Baby and Mommy hit week 38 today - I can't believe how fast time has gone! Really, time has gone fast since my surgery on 1-5-10. Things have changed so much and I'm so thankful to have had a relatively healthy pregnancy (anything that has come up has not been from my WLS). Looking at these pics today made me realize how far I've come from a few years ago. I most likely would have used every excuse in the book to eat whatever I wanted during pregnancy before. For me, having something like my surgery that makes things very black and white with what I can eat and not eat has been such a huge help. I would have liked to say I had enough will power to say no on my own - but let me tell you, pregnancy cravings are REAL and they don't go away once they've arrived (at least in my experience). As much as I would like to think I could have said no to some of those cravings and indulgences, it's important that I'm honest with myself and realize I wouldn't have been able to say no. If that was the case, I would have never gotten to 340+ pounds. (Before/After pics here) You don't get there by choice - trust me. No one wakes up one day at 18 and says "My goal is to get up to 340 pounds in the next 10 years". It just doesn't happen. What did happen for me was one morning I woke up (after meeting the best man of my life - Ryan) and said "I want to have kids - and I want to be safe about it" and that is exactly what started this journey.
Ryan and I went to our first informational meeting in January 2009 about gastric bypass options. I can't believe that just short of 3 years later, I'll be holding our baby, our little boy, in my arms. Not only will I be holding him, there will be room for him! My recovery (regardless of how I deliver) will be 10 times better. My blood pressure and weight have been amazing throughout the pregnancy. I will have the energy I need to keep up with our little boy as he grows and I'll be so proud to tell him someday what it took for us to have him. What it took for his dad to take this huge leap of faith with me on this journey because we wanted him before we even knew him. The love and support of my husband, family and friends has been amazing throughout this entire journey. The love that we already have for this little boy is out of this world and I can't imagine how intense that love is going to feel when he arrives in the next few weeks.
My biggest hope and dream for him is that he grows up confident in his decisions and that he adapts to whatever life may throw at him. If he wants something bad enough, whatever that might be, I know he will find a way to make it happen. That's how his life was started....
My next post will hopefully be with our little guy... so until then - happy holidays everyone!
