It's a boy...

...Although it turned out different than expected. On Friday afternoon, I went in for my routine ultrasound only to find out the baby did not have a heartbeat. We were shocked, as anyone would be. Shortly after, the shock was replaced with peace, knowing God's love for us and the reality of the Plan of Salvation. We are comforted by our Temple covenants and the promise and blessing of an eternal family, as long as we are faithful. The 24 hours that followed the ultrasound were filled with fear of the unknown, shock, sadness, joy, and gratitude. I was 21 weeks along, though they suspected the baby had been gone for quite some time. My body needed medicine to jump start labor so I could deliver the baby. After two trips to the hospital, the perfectly formed baby boy was delivered Saturday afternoon. We were amazed with the creation of life. We are unsure of the cause of death but he looked perfect. He weighed only 4 ounces and was 6 3/4 inches long. They guessed him to be about 16 or 17 weeks in size but they can't be sure. All went well with everything and I was able to come home last night. The hospital was excellent. The older nurse in the picture, Paula, reminded me of my mom and she was such a comfort to me. She saw me Friday night when I first went in and she was able to trade patients so she could be with me on Saturday. Corinna, the other nurse in the picture was also fantastic. I was well taken care of and the experience was better due to the wonderful people helping us. Heavenly Father was surely answering our prayers and giving us the comfort we needed. The nursing staff made little molds of his feet, footprints and gave us some other mementos and the hospital will take some pictures. I'm sure they will turn out better than ours. We are so grateful that death isn't the end and that we have been blessed with 3 healthy and beautiful children. There was a reason for this and we know our testimonies will be strengthened. Our faith in God and His eternal plan has already helped us and will continue to help us and we go through this trial together as a family. Please feel free to talk to me about it or ask questions. I really don't want this to be kept quiet. We believe this special little boy is a part of our family and we will have a chance to raise him someday. I think being open about everything will help me deal with the sadness that will definitely be a part of this healing process.