Happy Thanksgiving-Giving Thanks for 2012

I have a deep sense of gratitude this year.  This week, we mark the 6 month anniversary of our move to the UAE and 9 months of pregnancy. 

First, about the obviously biggest item in my life to be grateful about:

At about the second week of April of this year, I received the confirmation I had been waiting on for four years, a positive pregnancy test.  It was so difficult to grasp as a reality.  In fact, it was so difficult, that over the course of that week, I spent a small fortune on about 20-30 pregnancy tests praying the pink line would not go away and continue to intensify…even after the doctor had confirmed via blood test.

One week later, our minds were blown when during an ultrasound, two small dots were spotted.  Twins. 

We were apprehensive about believing what was happening.  Then a few weeks later, twins were confirmed when two heartbeats were detected.  I had early fears something might be wrong as one of the little heartbeats, though still within average range, was not beating as quickly as the other. 

I'll skip all the tough details, but as obvious at this point, only one of the little heartbeats made it past the 8 week mark.

I was in a very emotional, confused state until right before I boarded a plane to meet up with Adam in the UAE.

I planned for my last doctor’s visit on the day of my flight from Texas to the UAE.  That morning, I finished packing my things, had a healthy breakfast and made my way to the doctor by myself.  Before this point, at now 12 weeks, we had been confirming growth and heartbeat, but not seeing movement.  That final ultrasound in Texas changed everything.  It brought me back to life, more specifically, our baby’s kicks brought me back to life. 

Though I didn’t know it was a she at the time, Savannah, as if knowing just what mommy needed, put on a fantastic show.  As soon as the ultrasound machine was turned on, she began kicking, somersaulting and waving her arms as if to say, “Look at me! I’m every bit alive and kicking!”

It’s like I hadn’t taken a breath in 4 weeks and all the air came rushing in at one time.  She kicked this way through the entire ultrasound.  It was incredible! With her strong little kicks, she woke me up from my daze and I had a new resolve to be this baby’s strong mommy.

Here's a still of her first kicks viewed by ultrasound at 12 weeks.

I have found a stronger faith and a deeper sense of gratitude since then, in fact it’s stronger than at any other time in my life.  With each passing week, Savannah gets bigger, gets stronger, her kicks and punches get more painful.  With each week, I feel more at peace with everything.  Her heartbeat has not only kept its strong healthy beat, but even when many baby’s heartbeats begin to slow down, hers has stayed at a steady beat, always above 150 bpm. 

She now reacts to my voice, she loves her daddy’s voice and likes kicking back when we tap on my tummy.  She is the essence of life, new hope, new faith.

Here's the clearest picture we have of her during a 3D scan at around 7 months

Second, I am thankful for my wonderful husband. 

I met him when he was 21 and I was 20.  We were both pretty much just kids.  He was sweet and smart and good looking and at that time, a catch by a 20 yr old girl’s standards.  One decade later, he is still handsome as could be, and getting better looking with every passing year, but he’s so much more. 

He is my rock.  I have complete faith in his ability to protect and lead our little family.  There were so many overwhelming pieces to our move around the world.  He handled everything with precision, attention to detail and relieved so much stress off of me while I was dealing with everything else going on.  We may bicker over silly things but when it comes to the biggies in a marriage, I have encountered few relationships like ours.  

We have weathered storms together (figurative and actual).  We have changed and evolved a hundred times over, but somehow, we have stayed in step.  We are both very different people from the people we were when we first met.  Many couples that start off at that age grow apart.  We have changed in so many ways, sometimes at different paces, but somehow, we manage to find each other at the next phase of our evolution.

I look to him when I’m afraid or overwhelmed.  I am grateful that I can come to him, vulnerable and honest in those moments and ask him for some relief.  He always finds a way to take the lead and usher in logic in the middle of chaos and solution life’s problems that sometimes feel unsolvable.

Now, he is entering a new stage as a father.  I am so thankful for the choice I made over 10 years ago, when it felt like a silly crush.    He is smart, but more importantly, wise.  He is strong but can also show our family gentleness.  He is a hard worker and wonderful provider, but also encourages me to pursue my dreams and goals. 

I cannot wait to see him interact with his daughter!

10+ years, still going strong

Ready and excited for the next 10 years!

Third, I am thankful for the dear friends and family that supported me this year.    Sometimes it takes something dramatic to grow up in your view of real friendships and family bonds.

Everything else falls away in that moment.  Your circle of those meant to be close to you gets clearly defined and you immediately learn what real, life-long, I’ll-owe-you-forever, friendship means.

I have finally experienced this.  No matter how far away from them I am right now, no matter how little we may get to talk, these are the people I would do anything for.  

Finally, I am thankful for the way our move worked out.  It was often scary, frustrating and topped with pregnancy hormones, emotional.

Between very understanding bosses, wonderful new doctors and an ability to keep a sense of humor about everything, we made it through the first 6 months.  I started out counting days when we moved here.  Eventually, after about sixty days, routines began forming.  Our furniture arrived.  We figured out short cuts, found the best grocery stores and by the time we knew it, we had started making a new home for ourselves.  It’s remarkable how time begins to fly when you let go and begin simply…living.

Six months have passed and we feel settled in.  We are at peace where we are and are looking forward to new routines involving our baby.  Only God knows how long we’ll end up living here.  Only God knows where we’ll end up living after our time here has ended.  We could end up back in Texas or we could end up in some other wild location.  We welcome either path and are just happy to be where we are and make the most of this adventure.

Settling in to life in Abu Dhabi

Another crazy find in the UAE

Grateful our loyal, loving pups made the move around the world look easy

 2012 has been the most surprising year ever.  There were cloudy days and there were sunny days. 

Change is inevitable.  My faith has me knowing that our little family is being watched over and that we can handle anything new 2013 has to offer.   

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!