ask any newly wed couple, or any newly-moved-in-together couple and they’ll tell you; you don’t really begin to know your significant other until you’ve lived together…
my wife and i dated about four years before gettin hitched, and it’s definitely been that way for us.
all their new ways of doing simple little nothings meet up with your ways of doing simple little nothings and you discover a few simple little somethings about each other…
how do they fold their towels? how much milk do they like in their cereal? are they really a morning person? do they kick in their sleep? how many q-tips do they go through in a day? are they a remote control freak? and how brown can the bananas get before they’ll refuse to eat them?
(fun fact for you; i cannot successfully spell out the word “bananas” without having gwen stafani’s catchy little tune enter my brain… pretty sure it’s gonna stay there for the rest of the day)
and THEN….
pregnancy occurs, and guess what people… you find a whole new level of each other and what the two of you are really like…
it’s mostly the same kind of little nothings that you find out…
but sometimes…
…. sometimes….
… it’s something huge that you find out about them!
we’re talking big, people… REALLY BIG!
for example; what does your wife sound like when she has projectile vomit? (for those not in the know, this is called “morning sickness”… but i feel projectile vomit gives a better description)
now, in the five or six years i’ve known heather, i had never witnessed her throwing up…
i had just assumed it was something she didn’t do.
i’d said to myself a dozen times, “yep, i’ve found me a goodn’. she don’t even puke!”
but this pregnancy revealed something to me… she does puke.
…and it’s scary…
i want you to do something for me… close your eyes (keep reading though)… as your eyes are closed, try and picture that dinosaur from Jurassic Park, the one that spits that black stuff on newman’s face and makes him drop the barbasol can… know what i’m talking about?… good. now as you’re picturing this, you’re going to add sound to it…. the sound is a cross between the roar of a lion and lacey mosely’s scream in the beginning of “i’m so sick”… now, add that all together…
i know…
i’m scared too…
the funny thing is, she and i had just had a conversation about what to do if she ever were to get “morning sickness”. this, by the way, is a conversation very much worth the having… trust me…
and it was actually that night that mount st.heather errupted… and then i found out something about myself; i gag at the sound of my wife vomiting.
oh what a lovely way to wind down our evening!
the symphonic sound of my wife barfing her brains out, and me dry heaving at the crescendo!
what really gave it some “umph” though, was my wife’s commentary in between puke-sessions!
and what tasteful observations they were!
things like;
… “there’s my chicken!”…
and…
… “it’s coming out of my nose!”…
and let’s not forget…
… “i didn’t think i ate that much chicken!”…
ah, what wonderful times those were!
and to think we’ve been blessed enough to experience them for the last six weeks!
we really are lucky people:)
guys just a quick heads up… “morning sickness” can happen at any time of day… so be ready, and when it comes…
… enjoy the show.
today was the day…
the day i, truly, became a man…
today, i went to the o.b.g.y.n.
(bum, bum, bum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
yep today was our first of many visits to come.
it was just as you’d think; floral printed chairs, awkward moments of silence interrupted by random coughing, and out of date magazines as far as the eye could see!
i, myself, found a lovely copy of ebony magazine’s “sexy issue” featuring kelly rowland and (muh boi) trey songz… so major shout out there…
anywhoo…
the moment comes…
they call our names… well, her name…
she pees in a cup, and we’re off!
back to some tiny corner room with some octopus looking computer… the ultrasound thingy…
what an intimidating piece of machinery…
it just sits there staring at you…
and the room is freezing…
guys, tip number one… bring a sweater.
and then there are nurses coming in, asking questions, and asking me, “are you ok?”…
why are they asking me that?…
oh yeah, i forgot to mention, at this point things have gotten very, very… real…
i mean, the news is sinking in.
no more make believing folks, this is the real deal.
at this point my face has lost some color and i’m trying to remember how to breathe.
there’s a shrinking feeling taking over my body, and… wow…
i mean i’m trying my best to give you a real idea of how overwhelmingly scary this all is…
girls, kudos to you, i don’t know how you all can do this so often, and by yourselves…
like i said… boys are wussies.
