Van Plus Fam

Goodbye NYC; Hello Dallas!

April 14, 2013October 8, 2013 christinebassham

Dear ~~Baby~~ Reagan (we picked your name!),

After approximately 2.5 months living in a 600 square foot apartment in Manhattan, we are so glad to be back home in Dallas! Don’t get me wrong, New York was fun while it lasted but it wasn’t home.

So what did we do in New York? Well, Dad was in training for his job at J.P. Morgan. I worked part-time mostly writing appellate briefs and spent the remainder of my days exploring the city (and conveniently you went with me). We went to see four broadway plays (Marry Poppins, Spiderman, Phantom of the Opera, and Lion King); sat in the audience of two live talk shows (Dr. Oz and Katy Couric); took the train to Connecticut to see my grandparents; went to the top of the Empire State Building; walked along the Brooklyn Bridge; strolled through Central Park; ate pizza way too often; and went on a mission to find the best Egg’s Benedict brunch in all of NYC. My mom came to visit one weekend and so did your dad’s parents. All in all, it was a great life experience. It is not often you get the opportunity to live rent-free in New York City.

Now, we are back home and things have been pretty much all about you! We bought your crib, dresser, and glider chair. We picked out wallpaper for your nursery (Mom and Dad got into a tiff as to whether this amazing Anthropolgie wallpaper looking too 1990s — don’t worry, I won and you will love it!). We signed up for child-birthing and child-care classes. We moved all of the furniture out of Dad’s office so now it is officially YOUR nursery. We organized the kitchen, bathrooms, and closets. Basically, I have made up for all the lost months of nesting during the time we spent in New York.

You are growing at an amazing rate and are such a miracle every day to us. You are kicking constantly and often have these cute little hiccups. We read to you most every night and, before bed, Dad tells you all about his day. We pray for you and so do you grandparents. I have already received so many adorable clothes for you! I cannot wait to dress you up 🙂

Once day, when you are old enough to read, I want you to know that we loved you with all of our heats from the very beginning — from the first day we heard your little heart beat. I also want to thank you for making me feel so beautiful for the first time in a very long time. Every day when I look in the mirror, I see the reflection of not just me, but of you and me together. I cannot look at that and see anything other than beauty.

I love you forever and always,

Mom

We found out you were a GIRL in NYC! It snowed that night.

Brooklyn Bridge – 22 Weeks Pregnant

Grandparents and us in Time Square

Grandma and I after seeing Phantom on Broadway.

Mom and Dad on Empire State Building.

Michelle and Chelsea in NYC.

Pregnancy

It’s a GIRL

February 19, 2013October 8, 2013 christinebassham

Dear Baby,

Last week we learned that you are a GIRL! We couldn’t be more excited to meet you and have already told you time and time again how beautiful, smart, and kind you will be.

Dad and I found out that you were in a girl in NYC. Dad was unable to come back for my doctor’s appointment in Dallas so we decided to schedule an ultrasound here. At first we both thought you would be a boy, but recently we both had a feeling that you were a little girl. When the ultrasound technician said “girl,” we were both so thrilled. Dad was a bit scared at first as he knew that he would be even more overprotective with a girl, but he cannot wait to meet you. He has started reading you the book “Guess How Much I Love You” every night before bed time. Guess what? He loves you A LOT and so do I.

This weekend we told your grandparents and your uncle (my brother) that we were having a girl. They were so surprised! The majority guess was boy but everyone is very excited to buy you cute pink clothes and meet you in a few months. By the way, you are the size of a cantaloupe and as long as a banana!

As you can see, everyone is SO SO SO excited!

I love you very much.

– Mom

Pregnancy

And then there were three!

February 5, 2013July 29, 2014 christinebassham

Dear Baby,

When we found out you would be joining our family of two, we were terrified. We knew that we wanted to have children, but didn’t think it would be so soon. Dad started going into over preparation mode – gathering first aide supplies, beefing up the home security system and even talking about building a storm shelter. I, on the other hand, kind of went numb for a little while. I was barely a second-year lawyer and, believe it or not, having a baby was not considered a great career move. I struggled at the office keeping up the same quality of work while simultaneously feeling exhausted and sick in the mornings.

However, it didn’t take me too long to go from numb to beyond happy. I fell in love with you in Philadelphia. I travel quite a bit for work and when you were around 6 weeks (about the size of a lentil bean) I had to go to Philadelphia for a court hearing. As I often do, I felt lonely in the hotel room – ordering room service for one is a lot less glamorous than I originally thought. As I was about to go to bed in a king size bed far too big for one, I realized that, unlike all my other work trips, for the first time, I was not alone. You were there. You were not very big. You didn’t talk or interact, but you – my baby – were with me. I was no longer one person. For the next 9 months, I realized you and I would always be together. That was an incredible feeling.

We told our parents, your grandparents, that you would be arriving in July. You will see the video when you are older, but trust me when I say that you were loved beyond belief from the beginning.

Here are some pictures:

Gift for Grandparents

I cannot wait for you to meet your grandparents.

Dad and I had to move to New York for a few months for Dad’s job. It is a bit strange being in a big city not knowing many people instead of being in our house, but so far it has been an adventure that we will never forget. A lot of firsts have happened in New York. Last week while we were eating lunch (it is restaurant week in New York right now), we felt you kick for the first time! I always knew you were in there, but feeling you move was magical. I learned that spicy food makes you kick the most (so now I try to eat spicy food whenever I can).

Today is a really special day. You are the size of a mango and today we find if you, little mango, are a boy or girl. I am very excited to find out, but mostly I am excited to see you! We have not seen you since you were the size of a bean.

I know we have not technically met yet, but I already love you more than you will ever know.

Love,

Mom (so weird to write that for this first time!!)