Life Is Full of Surprises
In less than a week's time, Megan and I had two surprises thrown our way. I'll start with the fun one.
The Happy Surprise
Not long ago, my wife and I made an announcement that we were expecting a baby boy. Well, turns out, it's actually a baby girl!
The photo we used as an Instagram announcement.
We had a blood test done early on that is 99% accurate. Our doctor had never personally seen the test be incorrect. However, after our 20 week ultrasound (and a follow-up ultrasound two weeks later to double confirm) we learned that we were actually having a girl.
We are thrilled! Fortunately we hadn't painted the nursery yet and had bought very few gender-specific baby items. After referring to the baby as "he" for a couple of months, we are still having to re-train ourselves to say "she." The good news is that we had a girl name already picked out, so we aren't having to go back to the drawing board at all.
Growing up as an only child, I didn't have sisters at home to know what growing up with females was like. But I'm excited for the adventure that will hold. It's also funny how protective I feel of that little one and she isn't even here yet.
The Scary Surprise
On the 4th of July, I was out walking Theo. Mid-step, he jumped back and I looked down to see a small gartner snake at his feet. I thought to myself "hey, at least it's not a copperhead!" I knew copperheads were in the area we were at that weekend, so while we walked I thought it'd be a good idea to Google image search what a copperhead looked like, just for my own personal knowledge.
About 20 minutes later, while we were still in the road, I felt a sting on my back heel. It started small but the pain increased....like a really aggressive hornet sting or bug bite. Theo didn't react at all or seem to notice anything unusual. I shook my foot and looked around to see what stung me. I turned to see a copperhead snake (that I was now able to identify thanks to my previous Google search) flopping down the edge of the pavement, looked down at my heel and saw fang marks dripping blood down my heel.
I rushed back to our in-laws house, woke everyone up (it was early morning) and said "we're going to the ER NOW." Megan had never seen me in a genuine panic before (all I knew about snake bites is that treatment/survival tends to be really time-sensitive) but I was pretty scared at that point. I just found out I was having a baby girl and didn't want snake venom to make me miss out on that!
Where the snake got my heel
We got to the ER, got a full workup head to toe and ended up not having to do any anti-venom treatment. Adult copperheads don't inject all of their venom in you like baby ones, so I didn't have enough venom in my foot to do serious damage. I learned that anti-venom treatments have risks of complications on their own, so I'm thankful I didn't have to go that route. They drugged me up with some pills and sent me home. Other than having a sore heel and feeling fatigued for a couple of days, I turned out totally fine.
You Never Know What Life Will Throw Your Way
In just five days, Megan and I had two pretty significant turn of events. It was two of the many we've had in the last year or so. This last week, one event was very happy, one scary.
We're ready for a boring week.
All that to say is that you never know what life will throw your way. It's rarely boring and things rarely happen in a way or timetable of our choosing. I know a baby coming into the picture will only make life more unpredictable!
I've learned a key to survival is the ability to roll with the punches. We can't choose how things turn out but we can choose how to respond. I'm thankful I have a great life partner in Megan to help me navigate life's twists and turns. Who knows what will come next!
Comparing belly bumps. Thanks to queso and pizza, I'm maintaining my lead at the moment.