Birth Story

What will our son look like? 

Will he look more like me or Joel? 

Either way, he's going to have big ears. Sorry kid.

It's my birthday today and the only thing my mind can seem to focus on is our son's birthday in the near future. When will he arrive? What will he look like? What will be the story I tell him the morning of his birthdays?

Following tradition, my mom called me this morning and recited the story of when I was born. She went into labor late the night before, dropped my brother & sister off, and labored all night long. The nurses were more worried about my pale-faced Dad in the corner and kept offering him food. My mom tried to postpone my delivery until her doctor could get there because she had heard horrible things about the doctor on-call. I was persistent, so her plan was ruined. I was born at 7:50am. The doctor was a middle-eastern man with a very thick accent. When I was born he kept saying "A beautiful baby girl! A beautiful baby girl!" He asked my mom what they would name me and she told him, "Emily Elizabeth." "Oh!" he exclaimed, "You've taken all of the beautiful names!" About 15 minutes later they changed my name to Sara because I needed a "stronger name." Labor was not kind to my face--it was swollen and puffy, my nose was smushed down, my lips were gigantic and my chin stuck out so far it literally cast a shadow! My parents were worried the name Emily was too dainty for this monstrosity they created. All I needed was some beauty sleep, people. My mom always ends the story telling me how alert I was from the moment I was born. She would shake her cup of ice chips and my eyes would perk up and follow her cup as she moved it side to side. "You've always been bright," she says. And, having seen it all on video tape, I'll always remember how happy my dad was that morning. I'm the third child and they already had one of each gender; nonetheless, he doted on me like I was the first and only baby to come into this world. I am blessed to have such a loving set of parents.

I appreciate my mother even more now that I am pregnant (and I haven't even been through labor yet!). This birthday I am more grateful for her than anything. I genuinely feel blessed to take part of this tradition of sacrifice that has been passed down from woman to woman, generation to generation. It is divine. I look forward to holding each of my babies the mornings of their special day and reciting all of the painful, funny, and tender details of their own birth stories. Birthdays are the best sort of memories.

Weeks 19 & 20

BABY:
Our baby is a BOY! We had the anatomy scan ultrasound at 19 weeks and got to see our baby from head to toe. It was such a relief to see that he's healthy and growing normally. We're so grateful. I am still on a high from seeing his little body move around inside of me. There's just no way to explain the joy I feel. Joel and I are both so happy. Our baby boy kept stretching out his arms, legs and fingers during the ultrasound. My right uterus is a little higher up than normal so his feet are already close to my ribs. He's got a lot of energy and I'm feeling him more and more each day.
We had no inkling as to whether our baby is a boy or girl, so when we found out the gender we were both shocked. The look on Joel's face was priceless. His eyes lit up and he just grinned for the rest of the appointment. He's not a jump-up-and-down-on-Oprah's-couch sort of guy, but I could tell he was ecstatic. I am amazed at how quickly I fell in love with him (I know, cliche). I get choked up just thinking about my boy, especially during conference weekend as I imagined raising a son and hoping that he will be a good man. He is so special to me already. And I am already an annoyingly adoring mother.

PREGNANCY:
We did some major spring cleaning and this pregnant lady is thrilled! We cleaned out our second bedroom, organized everything into boxes, and bought plastic drawers for baby stuff. We still only have a bassinet, a pack of diapers and a few sleepers but we're ready for more!
I actually feel my stomach stretching now so I've been using a lot of oil to ease the feeling that this child is going to burst out of me. I use Mother's Special Blend--it is amazing stuff. It's extremely oily when you first put it on, but when it soaks in my skin is so soft and it completely gets rid of dry skin and itchiness. I'm not trying to avoid stretch marks--because it is genetic and inevitable for me--I just use this oil to make myself more comfortable.
I've had a bad case of baby brain ever since the stick said positive. I can't remember names or places and am constantly switching up dates. Just last month we arrived at my cousin's birthday party an entire week early. It's getting so bad that Joel has even caught the bug. Last week he went into the city for a meeting, which was actually scheduled for the next day.
I had to start sleeping with a pillow between my legs; otherwise, my hips ache so badly it keeps me up. If I sit for too long my lower back will start to hurt. Other than that, I feel awesome. I am loving the second trimester. I can't believe I'm at the halfway mark! I do not feel 5 months pregnant.

