The unfortunate end of 2011.... the best year of my life.

Sorry that I have been away from blogging for almost 2 months. I will update on whats been going on but not in this post!

I think that the best way to start out my "Goodbye to 2011" post is to start by pasting in my blog post at the end of 2010. So here it is:

"2010 has, by far, been the most difficult and painful year of my life thus far. Thinking back this year alone we have been through 7 attempted IUIs, a failed IVF w.ICSI and an FET. We have spent tens of thousands of dollars trying to get pregnant. I NEVER in my wildest dreams imagined that I could have such a tough year. The tears I shed in 2010 are uncountable. There was so much hope and so much failure. So much hurt and so much anger. I think that I almost lost myself last year and I know that because of 2010 I will never be the same. I will never be able to think of babies, pregnancy and life the way that I did before. I will never be able to relax and trust that things will work out. I will NEVER take things for granted. When I look back at 2010 I remember the bad, painful things first. Happy memories dont stick out in my mind, I know they happened but I dont think I was an "active"participant.

Just a week after we got our first +HPT I was with a friend and she said to me that she doesnt think she has ever seen me so happy. It occurred to me that I didnt know this friend before we started TTC back in april of 2009. It made me happy that she said this but I really didnt know what she meant. I felt like I did such a good job of pretending to be "ok", pretending to have fun, pretending to live when I didnt feel like I was living at all. I later told Justin what she said and asked him if I was really that different and he said something that broke my heart. He said that he cant remember the last time that he heard me really laugh (sober) and that I was miserable, that he thought that maybe he had lost me (not that I was going anywhere but that I wasnt the person he knew before) and that I seemed to be on autopilot. This absolutely broke my heart. I know that I felt miserable, I know that some days I didnt want to get out of bed or even face anyone and pretend to be ok, I know I felt that way but I didnt know how much it showed. The sad part of all this is that I LOVE TO LAUGH, I love to have fun. I have always been the non-serious type who likes to make people laugh and have fun (maybe too much). I cant believe how unconvincing my performance was, I guess.

Here I am, on december 30th 2011, and I will be 7 weeks pregnant tomorrow. I am so happy and I feel like I am becoming "me" again. I laugh and I mean it, I smile and I mean it, and I live and feel like I am living. In 2011 I want to treasure every moment of this pregnancy because I may never be pregnant again. I want to treasure the friends who stuck by me through the worst year of my life because Im sure I wasnt fun to be around of talk to. I want to LIVE, unafraid and happy.

I am so thankful for the baby that is growing inside of me, the husband who went through this with me, the friends who stood by me, the family that supported me, the girls of the board and bloggers that inspired me and kept me going, and everyone who continues to be here with me. I want 2011 to be the best year of my life."

Reading this makes me realize how right I was. 2010 still sticks out in my mind as the year that changed me forever. Now, most of 2009 was spent trying to conceive but there was so much more hope and so much less pain that year. We were just beginning. While most people would think that 9 months of trying to get pregnant and failing to, even after 5 of those were medicated, would be insanely depressing it really felt like we were still thinking it was just a matter of time and not science and money (which is what it really was).

At the end of 2010 I said that I wanted to enjoy 2011 as much as humanly possible. Let me tell you, I DID! 2011 was the BEST year of my life.

In 2011:
- I was pregnant for almost 7 months
- Gave birth to my miracle baby
- Spent 12 weeks at home being a "stay at home mom" on maternity leave and living every day as a mommy (this time will always be the most special 12 weeks of my life).
- Spent 5.5 months being a mom to an amazing little boy

How could that not be the best year of someone's life?!

When I told my husband that 2011 was the best year ever and I was so sad that it was coming to an end he was a bit surprised. He was surprised that I could enjoy the year so much when physicall I kind of fell apart. The pregnancy was one issue after another, abnormal NT, possible down, polyhydramnios, fetal echo, HUGE bleeding scare, severe preeclampsia, etc. Then came a failed 28 hour induction, c-section, NICU admission, being on mag after delivery and not getting to see my baby. After coming home we got readmitted to childrens. After that came my liver and galbladder issues. Then came the gallbladder removal and its ensuing bought of pleurisy and hospitalization. Then came a possible cysts/mass and hospitalization on christmas. Sounds like a mess doesnt it?

Well, I loved the year anyway. It was all ok because I had my little boy growing inside of me or here in my arms for the entire year. I dont care that all the bad things happened (although it really sucked and I would have prefered to not have them) because I am SO THANKFUL that this year was a MIRACLE. I, unlike many others, got to be pregnant and have my baby this year. I know after all that I have been through how lucky I was. Many people, heck most people, take for granted getting pregnant and having babies. I DONT. I know I was lucky, I got a gift, a wonderful amazing gift. I got to be a mom this year, and for that I will be forever thankful.

I cried at midnight when I saw the big 2012 light up. I am sad to see this year go, cant I stay here forever?! I hope that someday, somehow, I will have another year like this. One where I get to be pregnant and bring another miracle into this world. It wont be the same as this time.... it wont have the impact that this one did, but I hope it happens again somehow.