When I First Felt You…

“Being Happy doesn’t always make us grateful, but being grateful will always make us happy”

It was the day before Thanksgiving 2 years ago, when I first felt you. It was a day of first’s and a day that will be with me until my last breath. I am grateful everyday, but today I most grateful for that day. The day I felt you.

The day before Thanksgiving two years ago, was the day I felt my son kick for the first time. I was sitting at the counter watching my mom cook when suddenly I felt my stomach drop. It was a feeling that wouldn’t go away, so I finally told my mom I was going to go lay down and relax. She asked me what was wrong so I attempted to explain it to her and she laughed, turning to me and said “It’s the baby kicking you!”. I stood there shocked, because it was a moment I had dreamt of for what felt like an eternity. She swiftly came over and put her hands on my belly and all I could do was cry. I can recount everything in that moment. It was just after 3pm, the breeze was blowing through our house (Florida Living in the Winter), the light was coming in the front door at just the right angle that the sunbeams hit the counter and floor just right. Everything in that moment was okay. See, because after nearly 10 years of being told I could not conceive naturally, my son Enzo was my miracle. I never thought I would feel what I felt that very day. It is a feeling I now know would make me laugh and keep me up late but that I would cherish. All day today I have been thinking about that beautiful afternoon two years ago.

My words do not live up to the moment but I wanted to share. I wanted to share the moment I am grateful for today, my happy place. Again, I am grateful every day. I pray to my higher power, always giving thanks but some day’s you just are grateful far beyond reason or explanation. Today is one of those days.

I hope I was able to bring a smile to your day.

 

XOXO,

Me!

On the eve of the 30th…

I take stock of the last 10 years with admiration, love, and awe that I made it through. To my 20’s I thank you for holding within you some of thee most beautiful and awe inspiring moments of my life. I thank you for all of the lessons both enriching and the hard hitting . I thank you for showing me life from a different perspective. I thank you for holding within you international adventures, compassionate encounters, and love beyond compare. I want to thank you for teaching me about life, love, and the pursuit of happiness. For getting me through your years with laughter and love. For teaching me to hold tight to what I hold dear. To know that with spice in my veins and an amazing support system I can conquer my darkest hours and minutes.
Above all thank you for holding within you the most precious of memories: The first sound of a heartbeat, the first feeling of movement, the first sound of a cry, the first inhale of breath, the first sleepless night of many, and the first moment of true peace I have ever felt… Thank you for my son!
Thank you 20’s for being my stepping stone into the next decade. You showed me a helluva time. So, with a smile on my face and a finger in the air I bid you a farewell my friend, BRING IT 30’s! 
Xoxo, 

Undefeated Diva

Welcome to the world… My legacy! 

The fear ever real as the cold and lifeless room gave way to the pressure in my spine. As lifeless legs hang from the side of the table they roll me on my back. As the crew scurries around me never leaving me alone in the room but leaving me alone on a cold table with my thoughts. Will you be okay? How is it going to happen? How will I feel when I see your face? Are we taking you too soon? Or did we wait too long? Are you healthy? When will they bring mom in? My body begins to tremble, I am assured that this is a normal side effect of the spinal tap. The doctor pops her head in to let me know she is there and the room around me changes. In a blink of an eye the cloth goes up, the room becomes more populated, and the doctors come in.

Wait!!! There are two doctors. Why are there two doctors? My doctor introduces the “assisting” Dr., of which I know is actually a prominent obstetrician in the area. Then I hear mom’s voice and she is next to me keeping me still. Mom looks at me and tells me it will be okay. She sits close and holds my face and for a moment I have a renewed sense of strength. I will see you soon. The doctor lets me know they will begin and with trembling arms and my mother to my right I take pause in the moment. “Take a deep breath, here comes a lot of pressure”, she says. The hands on my face get tighter and the tears from her face pour on to mine. “Mom I am okay… It is going to be okay. He will be here soon.” With my fear ever consuming I resolved to never forget that moment. The moment only mothers knew. There was a silence that came over the room and suddenly a roar of a cry. Your cry! In that moment I knew you had arrived and you were safe.

My legacy was born!
My own mother next to me holding my face close as her daughter became a mother for the first time and she became what all amazing mothers can only hope for, she became grandmother (in our case an Abuela!). To my right I saw a glimpse of the beautiful face I had waited, hoped, and prayed for. Leaving my side my mother did what so many grandmothers do not get the chance to do. She cut the cord and held her grandson for the first time. Bringing him over to me for the first time, all three of us cried. I had my first very real moment as a mother. As my son cried, I spoke to him. I could not sit up and hold him. I could not hold him in my arms. I could not walk around with him at that moment. Nevertheless in that moment I spoke to him and offered him comfort. I said words to him that only he, my mother, and I will ever know. A moment shared by the three of us that no one can ever take. In that moment he touched my face and calmed and I vowed that I would be his fiercest protector, his safety net, his first love, and above all the best mother I can be.  
On May 7, 2015 at 5:51PM Enzo Elijah graced the world with his presence.

It has taken me 2 months to introduce him to all of you, because I could not find the right words to express it all. Instead I resolved that I would never find just the right words to introduce him. So here he is, in all his glory. My world and my legacy!
I waited 10 long years for the honor of being a mother. The wait was worth it all. He hangs the moon and the stars for me. Motherhood is everything I imagined and more. It does not come without its difficulties but when I see that face in the low light of the darkness, I resolve in knowing there is nothing more pure in the world.
Here he is, isn’t he CUTE! 🙂

   
   

Thankful

I never liked the concept of “Thanksgiving”. To me, why do I have to take just one day a year to be thankful. For me I am thankful daily… Honestly hourly, And even momentarily. I never needed a chronic illness to be thankful, but one thing is for sure having Lupus and Fibro has made me all that more thankful.

So take the time to think about what you are thankful for.

I could write a book on what I am thankful for, but take a moment.

Are you thinking?

Besides my family and friends, I am thankful for:

1.Food when I am on steroids
2.The medicines that have kept me alive
3.The healthcare staff that have made my never ending medical visits, livable.
4.My A-Team.. YES this is my friends and family but these are a very small select few!
5.For my growing son, that hasn’t graced this world with his presence BUT he has changed the world for at least one person! All before he took his first breath!
6. For the support of my readers!

Thankful Daily,
Undefeated Diva

IMG_9168.JPG