36 Weeks - Anything is possible...

We are officially at the end of the pregnancy. Baby Bryson's due date is now less than one month away and anything is possible. At anytime within the next two to four weeks he can decide to make his entrance into the world. When this will happen is entirely up to him.

It does not matter how close we get to this day, the fact that we're going to be parents still seems unrealistic. It is exciting as well as very scary. We are no longer responsible for only ourselves, but for a tiny little baby boy. He will depend on us for many years to come. It all seems overwhelming, impossible, and challenging. We must focus on each day, one day at a time, rather than the future as one big puzzle that has to be completed immediately. It is important to remember that this puzzle is meant to be pieced together over time.

Bryson's room and all of the preparations for his arrival are almost finished. The crib is ready, the changing table is awaiting is smelly diapers, the bassinet is next to our bed so that I can just pick him up whenever he decides to eat or dirty his diapers while we are sleeping, his car seat and his stroller will soon be full of spit and food, and his swing and bouncer are ready with the exception of batteries. The question is... are mom and dad ready???

I don't think any parent is truly ready for the birth of a child, at least not their first one. The first one is the unexpected. It almost feels as if you are jumping into a dark hole where nothing is visible, it is the "unknown." The only way to survive is by instinct. One day there may be light in this dark hole and we will find ourselves climbing out of the "unknown world" and back into the world of experience and familiar life as we once knew it. There is no question of ready or not. At this point in time, it is a fact and it will happen. It is not a choice.

We wonder what this creation of ours will look like and be like. Whose physical features will he have? What kind of personality will he have? Will he be athletic? If so, what will be his favorite sport? There are so many questions we can ponder and all the answers will come over time, much time. The love we have for him already is so special, so great, and it is simply unbelievable.

We did not think it was possible to love somebody so much that we have never even met. He is our world, our life. Family is the most important and most meaningful part of ones life and to we are two truly lucky people.

Now, here is a picture at 36 weeks: