Adam and I intentionally planned a wedding that wasn't just our wedding. So many people helped us get to that wonderful day--our parents, families, friends, and priests--that it seemed unfair to plan a party that was just for us. Besides, marriage is about strengthening and celebrating community.
I knew we would have the joy of sharing our baby with other people the same way we get to share the happiness of our marriage. I just didn't realize that the sharing started the moment we conceived.
I guess I'd always assumed that pregnancy was a kind of physical challenge a woman had to face on her own. My husband would be a kind of coach reminding me to keep my head in the game and keeping me in "peak" physical condition. Everyone else would be a crowd of spectators who half-followed the game until playoffs season. Wrong and wrong.
Adam, though, has had to deal with the emotional ups and downs, the sickness, and the sleepless nights as much as I have. He isn't just helping me--we're really both pregnant together. He already loves the baby as much as I do, too.
And it doesn't stop with Adam. As soon as we announced the pregnancy, offers of love and support poured in from all over the country--and the world. Seventy middle and high schoolers praying for our baby every day. My mom calls from Georgia and gives me advice on pregnancy each and every morning. We had tearful letters from grad school friends in Seattle and Oxford. We've been truly overwhelmed by love and excitement.
Over the past few months, I've realized that the love and support we're enjoying aren't just for me, or even just for me and Adam. Our family and friends are genuinely excited to participate with us in bringing a new life, a new member of the human community into this world. Babies are exciting and pregnancy isn't something I can keep to myself.
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