Start Spreading the News

We told our families the great news today!  First up was a trip to Grand Rapids to see my mom.  I'd called to ask her if she would be available for a Valentine's Day lunch and she was all for it.  Mark and I grabbed the video camera, an orchid and a homemade card (which played a key role) and off we went.  I was soooo nervous on the way there!  I'm not sure why, but maybe because it made everything that much more real.  We got to my mom's and walked in, giving hugs all around, after which point my mom picked up the homemade card I had put on the table and started to open it (we were due to leave for lunch).  I felt a bit panicked because, you see, this card was THE THING that was going to share the news about Chickpea, and when she opened it so quickly, it didn't give Mark very much time to flip on the video camera to catch her reaction!  He managed, however, and we were able to - somewhat shakily - capture this adorable exchange:


Going to Grandma's House from Amy B on Vimeo.

It was so, so fun to finally have our news out there!  My mom's reaction was exactly what I was expecting, and I'm so glad we were able to get it on camera.  Someday we'll be able to show it to Chickpea and they will be able to see with their own eyes how excited their grandma was to meet them.

(And YES, my mom is totally embarrassed about it, but C'MON.  Can you get any cuter and sweeter than that?  I think not!)

After that, we went to lunch at this little cafe that used to be the library I grew up going to.  Walking in, I instantly recalled all the times I had rode my bike there to get another stack of books to read, which was one of my favorite things to do.  I remembered the day my mom took me there to get my OWN library card, and how proud I was that I could now check out books all by myself.  And then, as is the natural order of things as a pregnant lady, I had to go to the bathroom.  When I got to our table, I sat down and a few minutes later, a cute couple with their children got up from the table next to us and said, "Congratulations!" to me before walking away.  I looked at my mom with a "Uh...what was that?!" look, at which point she confessed that while I was in the bathroom, she couldn't help herself and told our dining neighbors that she'd just found out she was going to be a grandma again!  So funny - and soooo my mom.  I loved it!

After lunch, we took a trip to my sister Alicia's, where we visited with her, her husband Joel, and my four sweet nephews Jacob, Nolan, Caleb and Gavin.  My eldest nephew Jacob is just a few weeks shy of turning 14 years old.  FOURTEEN!  Just to give you some perspective, I got to watch him have his first bath at the hospital way back when, and now, just as I was 8-weeks pregnant with my first baby, his voice was getting all "Peter Brady*" on us and changing right before our ears!  Hee!

We sat for a bit and chatted, talking about school and work, etc.  Finally, after what felt like an hour, I said to my sister, "SO. I think I'm going to need help painting that spare room soon..." (she had offered when she found out we were going to start trying to conceive). She looked at me with a grin and said, "Oh yeah?... I KNEW IT!!"  Haha!  I'm not sure how she knew, but I'm pretty sure it had a lot to do with the fact that I didn't order a drink on this day.  BUSTED!

We later called my dad, stepmom, and little sister Rachel, and Mark called his mom, dad and brothers.  Everyone was so excited for us, and that excitement just made ours that much stronger.  I've said it before, but MAN, this baby is so loved already!  It just makes me want to cry happy tears when I think about it.  What an amazing time, and what a great feeling to know we have so many people around us cheering us on during this monumental time.  *SIGH*

*Speaking of the 'Brady Bunch,' my dear husband has never before seen an episode of it.  Yes, you read that right. Never before has he seen the Brady Bunch.  Not the "Marsha, Marsha, Marsha" one, not the "OW, MY NOSE!" one, and not the one where Tiger goes missing and knocks up the neighbor dog. Believe me when I say it's hard to accept.  I will one day rectify this, however, by letting Chickpea watch as many reruns as I can get my hands on!  Have no fear, our child will not go without. ;o)