Tuesday, March 22, 2011

First Time for Everything, I Suppose

Dear Pickles,

Things with the pregnancy have been going as expected... that is, until last Friday.  Mommy woke up with a stuffy head and sinus pressure.  For my whole life, I never had to deal with allergies due to pollen or spring time blooms, but through this pregnancy, I've discovered that things change.  Daddy had to take care of mommy on Friday when she got home from work.  I was achy, stuffed up, and just plain miserable.  Daddy was a good sport and waited on mommy hand and foot.  He even missed a party with friends to take care of me.  (He's pretty swell.)

Although the doctor cleared Benadryl as a safe allergy medicine for me to take, I wanted to try to avoid taking any medication if at all possible.   I had daddy take me to the pharmacy to buy a netti pot instead.  What's a netti pot?  Well, my dear, it's a tea pot for your nose.  You fill it up with specially made saline water, pour it through one nostril, and watch all the water come out of your other nostril.




First Time for Everything


The first time mommy tried it, it worked brilliantly.  But as my sinuses got more and more stuffy, it stopped working.  I wish you could have seen mommy and daddy trying to figure out how to use the darn thing.  I thought we were going to drown from all the laughing we were doing at each other.  As one would watch and laugh, the other would laugh and squirt water unfavorably out of their nostril, getting salty nose water everywhere.  Eeeewwww... 

We'll have to show daddy how to have a proper tea party when you get here -- one with real tea and girlie snacks and no nose water.

Love,

Mommy

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Little Miss Active

Dear Pickles,

For the past month, you've been getting stronger.  Ever since my last doctor's appointment, I can feel you move and kick and punch.  In fact, when the nurse tried to listen to your heart beat, the sound of your own heart startled you, and she had to chase you around my tummy with her heart monitor.  It made mommy giggle how feisty her little girl is.

If I am in a trance at work in front of my computer, you remind me that you're there with a little kick to my tummy.  If I lean against the kitchen counter, you try and push me away.  If I roll over too much on one side of my body when I drift off to sleep, you wake me up to let me know that it's time to turn to my other side.  If the band on my maternity pants hits the wrong place, you aren't shy about letting mommy know!

Your daddy has only been able to feel you move a couple of times (and only for a brief second or two).  (I think he's a little jealous that I am able to feel you all the time... But just a little.)  He can't wait for you to get bigger so that he can really feel you move.


A Present for Pickles!

I can't believe how fast time is going by.  Now that I can feel you move around, this pregnancy is starting to feel real.  Before, I only had a tummy to show.  Now I have a tummy that moves on its own.  Soon you will be kicking on the outside of mommy's tummy, and we will get to shower you with kisses.

We are savoring each moment, my sweet little girl.  Continue to practice those kicks.

Love,

Mommy

Friday, March 4, 2011

The Story of Mommy and Daddy

Dear Pickles,

On February 24th, your mommy and daddy celebrated their four-year wedding anniversary.  I told your father that it feels like we've been married a lot longer than that (but in a good way, of course).  You'll probably hear me tell this story to you a lot as you grow up, but here is the story of your mommy and daddy:

In 2004, I began teaching English at Graham High School in Alamance County.   I recently came back from a three year teaching stint in Japan and was starting a new life in North Carolina after all that time.  It was not the easiest transition for me.  I was a new teacher in a new town, and I was all alone.  I taught next door to your Aunt Jeanine with whom I quickly became good friends.  She taught history at the same school, and when she discovered that I was single, she decided to let tell your daddy about me.  I think she even asked him, "So, what do you think of Asian women?"

After Aunt Jeanine described me to your father, they came up with a plan to have him show up at the school during my planning period so that he could check me out.  Completely oblivious to the plan, I showed no interest in your father.  I was simply too stressed and too busy to even notice that he was checking me out.  He showed up once more, on Jeanine's birthday, under the guise of bringing her a birthday gift.  She was conveniently nowhere to be found, so he left the gift with me to give to her.  It was a birthday bag full of Tastey Cakes.  (I thought that was weird.)  Still, your father did not ask me out... and still, your mother had no clue that he was even interested.

In December of 2004, I was hanging out with my best friend, Angela, and she told me that I really needed to make friends in my area.  I told her about your father and how he could potentially be a new friend for me.  She dared me to call him and ask him out.  At first I was resistant, but then she bet me two dollars to do it... so I decided to call your father up and ask him out.  He accepted.

Our first "date" was at your Aunt Jeanine's house.  We went over to help her put Christmas lights on her tree.  While there, your cousin Jake put on a play that he wrote himself.  I don't remember the plot except that it involved a lot of beating up your father.  At one point, your father bent over to pick something up off the floor and bumped his head on a closet door knob.  Later, we all went to downtown Graham to watch the Christmas fireworks.  During the fireworks, your father suggested that we go and grab a bite to eat at Panera's.  On the way to our cars, he slipped and tripped on a curb covered with leaves.  (I started to think that he was a klutz.)

At Panera's, we each ordered a sandwich combo.  I was starving and scarfed down my food.  Your father, on the other hand, barely ate his food.  Despite this awkwardness, we a nice conversation about 80s movies and other things.  I convinced him watch Enemy Mines which he later regretted.  At one point during the meal, your daddy took a bite of his sandwich, made a face, and proceeded to wipe his tongue with a napkin.  Yes, his tongue, not his mouth.  Then, he excused himself to the bathroom.  I thought that was bizarre.

At the end of the night, I thought that your daddy was a nice man, but I had no interest in being his girlfriend.  There was just no spark.  A week later, your daddy called me to see if I was interested in going to the North Carolina Museum of Art to see an exhibit.  I reluctantly agreed to go.  I could tell that your daddy liked me, but I just didn't like him in the same way.  I decided to make the date start early that day, at 11:00 a.m., so that I skip out early and still have my weekend to myself.

When your daddy showed up, he handed me some stapled pieces of paper.  It was a report that he had written, giving me a movie review of Enemy Mines.  He had watched the movie and wanted to impress me with the report, posing as a student.  It was very sweet.  We made our way to the museum and spent a lovely day together.  At the end of the day, I didn't want our date to end, so I invited your daddy to my apartment, and we talked and talked and talked.  This time, he wasn't nervous or acting like a klutz.  He was actually quite charming.  He didn't leave my apartment until close to midnight that night.  After he left, I decided to give him a chance.

Happy Four Years!


Four years later, we are happily married, and I couldn't imagine my life without him.  We celebrated our anniversary with a quiet night at home.  Daddy made me a delicious pork stir fry with broccoli, and mommy prepared fruit for a chocolate fondue dessert.  Over dinner and dessert, we talked about some of our favorite memories of being a couple.  In a way, you were there to share that special day with us.  As my present to daddy, I gave him a picture frame that said, "Family... All because two people fell in love."  I am grateful that we fell in love, and I am grateful that you will be a special part of our little family.

Love,

Mommy 
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