Sunday, January 4, 2015
Now Hiring
As I'm sitting here on my couch binge-watching the second season of Friends on Netflix and listening to the Washington rain pour down outside, something dawned on me. I don't have any friends here. All of my friends and family are in different states and countries. I've always been more comfortable with the friends I already have. Talking to them on Facebook, over text, or sometimes even Skype, helps with the distance, but nothing beats genuine human interaction. The only human interaction I'm getting at this point is my husband who happens to be in and out of my little world for work, and the cashiers at Target and Safeway. I'm starting to go crazy with just a fetus and a Beagle to talk to. Pretty soon you're going to find me sitting in the park having conversations with the pigeons and laughing maniacally to myself. I can't help that I'm shy and like to stick to what's familiar, but the loneliness is slowly eating away at my soul and I finally decided it's time to make some friends. Well... friend. We'll start with uno amigo and see how that works out... Updates to come. Brace yourself for the next post: Park singing with Pigeons.
Saturday, January 3, 2015
The Big Bang
One of the things I love the most about my husband is how family-oriented he is. From the time we started getting serious, he would talk about getting married and starting a family. Of course being young and crazy in love, I knew this was normal and didn't read too much into it. Time went on, we grew together and fell more in love, and I started thinking seriously about the future. Every time I pictured walking down the aisle and family portraits, he was by my side. I never could, let alone want to, picture myself with someone else. He was (and still is) everything and more to me. When he left in August of 2013 for boot camp, I experienced true loneliness for the first time. I could be in a room full of loved ones and friends and still feel like something was missing because my boyfriend was hundreds of miles away and there was no way to hear his voice or give him a huge hug and kiss like I wanted to every day. Time seemed to pass slower than ever and all I did was count down the hours, days, and weeks until I got to see him again. 13 long weeks later, we made the trip from Sacramento to San Diego to see that man of mine graduate and "officially" earn the title of a United States Marine.
Seeing him on family day was like nothing I've ever experienced before. I still remember how I felt and I get butterflies to this day thinking about how overwhelmed with pride and love I was seeing the transformation he had made. He didn't look like my little baby anymore; he looked like a man... MY man. The next day on Graduation Day, he got to be in his dress blues because he was the honor grad, and let me tell you something... no tuxedo on earth compares to the suave look and sex appeal that a handsome Marine in dress blues exudes. I was floored. What happened next still makes me smile. My boyfriend got down on one knee in front of my family, his family, all the new Marines around us and their families, and asked me to be his wife. I believe my exact words were, "Is that even a question? Yes!"
We spent a month and a half at home together for the holidays after that, and he was shipped off to his next training program for another 3 months. That one was hard on both of us, and we started seriously talking about the possibility of starting a family and picking a date for the big "I do." We got married April 4th, 2014 when he came home on leave, and we didn't actively start trying to conceive, but we stopped trying NOT to. I had gone to the doctor several times and had been diagnosed with PCOS, also known as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. I was told I had hundreds of cysts on both of my ovaries, and this was the reason for my wildly irregular periods and the reason I didn't ovulate. I was told then and there it would be near impossible for me to get pregnant and I would most likely need fertility treatments to conceive. I was devastated of course and after some long talks with my husband and lots of tears, he only had one thing to say: we would try whatever we could and he would do anything possible to make sure we got the family we both wanted. He was so compassionate about it and has been so wonderful helping me deal with anything I've come across on our journey together.
We moved in together July 5th, and a few weeks later I went on vacation with my family to Hawaii. I came home August 4th (our 4 month wedding anniversary) and badda-bing, badda-boom. A few weeks after this baby-makin' magic, we were walking through the NEX and when we passed the "family planning" aisle I got this gut feeling that caused the little voice in my head to whisper "Grab a box of pregnancy tests." So I whispered back Shut up crazy lady, you obviously don't know how my internal organs work, or better yet DON'T work, and I don't need to test. I already know the answer: I'm not pregnant. So she whispered back, "Grab the damn box" and that was that. I grabbed a box, got a funny look from the hubby, and went home and straight to the bathroom. I was sitting on the toilet after gracefully peeing on a stick as wide as a sharpie, and skillfully managing to not get my own urine all over my hands, when low and behold... the first pink line popped up. Within 5 seconds the second pink line appeared on my pee stick and good thing I was already sitting down, because I got dangerously close to passing the hell out. My heart started pounding and my stomach turned and I immediately grabbed the second stick and forced all the pee left in my body out to make sure the test wasn't defective.
Two tests, four lines, and one freaked-out crazy lady later, I was screaming for my husband to come into the bathroom. I couldn't get any words out and just waved the stick around in his face while squealing and saying things neither one of us could understand. He was shocked. Happy (I think) but shocked! Here we both were, thinking we couldn't have offspring without medical intervention, and after one perfectly timed Big Bang, we were on our way to becoming a family of three. I went to the doctor a few weeks later to confirm the good news - I was pregnant! This was 19 weeks ago and we're still going strong. Little bear is playing kickball with my bladder as I type this and I still have moments where I think "Is this really happening? Did we really get lucky enough to create a human being? Am I REALLY going to have to shove a baby out of me? DID I EVEN THINK THIS THROUGH?!" Then I calm down and remember it's all worth it, I'll be fine, and I have the best damn husband anyone could ask for. In just a few short months I get to meet the little man that is half of the big man that I love most on this earth, and I am beyond blessed with that alone.
