A Little Taste of The Paxmans

For unknown reasons to me, I had previously taken an “anti-blogging” stance. However, I am now realizing we fit many of the blogging clichés: We are happily married, and to add to our joy, we are beginning our journey down the path of parenthood.  So, I have decided, it is time to blog! I will write to all of you wonderful family and friends, expressing to you the ups and downs of this joyous adventure we call life!

So, let’s get to the “good stuff” . . . let’s get to the pregnancy! Ooh man, so much to tell. To start, I feel that it is important to begin by telling you how exactly we came to the decision of becoming parents.  Jeff and I had initially thought we were going to wait 2 years after we got married to join the parent club . . . although some may remember this a little differently. Some seem to believe we signed a contract stating that we would wait 4 years until we headed down this path. (I won’t mention any names here, Alyson Nicole.) We do not remember any such contract; but regardless of signing or not signing, plans changed.

I woke up one morning, after 8 months of holy matrimony, ready to start trying. I kept my thoughts quiet for one entire afternoon. For those of you who know me well, you know this was not an easy task. When something I am passionate about enters my mind, it takes all I have to keep it to myself.  Just ask Jeff how successful I am about keeping surprises from him . . . and I’m even worse at not trying to guess surprises from him to me!

Anyway, I tried very hard to contain myself, and despite my strong desire to bombard Jeff with the good news, I did NOT wake him up at 6 a.m. to tell him we needed to get started! Instead, I went to work, played with the kiddos, and spent the entire day thinking up a very persuasive list of reasons to share with Jeff.  

I practiced my delivery on my drive home from work and decided I would share it with Jeff when he returned home from school later that afternoon. Hah! That didn’t happen!

The closer and closer I got to the BYU campus, the stronger my urge to share grew. Sure enough, by the time I hit 800 North, I had Jeff’s number dialed and ringing. I sweetly and calmly suggested, “Hey Babe, how about I meet you on campus and we can walk around and enjoy this beautiful day together?” He thought it was a wonderful idea . . . ! Poor man, he had no idea his world was about to change completely!

Needless to say, my speech worked.  Jeff—being wonderfully responsible—decided we needed to get “our ducks in a row.” And, as I am a FIRM believer in being organized, this was music to my ears.  

In early December, we figured out our finances, joined a family insurance plan (which included maternity), found an OBGYN, and talked and talked and talked some more about our dream of becoming parents.  We traveled home for a long Christmas break and enjoyed two full weeks of family time. When we returned, we began our new adventure.  

Are you doing the math? Yes, we got pregnant on our first try!

This came as a bit of a shock to Jeff.  In my list of reasons to start trying, I explained in earnest that it is not always easy to conceive.  Using many examples of couples that had patiently and persistently endeavored for quite a while in their efforts to conceive, we came to the conclusion that the average time for trying and succeeding is around 6 months! Hehe.  Bad math? I think not.  My instincts were right on—it WAS our time!

So here we are: In love, happily married, and becoming first time parents . . . Oh and blogging, of course!