PLACE:
Just five minutes from our house is a beautiful beach. Sometimes I forget we live on the coast because the majority of the time we've lived here so far has been during the winter. Now that the sun has come out we've been heading down to the water more often, and I'm sure I'll be there most days this summer. Both Joel and I were beach babies (he in Brazil and me in Southern California) so it's fun that our little boy will be a beach babe, too. I can't wait to kiss that brown, chubby boy!


*picture taken at the end of week 20 and after Sunday dinner--so half of that belly is a food baby, sorry. Still not popping out too much.

A Bouncing Baby

Nautical blue for our East Coast BOY!

He's healthy and just about the cutest thing we've ever seen. Look at that face! We're proud parents already.

We've been secretly hoping for a boy the past few weeks so we're on cloud nine. :)

Weeks 17 & 18

BABY:
I can feel the baby move! Every so often my lower abdomen suddenly feels full and I feel something moving on its own in there. One time it felt like the baby did a flip, but for the most part it feels like small bubbles popping. The movements aren't huge but I can finally feel him/her.
We're getting anxious about finding out the gender of this little one. I thought I would have a preference but I honestly don't. Joel goes back and forth. We've reached the point that we just want to know! We can't wait to find out on Friday and see how much our baby has grown in 10 weeks. I have all of this energy to plan and nest, so we've harnessed that into finding deals on baby items. Seriously, one Friday night we spent at least an hour in the diaper section of Shop Rite comparing prices in the store and online. Who would've thought diaper prices would be one of the thrills we chase in our twenties?

PREGNANCY:
Week 17 & 18 have been all about appearances. Since I got pregnant, it's only shown in my chest (so painful). At around 14 weeks I broke down and got a new bra that fit better and I'll probably be replacing it in few weeks. In these last 2 weeks, the rest of my body has gone from softening around the edges to "WHAT HAPPENED?!"--I actually yelled that in a dressing room. While I'm still not obviously pregnant looking, I definitely notice the difference. I'm not complaining about the weight or changes to my body--that's what I signed up for--but I am really curious. When does this happen to everyone else? Am I small, medium or big for this stage? Do things even out? Will I look pregnant in my front and my back?! (Because seriously, already having a curvy figure is not doing me any favors!) I am constantly asking about other peoples' experiences so I can make sense of my own.

The sudden awareness of my body size sent me out shopping for maternity clothes. Why did I wait so long to buy maternity jeans?! Those things are divine. My goal is to only buy maternity clothes that make me feel exceptionally great. I found some nice stuff at Kohl's and Macy's but will be spreading most of the shopping out as I grow.

PLACE:
Every day I take a walk down to the library and back. It's been a nice way to exercise and get some fresh air. The walk takes me through our town's Veteran's Cemetery. It's been a favorite place of mine since we've moved here. It's full of history, huge trees and a gorgeous lake. In the fall the foliage is stunning, and for Christmas the town decorates the graves with wreaths. I've decided to take the weekly photos in favorite spots of ours around Connecticut and New York. I know we'll look back on this time in our lives with fond memories of where we lived and the exciting changes that were taking place.

The newest member of our family.

Meet Lola, the newest addition to the Castro family. 

Yes, that is a rat you see.

Here are a few things you may not know about pet rats:

• They're extremely smart. They can learn their name, do tricks and be litter trained.
• They're pretty low maintenance.
• They're the dogs of the small pet world. They're loyal, companionate, and friendly. 
• They're completely odorless and the cleanest of all rodents. Pet rats do not carry diseases.
• They're very cuddly and love to play. 

My parents got us a pet rat we named Lovey when I was around 4 years old. She was the sweetest thing. We had three more at different times growing up. The first memories I have of rats are of Lovey, so it's not strange at all for me to have one as a pet. I totally understand why it is strange for other people--I'm terrified of spiders so I would never own a pet tarantula. To each their own.

