We're Pregnant ... April Fools'!
Submitted by DevaD
A few years ago, my husband and I played an April Fools' Day trick on my mom. We'd been dating for a little less than a year and there was no ring on my finger. We were "living in sin" in a shared apartment and the word "marriage" hadn't yet been uttered.
The morning of April 1, we called my mom, slapped on some faux jubilance and said, "We have great news!" She held her breath. I think she was waiting to hear the words, "We're engaged!" spill from our lips. Instead we called out in unison, "We're pregnant!"
There was utter silence on the other end of the phone. I thought she'd dropped dead on the spot. When she recovered, my mom growled, "Deva ..." into the phone. That was all she had to say. She was mortified. How could I do this? Get pregnant out of wedlock? Ruin my life? My future? My prospects!
When we shouted, "April Fools'!" she was so relieved she actually started choking.
Two years later, after my husband and I were married, we got pregnant for real. When we told my mom she was over the moon. It was the best news she'd ever heard. She hasn't stopped beaming since.
Now here's my issue: Why was the news welcome and thrilling when we were married, but totally unacceptable a few years prior when we were just dating? My mom was a hippie. I don't consider her to be ultra-traditional. But from her response to our April Fools' joke, you'd think it was 1950. Haven't we evolved beyond that in the 21st century? Why do people have to be married for it to be acceptable for them to start a family?
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