Why they think I'm crazy for WANTING kids

Two of my coworkers, Matt and Shawn, are longtime friends both in the office and after hours. They good-naturedly joke that they find it incredibly novel that I actually want the baby I'm carrying (as well as any future ones the Lord sends me), given the fact that I've been around children long enough to "know better". Each of them has five children of their own, which means I get a lot of stories like the following, which took place when Matt and Shawn were preparing to leave for a hunting trip. Shawn's 2-year-old created a challenge just before their scheduled departure...

Matt: "The little runt had discovered my food locker and was unwrapping every Pop Tart in the thing, one at a time. He would unwrap one, take a bite, throw it on the grass, and move on to the next one. I caught him with a Pop Tart in each hand. He was a mess. He had red and blue junk ALL over his face. He was busted. He took one look at me, yelped ('EEEP!'), and took off running in the other direction. The lawn was strewn with foil wrappers...half-eaten, smooshed-up Pop Tarts everywhere..."

Shawn (shaking his head ruefully): "...it was like a Pop Tart murder scene."

*sigh* This is why I love my coworkers.

But my mind remains unchanged about the baby thing. ;)

An Announcement

Dear family, friends, casual acquaintances, and sworn enemies,

It is with great pleasure and giddiness (and more than a little impatience) that Daniel and I finally have the privilege of making this announcement to you all...



We're going to have a baby!

That's right, ladies and gentlemen, the fuzzy blur with the over-exclaimed caption is our happy, healthy, little, lime-sized son or daughter. The due date is a special one...February 3rd. This date is not only Daniel's birthday, but it also marks the day that my wonderful mama left this broken life for a much sweeter one when she went home to her Savior.

We're excited.

I've joked that this baby, only 12 weeks along, is already earning a spanking...taking into account the miserable, miserable morning sickness, the headaches, the bizarre food aversions (chicken, coconut, and coffee), the routine acne breakouts, the crazily vivid dreams, and the sciatic nerve s/he LOVES to pinch, this kiddo seems out to get me. Fortunately, I'm told babies like these typically ease up on mama going into the second trimester. Maybe Baby Timberlake just needs some time to get to know me...?

Despite all the aforementioned crimes against me, I already love our baby dearly. Not all the dreams I have are crazy...sometimes I just dream about giving our little one a bath, or snuggling on the couch. I've been knitting a baby blanket and I *love* being able to pour all my love and effort into something that will protect my little winter baby from the cold when we come home for the first time.

I suppose the REAL question this lovely situation begs is...do I have to change my blog title?