A Thankful Announcement

You guys. YOU GUYS!! I barely have words.

And I am a writer.

I apologize for my recent absence, I have been distracted. I have been floating about 12 feet above the ground, trying to make sense of some amazing news, all while battling debilitating sickness.

Morning sickness.

WE ARE HAVING A BABY!!!

Let me catch my breath and I will share the story.

Ok, here it goes. As you know, we have had our share of struggles and losses. After years of trying, we decided it was in the best interest of our family and our collective sanity, to stop trying to have another child. We mourned the baby that would never be and eventually found ourselves coming to terms with what our family was to look like.

One child had it's advantages and we were happy. Isn't that ultimately the goal? Happiness. For us it was and the thought of anymore losses and heartbreaks was unbearable. We had been blessed with a happy, healthy, amazing little girl. We were happy.

By the end of February, I started feeling different. Slightly nauseous and extremely tired. Could it be? Could I be? The test took no time in confirming what I both hoped for and feared. I was pregnant.

This time was different though. My symptoms were intense. Much more so than with any of the pregnancies I had lost. The day of my 7 week ultrasound came. All we need was a heartbeat. There was so much hope in that tiny flicker. I could hear my husband exhale when our smiling doctor said, "There you go! See that? That is a healthy heart."

We were to come back in a month for another scan, to make sure our itty bitty baby was growing.

I held my breath for the next 4 weeks.

And grow s/he did. We have a wriggly baby with arms, legs, spine, and that glorious heartbeat. Hearing that thumping was indescribable.

So here we are. I am finishing up the first trimester. Still nauseous but I find comfort in knowing that it will lead me to our baby. A baby we never expected to happen. A baby we ached for. A baby our daughter has begged us for. A baby that is loved so much already.

*You may only see a grey blob but I see a future that we had given up on. (Baby is looking down, spine along the top, head to the right, chin to chest, star over face to protect their fetal identity, of course.)*

International Happiness Day

Today is International Happiness Day. WHAT A GREAT DAY!! Who doesn't want to be happy?

Right?

In honor of this I am turning my Thankful Thursday list into things that make me happy.

One in the same, really.

Here we go, in no particular order.

*Cadbury Creme eggs. Not just he deliciousness but also the fact they only come out at Easter. Easter is in Spring. Spring means Winter is over. I love sunshine.

*Flowers. Currently there are tulips residing in my house. They are little rays of sunshine and happiness.  Try to be grumpy next to a bright red tulip. I dare you.

*Fresh fruit. If I sit in the ray of sunshine that streams into my living room and munch on a juicy kiwi or apple, I can pretend that it is July. THAT makes me happy.

*Speaking of sunshine. Aaaaaahhhhh!!! So much happy that the sun is brighter and warmer these days.

*SPRING!!! Today is also the Vernal Equinox, the first official day of Spring. It snowed last night but it was that late Winter/ early Spring kind of snow that is super wet and heavy and melts as it falls. My eaves are dripping and I saw my lawn all last week. I am happy.

*Canada Geese. I live in New England and the weather is all sorts of unpredictable. The calander and weathermen are not accurate ways of telling when the seasons turn. The geese though, they never fail me. They head South  for the winter and return North for Spring. I can hear them passing over my house as I type this. That honking is the soundtrack to the change in the seasons. Never doubt the geese.

*My little family. My daughter and my husband. They are AWESOME. Seriously. I hope everyone who reads these words experiences a love like this. You deserve it.

*THIS:


There you have it. A list of gratitude and happiness for this International Day of Happiness - Vernal Equinox - SPRING!!!!

Have a post bursting with happiness and/or gratitude? Link up here!!!

Thankful Thursday II

It is Thursday again! Time for the second weekly Thankful Thursday list. I will include a link up at the bottom of this page again so you can share your posts of gratitude.

Without further ado, here we go!

1. Heat. I am so thankful for my warm house today. It is a very windy and very cold 10 degrees here today.

2. My heating pad. I have an awful lower back and it has been so painful recently. My magic clay heating pad works miracles.

3. Hope. No matter how dark it may get, I always seem to be able to hold onto to hope. Which correlates with number 4......

4. Optimism. I am SO thankful that I have grown into an optimistic person. I had to teach myself, learn this behavior. It didn't com natural to me but once I realized that I had so much to be grateful for and how good life can be, it came much easier. I see so many people getting in their own way with their pessimism. Makes me sad.

5. Opportunities. I am grateful for the opportunities I have been offered. Mamlode, Bon Bon Break, and Esteem Yourself have all contacted me in the past couple weeks. I don't even know what to say besides: THANK YOU!!

6. My dogs. They are the first to annoy me but also the first to make me laugh. The other night there was a crash in the night that sent my husband investigating and then to snuggle the kiddo. Our big boy dog happily slept next to me, keeping me safe and comforted. I am so grateful for the love they bring to this family.

7. Good friends. I don't have many, but the few I have are AMAZING. I adore them.

8. Family. I live a few tenths of a mile from my grandparents. I get to see them at least once a week. I am incredibly blessed to still have them in my life and even more blessed to have them so close.

What are you grateful for? Link up your post below or leave a comment with your most thankful thoughts.

XOXO

Thankful

I have decided to take up Thankful Thursdays. I have seen several incarnations all with the same goal: take a moment and reflect on what you are thankful for.

Sounds right up my alley.

I am going to do ten, mostly because I am a sucker for alliteration. 

I don't want this to be just about me. So, either post your own gifts of gratitude in the comments or add your post to the link up below.

Now, let's do this!!

1. My life. I know that is a broad subject but this is my list, so I can do what I want. I am grateful for the life I live. My husband and I have built this life ourselves. We will continue to work our asses off to better ourselves, each other and out lives.

2. My husband. He is supportive and encouraging and understanding. He is an AMAZING parent and doesn't mind washing dishes. He loves me NO MATTER WHAT. Seriously, I ask him all the time, "Would you still love me if [insert ridiculous scenario here] happened?" He never hesitates to laugh at me and say yes. Of course.

3. My daughter. We struggled to conceive her and have struggled to conceive another. We have experienced more loss than life. We gave up. She was conceived. Easy. She is the rainbow after our storm. She is our everything.

4. Coffee and chocolate peppermint non-dairy creamer. Seriously, do I really need to explain?

5. My ability to write.

6. The opportunities that just keep on coming to further my career as a writer.

7. You. For reading and supporting my dreams.

8. Donuts. Just like #4, no explanation needed.

9. Sunshine. I live in the North East. It is March. Sunshine is a gift. A much needed and yearned for gift.

10. Laughter. My daughter's, my husband's, my own, and yours. There is little that laughter can't
 soothe.

What are you grateful for? What makes you feel thankful?

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