 | Diary Navigation:
|
September 23, 2002
OK, so this is not actually the birth story. But I figure I can't launch into the birth story without giving a proper nod to the 9 months prior. I'll try to sum it up as best I can.
Enter stage left: Mike and I, returning from our wedding/honeymooned, tanned, happy, relaxed. We are managing an apartment building in downtown Seattle (Capitol Hill, for anyone who knows the area). For free rent in an apt the size of a closet, we agreed to manage the building (about 30 units). This entailed collecting and depositing rents, vacumming the common areas, cleaning up around the perimeter of the building, showing vacant units, yada yada. Not a horrible gig (for free rent and utilities) but not a dream either. BUT it was getting us toward our goal of fixing up our rental property (which we purchased earlier in the summer--in Tacoma, WA--about an hour south of Seattle) and buying our own home.
Mike & I were spending most of our free time (outside of our full-time jobs) managing the building in Seattle and doing major renovations on our rental property in Tacoma. We were swamped, but seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, as we hoped to have our rental property completed and rented out (i.e. generating income, not sucking up every penny we had saved, as it was currently) by winter.
Come October, I am offered an opportunity to nanny for a very wealthy family. Its a very long story, but the short of it is that I quit my safe corporate job to go nanny for less money (but still good money, and benefits). The job itself is an even longer story, but to make it short, the family was awful (rude, mean, etc.)and the kids were jerks (2 boys, 7 & 9--and although they were brats, I mostly just felt sorry for them b/c their parents were so...icky!).
In the midst of realizing that I had made a big mistake by taking this nanny job (and leaving my cushy corporate job), I also discovered that I was (VERY UNEXPECTEDLY) PREGNANT! My first reaction was an interesting mix of excitement, disbelief and major "OH HOLY &$^%, Mike is going to DIE!"
Pan to two weeks later when I finally worked up the courage to tell Mike. He was not pleased...not mad, just scared, very scared.
So, skipping over a few details and lots of panic, I quit the nanny job, got hired back by my wonderful company in a job I like even better than the one I had left (God must have a plan, right?!), and Mike slowly came to terms with the fact that he was going to be a daddy a little sooner than expected.
We still had all of what I'll call our "real estate issues" to contend with. First, the rental property, which had sucked us dry of our time and hard-earned dollars. My patience with this little pet project of Mike's was growing very thin. Luckily, it wrapped itself up in January, rented quickly in February, and has been producing us a nice little added income each month since! But that is the easy version of the story. The truth is, the months before we finished it up were filled with lots of tears, arguments, sleepless nights, paint fumes (yes, I was pregnant...).
In October, we were also informed by the owner of the building we were living in that he was hiring a full-time manager to run the building (we were only part time), and this gentleman was to start on the first of the month. Essentially, pack your bags. And find somewhere else to live in about 2 weeks.
Again, short story: we moved into my parents basement. I know. Nice. So here I am, 2 months married and 2 months pregnant...and hunkering down in my parents' basement. Trust me, you may think you've heard every joke about the "in laws," but you haven't; not until you've moved in with them (Mike's in laws, my parents, that is).
Lo and behold, after a few months, Mike & I stumbled upon a wonderful deal on a nice little house in a nice little neighborhood about 15 minutes north of downtown. I could write an entire novel about the process of buying our house, but I'll refrain (as is Mike's nature, we couldn't just buy a house in a normal fashion...no, we had to wheel and deal and put ourselves through as much hell as possible. BUT to give him credit, we got an INCREDIBLE deal).
We moved in in February. I was 6 months pregnant and just beginning to really show. It was at this point that I really felt like our life was beginning; everything had finally come together.
Let me back up just a bit, now that I've got us settled into home sweet home, and tell you a bit more about my pregnancy.
I never had morning sickness, but I was a walking zombie. Mike actually thought I had mono before I told him the real truth! Tired, tired, tired. That sums up my first three months. Oh, and hungry. Mainly for fresh salsa: I ate gallons.
I chose to use a midwife team. For anyone in or around the Seattle area, I absolutely 100% recommend these ladies. Heather Chorley and Wendy Rowe of Welcome Home Midwifery. I will sing their praises to you if anyone wants to hear it. And for anyone else who is considering midwifery vs. obstetrics, I'd love to chat if you're interested in my experience/feedback. I really, really, REALLY miss my midwives. And that is not very good birth control (haha).
Anyhow, Heather & Wendy alternate weeks, so I saw one one week and the other the next, and so on and so forth. I loved the fact that the appointments took place in a homey, warm environment, that they would sit and talk with me for an hour or upwards of an hour, and above all, that pregnancy was viewed as a natural process, not a medical condition to manage.
I opted not to do any of the screening tests because a)I am low risk, and b)nothing would have changed my decision about the pregnancy.
I DID, however, opt to have an ultrasound. Why, you ask? Well, because I was like a kid at Christmas. I was always very adamant that I would not want to know the sex of my baby, that I would want the surprise. Not so in real life. I was DYING to know the gender of my babe.
So we had our first ultrasound and the little bean was being incredibly stubborn and would not uncross "its" legs. I left near tears, as I had been so looking forward to this.
Well, I weaseled my way into another ultrasound a couple of weeks later. Mike, my mom & me were in the room (along with the tech, yes) when we discovered that we were having a little girl. What a joyous moment! I could hardly wait to get out of the parking garage (where my cell phone didn't work) to start calling everyone.
Ok, with that, I'll leave you so you can go uncross your eyeballs.
Next time, The Pregnancy: Part II - The Final Months (not doing this by trimester, just two parts).
~Jessica
 |  |
|
want to keep a diary on iParenting?
Authoring a diary on the iParenting network allows you to chronicle your family's story, preserving it for years to come. It's also a great way to get the most out of the iParenting community. Click here to start...
|
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families. 
