We’re Expecting! + More Announcements

| Allison

Hello friends!

YOU GUYS, I’M PREGNANT, AHH! *beams* I’ve been keeping this a secret for a few months, but since everything is going well and we found out the gender + got pictures, I’m finally ready to make this post. I am SO excited to share my pregnancy journey thus far.

I also have some blog-related announcements at the end of the post, so basically, this is an important post to read. 🙂 Let’s get into it!

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I have to start by showing my li’l baby bump. 🙂 My friend Aria took these pictures after Megan & Harrison’s wedding, so my belly has grown slightly since then. I’m currently 25 weeks along so I still have a ways to go. But I’m really enjoying the journey so far!

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Sully and I are THRILLED to welcome our new addition to the family, due at the end of August. (Sully *is* excited, despite his expression in this picture, haha.) Let me back up and share a bit of our story so far…

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Sully and I wanted to wait 1-2 years before introducing pregnancy into our new marriage, and I’m so grateful it worked out that way. A few days before Christmas 2023, I decided to take a pregnancy test to both check together. We’d been planning for a baby, but I hadn’t had any of the usual symptoms so we didn’t know what the result would be. Seeing “pregnant” on that digital screen was… surreal. We both got a little teary-eyed, Sully felt overwhelmed at first, and I was immediately filled with joy.

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We decided to keep it secret for a bit longer since Megan and Harrison had just gotten engaged and we didn’t want to steal their moment or anything. Finally, on New Year’s Day, we got together with Dad’s side of the family and shared the news. I asked to take a picture of everyone and instead took a video while saying “1…2…3… Allison’s pregnant!” That video frame is like my favorite photo of the year. :’D We had Sully’s family over for nachos a few nights later and they were also elated at my “cheesy” announcement, haha.

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The 8-week ultrasound was a relief since at that point I still didn’t feel that pregnant. I didn’t really have morning sickness (so thankful!) and while I had a lot of fatigue in my first trimester, it didn’t start until later on. So getting a picture of our tiny baby and watching the heartbeat was wonderful. I even painted the ultrasound to hang in the nursery later. ❤ (And I added custom sonogram art to my shop here!)

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I DEFINITELY wanted to find out the gender – I can’t fathom not knowing for 40 weeks! I was really, really hoping for a girl the whole time; I just pictured the baby being a “she” and raising a firstborn girl like I am. The anatomy scan was a bit stressful since Sully’s work ran late and he almost missed the appointment, but everything turned out fine and we found out that our baby is a…

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…GIRL! To say I was happy is an understatement. :’) And honestly I was just relieved to “know” my baby a little bit more; it made my bond stronger. Especially because now we know her name! Sully and I had picked several baby names early in marriage (and even while dating), so it wasn’t a hard decision. We’re sharing the first name but keeping the middle name a surprise for now, so… here’s a picture of me and little Sophia!

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I’ve been blessed with a very easy, healthy pregnancy so far. I’m incredibly grateful to be surrounded by tons of support and excitement from family and friends. It’s also a little bittersweet, though, since I’m close to people who struggle with infertility. Knowing that my happiness unintentionally brings a measure of hurt to others breaks my heart. The best I know to do is pray and learn to hold joy in one hand and sadness in the other. I feel like that’s an essential but difficult part of being human.

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I can feel her little kicks now (I just felt one as I’m writing) and am very aware of the privilege of carrying a little human inside of me. I’m looking forward to sharing plenty of baby things with you over the next few months – setting up our nursery, things I’ve learned or enjoyed during pregnancy, and of course plenty of cute baby pictures later this year. Let me know if you have specific post requests on this topic!

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I also have other milestones to share – this photoshoot was multipurpose. I turned 24 on May 8th, and Sully and I will celebrate our 2nd anniversary next week on the 22nd. Its been a wonderful two years, and honestly feels like longer than that; living with my best friend is so normal now, but in such a lovely way. I’m looking forward to watching Sully become the best girl dad. He’s already been so cute and helpful with making sure I get plenty of rest, bringing me hot tea in the evenings, and generally taking good care of both me and Sophia. 🙂

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This month also marks my 10-year blog anniversary! Guys, can you believe it?! It’s insane how much has happened since 14-year-old Allison made her first post on A Farm Girl’s Life. For ten years, blogging has been an integral part of my life, friendships, free time, and personal growth. I’ve made lasting friendships, learned a ton about writing and photography, been given incredible opportunities, and have gotten to know YOU, my wonderful readers. 🙂 I am so grateful for your support and engagement!

