And baby makes three...

On July 30^th, Shelby and I will celebrate our 6^th wedding anniversary. Before we got married we talked about waiting to have kids until we had been married five years. For a really long time, I was good exactly were I was. I wasn’t ready to be anyone’s mom. I liked my husband, my job, and my free time. I was content. Then about year and a half ago, I caught the fever. Baby fever. I blame it on the fact that some of the people I’m closest to were having babies left and right. Hearing what they were experiencing, good and bad, started to tug at me. I wanted to be able to identify; I wanted those experiences. I was ready. But life kept popping up, and while I was ready, it wasn’t part of the plan yet. So I waited, some days patiently, some days not so patiently. I fielded the question often, “So, when are ya’ll gonna have kids?” with a smile on my face and a twinge in my heart. Things were out of my hands, and I had to trust that God’s plan was better than mine.

But if I had to wait, at least I wasn’t going to do it sitting down.

In the last few years, I hadn’t been taking very good care of myself physically. I made lots of excuses. I was busy. I’d start during the summer. I was too stressed. This cake is so good. You get the idea. I weighed more than I ever had in my life. To be honest, I don’t know how big I got. I was too embarrassed to get on the scale. Then, my Dad had a heart attack. It scared me. I am my father’s daughter, genetics and all, and I knew pretty soon I needed to get my weight under control. I decided that if I had to wait to move forward with the life I wanted, I might as well make the life I’ve got better. In January, we joined a gym, and I started dieting. The first time I got on an elliptical, I was pretty sure I was going to die. I barely ran half a mile in 30 minutes, and I was certain I’d either pass out or my heart would explode. Eventually it got better. I started seeing some progress, and when I first weighed in I was about 195 lbs. I’m pretty sure I must have topped off at over 200 lbs, but I’m glad I didn’t see it on the scale. At my doctor’s suggestion I joined Weight Watchers, and that’s when things really started happening. I was alternating running on the elliptical and doing the circuit room 3-4 times a week. I was eating right, thanks to accountability at school and at home. To be honest, it was fun. The week before I found out I was pregnant the scale read 175 lbs. I am the healthiest I’ve ever been in my life. My motivation was simple. I wanted a baby, but I didn’t want a baby and be over 200 lbs. That’s too much for my little frame. While I’ve come to accept that I’ll never be tiny, it was enough for me to know I could put on baby weight and be comfortable.

Jalapenos and corn dogs. That’s how I knew I was pregnant. Let me explain. I hate corn dogs. Ever since the sixth grade science class when Mr. Dawson explained what and how they were made, I have detested all things hot dog.  And yet I wanted a corn dog more than anything. Shelby was thrilled because for the first time in our entire relationship we went to Weinerschnitzel together. I ordered and ate 2 corn dogs. I also wanted whole slices of jalapenos, something I’ve never been able to stomach. Every hamburger I ate for week had jalapenos on it. Needless to say, it was strange. I took a test after we got home from seeing a movie on Sunday, May 15^th. The movie was Bridesmaids; the test was positive.

We held off on telling people until we were sure everything looked good and that the kid was going to stick around. We made a video to tell our parents and siblings, although they all seemed to have guessed it was coming. I walked around the school with a goofy smile on my face, sure at any moment everyone would be able to figure out why I was in such a good mood. Or bad mood, depending on my mood swing! There was a minor drama in which I discovered my OB/GYN was no longer delivering babies. So I was forced to find a new doctor. Thankfully, a good recommendation led to a doctor both Shelby and I like a lot. He took lots of time with us during our first appointment to answer questions. One of my major concerns with a new doctor was that in him not knowing us we would be rushed through. I was relieved to feel like my questions weren’t trivial or silly and knowing as things come up I’ll feel comfortable asking him. It was pretty amazing seeing the first sonogram. I think the baby looks like a gummy bear in the 8 week pictures and more like a baby in the 11 week pictures.

I’ve been feeling really great. Although, this whole pregnancy thing is not all it’s cracked up to be at times. I never really had morning sickness, but that’s not to say I always felt good. There was one day I woke up at 10:30am, was up for an hour and half, took a nap, woke up, then proceeded to take another nap. It felt like jetlag without the fun of getting to travel overseas. I also haven’t been as productive as I hoped to be this summer. But thanks to the second trimester I’ve been able to catch my second wind. I’m cleaning out closets and going through boxes that haven’t seen the light of day in a while, and our attic is finally being put to good use.

I have another appointment next Wednesday and we’ll hopefully know the sex of the baby by the end of August. I’m ready to start buying clothes and to finish decorating the nursery!