i mean i was way to panicky to even care that this old guy is assaulting my wife in front of me… (by old guy, i’m talking about the doctor…)
and then… the lights go dim…..
showtime..
it doesn’t take but a split second, and i’m staring at an image on the screen…
it looks like a little blinking lima bean with noodles shooting out of it…
our baby.
now i’m not one for cussing… and to be honest, i don’t even remember this… but at that moment, the magnitude of the situation must have taken over, processed through my brain and all that my mouth could come up with was a whispered, “holy sh!t”…
how incredible. before this moment that baby, basically, only existed in our heads… and then, there he/she was… not really staring back at us… i think it was asleep… but there it was!
you know that moment in jaws where brody sees the shark for the first time, and the cigarette barely hangs on to his open mouth and he gives that famous line we all love to quote?
that’s what it felt like.
awe, shock, amazement and fear, all rolled into one.
“you’re gonna need a bigger boat.”
so these are the most common questions i’ve been getting so far, and my honest responses to them.
1. ARE YOU EXCITED?
can i say no, without people thinking i’m a tool?…
no, i’m not “excited”.
heather, my wife, is.
i’m not.
i’m super thrilled about it, and given the opportunity to be or not to be expecting, i’d definitely choose to be… but “excited” is the wrong word. i’m fairly confident that’ll change once we get deeper in to the pregnancy and see the baby on ultrasound and hear the heartbeat, but for the moment i’m just really happy.
and that is a very unusual question to me…
i mean, i would compare it to you asking me now, in june, if i’m excited about christmas. i mean, yeah i like christmas… but so far in the year i haven’t lost any sleep from being too excited about it…
no i’m not excited. i’m delighted.
2. WAS IT EXPECTED?
do you know that couples try for months and sometimes years to get pregnant?
it is a process.
and we weren’t even really “trying”
granted, we weren’t doing everything to stop it from happening…
but i never thought to mark it down on the calender, because “this was the time”…
it just happened.
3. DO YOU WANT A BOY? OR GIRL?
if you ask a girl this question, you’re going to get an answer every time… guys… who knows?
i want one of each… eventually. so it makes no difference, to me, which one we check off our list first.
with a boy… i mean, i don’t even have to come up with full sentences to tell you what’s cool about having a boy…
cowboys. cops and robbers. leggos. t-ball. dinosaurs. robots. power rangers. ect… and i do have to mention, that their pajamas are infinitely cooler than girl pajamas. i mean, capes and everything. so cool!
on the other hand, with a girl… there’s the whole cute and cuddly factor.
a friend of mine told me that a daughter will “steal your soul”… which i don’t think he meant to be as scary as it sounds…
i think what he meant, was that a daughter get’s you “wrapped around her finger”, she’s someone for you to protect, she’s your princess.
i get it.
i feel that way about my niece, for sure. she’s one year old, and already a heart breaker.
there are definitely pros for each gender…
honestly though, i just want a healthy baby. i don’t really care what it is.
4. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO NAME IT?
true story… my name was supposed to be “ryan patrick jones”… heavy on the irish catholic, i know.
my parents were trusting, and i guess a little naive, and they shared that name with another pregnant couple they knew. and a few months before i was born, “ryan patrick”… some other kid was born, “ryan patrick”…
a fake!
a phony!
that kids parents stole my name!
i know, right?
so anyways, that story has kind of made me a little cautious of “name sharing” before i actually have all the forms filled… paranoid? maybe. just blame ryan patrick.
for the time being, heather and i have been calling it “lightning jermaine jones”… guaranteeing it to be the fastest baby that ever lived!
5. ARE YOU READY TO BE A DAD?
well, of all the scary, lousy, thought provoking, keep you up at night questions to ask… NO!
of course not!
and they always put the emphases on “you”…
are YOU ready to be a dad?
c’mon, i can train to be an astronaut my whole life, but the second that rocket kicks on and we start lifting, the only thing going through my head will be “what the heck was i thinking? i’m going into space?”