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However… as I’m sure you understand, this year marks a new era of my life with significantly more responsibility and less time. It doesn’t make sense to force hours into a hobby that can be a lot of work. So my plan from now on is to keep sharing posts (I’d miss blogging too much to give it up!), but in a less scheduled way. This means there won’t be a post every week – unless I feel like it. It will be nice not churn out posts whether I have something to share or not. And there are always hundreds of old posts to scroll through in my archives if you need something to read on Fridays. 🙂 I hope you guys will come along for the ride!

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And that… is all I have to say right now, haha. An enormous thank you once again to all of you guys for being such a huge part of my life for the past 10 years. I’m looking forward to sharing the next 10 with you, however that might look. 🙂

Was my pregnancy announcement a surprise to you or not? Has anyone been following this blog since the beginning?

Thanks so much for reading, my friends, and have a lovely day!

***Allison***

89 thoughts on “We’re Expecting! + More Announcements”

  2. Not a surprise, but the gender and name were!!!! How fun! A girl. I love her name too! I’m really happy for you and Sully and your entire family. Sending a big hug!

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  3. Congratulations Allison & Sully! Allison, I’ve been reading your blog for a number of years now, not sure when I started but I’ve always enjoyed your stories, your creativity and beautiful photography! Thank you for sharing all that you have over the years, Its been a pleasure to get a glimpse of your life and that of your family and friends! I travelled through parts of Virginia en route to Pennsylvania and New York State with my partner Robert back in 2014 on a road trip (wow I can’t believe it was 10 years ago, time has gone too fast!) which was part of a 4 week holiday for us (we live in Busselton which is a beachfront city on the coast of Western Australia) and we loved it! Now from this post, I discover that we share a birthday in common which I wasn’t really surprised to learn ☺️ I turned 60 on 8 May so I’m probably closer in age to your mum, however I still feel about 27 and actually it’s all in your attitude as age really is just a number! I see lots of Taurean traits in your creativity and personality, especially loving nature and animals – that is definitely who we are! Anyway I just wanted to share this with you and I wish you all the best and every happiness in your journey to motherhood and I look forward to your blogs continuing😊 Warmest wishes, Angelika

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    1. Angelika, thank you so much for that lovely comment! I enjoy getting to know my readers and it was fun to get to hear from a long time follower. Thank you for your encouragement and how fun that we share a birthday and some favorite things! ❤️

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  4. I had seen this on your shop already but YAY IM SO EXCITED FOR YOU 😁😁😁 Sophia is an adorable name for a little girl. (Soph or Phia would both be such cute nicknames!) I’m so excited to see the pregnancy/motherhood content! 🤍🤍

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    1. Hehe THANK YOU! Yes we’ve been talking about nicknames and I keep thinking of Soph and Sully thinks Opie would be cute. XD It’s adorable but always makes me think of Opie from Andy Griffith who’s obviously a boy, haha. Anyway, thank you again!

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  6. Awww!! Congrats this is so exciting! I’m a fairly new follower of your blog (in the last 6 months I’d say) but it’s been a joy to read your posts!! Praying for a healthy baby and a beautiful new season of life! < 33

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  8. HI Allison! I haven’t been following for ten years, more like 3 or 4 but I’ve gotten to see your relationship announcement, engagement announcement, wedding pictures and now baby announcement! So happy and excited for you! Also sad that you won’t be posting as frequently as I LOVE your posts, but I totally understand why you are making this decision. It is the best for you. ❤

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    1. That is so sweet to hear you’ve been following me through my recent big life events. It’s crazy how much has happened in the past 3 years, let alone 10! Aww I really appreciate that you love my posts but are so understanding. ❤️

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  10. This is so exciting! I’m only sixteen, but I am so looking forward to getting married and having kids, and this post definitely added to that excitement haha

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  11. Congratulations, Allison!! ❤️ So exciting! I just had my first baby at the end of January, a girl, and we named her Sophia! Now I’m dying to know if they have the same middle name. 😂

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  13. CONGRATULATIONS🥹 So, so, so excited for all things baby/mothering/pregnancy related!! It’s fun seeing someone who you’ve followed for a long time, doing all the cool milestones🤍

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      1. You’re very welcome🤍 I am sure it is super neat to have most, if not all, of your major life milestones recorded!! As a new blogger and fairly young, I haven’t had many milestones yet, but I am excited for when they do come!

