My family is a very unique collection of interesting humans. “It takes all kinds” I have heard, and we really personify that statement. We are Italian, we are loud, we like to eat, and we can get a little rowdy on holidays…but hey, who doesn’t?! Isn’t it normal to have people screaming over the dinner table while passing a pile of pasta?
This weekend, we celebrated Easter a day early, on Saturday, because my dear husband had to work on Sunday. No big deal. We took the kids to a super fun Easter egg hunt hosted by one of my friends in the morning, and the kids had a great time!
Then, we headed over to my parents house for Easter lunch. My mom cooked a turkey, a ham, mashed potatoes, and of course, a huge tray of pasta….smothered in cheese.
So, just to fill you all in, before I had my babies, my mom had always claimed that she became pregnant every time she ate a ham that had a bone in it. I mean, it sounded a little crazy, but who am I to question her scientific theories? When I was struggling to have a baby, I truly considered that maybe a bone-in ham was the answer to my prayers. All of the doctors I was going to didn’t have a clue what they were talking about. If only they served a big ol’ ham in their waiting rooms, they would have knocked up women knocking down their doors!
Well, on Thanksgiving 2011, there was a ham, I ate it, and boom! I was pregnant. Sounds totally insane, right? But, I’m so serious. Then, Little J was born in July 2012 (he was preterm and born at 36 weeks for all of you calculating in your heads!). Next holiday, another ham, another baby…Baby L was born in Sept 2013. So, that makes my kids 13.5 months apart, and their stillborn brother Max was 11 months older than Little J. So, 3 births in 25 months. Obviously, I was a new believer in this ham-tastic science theory.
Back to this weekend…On Saturday, my mom laid out the Easter feast described above, and we were all welcomed to serve ourselves and then sit down at her lovely table to enjoy the food. I took a bite of the ham that somehow made it’s way onto my plate, and as I started to chew, I realized that I didn’t like it at all. I asked my mom, “Hey, mom? Why does this ham taste so bad?” The look on her face was a look of shock and horror. She nearly jumped across the table to choke me, and at first I thought she was mad that I insulted her cooking at the Easter table in front of the whole family…but when she screamed instead “Spit that ham out of your mouth right now! It has a bone in it!!” I knew what was up.
I have never been so petrified of a ham in my life. Well, I never actually had a reason to be scared of a ham before that moment. I spit that little porker into my napkin as fast as you can say “leggo my eggo!”
I’m not sure if my mom was concerned with me being pregnant again due to the fact that I am unsure if we want another child, or because she is unsure that she wants another grandchild to watch on the weekends. Just kidding!!! After all we have been through to have our little boys, another child would be more than welcome into our home. However, let’s just say that I’ll stick with the turkey at the next family gathering…and as far as I’m concerned I’m not even in a rush to read “Green Eggs and Ham” for quite some time, either 🙂
I hope everyone had a beautiful Easter if you celebrated!
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This was awesome! You are very brave for talking about your experience. I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. Keep up the positive vibes!
Thanks, Nicole! It's nice to be able to talk about Max openly. I have been able to connect with many other new baby loss moms who need support, and it's great to be able to offer than to them in their time of need. Glad you liked this post! Thanks for reading and stopping by 🙂
This was awesome! You are very brave for talking about your experience. I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. Keep up the positive vibes!
This was awesome! Your very brave for sharing the loss of your child. I can't begin to imagine your daily struggle. Keep up the good vibes!
It's always hard for us that haven't lost a child to even put ourselves in your place. It would be nice if hospitals or funeral homes could have someone like you come and talk to the parents who have just lost a child. I would think you would feel all alone.
Families are funny. I think we all have a story to tell about a family gathering. I am too old but, I stay away from ham.
Haha just had to come back and re-read this! I’d like to think that me having bone-in ham this past Easter was what helped me to get those 2 pink lines mid-May and my own Baby J 🙂 I’ll definitely be keeping it in mind if we decide to have another baby in the future!!