… and that example’s a little more negative than having a baby, but my point is this; i can prepare as much as i want to be a dad… but i’m never going to be ready.
i’m thinking it’s going to be one of those “learn as you go” kind of things.
encouraging, i know.
hey, you…
yeah, you…
betcha can’t guess what my favorite flavor of chex mix is…
if you guessed “peanut lover’s” the answer is no… i’m allergic to peanuts…
… but if you guessed “bold party blend” then you’re correct! great job there, friend!
here’s a follow up question for you… guess which flavor of chex mix has reduced my poor pregnant wife to dry heaving just from the smell?… any takers?… hmmm?…
if you guessed “peanut lover’s” again… you’re an idiot!
… but if you guessed “bold party blend” you are correct once again! hooray for you!
yes, it seems that i’ve angered some chex mix deity out there somewhere somehow, and now he’s taking his revenge on me by causing my wife’s nose to implement a “no eating of the bold party blend chex mix within smelling distance” rule (or the “banished blend rule” as i’ve just decided it will come to be known)
and you’re saying, “come on austin…”
(my name is austin by the way… hi)
“come on austin, it’s not that bad, all you have to do is get to a place where she can’t smell it… stop being such a selfish, insensitive, wimp-of-a-husband and just leave the room”
to which i reply,”hey, not cool calling me out in my own blog like that. who do you think you are?”
and then i’d say, “besides, leaving the room is not enough, you’d think it would be… but it’s not”
it’s true, i’ve actually gone outside a time or two, just so i could indulge in the fun and flavorful goodness of the “b.p.b” and yes, it was totally worth it.
but what the heck is going on with that nose of my wifes?
is she fo real? or is this all one big exaggeration and her taking advantage of the whole being pregnant thing?
actually fellas… it’s the first.
and estrogen is the hormone we’re going to blame it on here.
the increase in hormone levels, during pregnancy, can cause some women to have sense of smell that will rival most shepherds.
(the dog breed, not the sheep watchers)
scientists have actually, done a several month long study on dogs, and found that their nose can be over 100,000 times as powerful as a humans.
and i did about a twelve second study on my own thoughts about a pregnant womans smelling ability, and found that her nose can be about 250,000 times stronger than a dogs nose! which if you do the math… is… 350,000 times stronger than a non-pregnant humans nose!
all true…. look it up.
crazy huh?
so men, what can we do to avoid sending our better halves into a dry heaving frenzy?
i’m glad you asked, way to show some initiative!
here’s a list of things/ smells to avoid:
1. onions
2. cigarettes
3. seafood
4. morning breath (how do you avoid it? figure out a way)
5. the produce section at the grocery store
6. gasoline or gas that comes out of any hole in your body
7. coffee
8. that cologne she used to love you wearing
9. wet dogs
10. that creepy guy at work that doesn’t bathe and coincidentally likes to give out “free hugs”… don’t you dare let him rub his dirty scent off on you and then take it home to your lady. shame on you.
that should help in getting you started… good luck.
and remember, in case you make some smelly mistake in the future; get her fake flowers and non-scented candles.
(anything else i should add to the list?)
ok fellas, here’s another fun little tid bit you might not know…
while your wife/ girlfriend/ whatever, is becoming more knocked-up, there are all these changes happening on the inside of her body right? well one of them is called progesterone…
c’mon and say that with me “pro-gest-er-one”… good… good…
progesterone isn’t anything new to her body. it’s been there the whole time, being produced by her good ole ovaries. progesterone is a hormone, that helps with fertility and regulating her monthly cycle. it helps prevent osteoporosis, and it also helps her brain and immune system. not bad.
then as she gets pregnant her body starts producing more, the further along she gets. it’s major role is keeping her body healthy during the pregnancy process, but it does a few other helpful things on top of that… such as; reducing anxiety (hallelujah!), making her sleepy, and giving her that famous “preggo-appetite” we’ve heard so much about.
now, right about now you’re saying to yourself, “hey, i like this progesterone cat. he’s alright in my book. i think i might even invite him to my birthday party”…
hold on… there’s one more thing that progesterone does…
progesterone slows down a womans digestive system. so all that guacamole, and broccoli, all those tacos, all the bolthouse smoothies, all those cheddar filled hot dogs, pringles, the frosty’s from wendy’s and the fries from burger king get dumped into a big ole pot with the oven on simmer and they sit there forever and stew…
what does this mean for you?
