As I mentioned in a previous post, I emailed our friend, LeAnna, some recent pictures of me so she could see how much the boy and I have grown! In her response, she said he is growing and that it looks like he has dropped some. The answer is YES! He has definitely dropped some. I can tell by looking at how I’m carrying him. Also, I can tell by the new position I end up resorting to. I cannot sit in a chair for long like they are designed to be sat in (butt to the back). I have to sit closer to the edge and open my legs some so he can sit between them. THAT is how I know he has dropped! :) I am also breathing better (that means he isn’t up high putting so much pressure on my lungs) and tinkling more (indicating that he sitting lower and putting more pressure on my bladder)!

We have known for some time now that he is head down. That and the dropping tells us he is almost ready! We are ready too! Heck - we were ready to meet him the day we found out he existed, but we knew we had to wait for him to grow and develop.

We passed the time by doing 9 months of preparation for his arrival. With help from family and friends, we created him the nursery we always dreamed of – painted the room, hung the light fixture, bought a matching lamp, bought the furniture, put the furniture together, hung wall art, bought a nice chair, hunted for a nice table lamp, put up new closet doors, searched for a matching rug, dressed the crib with the perfect bedding, and hung the mobile. And of course, we made sure his room is completely stocked with all he could ever need or want – gear, clothes, toys, books, etc!

We have celebrated his upcoming arrival with our friends and family. We have spent a lot of time daydreaming about our little guy. We’ve also had lots of quality time with each other. Together, we’ve gotten some good rest, had some great conversations, learned a lot about becoming parents, strengthened our friendship, grown as a couple, and have had a lot of fun throughout!

While we always thought having a baby would be something we’d want to do in the future, we weren’t in any hurry. We were married 5 years before we decided the time was right. We even lost some people’s faith that we would one day have a baby! ;) In previous years, I think we would’ve made good parents and been a very happy family. But I know it would’ve involved change that we weren’t quite ready for. Personally, I find those people funny that claim they are aware of what all parenting involves and are 100% sure they will do everything perfectly. And as stupid as it sounds, I’ve run across parents-to-be who think that having a precious bundle of joy is easy and means instant happiness for life….a happy little family forever and always. That is ridiculous. We know that while parenting is wonderful, rewarding and fun, there are times that it will be challenging, difficult, and even trying. I think that being aware of those facts before having a child is vital.

In years past, I might have been a little afraid of becoming a parent. But at this point in time, I don’t worry about how good of a mom I will be or how good of a dad Ray will be. I know we won’t be perfect, and I’m okay with that. I am confident that both of us will do our best. And when one of us can’t figure it out on our own, we have each other. We are there to listen to each other, give advice, provide support, offer guidance, share a good laugh, and when necessary, offer a shoulder to cry on. ;)

When we first met, Ray and I knew we shared a lot of the same beliefs about many things. That contributed to our compatibility. But because you can’t discuss every detail of your future lives together, a couple just has to go on what they know about each other and hope for the best. Fortunately, it worked out wonderfully for Ray and I. We are on the same page about most things. Of course, we are individuals and are different in many ways, but in many ways, we are similar. We find so many of the same things important in life. And when we feel differently about a certain thing, we duke it out! Just kidding! ;) We respect each other’s opinion and come to some kind of conclusion – whether that be figuring out how to incorporate both of our ideas or making the best decision after we share our thoughts with each other on that particular subject.

I always pride Ray and I for being non-traditional, open-minded individuals. I think these two things give us an edge in our relationship and our future parenting roles. We have a great vision about how to raise our son, how to love him, things we want to teach him, things we want him to experience, ways we want to guide him, how to help him come into his own, etc.

I’ve always said that perfection is something I do not strive for. I do not believe in it. But I know how absolutely wonderful things can be! Mine, Ray’s, and Baby Tse’s life together will be nothing short of wonderful! There will be times that Ray and I make mistakes but I have no doubt that everything we do as parents will be done out of love for our son. He might not always understand it (especially at around age 13 or so), but I believe he will recognize it and hopefully, one day appreciate it.

As you may or may not realize, I’m not just excited about having a baby. I’m excited about having a son and having a family. I look as forward to watching him grow in his first few years as I do to watching him grow into an adult.

Technically, there is a little less than 4 weeks until our due date. But I feel that our pregnancy is coming to an end. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll come early (though it would be a nice surprise!). It just is what it is – almost time for his arrival! When I think about what another month means for my body, I feel a little nervous. But when I think of how far we’ve come, it isn’t that long. For some reason, I feel a need to conclude my thoughts on our pregnancy…again, I don’t know why.

In some ways, I will miss being pregnant. One day, my memory will not be as clear, and I won’t remember certain details like exactly how it feels when he moves inside me. That kinda makes me sad. But I think I have done a good job recording as many details about how I’m feeling, the preparation Ray and I have done, how excited we are, the baby’s progress, etc in my pregnancy journal and on our blog. It will be fun to look back at. And one day, I hope he will enjoy reading about the time we hadn’t yet met him but were madly in love with him.

And in many ways, I am ready to have him!! Both of us are so ready to start this new phase of our lives together! We’re so ready to put his name with his little face! We are ready to see those strong limbs he uses on a daily basis! We’re ready to hear his cries after trying to imagine what they will sound like! We are ready to show him his beautiful room! We’re ready…OH, WE ARE JUST READY! :)

~T.T.