You hear it all the time, a wife gets baby hungry, the husband buys her a puppy and it does the trick. For us, the story goes a little differently. My husband is a hunter. He grew up hunting, and I’m sure he will hunt until he can no longer hold a gun. This was a whole new world for me. I had no hunting experience or knowledge when we were married, and to be fair, we did not date during the hunting season, so I was oblivious to how that all worked. In my mind, you dressed up in camo pants, took a gun and went out for a few hours in the day, and then the hunt was over. I’m sure some of you that come from hunting families are already chuckling to yourselves. I learned that was not how hunting worked as soon as the end of August rolled around (We were married the first week in August). I quickly learned that I needed a buddy while Craig was away on hunting trips. Yes, TRIPS-SSSSS, that was plural. It could be one night or five, it was still the same, I was lonely. I had never slept alone in a house before we were married, it was new territory.
So, I asked for a puppy and if I can say so myself, I made a fantastic argument.
#1- I needed a dog to protect me while Craig was gone, afterall we did live in OGDEN Utah! That was the scariest ghetto I had ever seen. (Yeah, I learned that was nothing after we went to California and our GPS landed us in Compton-in 2011 it was ranked 8th for highest crime rate if that helps, but that’s another story) ….
#2- IF I couldn’t have a puppy, maybe I should go get a BABY….
#3- It could be trained to be a hunting dog (wink…wink, but it may work) ….
#4- They’re cute
#5- It could help us keep our floors clean….
The possibility didn’t seem to be making headway for a few weeks, he being the logical side of our marriage said we were never home- which was true, it would cost a good chunk of money- which was true too, and we didn’t have a yard- may have been true too.
AND THEN the gun he had been eyeing went on sale.
I got a puppy. He got a gun.
I slept solid every night after we got her, that cute furball laid on my chest just like a newborn.…on the other hand, Craig claims he was up every hour taking her for potty breaks. It was a perfect situation. With a cute puppy now added to our new family, I decided we could now wait at least two years for a baby. Craig seemed satisfied by this response. 6 months later I was pregnant.
I must admit, when I found out I was pregnant, I was shocked. This was not in my plan, I thought we would wait to start a family until Craig, and I had finished school, and we were a bit more established. (Isn’t this was EVERY couple says?) But this was not the case for us. I remember as the months went by, my body went through the changes luckily I had a flawless pregnancy- thank goodness.
Of course I ate all the right things and said I wouldn’t have any refined sugar while pregnant. But then the cravings started. There is this lady, maybe you’ve met her, her name is Marie Callender, and she makes a stellar Chocolate Satin pie. OH, MY HEAVENS! It was a life changer. Let me put this into perspective. I am not much of a pie eater, I will eat a slice happily and move on. But when I was pregnant, Craig would go to the store and buy a pie to share, by the next day, it would be completely and totally gone. Sometimes I put the pie tin back in the fridge with a fork not realizing it was already gone. I ran into a problem though, I was going through a pie at least once a week. (I KNOW so bad for you!) I needed to find something for on the road. That is when TruMoo chocolate milk- WHOLE milk- none of that 2% or 1% crap, enters the picture… I remember running into my aunt Mary one day at Walmart, I had 1 gallon of milk, and 2 gallons of chocolate milk in my cart, she asked if I was having a party! I excitedly replied, “NOPE! 2 gallons of chocolate milk for me, and a gallon of milk for Craig, I’m sure I’ll be back in a few days though…” To say she looked shocked was an understatement. But that was my reality, and I was happy.
2AM, on February 15th- the day after Valentine’s day rolled around, and I knew I was in labor. Craig was scheduled to work that day, and knowing this, I hesitated to wake him, especially if it was a false alarm. But I wasn’t alone, my first baby- Lexi, my beautiful yellow lab was right there with me. It was like she knew when a contraction was coming, because she would snuggle closer to me, and once it was over, she would give me space. We did this dance for HOURS. About 8 o’clock I told Craig we needed to go to the hospital. He kind of laughed and continued to get ready for work. Then my water broke, and he suddenly took me seriously. Six hours later, I was a first-time mother holding a brand new, beautiful and healthy baby. I was so proud, I would show off my baby saying, “Hey! Look what I did! Isn’t she perfect!” I had my very own Mercedes.
During labor, I think I was in shock, and almost unattached to this new human that was coming into this new world, but when she laid on my chest, it’s like my heart suddenly tripled in size, and I was in love. What an incredible feeling. I would sit and just stare at her, admiring her tiny features, and her long feet, her beautifully flawless skin, and her head covered in dark hair. (I had heartburn for a reason, that’s for sure!) It was overwhelming. It was glorious. It was joyful. It was LOVE.