it means for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacktime you’re getting ladled up a hearty serving of gassy wife. bon appetite.
and these aren’t the cute little humming farts she used to let out. you know, the ones that almost sang to you?
nope, those are gone.
now she’s dropping bombs left and right, vibrating the couch and laying waste to all the “personal records” you had bragged about for all these years. you know what i’m talking about men? those glory farts you keep in your trophy case, and you pull em out when you feel like impressing your friends?… forget them… they’re nothing… they’re pathetic…
it’s intimidating, actually… i think of it like one of those “fast and the furious” movies. you’ll pull up next to her, rev your engine a bit, thinking you’re showing her something she’ll be impressed by… and then she squeals her tires and burns out of there leaving you in a cloud of smoke wondering what the heck just happened?…
men, prepare to be humbled.
… but take heart! all is not lost! while she’s scaring you under the covers with her fiery flatulents, i have something for you that will help “pass” the time… a kind of “breaking wind bingo” if you will… see if you can check them all off your list:
1. the alarm fart
2. the beefy fart
3. the bun-buster
4. the escape pod
5. the fudgey
6. the g.n.l. or (gambled and lost) fart
7. the growler
8. the hydrated flatulent or (wet fart)
9. the “not now!” fart
10. the on the spot fart
11. the prelude to a poopie fart
12. the silent but deadly
13. the squeaker
14. the squealer
15. the stalker
16. the talker
17. the tandem fart (these are the farts that go back to back so closely you can’t really classify them as separate farts)
18. the t.r.s or (trouser ripping special)
19. the tub fart (a.k.a. underwater fart)
20. the windy fart
21. the whopper
22. the worryer (that’s the one that keeps you in suspense until you can get home and check)
some of these you might not be completely familiar with… but trust me, when you hear em… you’ll know;)
so remember kids, if your “lady friend” has a bun in the oven, keep an eye and an ear out for your dear friend mr. progesterone… he’ll be making an appearance shortly.
ladies and gentlemen… the cat is partially out of the bag!!!
so we told my parents that they were going to be grandparents… or that they are grandparents?… ah, well you know.
i was actually much more nervous than i thought i would be. apparently my wife was also…
why?
i don’t think either of us could really say for sure…
she says it’s because now there’s proof we’ve had sex… to which i make the argument, we’ve been married for eight months. i’m sure people figured, by now, we’ve succumb to temptation… cause i’m weak, and she’s a real “looker”
but for whatever reason, we were both very anxious about the breaking of the news.
we just happened to be celebrating my fathers fiftieth birthday, and had pretty much planned out how we wanted to tell him.
scene;
we’re all sitting on the deck and we give him his gift, he pulls out the book we got him and starts flipping through some of the pages. we tell him why we picked this one for him, he thanks us and starts to read a passage to himself… and then i slip the news right in there… here goes. “yeah” i said, “we’ve got one more gift for you, but you have to wait another eight months to get it”…
(crickets)
… right about there is the point where i anticipated there being some laughing, hugging and all around good time celebrations to break loose…
oh well… so much for my plans…
instead, i give my little line about “eight months” and no one does anything… they don’t even look at us! what?!?
did they not hear me?
i reiterate what i’ve said…
nothing…
are they purposefully ignoring? or hoping it’s all a dream? what is the flipping deal here?
i happen to notice my sister has finally connected the dots and is starting to tear up and laugh. phew, at least someone gets it! her boyfriend and my parents still remain unaware of the news…
heather and i exchange nervous glances right about… here…
my parents are still paying attention to the book, my sisters boyfriend is giving my sister an “i still don’t get it” kind of look… and all my sister can say is “eight months!” over and over…
FINALLY!!!
it clicks with my dad, he looks up at us and asks “are you pregnant?”
we give a confused nod, yes…
… and THERE is what we’ve been waiting two minutes for! all the “congratulations!” and the “i can’t believe its”, the hugging, the kissing, my heart resumes beating, and all is well.
it really was… unique… the way it all happened.
on that day, my parents found out they’re grandparents, and i found out they can be kind of clueless… or really clueless.
i suppose i’ll just say this, i don’t think it’s possible to give that kind of news and not get a great story from it.
why?
families are families.
and who doesn’t love that?
it hasn’t even been a week since we found out we were pregnant.
it’s been five days.
five days.
cinco.
five.
and in those five days, i’ve already seen the effects of the pregnancy in one specific form… hotdogs.
we’ve had hot dogs for dinner three times, in five days. (not to mention the two days she had hotdogs for lunch) pregnancy cravings are apparently real. and nathans is reaping the benefits.
anybody know how often the menu changes with pregnancy cravings?
no big deal, just curious.
we’ll stick with hotdogs as long as she wants, but i’m definitely keeping my fingers crossed for mexican food on the next round.
¡Hurra, es una celebración ansias el embarazo!
how shall i begin?
my wife… have i mentioned i have a wife? she’s brilliant, in every way. seriously.
anywhoo, my wife has been baby-crazed for as long as i can remember.
it’s at her core to be a mom.
it’s just who she is.
and so whenever we went into a store, we just naturally made our way to the baby section.
(surprise, surprise)
we’d look at baby shirts, baby shorts, baby suits, baby dresses, baby sunglasses, baby hats, baby swimsuits, baby socks, baby shoes, baby toys, baby blankets, baby food, baby bottles, baby monitors, baby wipes, diaper bags, diapers, baby powder, strollers, high chairs, baby spoons, baby food, pacifiers, changing tables, cribs, baby mobiles, baby swings and some kind of boob suckers for moms that looked to be the most unpleasant thing anyone could have ever invented… apparently they’re for milk or something… ouch.
and eventually we’d make our way over to the book section.
she’d find four or five right away, on any given topic, that looked like good reads.
and tucked away in a corner, were the “dad books”
now, may i just ask… who the heck writes these books?
are they written by certified dads?
because i’ve tried to read a few of them and i’ve got to say… i’m not nearly as interested in colostrum as these writers seemed to be. they’ll spend whole chapters on the topic. a whole chapter! how do you fill up a whole chapter about… that?!?
look, i’m not trying to be rude. please believe me. i feel like the whole pregnancy process is one of the most awesome and fulfilling things anyone can be a part of. just thinking about the implantation process, alone, fills me with wonder (as sarcastic as that sounded, i was actually being serious. its pretty incredible)
… however.
i feel like there are more important things i could be reading about, to prepare me for the next several months. for instance, how to cope with my wifes new super-human sense of smell. what is that about?
anyways, this is me committing to do my part, in educating future fathers-to-be, by posting any piece of advice i feel will be pertinent.
i know, how noble of me, right?
you’re welcome.
the end.
p.s. for those of you men who are still in the dark on “the wonderful world of colostrum”… here you go
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colostrum
enjoy.
i don’t know if we’ll hang it on the fridge, but it’s still a pretty cool piece of art…
mildly awake…
i roll over, open one eye and give her a tired smile.
goodmorning.
“hey,” she asks, “can we go to the store today so i can get another pregnancy test?” my face, obviously, reveals what i’m thinking… what do you mean “another”?
apparently she’s already taken four.
apparently they were all positive.
apparently we’re pregnant.
i expected this sort of news to terrify me a little more than it did.
i mean, pregnant? how can we be pregnant?
we’re so young!
i don’t have any matching flannel pajama sets with the pockets on the shirt. none of my shoes have tassels. and neither of us own a briefcase… so how can we be pregnant?
…
these are the kinds of thoughts i expect myself to be having. a george banks style rant that gets comedically faster and faster until it ends in me panting and passing out and… none of that ever happens.
instead i’m only able to think in single word thoughts like baby…pregnant… and father.
i’m a dad… a dad?… what?
i’m not overwhelmed. i’m not stunned either. stunned would make me feel numb or dazed, and i don’t feel that way at all.
i feel happy.
i feel charged and excited. not like in a hyper way though… more like a down to business, rocky IV getting ready for the big fight, i’ve gotta go make something of myself, kind of way. and it’s gotta be something big. something that’ll take care of everything for that kid. every cute outfit we see or whatever the crazy new toy is, he’s gonna have… or she…
wow.
fully awake…
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