This is a first...

Dear Baby...


Well, this is a first.  It's currently 3:48 am and I am on the couch, wide awake, unable to sleep.  I'm pretty sure my joints and muscles are asleep, but my mind is awake.  I yawn as I type; however, I've tried laying in bed three times in the last two hours with no sleep success.  I've watched an episode of True Blood, drank a glass of milk (almost drove to Hy-Vee to get some Oreos for dunking), and made a to-do list, but my insomnia is proving relentless.  It turns out, you are up too, tossing and turning as much as I am.  So, I type.  I reflect.  I duck tail from thought to thought, hoping my restless mind will soon give in...


I've always been a girl who needs her sleep.  To be honest, I'm a little nervous about joining the N.P.I.C., or New Parent Insomniac Club.  I'm known to get quite crabby and a little whiny when I'm running on little sleep.  So advice number one before joining this family?  Go easy on your mom.  Get all your late night energy out of your system before you enter this world.  Deal???


Tonight was a good night.  Tonight, your dad and I (and you in tow), strolled up and down Main Street, laid in fields, and shared an ice cream cone, all while being photographed like a couple of celebrities who decided to escape their so-called private sphere for a simple date night on the town.  Now usually anything that involves 'pictures' and 'your father' in the same sentence speaks anything but fun; however, tonight was.  It might have something to do with the fact that I bribed him with Toads if he decided to cooperate.  I think it has more to do with the reason we were there together.  We were there, celebrating a new chapter of our lives.  Our sweaty heads have been pressed together during other important stages of our relationship...as a newly engaged couple, a soon-to-be married couple, a couple of honeymooners, and now, a couple of expectant parents.  It was special to be able to set apart some time to really soak it all in. 


Well, baby, this is it.  My last few days of summer vacation.  Soon, I will be battling long days on my feet, a hot classroom, and hyperactive 16 year olds.  But before all that, I want you to know how much I've enjoyed this summer preparing for you. 


...those moments in my kiddie pool, laughing to myself as I watched my bare belly move up and down, up and down, up and down...
...the hours I have spent planning the details of your nursery
...the nights I've sat and rocked in your chair, fiddled with the perfect lamplight, and dreamed about a sleeping baby in my arms.
...the little clothes I've washed, folded, refolded, and hung or placed in your closet and dresser
...the doctor's appointments, especially the ultrasounds
...the late nights up with Beau, talking about who you will look like, who you will act like, and how we plan to conquer parenthood!
...all the "Beau!  Come here!" shrieks as you made an indent in my tummy or kicked a field goal towards my ribs! 


This weekend will be a great one.  As I near the next quarter-century of my life, I look forward to all that is to come.  Life is going to change, that's for sure, but I have a feeling 26 is going to be a pretty great year...