Therapy is Good for the Soul

“Well this is a pleasant surprise. I thought we were meetin at the doctor’s office.” Bailey stretched on her tiptoes when she reached Tyler and he bent down to meet her lips.

“I know, but I’m just so excited! I was barely able to focus during practice, so I took a quick shower and drove over here to meet you. This way you don’t have to take the T, since you said the motion makes you feel more nauseous.”

“Have I told you how much I love you?” She intertwined her fingers with his and smiled.

“Not since this morning.” He bent down to kiss her now giggling lips. “Come on, lets go to the car.”

“Do you mind if we walk? I scheduled the appointment to allow enough time, so I didn’t have to take the T. I’ve been queasy all mornin, so I think the fresh air and walk might help.”

Tyler brought their interlocked hands to his lips and kissed the top of Bailey’s hand. “We can do anything you and our daughter need.”

“I swear if we have a boy, you’re goin to give him a complex if you keep callin him a girl.”

“I’m telling you she’s a girl; I feel it in my gut! You’ll see.”

“So, I’m guessin that means you don’t want to wait until the baby’s born to find out if you’re right?”

“You got that right! Wait, do you want to wait and be surprised?” Tyler stopped walking and turned to face Bailey.

“Are you kiddin? No way! We need to know how to decorate the nursery. I sure as heck don’t want a bunch of ugly yellow clothes and ducks for our baby!

“What do you have against rubber duckies?”

“Nothing as a bath time toy, but when it comes to other things I want cute clothes and stuff for our baby. Neutral baby items just aren’t as nice.”

“So do you want a pink frilly room for her?”

“No, if we have a girl I don’t want an over the top Pepto-Bismol room. We aren’t raisin a diva! And if it’s a boy, I don’t want everything to be blue either.”

“How ‘bout a Bruins themed nursery?”

“Unless you mean a teddy bear theme, that would be a no.”

“Awww, come on.”

“Tyler, I love you and your teammates dearly, but there’s no way we’re goin to have a black and yellow nursery filled with a bunch of Bruins merchandise. I want our baby to have a warm and fuzzy kind of nursery, not a big bad Bruins one.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, that can wait until she’s a little older.”

Bailey rolled her eyes and shook her head when he referred to the baby as a girl yet again. “If it makes you feel better, I have absolutely no problem dressin our baby in Bruins gear. Just imagine how adorable that’s goin to be!”

“Yeah, she will look pretty cute supporting her Daddy.”

“Tyler! What did I say about givin the baby a complex?" She playfully swat his chest in admonishment.

“Sorry, I just can’t help it. Besides, I don’t like calling our baby it.”

“How about the baby or little one then?”

“I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try.”

Bailey stretched up to give him a peck on the cheek. “That’s all I ask.”

“I sure hope we don’t have to wait too long to find out; the suspense is killing me!”

“Well, we’re here so you can ask the doctor how much longer we have to be patient.”

Tyler opened the door to the doctor’s office for Bailey. After Bailey signed in, she and Tyler took a seat in the waiting room. Bailey picked up a copy of the American Baby magazine, while Tyler checked messages on his phone.

“What’s wrong?” Bailey placed her hand on Tyler’s thigh to stop it from bouncing.

“I thought you said your appointment was at 12:00.”

“It is.”

“Well the doctor’s late; I’m going to see what the hold up is.”

Bailey quickly grabbed Tyler’s hand, pulled him back down, and whisper yelled at him. “Tyler, stop! I know you’re excited, but you need to relax. Doctors always run a little bit behind; you’ve got to be patient. I’m sure they’ll call us back in a minute.”

“Sorry, I just have a lot of questions.”

“I know you do and I promise we won’t leave until we get answers for all of them.” She brought his hand to her lips.

Five minutes later, a nurse called Bailey’s name. She weighed and took Bailey’s vitals before the doctor came in. Bailey lifted her shirt up to reveal her still flat stomach so the doctor could put the gel on and complete the ultrasound.

“I’m assuming you must be the baby’s father?” The doctor held out his hand to Tyler.

