The Familiar Anticipation

One of the first pictures Aaron and I ever took together. :)

I've recently been reflecting on the parallels of this time of my life with another. Four years ago during this same time, I was anticipating a meeting with Aaron. See, we had started emails and phone chats more than a year before we actually got to see each other in person (I hadn't seen him since before I moved away to LA for college.) During the summer of 2006, Aaron sent me an email saying that he would be deployed to the middle east for 6 months that fall. At the same time, I was finishing up my final semester at Azusa Pacific. We both had important things to accomplish. From September to March, I hung on every word from every phone call and every word from every email. I didn't know how life would turn out, but I trusted everyday that God had a divine plan.


I had struggled through some things from my past through college and found it difficult to comprehend if reconnecting with the man I would soon marry could really be happening right then. But it was! I graduated from Azusa in December of 2006 and moved back home with my parents. I got a good job that I enjoyed and continued to stay in touch with Aaron...knowing that I was falling in love with him, but not certain of his intentions. In January of 2007, I planned a trip out east to attend my college roommate Julie's wedding. I talked this over with Aaron because I knew it'd be a great opportunity to see him since he was stationed at Andrews AFB. So I booked my flight into DC with plans to visit Aaron and attend my girlfriend's wedding with him as my guest in Pennsylvania.


Aaron returned from his deployment in early March, but I still had to wait to reunite with him until June 1. I remember the months that followed feeling long and I was anxious, but now it seems like a blur! June came and I still remember the moment I walked off the plane and saw him: khaki shorts, flip flops and his striped blue polo. For the record, he can still recall what I was wearing, too. I knew this trip would define our relationship and it did. Aaron told me that he was in love with me and I moved out to DC that August to be closer to him. We were engaged 7 months later and married 13 months after we were reunited on that hot, humid day in early June. Yes, we planned our wedding in 4 months!


Now I sit here realizing that in a similar timeline, we anticipate the meeting of our precious son. It's March 25 and he's due to arrive in early June. I can't help but smile as I realize God's sense of humor in all of this. I actually love it. And I love my life with Aaron and the blessing of our son. I am so thankful for how things have turned out and I look forward to growing in patience (yet again!) over these final two months.

Write a Book?

I reconnected with a friend from my past the other day and discovered that she's pregnant with a boy and due just a few weeks before me. It's times like this that I LOVE Facebook! We started talking about our pregnancy experiences and also realized that we've had a very similar journey. So we joked about writing a book that we'd title, "The No BS Book about Pregnancy." What do you think? Maybe I should google that one to make sure no one else has come up with the same genius idea. Please know that I write this post with a VERY light heart as I recount the past 7 (approx.) months and realize that no matter what, I am SO BLESSED to be carrying this precious little baby! But let me give you a few reasons why I think a book like this would be funny and encouraging for first time pregnant mamas who thought those 9 months would be sweet, beautiful and perhaps even glamorous (wishful thinking!). Maybe if I'd had a book like this, I would have accepted much earlier that I was pretty normal rather than abnormal (ha!). A lot of these things MOST women just do not talk about! But leave it to me (of course) to be shame free!:

1. Morning sickness is not just for the morning. You can have it anytime, all day!

2. Leaking boobs are not just for breast-feeding mamas. Oh no, that can begin much earlier.

3. One word: CONSTIPATION!

4. And another that quite possibly follows: Hemorrhoids. Oh yeah, nice.

5. Gas that comes out either end or often both at the same time! Your husband never thought you had it in you.

6. Passing out. It can happen anytime, anywhere. But I don't recommend throwing up all over your neighbor's living room right after you come back to. Ugh. (But I DO recommend having really sweet friends who don't hold it against you!)

7. Dizzy spells. It easily makes you want to throw up just watching someone turn in a circle.

8. Seriously MESSED UP eye sight! If you have 20/20 vision before pregnancy, enjoy it while it lasts! Though it often returns back to normal once the baby is born (so i'm told.)

