Maya has an Announcement!!

MAYA'S GOING TO BE A BIG SISTER!!! We found out the day before my birthday that we're expecting Baby #2! What a birthday present!! I had been only slightly suspicious that I might be pregnant, but denial had set in a bit and hushed my rational self. Just last week, I got online and checked into signing up for a mini-triathlon. I'd been working out with a trainer and trying desperately to shed pounds and get my "old body" back. For whatever reason, while I was reading the specifics about the triathlon, I clicked on the medical information. I felt compelled to check on their policy regarding dropping out of the race for "medical reasons" (pregnancy, specifically). What I found was that the competitor would basically be out of luck, taken off the roster, and not issued a refund. I decided that just to be safe, I would wait for a week, make sure I wasn't pregnant, then I would sign up. In the meantime, I kind of forgot about that whole incident. The week of my birthday, every morning I would wake up, get out of bed, and within 3 minutes, I would be drenched in sweat. I jokingly said to Will, "I think I'm going through menopause... I keep getting all these hot flashes!" We would laugh about it, but I really wondered why my temperature was so out of whack every morning! Also, that same week, I bet I had 4 different conversations with people about when we were going to start trying for baby #2. They would usually go like this:
Person: So, when do you think you guys will start trying for another baby?
Me: We're not sure.
Person: How much space do you want between Maya and the next baby?
Me: THAT'S what we can't figure out. We're thinking 2-3 years, but we're not sure!

Guess what? Now, we don't have to worry about it!! The age spacing has been decided for us, and we don't have to take responsibility for that decision! I worry about having them too close together. I don't want either of them to feel short-changed. At the same time, I'm really excited about it, because there's a good chance that they'll be best of friends. I'm due on Christmas Eve 2008, so that will put them 19 months apart. Two babies in diapers, two babies in cribs, and one exhausted mother trying to keep up with a busy toddler and a newborn! It's going to be fun!! (Feel free, if not compelled, to come over and help at any time with anything. I promise, I will never turn down the offer.)

In the above picture, Maya's shirt says, "I'm going to be a BIG SISTER!", and she's holding the baby's ultrasound picture. We decided to wait to tell our family until Maya and I made our trip back to Iowa on May 12th. Maya wore her little t-shirt to surprise everyone with our secret. It was funny how long it took people to notice the shirt, then to see how long it took them to figure it out... well, it was pretty funny. I thought I would die with anticipation, sitting silently, waiting for someone, ANYONE, to read the shirt and figure it out! Once they got it, everyone was very excited. Will's sister, Tara, was the funniest. She looks at Maya, then looks at me and goes, "So, does that mean... I mean, are you? Now?" Hahaha... I said yes, and she goes, "Well, I didn't know if it meant soon or just sometime in the future!" It was really funny. My dad totally didn't get it. My stepmom and two littlest brothers saw the shirt, got it, and started congratulating and hugging me. My dad looked really puzzled and said, "WHAT?!" Everyone was like, "SHE'S GOING TO HAVE A BABY!" Overall, it was a really fun way to tell everyone. It was extremely difficult to keep the secret for so long, though.

There were people I told right away, though. I called my mom that night and said, "Oh, I forgot to tell you something about Maya." This is at like 11pm in Iowa. She goes, "What's that?" I said, "She's going to be a big sister." My mom responds very quietly, "Are you serious?" I lost it. I started jumping around the room, shouting "yes!" and "Maya's going to be a big sister!" My mom started screaming on the other end, "Oh my gosh...!!" She was so excited. Two days later, there was a gathering with a bunch of my friends, and I told all of them, too. They were all very shocked and excited for us. I also called my dad in Arizona, brother in Illinois, and close friends near Detroit, Eric and Mary. They were all very excited for us to have another baby. For the most part, everyone said that they were totally surprised, that was caught them off guard, that they weren't expecting to hear that news. My only response was, "So are we!" I was actually on birth control pills when we conceived this baby! My cycles had been totally screwed up since we had Maya, and I had NO IDEA when my last period was. Beings as I am a nurse, one would assume that I would know this information. Believe me, I felt REALLY stupid not knowing! I had no way to try to figure out my due date or anything! I was totally clueless. I thought it had been awhile, but I couldn't remember how long. I've never written it down! I've never had a reason to. Prior to having Maya, my cycle ran like clockwork. Believe me, it felt very odd saying "I don't have any idea" when my family and friends would ask my due date!

This pregnancy has proved to me that, ultimately, I am not the one who's in control of my life. We certainly weren't planning on having a baby by the end of this year, but obviously, God had other plans. I can't express how grateful and joyful I am about this pregnancy. As I said before, I no longer have to stress over how much time is the right amount of time to put between our babies, nor do I have any reason to feel guilty over "short-changing" either of our kids. I have complete confidence that everything will work itself out, and nobody will be short-changed in the process. It's interesting how different I feel about this pregnancy than I felt about my pregnancy with Maya. Since Maya followed my miscarriage, I was terrified to be pregnant again. I was very nervous about carrying her through the first trimester, and really, my nerves didn't settle until I could feel her moving around regularly. With this baby, it's totally different. I feel like this baby is a total gift from God, that He brought this baby to life, and I can't believe that it would be possible that He would take this baby that He is ultimately responsible for, away from me. Since I feel that God is responsible for this pregnancy, I have an incredible feeling of peace, that everything will be okay. It's quite wonderful to feel at ease, especially during the first trimester. It's a feeling that I'm really not used to! This pregnancy has been such a surprise and a blessing to our family. We are so very excited to meet this baby and see what Maya thinks of her little brother or sister! I think it's going to be a little difficult for her to share the spotlight at first, but I have no doubt that she will be an awesome BIG SISTER!! (She actually seems too little to be a BIG sister!)