Just the beginning

April 2016



"You do want to find out the sex of the baby today?"  Linda, the ultrasound tech turned to confirm with us before proceeding.  I grinned widely.

"I need to prepare for three boys, I'd love it, but trust me I need to know, " I laughed nervously.

She squirted some gel on my belly, making my six year old, Raen, giggle at the sound. The small screen no longer showed an empty space, instead a moving figure appeared. Linda pointed out what we were seeing, the heart beat rapidly, legs were kicking around and the baby moved into a position where you could see the profile perfectly.

"That's our baby!" Kai excitedly remarked making us all smile.

"Well I can definitely tell what it is." Linda started.

"It's a boy isn't it," my husband grinned. He was excited for either but he was sure it was a boy.

"Nope it's a girl. See right there, the three lines?" She continued on and exclaimed what we were seeing and how she was 100 percent certain. I was too surprised to listen though. I was finally getting a girl! But it almost didn't feel real. I looked at Raen and Kai's smiling faces and felt sad for a second that I wouldn't be holding another little baby boy again. Man, these hormones are annoying during pregnancy,  I wanted a girl so bad and here I am sad over it. I brushed it off and focused on the fact that everything was healthy and I would finally be able to shop in the girls section.

After getting our print outs we left and headed to lunch.  I sat nibbling on my chips and salsa and watching my boys. They were giggling about something,  they always were.  I can't believe how time flies. It felt like just last month I moved to San Diego and like yesterday when I got married.



It was April 2005 and I had just been zipped into my form fitting sleeveless champagne colored gown. Alicia helped me fasten my necklace and make sure my updo was all in place.

"You ready for this?" She grinned.

"More then ever," I said as my dad walked in to get me. When we rounded the corner I didn't notice any of the details, decorations or guests. All I saw was his face smiling back at me. The closer I got I noticed those beautiful blue green eyes glistened with water.  He leaned into me and whispered.

"You're breathtaking Jujie."

We had finally gotten to this moment, I know we were young but there wasn't a doubt in my mind, I was meant to be here with him.  It had always been Jacob.

Back when we first made things official things had gone so well, we were inseparable.  Unfortunately I panicked and broke things off over some silly fight. I know at the time I was just nervous with how much I had fallen in love with him. I was afraid of going too fast so quickly.

 This had also been right before I left for Nicaragua with Dean and Alicia. I know what you're thinking, I wanted to see what could happen with Dominic and that's why I broke it off. That's far from the truth though as I had all but forgotten about the cute older brother of Dean's.  In fact Jacob was going to go with us on the trip until I ended it.

The trip to Nicaragua was great, I was able to relax and think about why we broke up. That was until Dominic hit on me one drunken night. He said all the right things and flirting with him felt so adventurous.  That was until I sobered up and tried to have an actual date the next day. We awkwardly made conversation over a candlelit dinner at a tree house style restaurant on the coast. We didn't carry conversation great so we spent the night making out instead.  Something was off though and I pushed an annoyed Dominic off me, apologizing for leading him on. He actually turned out to be OK with it, and that broke some of the awkward vibes from dinner. We stayed up talking about his plans for the camp and when the trip was over we parted as friends.

Alicia and Dean had such a great time on the trip as well. Alicia was able to do some research while Dean surfed.  While Dominic and I had our weird dinner date, Dean had actually proposed to Alicia.  When I found out the next morning I was shocked at how calm and excited she was. The once commitment phobe Alie was practically dancing around for the rest of the trip.

They married early the next summer at Dean's parents estate. To say the wedding was grand was an understatement.  Alicia looked like a real live princess in her strapless ballgown. Her mom walked her down the isle and Dean fist pumped when he saw her. Alicia kept it together during the vows until Dean ended his promises with, "woman, It's always been you." I couldn't help but tear up, hiding my face in her bouquet. It was at her wedding that Jacob and I got back together. He and Dean had become close friends so I wasn't surprised to see him there. Somewhere during our second dance he pointed out the fact that I was wearing the dolphin earrings he got me, we shared a slow passionate kiss and from then on we were back together, like we hadn't split months prior.

We married the next year and spent our honeymoon in Kauai. That set off our love to travel, we made it our commitment to go somewhere at least once a year, sometimes two. Our trips always centered around water since we both loved the ocean so much. Someday we will go somewhere non tropical, someday.

I finished my associates degree and with the support and excitement from Jacob I went to culinary school.  I loved it, I finally understood Alicia's passion for her work. I hoped to eventually open my own bakery.  Jacob stayed in the defense industry and worked his way up to a directors position and even started his own business on the side.

Alicia finished school, went on to get her Ph.D. and now works as a professor at Scripps Institution. Her and Dean spent the last few years trying to get pregnant.  Their one success ended in a miscarriage. It was hard to be there and try to console the once bubbly Alicia during her loss.  They ended up adopting a baby overseas last year. And about two months before we found out we were expecting baby number three, Alicia found out she was expecting again! So far everything is going great and she too is expecting a girl. I can't wait for our daughters to grow up together.

Jacob's sister Amanda, continued to couch hop for about a year after she left my apartment.  She eventually took a job in Oregon and has lived there since. Last year in 2015 she eloped with her longtime boyfriend Adam.  Miles had tried to weasel his way back into her life when she first started living with me. Luckily she didn't fall for his tricks a second time around.  I made a mental note to call her after lunch and share the happy news, I know she would be excited to be having a little niece.

I snapped out of my trance when the waitress set a plate of fish tacos in front of me. Jacob leaned down and kissed my forehead before turning his attention to his plate. It's been a fun adventure so far and I was thankful to be spending it with Jacob, it has always been Jacob.





Thanks everyone for reading. I wanted to end the story with a little more then just a list so hopefully it works. If there is anyone you are interested in hearing about that I missed please let me know.   Thanks for reading and for all your kind comments. It's been fun writing.

Juliette