My Cup Runneth Over

~ Hope Floats ~

“So, you’re pregnant...Now what?”  I'm waiting for all the horrible things to happen that I've heard about since I was a child. The morning sickness, the pickles and ice cream cravings, the body parts that scream when clothing touches them just the right way, the mood swings, the stretch marks...  You’ve heard it all too. I know I’m just over one month into this 9 month rodeo, but I am having one symptom for sure: I’M SO TIRED!!! I haven't gotten sick yet, and according to the movie, Knocked Up, that is one of the first symptoms.

One thing that I have experienced is getting advice from every which way. I’m half tempted to start writing a short story book that entails the first name, age, and advice from each person who shares their story with me. Who knows- it might become a best seller?

So far, the best advice, (and by best I mean most hysterical) was from a 70ish year old woman who I used to work with. She is a nut, and I love her dearly. Her advice was this: “Always keep a package of saltines and a package of peppermints by your bed. Each morning, wake up and eat a saltine, and then follow it with a peppermint. You’ll never have morning sickness. I promise.” See what I mean? Funny, right? Anywho, just a thought I had while laying in bed last night.

I remembered that I didn’t share with you all how me and Jim told my mom that I was pregnant. Due to high demand, I suppose I will share it with you. J

I had a 5x7 picture of my belly with the word baby on it, and an 8x10 picture of the word SURPRISE with some baby shoes in it. Jim said that he wanted to give her the pictures, and our plan was to tell her that we got her a surprise while we were in San Antonio. We popped in on my mom while she was home cleaning, and she didn’t expect us. I said, “We stopped by to give you the gift we bought for you in San Antonio”, and Jim handed her the picture frames.

For maybe 10 seconds, her eyes shifted from one picture to another, and she had a puzzled look on her face. She said, “Oh, that’s cute.” And looked up and me. I smiled real big and looked at Jim. We were both waiting for her to put 2 and 2 together. She must have realized that the pictures that were in the frames didn’t come with them at the time of purchase when she recognized the belly in the picture. I could hear her gasp for air when she looked at me and said, “Wait! Are you…?” And as if I was hugging my unborn child, I clasped my hands over my tummy and said, “Yes! I’m PREGNANT!”

I’m not sure what happened to the picture frames at this point. I don’t know if she threw them on the ground, handed them to Jim, or laid them gently on the table. In the blink of an eye, her title transformed from Mama, to Memaw. With each step she took toward me, her smile got bigger, and her tears fell faster. This was the perfect reaction to my news. It was exactly how I wanted her to react, and how I had been dreaming she would react for years.

Now, when it came to telling my dad, that was a little different. I had intended to tell him when he got home from work,  but I remembered we had a Wise County Youth Fair meeting at 6:30 that evening. I had every intention of telling him over the phone, so in the presence of my mom, Grandma, and Jim, I called him. I asked if he was busy and he said he was getting his oil changed, then headed home. (Think fast Heather…) So I said, “Oh, so you’re coming home early?” He said he was, and I played it off like I was just calling to see if I could ride with him to the meeting. This was working out better than I had hoped! My mom and I planned a dinner before the meeting, and as we waited for my dad to pull up in the driveway, I was planning what I would say.  

I knew that no matter what, he would be thrilled, but I also know how good of a storyteller my dad is, and that however I spilled the beans, this story would be told over and over again at various occasions. He pulls up and walks inside, and for some reason, I got nervous. Maybe not nervous, but more anxious and excited I suppose. So I got get the frames, and do the exact same thing to him and I did with my mom. This time, we had an audience. Jim, my mom, Aunt Tonya, and my grandma were watching. Daddy was sitting on the couch, and I crawled up next to him like I used to when I was a little girl. I handed him the frames and said, “Me and Jim picked you up something from San Antonio”. He said, “Sweet” and semi- looked at them. I wasn’t sure what the delay would be from the time he saw the picture of a woman’s tummy, and the realized it was his daughter’s tummy. This time, it was quick. He looked at me and said, “REALLY?!” And I said, “I’m PREGNANT!” He let out a heavy sigh, and then said, “Ah man! That means that I’ll be sleeping next to an old grandma now!!!” Everyone cracked up, and he put his arm around me and gave me a tight squeeze.

These moments are only the beginning of so many that I know I will cherish for the rest of my life, and I am SO thankful to be able to have them.

My Cup Runneth Over.