“Yes, I’m Tyler Seguin, Bailey’s fiancé.”

“You wouldn’t happen to be the Tyler Seguin that plays for the Bruins would you?”

“One in the same.”

“I thought you looked familiar. So that’s how you know the Lucic’s.”

“Yes sir, Brittany speaks very highly of you.”

“That’s always good to hear. So tell me Bailey how are you feeling since your initial visit?”

Tyler spoke before Bailey could respond to the doctor’s question. “She’s been very tired and she’s always nauseous and throws up a lot!”

“The fatigue is normal and caused by the change in hormones. If you’re getting sick, that’s also going to contribute to your energy levels. Nausea and morning sickness are part of the territory as well. I see here, that you’ve lost two and a half pounds since your visit a couple of weeks ago. Can you walk me through what you’re eating and how often you’re getting sick?”

“First thing in the mornin is always the worst and that’s when I seem to vomit the most. I try, but it’s been really challengin to eat in the mornins. I can’t seem to keep anything down. I pretty much feel nauseous most of the day, with little breaks here and there mostly in the late afternoon and evenin. My sense of smell seems to be on overdrive too, so strong smells cause me to get sick too. I feel really bad because I haven’t been able to cook for Tyler because everthing seems to make me sick.”

Tyler gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Bay, I told you it’s fine. The entire team tends to eat out more or have the team chef prepare us meals at the Garden this time of year. You don’t need to worry about me; just focus on you and the baby.”

“Tell me more about your diet, what sources of protein are you getting in?”

“Well, like I said smells really bother me right now so it’s been pretty bland with a lot of potatoes, wheat toast, bananas, and crackers. The baby seems to absolutely hate chicken in any form so that’s out. Tyler’s been makin me some protein shakes that he’ll add Greek yogurt and some almond butter to, in addition to protein powder to make sure I get at least some protein in. The baby seems to be gettin use to those. I can keep them down for the most part and much better than when I try to eat Greek yogurt directly. Last night I was able to eat a hamburger and keep it down, but that’s really been the first meat in a while.”

“How are your stress levels right now, with Tyler being in the playoffs and you planning a wedding?

“I’m actually feelin ok. The weddin plannin is pretty much done and the team’s been real supportive of lettin Tyler and I spend time together when possible.”

“And work?”

“Work’s been a bit more challengin, because I’m so daggone tired and feel extremely nauseous in the mornins. Luckily I work for a hospital, so they’ve been pretty understandin when I suddenly run to the bathroom in the middle of a treatment.”

“Do your best to take breaks and get off your feet whenever possible. Maybe find a chair to complete your documentation in.”

“You mentioned she’s lost weight; that can’t be good. I mean shouldn’t she be gaining weight?”

“Obviously I would prefer you not to have lost weight, but it’s not unheard of, especially if you’re having such a difficult time with morning sickness. Some women don’t gain any weight or much weight at all during the first trimester, but everything evens out in the second and third. That being said, I would like you to try eating some vitamin B6-rich foods to help reduce your nausea. Since you can’t eat chicken at the moment, try avocados, cooked spinach, and pistachio nuts. If you can’t keep any of those down you’ll need to take a vitamin B supplement on top of your prenatal vitamins. I also want you to eat small, frequent meals and snacks throughout the day so your stomach is never empty. You may find higher protein foods settle in your stomach better. Whatever you eat, eat it slowly.”

“Do we need to make sure she’s eating a certain number of calories and certain quantities from each food group a day?”

“I don’t want you to stress about the types of foods and calories yet. Right now, Bailey just needs to eat foods she can keep down. It’s also important that you stay hydrated. You’re at risk for becoming dehydrated since you’re getting sick so frequently. Please be careful with that.”

“Is there anything else I can do to decrease the nausea?”

“Yes, acupressure can help. I’ll make sure you get a pair of wristbands that you can use to apply pressure on your wrist to help relieve your symptoms. You can put the bands on first thing in the morning before you get out of bed. Anytime you experience the nausea, press the button on the bands 30 times in one-second intervals. Since morning time is your worst time of the day, take your time sitting up and getting out of bed. If you get up too quickly that can make things worse. Aromatherapy may also help relax you, but it will require some trial and error because some scents may make things worse. I suggest trying peppermint, spearmint, or lemon first.”

