Friday, August 16, 2013

what i did on my summer vacation

Sometimes life has a way of sneaking up on you, changing your plans, and blowing your mind.

For most of my adult life, I have had pretty much zero interest in having kids. Don't get me wrong-- there are a lot of kids out there I really like, and a few that I absolutely love. My closest friends also happen to be amazing mothers and people I greatly respect. In fact, the vast majority of Joe's and my friends are parents of pretty awesome children and yet, still, the desire to be a mom never really overcame me. I have always gotten a ton of joy and satisfaction from my work, my loved ones, my ample amounts of personal time and freedom to do what I want, when I want, and where I want.

A couple years ago, things changed a little. Joe and I both started feeling that maybe we did, in fact, want a family. So, we planned on trying.... in the "near future." And then the "near future" got delayed, over and over again. Around my 40th birthday at the end of March, we decided that if we couldn't figure out when to TRY to get pregnant, maybe this whole kid thing wasn't really want we wanted. And so we decided to own the fact that we were kid-free and we liked it that way.

And then 2 days after our 10-year wedding anniversary celebration in mid June, we found out we were pregnant. And we were-- we ARE-- thrilled. Go figure.

I guess the universe had different ideas about our "plans."

























People continually ask if this was planned, if we'd been trying for awhile. The answers are no and no. But it wasn't entirely a shock either.

This is the part of the blog post where your personal beliefs about life and spirituality may conflict with mine and that's perfectly okay. I'm just sharing MY experience here, so do with it what you will.

Back on May 28th, while I was sitting in my basement, multi-tasking with media, (ie: watching tv and working on my laptop at the same time), I was suddenly overcome with a feeling-- a knowing-- so strong, I wrote it down in my planner. It was all about my relationship with Joe, about what we are working on in this life together, and the reasons we are together. And the last line of what I wrote was "We're meant to have a family."

I sat and stared at those words for a few minutes and then, out loud, said "Okay, if that's what's meant to happen, I'll be open to it, but I need some things to be in place to feel safe." And then I listed off my parameters, (I need to have a healthy pregnancy and baby, I need to not be traumatized by this whole experience, etc. You know, the usual.)

We conceived the next day.

I'm happy to say I've had a very uneventful pregnancy so far-- no morning sickness, no debilitating exhaustion, no cravings, no complications. However, it hasn't been a walk in the park either. My emotions have been, in a word, CRAZY. My digestion has totally changed, and not in a good way. I have been able to successfully exercise much of the time and yet, I am gasping for breath when I walk up a flight of stairs. This was shocking at first since I don't even have a baby bump yet, but apparently it's normal due to all the extra blood my body's making and trying to circulate. Crazy.

The hardest part, however, has been all the worrying. Despite the fact that everything has looked normal since day one, and my doctor has reassured me over and over and over again that I am very healthy, my fears of something horrible happening have been absolutely debilitating at times. It's been an incredibly eye-opening experience, and I don't like it. I don't want to be this person who is afraid of every little thing that could go wrong all the time. It sucks the joy out of every single moment. And, so that is my mission now-- to figure out how to have a little more trust, a little more faith that things are okay.

For now, though, I'm just going to focus on this photo.





















(PS- I promise to be back soon with work related photos and stories! And travel! There's lots of that coming up. Stay tuned...)

17 comments:

Shannon Oslick said...

omg omg omg Clare that is so amazing! I am so thrilled for you two! So incredible the feeling you had the night before. This is just great! Yay!

nicole said...

Congratulations! I am sorry you are feeling worried, but alas I think it is our first 'test' as parents ... I am 6 1/2 weeks away from our first little one and while, knock wood, things look great, I still have those little fears and worries ... I think it is 'normal' and all part of the experience. Best of luck with it all, and hope you enjoy these next months leading up to the birth of your sweet bebe!

Libby said...

Oh Clare this is wonderful! Love you!

Paola Thomas said...

OMG. Congratulations! That's fabulous, fabulous news. So happy for you both. (Oh and babies are surprisingly resilient and tough little creatures).

AmyRuth said...

I am so thrilled that the universe or God or whatever you like to call it agreed with your heart and body all at the same time. I think Big Bird would say that is cooperation. :") Blessing and peace to you all over from you pretty little noggin to the tips of your toes. :") and I just know everything is so exciting. Enjoy the journey.

Amy Schleider

Molly said...

Congratulations, Clare! It's a wonderful, wonderful ride - thrilling, scary, emotional, physical, maybe the biggest thing you will ever do. I am so happy for you! You can do it!

P.S. I was never a kid person, either, and then a switch suddenly flipped and we decided to try. Now I can't imagine myself without June. Pretty amazing...

Joan Leonard said...

Clare & Joe, I LOVE your beautiful story! This baby really wants to be your child. I am deeply, lovingly happy for your excitement and happiness, now and for the years to come. Joy!

Marilyn said...

Congratulations, Clare. I'm so happy for you. Wishing you much joy & love.

Jeanne said...

Aw, I love this post! And I totally relate. I never wanted kids until I met Jeff. And then I thought, wow, I do want a kid. And it's been an amazing journey. Hang in there and try not to worry too much (I know that's hard). Hooray and congratulations!!

Brooke (Crackers on the Couch) said...

Congratulations! It's OK to be worried. It never ends, really. Being a parent is a funny ol' thing. Inexpressible happiness mingled with worry, a smidge of frustration with a big ol' dollop of pride on top. I did have complications with my pregnancies, lots and varied, but the both came out fine in the end! You can do it!

Jenn said...

congrats!!!

Anonymous said...

Holy WOW! That is HUGE news?! Congratulations to the both of you!

Maggie's Desserts said...

Wonderful news! Congrats :D

Mary @ Sifting Focus said...

Clare, I am so very happy for you! And nothing you shared about the evening you received such a strong message that you were meant to have a family sounds strange to me. The Universe speaks to us all the time, it's just that a lot of the time we're not listening. And try as much as possible to not "overly" worry. (A little worry is natural.) Worry never changes a thing except robbing us of our joy. Just as things played out beautifully to bring you this child, the Universe will have your back as you give birth and raise your baby. I'm wishing you all good things!

Jann said...

Hey,Clare~what great news! so very happy for both of you!

Raleigh said...

Awesome!

annelies said...

Very exciting Clare! Also, I really resonated with being open to the opportunity and it happening the next day.