Carter baby #5!!!

Nate and I knew that we wanted a 5th baby sometime soon-ish, but we weren't ready quite yet. So, it was really surprising when we found out that I was pregnant. This was our first surprise baby and wow... that's a different experience. I was so nervous when I started to think about the morning sickness that was soon to come, and how I would manage 5 kids when Luke is such a high maintenance little guy. But just like anything else... you figure it out. I know it will all be for the best. We're really excited now.

The morning sickness period was an absolute nightmare. I started to get sick at about 5 weeks along and it was pretty much all day, every day nausea. Not to mention throwing up 2-3 times a day. It is so incredibly hard to take care of 4 kids when you feel awful all the time. It was a dark period for me.

One day I threw up 11 times, which was not normal at all. I felt incredibly dehydrated and so miserable. I may have had a stomach bug combined with the morning sickness because my kids had been sick off and on that week. Either way, I had reached my limit. I asked Nate for a priesthood blessing that night. He was happy to do it, and I felt some comfort afterward, even though I threw up a couple more times that night. At that point I was 12 weeks along, and I typically don't start to get better until closer to 15 or 16 weeks.

To my surprise, I woke up a day later (around 36 hrs after the blessing) feeling almost normal. It was the first time in almost 2 months that I didn't feel instantly nauseous when I got out of bed. I was shocked. Ever since then, I have moments here and there when I feel sick, but it is nowhere near what it was before. Not even close. And I went from throwing up 2-3 times a day to throwing up only 2-3 times in the last entire month.

I know that the blessing I received healed me. I am so thankful that Nate was worthy to give that blessing and that Heavenly Father was aware of me, and showed mercy on me in such a difficult time.