My little angel in his cocoon

(And my story continues…)

A dream come true
After falling in love with my beloved nieces and nephew, it was a dream come true to finally be having a baby of my own. I never thought I would be strong enough to withstand all the rigors of pregnancy, but I was pleasantly surprised.

I am happy to report that I did not experience any kind of morning sickness or nausea throughout my entire pregnancy. Also a dream come true. Yay! My mother didn’t either with her two pregnancies, so I would like to believe that it is hereditary. I do remember almost losing it one day though when I was removing the skin from some chicken thighs. I also had an aversion to peanuts, eggplant, and overcooked vegetables, especially zucchini. Bill took very good care of me ensuring that I ate healthy, but mostly making sure that I had my breakfast within thirty minutes of waking up.

Food, glorious food...and lots of will power
I was sad to have developed gestation diabetes and high blood pressure towards the third trimester. My heritage is Latino, which means I love food. So, having gestational diabetes was tragic for me. I had to be very scientific with my food. I had to be careful with my food combinations. That also meant, no sugar, less fruit, control the carbs, low fat, and no salt. I had to monitor my blood sugar level by checking it before and after every meal and record those readings for my doctor. It was tedious, but manageable. Before I stuffed my face with something, I would always say to myself that I love my baby more than the double fudge caramel pecan brownie in front of me. Thank goodness Bill is very informed in all things relating to food and healthy living.

I spook very easily and it certainly didn’t help that people came to me with truly scary pregnancy and delivery stories. My ob-gyn already considered me high risk because of my age. I refused the amnio which she thought was completely unheard of. She was very strict, in my opinion, almost to the point of being an alarmist. She also scolded me when it came to the food intake situation. No soft cheeses (i.e. brie), moldy cheeses, fried foods, soda, undercooked meats, fish, pork, cold cuts, canned food, junk food, and of course, no sugar and salt. My ob-gyn always erred on the side of caution which I do appreciate. Her bedside manner was not what I expected, but she took great care of me during my pregnancy and delivery. God bless her! I wouldn't have had it any other way. Bill also gave me a Priesthood blessing during the nervous period of mine which also helped immensely.

Inside the cocoon
To experience the miracle of life from the inside is truly awe-inspiring. I remember the first fluttering of my baby moving inside of me at around four months or so. I want to say that it felt like a little butterfly, but I must admit, it felt more like gas. When it was apparent that there were no gas emissions, then I realized that it must have been the baby moving. I certainly felt the baby move during the Shakira concert that Bill took me to for our first wedding anniversary. I danced and sang along to all the songs in both Spanish and English. (It’s no wonder my little guy loves to dance and sing to all kinds of music.) Bill also took me to a spa in Manhattan for a full body massage. Just what a girl needs! Heavenly! Oh, how I love this man!


I always thought I would have a girl first, so the news that we were having a baby boy was quite a surprise. Bill of course was ecstatic as I was about having a boy. The sex of the baby honestly didn’t really matter to me as long as my baby would be born healthy. I prayed for this every single waking moment.

It was a unique sensation to be carrying that much extra weight, not to mention looking at myself in the mirror and seeing myself getting bigger and bigger. I really enjoyed looking at my belly in the mirror and imagining if my baby boy looked like his mommy or daddy. You can be sure of one thing though, whenever I posed for a photo I would always try stand sideways to really show it off. Happy times! The fullness and sheer roundness of it reminded me of an oversized basketball. The way this baby was moving, for all I knew he was playing basketball. As far as stretch marks, my mother never got them, so I was expecting not to have any either. I was wrong. I did get some stretch marks, mostly on the underside of my belly, but was assured that they would go away after I gave birth. Wrong, again. The stretch marks are still there.
As my pregnancy progressed and my belly got bigger and bigger, I started to carry low. I was all belly. I actually had to wear a maternity belt which helped. People always thought I was due any minute, even though I still had quite some time to go. When I went up the stairs on the subway, I had to stop midway for a little rest. Everyone would ask me if I was okay, followed by “You’re not going into labor, are you?” I laughed and though I assured them that I was not going into labor, they still hung around until I made it to the top of the stairs and to the street corner. One kind, but nervous Asian lady even walked me to the front of my building and made me call my husband to let him know I made it home all right. I’m sure I disappointed a lot of people since maybe they were secretly hoping it was labor and that it would make it in the news. It was nice though to know that people cared. And you’ll be happy to know that my pregnancy or delivery never made it in the news. Thank goodness!

Right around seven months or so, I noticed some real interaction going on between the baby and me. He certainly liked to move around a lot, so to calm him down, I would sing to him. “My Heavenly Father Loves Me” became a favorite. It became apparent, too, that he was quite aware of whatever I did, so I had to be extra careful. I had to make sure I went to bed at a decent hour and try to remain as still as possible. After a certain hour in the evening, I had to make sure that my conversations were calm and not so animated. One night, Bill and I stayed up in bed talking away. The conversation became lively, and next thing you know I burst out laughing and just couldn’t stop. Well, wouldn’t you know that the baby jumped and moved around and fussed so much that it took me a while to calm the situation. He even got the hiccups. My little guy was actually startled. I felt so bad for him that I had to get up and walk around a little and sing lullabies.

Showered with gifts and well wishes
At around eight months or so, I got a surprise baby shower by my family and the Relief Society of the LDS Bensonhurst Ward. Bill made out the invitations and coordinated everything with my mother and brother. I was asked to go to Church to meet with Bishop Cromwell Wong. He gave me a Priesthood blessing so that everything would go well with the baby and the delivery. Then we walked around the Church building looking for Bill who had been in a meeting earlier with him. We walked over to the Relief Society room and I caught a glimpse of a balloon and then realized it could only mean one thing.

I walked in and just started crying as my family and friends all yelled out “surprise” in unison. I can’t even tell you how many baby showers, bridal showers, engagement parties, weddings, etc. I have attended in my lifetime. Everyone is happy, surprised, blissful, but when it happens to you, it’s like, wow, I never thought I would be on the receiving end of one of these events. I was thinking, what did I ever do to deserve such attention and nice things like these?! That’s why I was crying, in addition, of course, to being one very hormonal and very pregnant woman.

Bill and I are so very deeply grateful for all the many wonderful gifts, but most especially for everyone’s well wishes. We are deeply moved not only by the generosity of our family and friends, but especially in knowing that I was loved and cared about by so many people. I am sure that it was because of my friends’ and family’s prayers and good wishes that I had such a beautiful pregnancy. We received such incredible gifts, one right after the other, before, during and long after the shower. We got the softest blankets and clothing, one-of-a-kind hand-knitted and handmade clothing and blankets, and the most useful baby products on the market today. (I will be sure to list them later for future reference.) I also got some very cool hand-me-downs (or “vintage” clothing as I like to call it) that I truly appreciated. Each gift was very special to us and reflected the beauty, uniqueness, and fun-loving nature of the gift-giver. One of the best gifts we received was what seemed to us like an unending supply of Huggies brand diapers (sizes 1 through 3) and wipes (or wipees, as I like to call them, which I still have! Yay!), and Balmex ointment, all from family and dear friends. One of many wonderful gifts we received is one that has gotten a lot of use. A really cool lady from Church, who was a kind friend just when I needed one the most, gave us a fantastic reference book - “The Baby Book: Everything You Need to Know about Your Baby from Birth to Age Two” by Dr. William Sears. He is a world-renowned Pediatrician and his wife, Martha, is a nurse. Get it? Bill and Martha Sears! Hilarious!