9. Discovering that even your stretchy sports bra no longer fits. I never thought I'd have to "stuff" myself into something...if you're catching my drift. Wow, I almost can't decide if I might actually be excited about this!

10. Last, but not least, my personal "favorite." You might pee a little in your pants everytime you sneeze. Just sayin'.

So I have others I could list, but I thought I'd keep it to the "Top 10" for now. Thankfully I can laugh about most of these things now. Pregnancy is such a unique experience that I would go back and do again because I love my kid so much! Though let me be real folks, I won't be begging to do it again anytime too soon!

28 Weeks...Frustration!

Today I had an OB appointment that didn't quite turn out how I had hoped! First, I did my glucose test which was actually nowhere near as exciting as I thought it'd be (ha!) Instead of peaking my interest, I was left with an awful tummy ache for most of the day. That stuff is
S-U-G-A-R-Y! Yuck! But i'm really not worried about my results. Then I met with the OB who is disappointed in my weight gain. Ugh. What's new? I've only gained 9 lbs. to date. I know what some reading this might be thinking...."Celebrate it!" "Feel lucky!" Because these are a few of the comments i've already heard. But the reality is it isn't good! Either end of the spectrum isn't good whether it's gaining too much weight or too little. I've just really struggled with pregnancy. I was sick for 24 whole weeks! Somtimes so sick I couldn't get out of bed. The doctor said this is why I haven't gained enough. Really....you think?!? But then why must doctors make you feel "abnormal" about it?? Now i'm just venting my frustration. The good news is that she measured me and said our boy is measuring spot on. So perhaps I haven't gained weight, but it seems that he has! Praise God. He must have been thinking, "Don't make my mommy feel bad" because as soon as she put her hand on my stomach to check his heart rate, he gave her a nice kick! Don't get me wrong though, all of my OB's are wonderful so i'm really not taking this personal. I know she's just trying to make sure we're all healthy over here! They're gonna check me again at 32 weeks and possibly order an ultrasound (if I still haven't gained much more weight) just to make sure things are ok. So we will be praying A LOT about this between now and then! But like I said, I think he's completely fine.

On the up-side, we got our stroller today and it ROCKS! We went with the UppaBaby Vista. I won't go on and on about all the millions of reasons why we love this stroller, but feel free to look it up if you're curious! And we were super excited to find a 2010 version instead of the 2011, so we did NOT pay $700 for our's! We paid half that. Yeah! I can't believe the price difference between the two and the features are completely the same. The major reason we love this stroller is because of its bassinet feature. Our little guy will not have the luxury of having a nursery (our place is a very small one bedroom!) so he will be sleeping next to our bed in the bassinet for a few months until we can get into a bigger place. Yes, a small place, but our hearts have so much love for this kid and that's all he needs!

Showered with so much love!

The planners: Charlie, Chel and Brigitte
Girls just wanna have fun! Monique, baby Arianna, Anne, Brigitte, Chel, me, Charlie, Rebecca, baby Asa and Michelle :)
That friend you see on the far left looking so innocent holding her baby?! She shoved that cupcake in my face. Mmmmhmmmm!

How cute is this?!?

Seriously! Where do I even begin to share about all the FUN we had! I'm always thankful for the amazing girlfriends I have, but it's also overwhelming at times...in a good way! These girls are like sisters! Charlie, Chelsea and Brigitte planned this amazing shower for me and my boy. Charlie and Chel are both elementary school teachers - Can you tell? Brigitte is a graphic designer. They are so creative! The thing I love is that I look at this group of women and realize that the story I share with each of them is nothing short of an act of God. I met each of them in such unique ways. That never happens by accident! I feel soooooooo blessed!

Just Wondering...

How does a pregnant lady go from looking like this to THIS in a matter of about 1.5 weeks?! Amazing! This kid is GROWING! I was really hungry when Aaron took this picture and sometimes that makes my tummy look larger, but now it just sounds like i'm making excuses for my "large load." :) I'm almost 27 weeks and feeling pretty good. Thank goodness the second half of pregnancy seems much better for me than the first!