like ive mention before my memory is mostly worthless. unless i have a picture or someone telling me the events of a night (a few times over and over) i usually dont remember, that being said. the following story is mostly accurate

in high school i was shy, and shy might be an understatement (once i sat on gum in front of the football team and almost d i e d of embarassment). my life consisted of 5am dance practice, school, volleyball, work + home. and on the occasion some msn messenger if i was feeling crazy.

one day at the bust stop i met a girl named markell | and she changed everything. she had a car, so cool, and she was… real. like totally raw + wasnt afraid to say what she felt. gosh how i love that. we became instant friends. when my mother went away for the summer to work markell’s family took me in. they introduced me to the gospel, family dinner, piano lessons; oh and punishment. man did we get grounded, hard + on several occasions.

these pictures are blackmail… on myself.

we fell in and out of love together. we discovered The Used and pancake covered sausages together. she shared her room, her life and her family with me and i am eternally indebted to her for this

markell is now a mom. to two {holy cow, i need to get on it} and an amazing one at that. i asked her if she would like to share her experience with having her littles 13 months apart; of course she said yes because she is a boss.

below is her story.

oh + her darling blog is amouseinmykitchen

How I got through my pregnancy with a new baby – Guest Blog: Markell Corpus (Fuller)

I had my first child in April of 2011. After trying for a year to get pregnant, I was overjoyed to finally welcome my little boy into the world. I looked forward to bonding with him and spending countless hours cuddling and getting to know my new buddle of joy. I quickly learned that things wouldn’t go exactly as planned.
They say that a mother knows when she is supposed to have a baby. Whoever “they” are. I found out that “they” are right. At least in my case. When my little boy was three weeks old, (yes, THREE WEEKS), I knew that I was supposed to have another baby. I remember the moment vividly. I was nursing him in his nursery. I was enjoying the moment. He had finally learned how to latch right and nursing was no longer a dreaded act, but a special moment between me and my baby. Then, it hit me like a bolt of lightning. I was going to have another baby, and quick.
At first I resisted the idea. I was faithful about taking the necessary precautions to make sure that I wouldn’t be getting pregnant again anytime soon. Plus, I was nursing, so I felt that I was double protected. It turns out that wasn’t enough.
In August, I learned the news. I was pregnant again. Despite all my precautions. Okay, maybe I did miss a pill or two, but I was really careful. Word to the wise, you can get pregnant breast feeding and you can get pregnant on the pill. Nothing is 100% effective.
In retrospect, I am so grateful for that lightning bolt feeling I had when I knew I would be getting pregnant again. When I got those two pink lines, I wasn’t entirely surprised. That’s not to say that I was ready for it, or that it wasn’t hard, because it was. It was extremely hard. The first four months I have horrible morning sickness. It was hard enough the first pregnancy, this time I had to take care of a small baby on top of taking care of myself and the new growing child.
So, how did I make it thought you ask? Well, let me tell you!

Support from strangers

It sounds funny, but one of the things that helped me more than anything else was all the people who told me that I wasn’t alone. The first one happened when I went to Rite-Aid to buy my pregnancy test. I was carrying my son in his car seat when I went up to purchase the test. She looked at me and the test and my baby and said,” Oh no, are you okay?” I told her that I was, and she told me that her and her brother are only 13 months apart, and that she loved being that close in age to him. She then told me that I would be okay, and that I could handle anything. This kind stranger made not only my day better, by my entire pregnancy a little easier.
That was not the only support from a stranger that I received. All during my pregnancy, I had people tell me about people they knew who had kids that were as far apart as my kids would be. For the record, they are 13 months apart. Knowing that other people had been through the same thing as me and survived it was a huge help for me.

Support from family

As much as the support from strangers helped, support from my family is what got me through my pregnancy. My husband was quick to take the baby out when I needed a nap. My mother and mother in law were there to talk. I always had someone I could count on to help me through the hard days.

Exersaucer

I had a friend at church that let me borrow her child’s “exersaucer” That thing was my lifesaver. Seriously. My son spent an hour most mornings in that thing. He loved it. I was always sitting right next to him, except for the time spent hugging the toilet.

The stroller

As soon as the morning sickness was over, the stroller was my new best friend. I was lucky that my son loved to be outside, and the weather was good. I spent countless hours pushing him around town in the stroller. It helped me clear my mind and have a little time to myself while preparing for what was to come.

Spiritual Strength

I would be lying if I left this part out. I found myself reading scripture and prayer more than I ever had. I knew that if I was going to be thrown into motherhood this way, I was going to need the help of my Heavenly Father. And, He did help me through the entire thing, and now helps me get through the crazy journey of motherhood.
Getting through the nine months of pregnancy ended up being beautiful when it culminated with the birth of my beautiful daughter. Now that my little girl is almost one and my little boy is almost two, I wouldn’t change it for the world. If you find yourself in the same situation as me, make sure you find all the support you can from friends, family, or strangers, find a few good things to keep your baby busy, and make sure you take care of yourself and those two babies!

About Markell: I am a 24 year old, married, stay-at-home mom of two little kids, who are my pride and joy. I enjoy cooking and I love to learn new things and teach those things to other people. I am happiest when I am creating beautiful things, whether it’s food, crafts, or memories. Read more about me including additional parenting posts, recipes, and a whole lot more on my blog, A Mouse in my Kitchen.