Seeing him on family day was like nothing I've ever experienced before. I still remember how I felt and I get butterflies to this day thinking about how overwhelmed with pride and love I was seeing the transformation he had made. He didn't look like my little baby anymore; he looked like a man... MY man. The next day on Graduation Day, he got to be in his dress blues because he was the honor grad, and let me tell you something... no tuxedo on earth compares to the suave look and sex appeal that a handsome Marine in dress blues exudes. I was floored. What happened next still makes me smile. My boyfriend got down on one knee in front of my family, his family, all the new Marines around us and their families, and asked me to be his wife. I believe my exact words were, "Is that even a question? Yes!"
We spent a month and a half at home together for the holidays after that, and he was shipped off to his next training program for another 3 months. That one was hard on both of us, and we started seriously talking about the possibility of starting a family and picking a date for the big "I do." We got married April 4th, 2014 when he came home on leave, and we didn't actively start trying to conceive, but we stopped trying NOT to. I had gone to the doctor several times and had been diagnosed with PCOS, also known as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. I was told I had hundreds of cysts on both of my ovaries, and this was the reason for my wildly irregular periods and the reason I didn't ovulate. I was told then and there it would be near impossible for me to get pregnant and I would most likely need fertility treatments to conceive. I was devastated of course and after some long talks with my husband and lots of tears, he only had one thing to say: we would try whatever we could and he would do anything possible to make sure we got the family we both wanted. He was so compassionate about it and has been so wonderful helping me deal with anything I've come across on our journey together.
We moved in together July 5th, and a few weeks later I went on vacation with my family to Hawaii. I came home August 4th (our 4 month wedding anniversary) and badda-bing, badda-boom. A few weeks after this baby-makin' magic, we were walking through the NEX and when we passed the "family planning" aisle I got this gut feeling that caused the little voice in my head to whisper "Grab a box of pregnancy tests." So I whispered back Shut up crazy lady, you obviously don't know how my internal organs work, or better yet DON'T work, and I don't need to test. I already know the answer: I'm not pregnant. So she whispered back, "Grab the damn box" and that was that. I grabbed a box, got a funny look from the hubby, and went home and straight to the bathroom. I was sitting on the toilet after gracefully peeing on a stick as wide as a sharpie, and skillfully managing to not get my own urine all over my hands, when low and behold... the first pink line popped up. Within 5 seconds the second pink line appeared on my pee stick and good thing I was already sitting down, because I got dangerously close to passing the hell out. My heart started pounding and my stomach turned and I immediately grabbed the second stick and forced all the pee left in my body out to make sure the test wasn't defective.
Two tests, four lines, and one freaked-out crazy lady later, I was screaming for my husband to come into the bathroom. I couldn't get any words out and just waved the stick around in his face while squealing and saying things neither one of us could understand. He was shocked. Happy (I think) but shocked! Here we both were, thinking we couldn't have offspring without medical intervention, and after one perfectly timed Big Bang, we were on our way to becoming a family of three. I went to the doctor a few weeks later to confirm the good news - I was pregnant! This was 19 weeks ago and we're still going strong. Little bear is playing kickball with my bladder as I type this and I still have moments where I think "Is this really happening? Did we really get lucky enough to create a human being? Am I REALLY going to have to shove a baby out of me? DID I EVEN THINK THIS THROUGH?!" Then I calm down and remember it's all worth it, I'll be fine, and I have the best damn husband anyone could ask for. In just a few short months I get to meet the little man that is half of the big man that I love most on this earth, and I am beyond blessed with that alone.
From Dog Tags to Diapers
I'd like to start off by explaining the meaning behind the title of my blog, "From Dog Tags to Diapers". My husband and I have always had cute little sayings and phrases we would toss back and forth whenever we needed reassurance or just felt like being mushy. The first blog I ever had that was dedicated to writing novel-length posts about how amazing and perfect my then-boyfriend (now husband) was, was titled "Dog tags and Diamonds". That blog is long gone and has been replaced by this one! My original idea for the title of this blog was "Dog tags, Diamonds, and Diapers", but I came to the conclusion that it was a mouthful and would be a pain in the ass to say or type. The name has been shortened and sums up the transition of things I've come to deal with for the past two years. I've gone from dealing with dog tags to dealing with diapers. My husband is a Marine and we're expecting our first baby in a few months, so the name is self-explanatory!
Now that that's out of the way, let's get to the break-down of what's going to happen. There will be plenty of swearing (it's a hard habit to break when you live with a Marine), more pictures than you can count, all of the following subjects: my hunk of a husband, our dog, the occasional selfie, family pictures, and starting sometime in April or May, this blog will further be known as lookatmycutebaby.com. Who doesn't love looking at pictures of the weird little wrinkly creatures women are constantly popping out? I know I do, and I'm convinced my kid has hit the genetic lottery, so prepare yourself now. Along with endless pictures of my family, you will also find explicitly honest posts about whatever happens to be occurring in my day-to-day life. That means everything prenatal, birth-related, postpartum, family life, school and work, all the things about my awesome hubby and marriage, and my personal journey as a woman and a mother. I hope you enjoy what you read and can relate in some way, shape, or form!
Now that that's out of the way, let's get to the break-down of what's going to happen. There will be plenty of swearing (it's a hard habit to break when you live with a Marine), more pictures than you can count, all of the following subjects: my hunk of a husband, our dog, the occasional selfie, family pictures, and starting sometime in April or May, this blog will further be known as lookatmycutebaby.com. Who doesn't love looking at pictures of the weird little wrinkly creatures women are constantly popping out? I know I do, and I'm convinced my kid has hit the genetic lottery, so prepare yourself now. Along with endless pictures of my family, you will also find explicitly honest posts about whatever happens to be occurring in my day-to-day life. That means everything prenatal, birth-related, postpartum, family life, school and work, all the things about my awesome hubby and marriage, and my personal journey as a woman and a mother. I hope you enjoy what you read and can relate in some way, shape, or form!
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