SO much to be THANKFUL for

Not only am I married to an amazing man, we are having a baby. AND the baby is healthy. AND it's a boy. Every day, I feel like the luckiest person on the planet, considering last year this time, we had no hope of having a baby - ever.

Being 'thankful' for our healthy baby boy (to be called Tyson, by the way) is a big understatement. Seeing the detailed ultrasound makes you realize what a MIRACLE it is to have a healthy baby. I laid there, looking at the screen in awe -- had all of these things developed in 18 short weeks? How is that possible? Two perfect kidneys, two perfect feet... (that look like Jesse's, by the way)... Simply amazing.

I'm also thankful for my mom and sister who helped me register for baby gear at Babies R' Us... for four hours. I didn't know anything about baby stuff. What's a 'layette'? The mattress doesn't come with the crib? RIP OFF! Why would anyone buy a bumper pad? What exactly am I to 'receive' in this blanket, and why do I need so many of them? Who thought of 156 different types of bottles and 87 different types of pacifiers? Is there really a whole section for boob accessories? Taking a bath seems pretty straight forward, so why are there 43 different types of tubs? That velcro swaddler thingy has DSS written ALL over it. Crack cream probably doesn't do what I think it does. Clearly, I needed some assistance. I am forever in their debt for patiently explaining everything to me, telling me the pros/cons of one brand versus another, and pushing onward thru the whole store when I had become BEYOND saturated with all things decor, toy, and dirty butt clean-up. My mother in law also bought us some baby swag at IKEA... a place where I wasn't SUPPOSED to understand the words on the products. Whew.

Seems like when baby number one cometh, so does the generosity of friends. One friend (or pair of friends, really) said she had 'some baby stuff' we could look thru. She (they) proceeded to provide Tyson's wardrobe for the first 6 months of his life, diapers, and lots of baby accessories and would not take a DIME from me. There was so much there that I got home and started to cry when I sorted it out (yes, I'm preggy and cry sometimes now, but seriously - I was humbled by the donation). I will find a way to pay them back... I'm thinking baked goods or free personal training... or both.

If Jesse and I list everything we are thankful for this year at dinner tomorrow, it may prove to be the longest meal ever... well, second longest ever, next to the Thanksgiving dinner that began with my cousin James' 10-verse solo of 'We Give Thanks' years ago...