My Life as a Parent

By Kelsey Fraser- Saddleback

My life has changed dramatically since I had my son. I remember when I first found out I was pregnant. I actually remember it like yesterday. It was probably one of the scariest days of my life. I didn’t even know that I was pregnant until my aunt asked me if I was. I was shocked that someone could actually just come out and say something like that. It wasn’t because I was getting fat or anything, I guess it was just because I was acting different and my mood swings were very uncharacteristic for me. Because I knew that there was a possibility I could be, I went to get and at home test. I was so scared and nervous. I didn’t even read the box, I just wanted to get it over with. I took the test and it came out with two little pink lines. I was like “two lines, I’m not pregnant”!! I was wrong. My Aunt then passed me the box and told me to read it over again, two lines- positive. I immediately went into a state of shock and panic. I don’t think that I was scared of having a baby, but that I was scared of what other people would think of me and how my parents would react. I always said that I wanted to have kids someday, but I didn’t think that day would be anytime soon.

I couldn’t stop crying, but it was getting late and I needed to go home and tell my parents, I ended up telling my parents and they only responded with “I know”. I was upset that they even thought I was pregnant.

The next few months were a blur and I soon found out that my best friend of seven years was pregnant as well. What a coincidence?

Summer went by and I started getting fat! Soon school started and I found myself at Nutana, a school with lots of support groups and a wonderful daycare. School was going well and I was wetting awards and recognitions on my attendance and school work. Life was good, but heavy. I caught the bus every morning and afternoon, and sometimes, even at eight months pregnant, I found myself running to catch the bus. I really just wanted to have school done and over with so I could set a good example for a baby.

After my due date came and went with no baby I was getting agitated, sore and bitchy. My son was born (eleven days after his due date) on January 20^th. After twenty- one hours of labor, I welcomed the most beautiful baby boy I’d ever seen. I named him Bennet. Bennet is now my everything. He is my life. I loved that little boy more than anything in the world. Yeah some days aren’t that great, and some nights I barely get sleep, and money issue is on a whole other level, and the whole having to have a job part sucks. But I just cannot see my life with out Bennet. My favorite part of the day is coming back home after school and putting Bennet and myself into comfy pajamas and having a nap together. Some people may think it’s weird that that’s the part of the day I look forward to, but I love it. I love just lying there looking at him, watching him fall asleep, its heaven to me. I love everything about him. I love the way he smiles, the way he laughs, and I love even more the way he cries, his lips make the same shape they made when he was only seconds old. Sometimes I think back to how easy life was when I was pregnant and even before I was, but I never wish to have it back. I wouldn’t give up my son for anything in the world. He is my everything, and for now I just want to cherish every moment with him and watch him every second I have. I hear that life goes by fast when you’re a parent, and now that I am one, I realize that it is true. I love every second of being a parent, and I wouldn’t take it back for the world.