“Ok, thank you we’ll try all of those suggestions.”

“Now, are you ready to see your baby?”

Bailey and Tyler’s faces both lit up and they responded with a resounding “YES!” Once the doctor pointed out the tiny figure the size of a kidney bean on the screen and they heard their baby’s heartbeat for the first time, they both shed a few tears. Tyler leaned forward and pressed his lips to Bailey’s. The doctor printed a copy as well as sent an electronic copy to them.

Tyler wasn’t about to leave before he got the question he’d been dying to ask answered. “When can you tell Bailey that I’m right and we’re having a girl?”

The doctor couldn’t help but laugh. “I hate to break this to you Tyler, but you are going to have to wait a bit longer. We can try at 16 weeks, but for a more definitive answer, it will be closer to 20 weeks.”
“That long?”

“I’m afraid so, and even then we have to hope the baby will be cooperative and let us get a good look.”
“See I told you, you have to be patient.” Bailey squeezed Tyler’s hand while she wiped the ultrasound gel off her stomach with the towel in her other one.

Tyler had a few more questions he asked the doctor. He was determined to do everything in his power to make sure Bailey and the baby were ok. After he got all his questions answered, they picked up her acupressure bracelets, scheduled her next appointment, and paid the bill. Everyone in the office wished Tyler good luck for the game tonight before they left. Tyler took Bailey’s hand in his and escorted her to the elevator and then out of the office building.

As soon as they were outside, Bailey punched Tyler’s arm. “OWWW! What was that for?”

“For embarrassin me in front of the doctor.” Tyler couldn’t help but chuckle as he recalled how flushed her cheeks became and her eyes bugged out, when he asked the doctor if it was safe for them to still have sex. Bailey immediately jabbed his arm again. “It’s not funny! You just don’t talk about stuff like that with strangers.”

Tyler wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulled her into his side, and kissed the top of her head. “Bay, you’re absolutely adorable when you get flustered. And for the record, that was a very important question and I didn’t ask a complete stranger, I asked your doctor.”

“I know but..” Tyler cut her off when he pressed his lips to hers.

“Bay, you’re about to be a mom and sex is part of human nature; there’s no need to be embarrassed. What are you going to do when it comes time to talk to our kids about sex?”

“I don’t know; I’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Thankfully that won’t be for a very long time!”
“Out of curiosity, how did you learn about sex?”

“I took a class at church in the seventh or eighth grade.”

“Church?”

“Yea, I went with my parents every week for 6 weeks or so. Some of the time it was lessons with just with my peers, both boys and girls. Other times it was just the girls. There were also really awkward lessons when the kids and parents were all together.”

When they reached his car, Tyler opened the passenger side door for Bailey and continued their conversation after he fastened his seatbelt and started the car. “Never thought a church would have that kind of class, especially where you grew up.”

“It’s not like they condoned premarital sex. In fact the primary lesson was respect your body and wait until you’re in love and married. But they also taught us facts about our changin bodies and squashed some of the tall tales out there. The goal was to also help breakdown the wall to help us feel comfortable talkin to our parents if we had questions.”

“Ok, that makes more sense then.”

“How’d you learn about it?” Bailey aimlessly played with the fingers on his right hand.

“My mom made my dad talk to me on my thirteenth birthday. It was really awkward for both of us. He stumbled on his words, talked about protection, and basically threatened to kill me if I ever got a girl pregnant. Guess I didn’t listen very well, eh?” That remark earned him another punch in the arm. “Oww! If we lose tonight because my arm’s too sore to play, I’m blaming you.”

“Whatever, you deserved that and you know it.” Feeling slightly guilty, she gently rubbed the spot she hit, then leaned over and kissed it. “There, does that make it all better.”

