Preston's Arrival

I went into labor about 1am last Thursday -- a whopping eighteen days before our estimated due date. I was a bit worried that Preston would be small or sick coming over two weeks early even though technically babies are considered full-term at 37 weeks gestation. I had just read that the closer to the 40 week period, the better and was not wanting an early induction though my hips were screaming at me every time I moved. Thank God up above because Preston is perfect and his delivery was nearly perfect as well. After 13 hours of being in labor and about five minutes of pushing, Preston was born and it was one of the most beautiful and calm experiences of my life... Much like Preston's personality. He weighed in at 8lbs 15oz and 21 inches long. We are so in love with our new addition -- everyone that is but Jackson. There are moments of absolute sweetness and there are times when Jackson tries to push his brother off of me or poke him in the face with a pacifier. Such is brotherhood. Today was our first day at home with Brandon back at work. I still have the help of Brandon's mom but pretty soon I'm on my own. What's making balancing care for both boys the most tricky is that I can't lift Jackson right now while I heal -- in fact, in not supposed to lift him for another five weeks but that seems near impossible to me so I'm going on how I feel and though I'm not quite ready yet -- I'm hoping in another week, my body will have recovered enough. I feel incredibly blessed to have two healthy, beautiful sons and an amazing husband in my life. I can't thank God enough for how he has blessed my life. I know things might be a little crazy now and then but crazy times pass almost as soon as they come and I think as long as you remember that --- the beauty of life remains the focal point and not the craziness.

Waiting for the "Right Time"

I was talking to a girlfriend yesterday who is beyond thrilled I'm pregnant. We both have sons who are roughly a month apart in age and she is really wanting to start trying to conceive her second. I asked her when she thought that she and her man would start trying and she said that she hadn't talked to him about it but was waiting for the "right time"... "Maybe after Christmas," she shrugged. I completely understand where she's coming from, as I'm sure most of us do. Neither of my pregnancies were planned -- we found out that we were expecting our first child exactly a week after my husband had asked me to marry him. I was wanting to wait two more years before attempting to have another but about nine months after Jackson (our first son) was born, I was pregnant again. Thank you, honeymoon.

I'm absolutely thrilled about this pregnancy... now, just as thrilled as I was the first time around and Jackson is by far one of the biggest blessings in my life. Was it the way I had planned it? No. Has the past year been the best of my life? Absolutely. The order may not be traditional or conventional but it really doesn't matter. The first baby came after love and before marriage and the second is coming before my husband or I have finished school but the order of things isn't really of importance here. What does matter is that we have a happy, loving family and we're doing all we can to be the best parents we can be.

This got me thinking -- if I had decided to wait for the "right time" -- perhaps after graduation, getting my MBA and being married for at least a year (this was THE plan), Jackson wouldn't be here... not now and maybe not ever. There are certain Native American tribes that believe a mother carries the souls of her unborn children until they are given life (so says my mother-in-law). I think that's beautiful but I believe these souls are up in Heaven and God chooses when and who to send them down to. It's hard for me to think that if Brandon (my husband) and I had decided never to have a baby, that Jackson's spirit would never have been brought to this world to experience life. There was a window of limited time for Brandon, Jackson and I to have been able to be brought together and I thank my lucky stars that everything aligned just so.

In my life, and perhaps in yours too, waiting for the "right time" can lead to serious procrastination and missed opportunity. I have a terrible habit of making myself believe that I can always do something later -- not just the big stuff either. I'm talking about menial, everyday things too -- walking over a sock because my hands are full and bending down with Jackson on my hip is a workout in itself. "I'll come back later," I say... two days pass and that sock might still be there... no, it's probably totally still there. Starting this blog, for example, is something I've been talking about for at least the past four months. Reasons I put off starting the blog? I couldn't find my camera connector to save my life ( blogs need pictures, right?) then when I finally did, my lap top crashed leaving me in techno limbo for some time. I used my iPhone to attempt to start the blog via the Blogger app but it just wasn't working out. Thankfully, we received a new computer from my husband's parents as a birthday gift. They are amazing. (Shout out to Rod and Laura Pitzer.) This seemed as "right" a time as any to finally push myself into starting this thing. I would not put it off any longer -- though I'm sure I could come up with some excuses why I could.

This, in a sense, is my call to action - and if you share in my procrastination woes, it can be yours too. I am refusing to go on thinking about putting anything off till later. Later turns to never -- so unless I sit down and assign something an actual date (in my planner that I am running to Target TODAY to get), I'm doing it NOW sisters. No more walking over socks. With this plan, I will not only accomplish much more, I will inevitably have more free time for playing with Jackson and working on projects for the house and trying new recipes to share with all of you. It is a win-win-win-win-win... and I really can't think of anything more "right" than that.