The Night a Miracle Happened

Imagine my excitement right now: I bartend during a very busy, somewhat chaotic 7-hour shift and feel the hollowness in my stomach growing, the ache in my head becoming stronger, and the aversion to every smell wafting out of the kitchen making my gag reflex act up. I sigh, envisioning myself where I’ve already been at the end of a night like this… finally home, hunched over the toilet, emptying my stomach of all of the bland and far-from-nutritious grub I managed to get down throughout the afternoon. Then reminding myself to grin and bear it because there’s a miracle happening inside my uterus right now and this is just a temporary sacrifice.

This is how I like to imagine myself when I'm feeling vulnerable. Rainbows make everything better.

I knew I was going to swing by the Taco Bell on the corner the second I peeled out of the parking lot. Those chicken gorditas were calling my name and I obliged. As I sat down at the kitchen table to dig in, I wondered just how long I’d be able to go before it would all come back up. I started to not even enjoy the taste of the delicious Mountain Dew I treated myself to.

But then something happened. I managed to finish the second gordita I was convinced I would need considering how many hours I had gone without ingesting a single thing. Another swig of Mountain Dew. It tasted better. I stood up and realized my stomach was full, and my head ceased to ache. And I actually felt more… alive. I gave myself extra points for being able to swallow the horse pill of a prenatal vitamin without gagging. A BLOODY MIRACLE INDEED!

Ok, I realize that this blog went from being about my move to Ohio to refinishing furniture and living in a rented home to cooking and now I'm talking about purging rainbows and I've completely lost focus. I blame the hormones. Be prepared for more randomness as the months go on. I don't know if that counts as a warning or a guarantee. Probably both.

and a HAPPY new year

There have been many, many moments in the past few weeks that I've wanted to update this blog. But alas, I decided to log my thoughts and wait...

It goes without saying that the holidays are a very busy time, and that certainly held true in our household. For one, we received some positive and exciting news right around the time that I posted last. News that has officially changed the course of all of our lives (for the better). What could it be? I'll give you a hint...

Two days later was Ev's 25th birthday, and I wanted to surprise him with a sweet little announcement. I wasn't going to be popping out of any cakes, so this had to suffice...

But it turns out hubby's intuition is much stronger than I gave him credit for and he suspected something the night before when he asked me point blank if I was pregnant. I couldn't contain my smile.

Then as we prepared for Christmastime festivities, including the arrival of Ev's grandparents and my mom and grandma, I wanted to come up with a creative way to break the news. What better time than Christmas to announce the pending addition of a new family member? I set to work...

Gotta love some good ol' arts and crafts time. I went to Michael's and picked up the plaster ornaments for less than $.50 a piece, as well as the wooden stamps and ink pad. And since Michael's is always having sales, everything came to under $20. Seeing the reaction on grandma and great grandma-to-be's faces after a long day of traveling? Priceless.

Christmas came and went, and after a slight delay due to our first winter storm, we saw the relatives off and slowly started to regain some normalcy. No more gift buying, cooking and preparing, or running around. The daily hustle calms down, the outside grows colder, darker... it's time to relax and renew.

On New Year's Eve morning another amazing thing happened. I received confirmation that I do, indeed, have another little heart beating inside me...

Yes, that little pixelated blip is our nugget. And that extra little something on the right side? A heart. With a beat. I'm in love. And in August this new momma's gonna get one hell of a 25th birthday present. I can't wait.

Here's to an amazing 2013!