With Alice being pregnant comes the fun of telling people. (Even though she was only a few weeks along, we couldn't wait to tell everyone.) But we already knew that telling my parents, especially my mom, would be good. So good that I knew we had to tell them in person, film it, and put it on YouTube.
The setup: We'd present them a "Christmas gift that we forgot to give them" and watch their surprised reactions when they opened it. Difficulty: we had to tell them before they left for the Philippines, which was less than 72 hours after we confirmed the results. So we got them a "Grandparents" picture frame, wrapped it up, and drove down to their house Saturday afternoon.
Thanks to Bud putting the video on his MySpace page for a few days, it's up to 236 views as of today. Wow! Thanks for watching!
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Friday, February 9, 2007
What a question!
It's been exciting to share our news with people! Unexpectedly, a number of people that I tell at school immediately ask, "Oh, was it an accident?" One professor - PROFESSOR! - stopped me to find out if it was an 'oops'. (An oops? An oops is spilling a glass of orange juice, not mistakenly creating human life!)
I really wish people wouldn't ask me this question, because there is no tactful way to answer it. To say, "No, we were trying" immediately puts a mental picture in the person's head of my husband and I...well...'trying'. This is an image I don't want anyone in the world to have. Ever. Ever!
Because a 31-year-old married woman getting pregnant is hardly scandalous, my only conclusion is people think it's an accident because I haven't gotten my PhD yet. In academia, the only 'good' time to have a baby is right after you get tenure. Which will happen to me when I'm about 51 years old. But obviously I can't wait that long to have kids, because by then my mother-in-law would have killed me for not producing a grandchild!
My polite, well-mannered, quiet labmate came up with the best response to the question. "Just say to them, 'Yeah, the condom broke.'" At least that would end the conversation!
I really wish people wouldn't ask me this question, because there is no tactful way to answer it. To say, "No, we were trying" immediately puts a mental picture in the person's head of my husband and I...well...'trying'. This is an image I don't want anyone in the world to have. Ever. Ever!
Because a 31-year-old married woman getting pregnant is hardly scandalous, my only conclusion is people think it's an accident because I haven't gotten my PhD yet. In academia, the only 'good' time to have a baby is right after you get tenure. Which will happen to me when I'm about 51 years old. But obviously I can't wait that long to have kids, because by then my mother-in-law would have killed me for not producing a grandchild!
My polite, well-mannered, quiet labmate came up with the best response to the question. "Just say to them, 'Yeah, the condom broke.'" At least that would end the conversation!
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