Wait, What
My son, Andrew, and his wife Crystal have been married for three years and my daughter and I started speculating when they would announce they were expecting a baby. They made a few comments in the past how they wanted to try and time the pregnancy, if possible, around their hectic winter weekend photography business during the snocross racing season. They travel across the country from North Dakota to New York for eight weekends during the series capturing high-performance snowmobile drivers competing in the extreme sport.
Last Thanksgiving as my daughter and I were preparing for dinner we discussed if we thought they would make an announcement, and we decided if they didn’t have any cocktails or wine with dinner we would have our answer. Since we were busy we hadn’t offered them anything to drink.
As my daughter and I were putting last minutes details on the table, we whispered how neither one had inquired about a drink, and we thought they might be pregnant. Then a few minutes later, Andrew asked if we were going to open the wine. My daughter and I looked at each other and realized they weren’t going to make an announcement since he poured a glass for everyone, including his wife. OK, in my mind I knew they weren’t expecting a baby.
Once our plates were full, and the Thanksgiving prayer was said, I noticed that Andrew was handing his plate to Crystal. All I could think of was why in the world would they be exchanging plates. What I hadn’t seen was Crystal was handing her glass of wine to Andrew. Still not clear why in the world they would be swapping dinner plates, Andrew says, “If she’s eating for two, I’m drinking for two.” My daughter exclaims, “I knew it!” Knew what? What did she know?
OK, OK, I know what most of you are thinking but I didn’t understand….LOL. In my mind I was focused on Crystal having a glass of wine, explaining to me she was not pregnant. But, it still wasn’t clear why in the hell they were switching dinner plates? OH MY GOSH…..no words to explain my naive mind.
My face showed nothing other than confusion. One of the most exciting news a mama could hear from her adult children, and I didn’t get it. Then once I understood, it took me by surprise. I’m sure they were expecting me to cue the confetti, balloons, then followed by a big fanfare, and all I offered was a mild congratulations. EPIC FAIL for the new Grammie-to-be. Of course I was excited and started asking questions about due dates and how she was feeling. Overall, I’m positive they were surprised by my reaction, or lack thereof.
Fast forward two months, my son called and I wasn’t able to pick up since I was in the middle of dinner with a friend. Then he sent a text asking me to call. I knew it must be important so I quickly dialed his number. He was calling to let me know what they were having! FOR THE LOVE OF…..here I was, not being able to react again since they hadn’t announced it to the public. I went into another room and quietly congratulated him. Oh my gosh….for the second time….EPIC FAIL! Again, I wasn’t winning the Mother of the Year award. In reality, it didn’t matter what they were having; I equally welcomed a boy or girl. However, if I didn’t have to keep the news quiet, I would have been leaping for joy over his news.
I really need to learn how to handle things a little better in the future. Next time my son and his wife are in the process of announcing exciting news, I’m not going to say, “Wait, what?” I’m going to pay attention then celebrate as loud and loving as I can. Do you have any similar stories to share? I would love to hear them.
xoxox…..Sheryl
PS….By the way … I get to buy pink, y’all … it’s a girl!
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