Monday, January 28, 2008

Ross's Blog

I'm not much of a writer but I want to do this blog for several reasons. First one being as a way to better communicate with my friends and family that live so far away. Another being a chronicle of what we went through during this journey with hopes it will help other clueless fathers-to-be. Last but not least, I wanted to provide some comic relief as I have absolutely no clue what I've gotten myself into and seeing it thru my eyes has got to be entertaining to those who have experienced this for themselves.

The Beginning:



My lovely wife Leia!



I'm a pretty lucky guy.

I sometimes question Leia's decision making skills too but I think we make a pretty good couple!

We've been together for almost 6 years now and will be celebrating our 2nd wedding anniversary Feb 25th! This past August, Leia and I were planning to have a nice evening out to dinner celebrating her birthday. We were going to our favorite restaurant on the riverwalk here in San Antonio called Boudro's. The following morning we were scheduled to go leave on a trip to Mexico to party and spend time with some good friends of ours. Perfect time for a margarita!!! Let my liver know that a trip is coming and football season is just around the corner so get ready. Leia wasn't quite ready to join so she enjoyed her glass of water. We ordered the "live" guacamole (highly recommend) and continued our normal dinner conversation. Everything was status quo. I bought her some new earrings that I had given her just before dinner that were a surprise and I took a second to tell her how much I love her and that I hope she liked her gift and I was excited about Mexico. Her voice started to get a little shaky at that moment. She told me that she had a surprise for me as well. I'm beginning thinking to myself, "what could it be....? A flat panel HD TV, surround sound, camera for trip, promotion, raise..." all the material items in the typical male fantasy world right before football season. She pauses. Tears begin to well up in her eyes. I'm thinking, "this must be a really nice TV and I'm going to be surprised and why would she cry over that???!!!!???!!!!"

"I'm pregnant!", she says with a smile (thank GOD) and the tears began to flow. For me, imagine waking up in the middle of a freeway naked with a winning lottery ticket in your hand. It's the only thing I can think to describe what was going through my head at the moment. I couldn't talk, breathe, think clearly, or make a complete sentence (I know.. I'm from Alabama... it's not my fault.) I've never been more shocked, excited, scared or in love than I was at that moment. It's something that I will never forget as long as I live. Without a doubt the best surprise that someone can receive and if there is a better one out there, I hope I get to experience it. Below are some pics from Mexico shortly after she gave me the news!

















Welcome to our blog!

Ross and I have been trying to figure out ways to keep our family and friends involved in all of the changes in our life. Then it hit me, I have several good friends with blogs and I enjoy reading them periodically. It always makes me feel like I get to experience the day-to-day things even though we're living states away. To be perfectly honest, I've never been good at chronically the events in my life, so this will be a challenge. However, I've also never had my life change so much, so fast. With only two months left until the baby arrives, our lives are in extreme overdrive. It feels like there's so much to do in order to prepare, but in the grand scheme of things babies don't need thousands of dollars worth of toys or nursery decorations. They only need the basics sprinkled with a lot of love and attention.

I still have a lot to learn about babies. As all of my close family and friends already know, I'm the farthest thing from a baby expert. As a matter of fact, I've always been relatively phobic. What can you expect from an only child? At least I'm honest about my short-comings and I'm smart enough to ask for help. Not only have I received a lot of great advice from friends, but Ross and I also took a baby care course offered by the hospital. Now I feel slightly more prepared to welcome the new edition into our lives.

So to sum it up, I've never been more excited about anything in my life and I look forward to sharing all our experiences through this blog.