She was the light in our lives when we were struggling, she was the smiles on our faces as she took her first step or said her first words. She filled our home with giggles, and tiny handprints on the mirrors and windows. She was practically perfect in every way. That little girl has grown so much! This year she entered kindergarten, and her daddy cried. She is strong-willed, intelligent, gentle, a social butterfly, and an absolute joy to have in our home. My little girl. I am a proud mama because of her.
I look back and remember feeling scared to be a parent. Scared to be responsible for another human being, scared that the future in our crystal ball would not be what we had “Planned,” scared to take on the unknown, and then she was born. She changed our lives forever, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Having that little person in our lives changed our priorities, it was no longer about making the most money, or driving the nicest car, it wasn’t about vacations and trips to foreign places. Our lives became consumed with her. Our love for her continues to grow, day by day, year by year, it strengthens. I read this quote once, and I think Craig would agree, it’s become our goal, and priority. It’s a gift that we are capable of giving, and continually strive to do so.
“The child who knows unconditional love has the greatest gift the world can offer.”
-Mikenna
XOXOXO
*As a side note- in case you were wondering about all that sugar intake? My daughter would NOT drink juice or eat any type of candy until she was about 4. Then she would allow M&M’s. Even now, she prefers vanilla ice cream, cookie dough, suckers, M&M’s, Kit-Kats, Reese’s, Dark chocolate and starbursts. If it’s not one of those, she will politely decline your offer. Halloween is my favorite time as a parent. Each time we stopped at a house, she would beam as she jumped into the car an excitedly exclaim, “DADDY! LOOK WHAT TREATS I GOT FOR YOU!”
Valentines Day week is a special one at our house. It’s a celebration of love, and our sweet daughter who changed our lives forever.
Photo credits include: Cassie Warnes & Illumine & Mikenna Atkinson Photography
If you need an extra laugh…
From our journal- Memories of Mercedes:
The Battle for Craig
After eating out for dinner Craig and I were just sitting in our car in the driveway, he had his door open, mine was closed, Mercedes had already gotten out (she had been sitting on Craig's lap driving around the neighborhood) and was waiting for us to open the garage door. I leaned over and gave Craig and couple of kisses and then yelled "Hey Sadie! Guess what!" And then leaned over and gave him a few more. She is watching through the front window and you see her scrunch her nose, start running to my side, sees my doors closed so she heads back over to Craig's door and you hear her yell, "I'M GONNA KICK YOUR BUTT!" I was laughing so hard! She climbs back in on Craig's lap, grabs his face and just starts kissing him non-stop, and saying, "Daddy, I love you, Daddy, you're mine." Oh, the look on her face. And when she was running to get into the car, she was pumping those little arms of her, hands in a fist, scrunched nose, just everything about her cracked me up. "I'm gonna kick your butt!" Priceless.
She’s Got a Way
Mercedes has a heart of gold. We were picking up our truck from the mechanic, and in the office, to our right was two black leather couches, and then a row of regular leather chairs. When we walked in there was already a lady- another customer at the counter taking care of her bill and then a younger girl- early college age sitting on one of the two-seater couches (loveseat). While we were waiting Mercedes scanned the room, and then looked up and me and says, “Mom, can I sit on the couches and wait?” I told her yes, but once she sits down, she needs to stay there until we're ready to leave- so that she’s not running all over the place. She smiled, and slowly walked up to the girl sitting down, she was scrolling through her phone in her own world. Mercedes looks at her and says, “Can I sit by you?” The girl looked up from her phone, and said, “Sure!” They sat there and talked like they had known each other forever. Mercedes told her all about the sparkles on her flip flops, said her favorite color was pink and she liked purple too, the girl showed her the purple stripe on her running down the side of her pants…they hit it off. They were giggling and having a good ole chat. At the end, as we were leaving, Mercedes turned and said, “Thanks for talking to me, and letting me sit by you, you can be my new friend now!” I’m amazed by her because any other person would have sat on a couch unoccupied, she picks the one couch, that has someone else.
The King
Craig really wanted to OFFICIALLY try out the trailer and make sure it was all in working condition, so we packed up and met Oma & Papa in Idaho for an overnighter. Mercedes loved running back and forth between the trailers. The next morning, Pap told Mercedes to go get her dad for breakfast, he said, "Mercedes go say, 'hey old man hurry up'" she stopped and looked at him and goes, "he's not an old man, you the old man, my daddy's the king" I couldn't help but bust out laughing.
And her one-liners haven't ceased.....
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