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  14. What beautiful news Allison! There is so much more knowledge about pregnancy than when I was pregnant with my daughter in 1968. We lived in a little burg in Germany and I was one of the many women who were pregnant. There wasn’t a pee test then so you had to wait until you saw your doc and you did not know the gender until the arrival! It is a special time and “feeling” baby is so lovely! Much happiness to you and your honey and the tiny one! Looking forward to this adventure and Mom, you look amazing…so does Dad!

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    1. Thank you for the sweet comment and for sharing your story. That sounds like a lot of hard waiting, haha! Yes this is definitely such a special time. ❤️ Aww thank you!

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  15. Oh yay, Allison and Sully!! I have been waiting for this post for a long time…:) Sophia is a beautiful name! God is so good.

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  16. Congratulations! Wishing you many blessings with your new little family! I’ve followed for a few years and love your photography and beautiful word art. I always enjoy your posts and outlook on life. Glad you are still going to post some!

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  17. Yay! I was hoping this was the surprise you hinted at the last post! Congratulations to you and Sully! Sophia is such a pretty name! Happy belated birthday, Allison! Haha, my comment has a lot of exclamation marks-can’t help it! 😉

    I’m glad you and the baby are healthy, and will pray that continuess. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding anniversary and the 10 year anniversary of your blog! May God continue to bless you, Allison!

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  19. I have to say I was expecting (pun intended lol) this post for the last couple…. but that’s just because the timing in my head is exactly what I’m hoping for someday!!! Congratulations and your little Sophia bump is darling. I can’t wait to see how she fits into your family on the outside too.

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  23. .I’ve been reading your blog for 10 years and have enjoyed everyone. You are such a good writer and I love your photography too. I can hardly wait to meet Sophia. Gram

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    1. Hehe you were probably one of my first followers. 🙂 Thanks for always reading my posts, Gram! Sophia is going to have such a good great-grandmother. ❤️

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  24. Oh wow congratulations – this is SO exciting!! Sophia is such a pretty name 😊 I first came across your blog a couple of years ago when I saw your 100 questions for your pen pal post and I’ve always really enjoyed your content! I hope and pray this next season is filled with much love and joy for you and your family! God bless ❤️

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  26. Congratulations Allison and Sully/ We are so happy for you, It is a dream come true for you.

    Happy Birthday year of happiness and blessings. Allison take it easy. GodBless you,Sully and Cophia.

    Happy Sunday

    Marilyn,Joan and Marion

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  29. Congratulations on such wonderful news! Your excitement and joy shine through in every word of your post. It’s heartwarming to hear about your journey, from the moment you found out to now knowing little Sophia’s name. Wishing you a continued smooth and healthy pregnancy, surrounded by love and support from your family and friends. Your thoughtful consideration of others’ struggles is truly admirable. Here’s to a bright future filled with happiness and blessings for your growing family! 🎉👶🌟

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  32. I love the little baby bump 🤭🥰. And I’m so happy for you.

    I just got married recently and hoping to be a mother too.

    I pray that God protects you during this journey. Do share with us how it all goes

    Congratulations, ma’am🎊🎉

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  36. Congratulations! Your blog post just popped up on my Explore page and I couldn’t pass it over without sending my best wishes to you, your family, and your baby girl. My son will turn 2 in August, and reading this blog post does reminisce me about the time when I found out being pregnant with him. All the best with your mommy-to-be journey. And Also, 10 years blogging – I personally find it amazing. I just started blogging a few months ago and hope that I can keep it up just like you have done. Thanks for your graceful vibe. Have a nice day!

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  41. Oh my goodness, congratulations!!!!! I am SO happy for you both! You are going to be the best mama to baby Sophia! 🙂 You’re already glowing from the joy!

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  42. How precious. Congratulations to you both my love. Sophia is such a beautiful name. I’m so happy for you. I pray God blessings on the 3 of you & that you, my dear Allison have a beautiful & peaceful remainder of your pregnancy, followed by a stress free birth. Xx

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