. We have always called this our “baby house.” We will have less space with another baby but we still have plenty of room! I always say, a small cozy house while our family/ babies are small! We have big plans in our heart that we pray over for a future move one day! We’re happy in our little meadow neighborhood right now!

9. Will this be your last baby? It could be but never say never. God is writing our story, not us!

10. How am I feeling? I was feeling great until about week 9. Then the nausea started. I had that with Brewer too. I’m not actually sick, just nauseous. It’s been manageable though!

11. Is Brewer excited to be a big brother? Yes!! He points to my belly and says baby! We ask him often if he wants a brother or a sister and he can answer the question! Aside from that, I’m not sure if he 100% gets it but I know he is going to love having a sibling! He really does LOVE other babies, toddlers, and kids so much!

12. Just for fun.. a time I was pregnant but didn’t know it yet:

Dollywood!!

I even read a quote by Dolly that day.. “if you want the rainbow, you gotta have some rain first.” I love that!

Easter!!

We were pregnant on Easter, celebrating the resurrection of our Savior, but didn’t quite know it yet! 

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We are so grateful for this baby and we can’t wait to know who he or she will be! ❤

Thank you to my dear friend Natalie for these photos that we will treasure forever! She is a gem of a friend and so talented! Check her out on instagram @nataliekateart_photography

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Thanks for reading today and celebrating with our family!

Babies truly are miracles!

“Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.” Psalm 127:3

*I will be back on the blog, Monday!*