Author: Karen

September 2014

Our last trip for the summer was a vacation to NY. Ryan and I went to visit family and friends. Again it’s an exciting time. I have had my same circle of friends for over 20 years; they are my huge support system and I honestly hate living so far away. I was thrown a surprise baby shower only to have to pack an extra suitcase that was filled with beautiful clothes and gifts for the baby. Such fabulous, generous people!

While in NY we revealed the name we are planning on giving to our precious munchkin. We wanted her name to mean something important and decided to name her after 3 strong women. An individual who had impacted my life many moons ago and someone I hold close to my heart. She is secure, strong, consistent, brilliant and highly respected in her professional field and one of the most amazing people I ever met in my life. She means so much to me! That is where we came up with Erin.

My close cherished friend who I have known forever was also my maid of honor in our wedding. If God forbid something were to happen to us, she would be the person of choice to raise our child. Strong, gentle, confident, grounded, compassionate, and patient; so loving. I couldn’t have picked a better godmother. That is where we came up with Julie.

Now I may have only met this individual a few years back, but she is another one who impacted our life. Strong, caring, dedicated, compassionate, vibrant and quick witted; a wonderful sense of humor. She has been in our corner from day one. She was always available to talk when times were tough. She was our constant cheerleader, motivator and honestly- if it wasn’t for her pushing us to try one last time with our last two frozen embryos…. this future baby would not exist. She helped us achieve such a gift, a long awaited blessing. She is also considered a dear friend. And THAT is where we came up with Anna.

Erin Julie-Anna————–Named after 3 resilient, independent, successful strong women. Three women our child can look up to and view as role models. (Interesting how the names are in the exact same order that I met all three of these wonderful women)

August 2014

Almost 7 months now. We are so thrilled that baby girl is doing great and right on schedule. Thus far my pregnancy has been smooth sailing. This entire pregnancy has been thankfully uneventful. No morning sickness, no cravings, etc. I DO get tired; feeling extremely exhausted. I’ve gained 30 pounds and feel so big.  sigh.

When I posted a 7th month pic wearing my NY Giants shirt this was by far my favorite response from a friend I’ve known forever.

“Please, please, please…..do not raise that girl to be a Giants, Yankees, Mets or Knicks fan. That ‘s just cruel and unusual punishment for the soon to be arriving princess….. HA HA !”

NO NY GIANTS? Yah right. Our poor baby girl has a “New Yorker” for a mom. She won’t have a choice.

My friend in Jersey reiterated that same sentiment exactly through the gift she sent us in the mail.

GO G-MEN!!!!

JULY 2014

So we had to take off to Arizona for a weekend visit. The worst time of year because it reaches 118 degrees. I embrace the heat; always did. And oddly enough, despite being pregnant – I still fully enjoyed this hot oven covered state.

Another exciting moment for us had occurred during our routine ultrasound. We found out we are having a girl!! ‘ SO ELATED!!! Of course we had to celebrate by going out and grabbing some ice cream. Tucker our dog came for the ride and while stuck in traffic we entertained ourselves….because… we are just ecstatic and…. weird. 🙂

Truth be told, we were quite shocked to know it was a girl since we were initially told a month prior it was more likely a boy. After hearing that, Ryan immediately picked out the paint colors and I stepped back and let him enjoy decorating the nursery. A love for saltwater fish we decided on a sea theme with light blue walls. Oops. I guess we jumped the gun. A boy or girl we are elated; all we want is a healthy baby. It makes no difference to us. When a friend heard we were having a girl, she posted this on my FB page.

Love it.

Well,….. time to go to the store and pick up some pink paint and figure out a new plan of action.

June 2014

We officially announced our pregnancy this month. What a FUN time! Announcing it on Facebook, I was somewhat surprised by all the positive responses. I only say that because I’d be considered an older mom. An older pregnant woman. If my OB/GYN wanted to make me feel bad, he could use the technical term of geriatric pregnancy! I have heard of that term and it sounds so….ridiculous.  A woman who is pregnant at age 35 and older is suddenly considered geriatric? Anyway, thankfully, he has NOT said such a thing to me. But let’s face it, most of my friends are raising teenagers now. A few are even grandparents already and here we are… just starting our family. I sometimes wonder how our baby will feel later on about having older parents.  I’m hoping he or she won ‘t be bothered by it too much. That ‘s my hope. 🙂

I do know some people frown upon older women having babies. There is this belief that being older parents is selfish. It is selfish because couples like us are viewed as old and have a high risk of dying before our child would turn 18.

I had done some of this research for my thesis a couple of years ago. I figured I would search out the statistics to see if  there was some truth to such beliefs. Studies had shown that older parents were just as likely to see their children graduate high school as younger parents. In fact, it was more likely than not. The reason is, older parents are aware they are older. They take better care of themselves. They exercise more frequently, stay in shape and eat healthier. They don ‘t engage in risky behaviors. They are also more financially secure which alleviates some of the stress in raising their children. Good to know!

However, the wide generation gap could possibly create conflict due to changing trends, advanced technology and the way our children will view and perceive the world. That could be a concern if us older women lived under a rock and were clueless I guess. But overall I am convinced we all are just as capable as younger women when it comes to doing our best for our children while enjoying every minute of it. With all that said, some people knew we were struggling with infertility and how much we wanted to be parents. To see such kind words from people was overwhelming. I felt so grateful for the people I had in my life with all of them sharing in our excitement. I picked a handful of responses that simply made my day. People may not have known what to say while we were struggling but they sure knew how to cheer loudly when it finally happened.

Congratulations! How awesome for you both! You will be wonderful parents. I am so happy for you, this news bought tears of happiness to my eyes. You will be wonderful parents! Praise God! How wonderful! You will be the very best mom and dad! OMG! Congratulations just doesn ‘t seem a strong enough word. What a blessing… Welcome to the club. Hang on to your hats and coats it is a fun ride We are so excited for you!!! No one deserves this more!!!! Congratulations and you will both no doubt make amazing parents!!!! Xoxo OH MY GOSH!!!! OH MY GOSH!!!! OH MY GOSH!!!! I am SOO super excited, thrilled, and ecstatic for you guys!!!! This is amazing news! Awe!!!! I ‘ve been waiting for this to happen! You are going to be amazing parents! God has blessed you with a miracle! Congratulations I am so happy for you 2 – it couldn ‘t have happened to anyone better Yeah my dear friend. I am so very excited for you both. YIPPEE!!!!!!!! Can ‘t wait to hear posts of this new journey with you both. You both are going to make great parents!!!!! It will be a new journey and your lives will never be the same (for the better!). Congratulations!

I am definitely looking forward to embarking on the new journey of parenthood.