Lola is my little pal. I'm a big animal lover and have been wanting a pet for awhile. Now that I'm home most of the day it's the perfect time. She sits on my shoulder while I do the dishes, plays on the couch while I read and write, and will even fall asleep 2-3 inches from my head when I take a nap. She loves to climb all over Joel when he gets home. He feeds her treats like Pirates Booty and Cheerios. Lola will melt in your hand if you rub behind her ears. 

I grew up with all sorts of pets, so it's fun to finally start having some of our own. Joel grew up having parrots and the other night he told me that he's excited to get one for our family in a few years. I'm not so thrilled about birds, but if he is fine with a rat I guess I will have to be open to a parrot.

Let's talk about...Food

I remember saying during my first 1st trimester (I later miscarried) that I wasn't going to let pregnancy change me. I would fight back at the raging hormones by keeping my emotions steady, my energy upbeat, and eating as I normally did.

So naive. So very, very naive.

The turning point came when I was in the middle of class and I started feeling nauseous. I was hungry. I opened my backpack and each snack I packed made my stomach churn. You know what would be perfect right now?--the child who had taken over my mind thought--A big bowl of orange sherbet. And, simply enough, that's how you find yourself torso-deep inside of a freezer at the grocery store scraping out the last carton of orange sherbet because it was, conveniently, frozen to the back wall. I ate one bowl full when I came home and it was thrown into the garbage a week later because I couldn't stand the sight of it.

Welcome to crazy town.

This time around, the 1st trimester wasn't any easier on me. I didn't have a car and Joel wasn't home until very late, so some nights you would find me in tears on the couch whimpering, "I just want one jalapeño kettle chip...just one." It was all very dramatic at the time, but hindsight tends to turns pregnancy into a comedy. I'm hoping that one day I will laugh at how my body has become wide, soft, and lumpy...that day is going to come, right?....RIGHT?!

Foods that had to be out of mind & sight faster than you can say vomit:

Any and all seafood...ugh, typing seafood made me queasy
Most meat--I can tolerate chicken and most sandwich meat
Peeps
Goldfish
Pita chips
Ritz crackers
Green bean casserole
Anything too sugary, like most candy & sweets
Cream-based soups
Tortellini Alfredo

Foods that I've become obsessed with:

Bisquick biscuits
Potato Chips...okay, potato anything--like fries, tater tots, hash browns, roasted potatoes
Roasted Garlic Rye Chips
Pirates Booty
Grapes & Chocolate covered Strawberries
Any and all vegetables, especially peas and artichokes
Corn dogs
Limes

It's funny how pregnancy is such a wild ride but it never detracts from the joy and awe of seeing your baby inside of you and hearing its heartbeat. The whole thing is a miracle. It'll make you sick, frustrated and emotional--but it's a miracle and I know I'm blessed to be apart of it.

Joel turned 27

While I was away in Utah Joel turned 27 years old. Lest you think I'm an awful wife for being away, I did try to make his big day as special as I could. Before I left, I set up a scavenger hunt around the house. The morning of his birthday he had to follow the clues and instructions to get his presents. For example, he had to put up a Happy Birthday sign on our front door and send me a picture to get one clue.

To find his last present he had to wear a huge pin on his chest that said "It's my 27th birthday" and get a picture taken with someone. His birthday was on a Sunday and I wanted to make sure at least someone wished him a happy birthday. If it was up to him, he could go the whole day not telling a soul. 

Ultimately, I had no reason to worry about that because we have some of the greatest friends out here who take really good care of us. One being the Jackson family. The night of Joel's birthday, Nicole invited Joel and a few of our friends over to their house for cake and ice cream. She made him his favorite cake topped with the Brazilian flag in sprinkles. As a cherry on top, their youngest daughter, with whom Joel is totally smitten, said "Joel" that day. It was his favorite birthday present!

When I talked to him on the phone after the party he said it had been one of his best birthdays yet (eh hm, with the exception of me being MIA). Many thanks to all of our friends who shared in the celebration. I can't tell you how happy you made him and me.