“Nah, you really punched me hard, I think I need another kiss to make me feel better.” Bailey rolled her eyes as she leaned over to kiss his arm again. Tyler had other plans though and he swiftly lowered himself to press his lips to hers. They made out for a few minutes before Bailey’s stomach growled interrupting their fun. “I think the baby’s hungry.”

“I think you’re right.” Her cheeks became rosy and she giggled when her stomach gurgled again.

“Bay, I need to ask you something, but I don’t want you to get mad.”

“Ok, what is it?”

“I know you’ve had really bad morning sickness and all, but you’re not also skipping meals because you’re afraid you won’t fit in your wedding dress or something, right?”

“NO! I would never put our baby at risk like that! I can’t believe you would even think I could do that! If anything, I’m worried the dress won’t fit right because I’ve lost weight. Tyler, you have to believe me! You know I was embarrassed about getting pregnant before we’re married, and I’m obviously nervous about the process and bein a mom, but you have to know I already love our baby. I will never intentionally do anything to hurt him or her. I swear I’m tryin to eat more, it’s just hard to keep it down!”

“Bay, I’m so sorry! I know you wouldn’t do anything to hurt the baby. It’s just you hear crazy stories about things girls do before their wedding, I guess I just let my imagination get carried away. I’m just worried about both of you. Please forgive me!”

“It’s ok and I’m glad you already care so much about the little one, that you want to protect him.”

“or her.”

“or her. I’m also glad you asked me versus having a looming question like that hovering over us.”

“I love both of you! I’m probably going to drive you nuts with my questions by the time the baby arrives, but I just want to learn everything I can, so I can be a good dad and can help you. And right now, the baby is telling me to help by getting you something to eat.” Tyler placed his hand on Bailey’s stomach, gave it a gentle rub, and spoke directly to it. “ I hear ya little buddy; I’m taking Mommy inside right now to feed you.”

“You’re too cute!” She gave Tyler a quick peck on the lips, before opening the car door. “Let’s get the boxes out of the back.”

“Woah! What do you think you’re doing? I’ll get that!” Tyler grabbed the box from Bailey.

“Tyler, we’ve talked about this; I’m pregnant not an invalid. The doctor said it’s fine as long as I don’t feel a strain on my back and go over 30 pounds this trimester. That box probably only weighs 10 pounds max. You can get the other one.”

“I don’t care; we aren’t taking any chances of you getting hurt or losing the baby. I can carry both of them. Please just let me do this!”

Bailey stretched up on her tiptoes and kissed him. “Fine.” Tyler carried both boxes to his condominium. Bailey unlocked and pushed the door open for him. “Put those in your bedroom and I’ll try to find somethin for lunch.”

“You mean our bedroom.” Tyler smirked as he bent down to kiss her cheek before carrying the boxes of her things down the hall.

“Tyler, can you come here?” Bailey hollered as she stood in the kitchen staring into the full refrigerator.

Tyler immediately came running down the hall. When he reached Bailey, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his lips to her neck. “What do you need?”

“What’s this?” She asked pointing to the contents of the refrigerator.

“Uhm, a fridge full of food.”

Bailey backhanded Tyler in the chest. “Ha ha smart ass! I mean what’s with all the pickles and sauerkraut? Are you havin a smorgasbord for the team after y’all win?”

“No, I got that for you yesterday.”

“For me? Why?”

“I remembered reading that Ashton Kutcher stocked an extra fridge full of foods his wife craved while she was pregnant, so I thought I’d do the same for you. I know this is stuff women often crave, so you can have it whenever you want.”

“What, no ice cream?” Bailey tried to suppress her laughter to no avail, when Tyler opened the freezer revealing six different flavors of ice cream. “You’re so adorable!”

She turned to face him, threw her arms around his neck and stretched up to bring her lips to his. Tyler placed one hand behind her head to deepen the kiss, while slamming the freezer and refrigerator doors closed with his other hand before wrapping it around her waist. As the intensity of their kiss grew, his hands slowly worked their way down to her ass and he lifted her up. Bailey wrapped her legs around his hips as he carried her to the counter. He sat her down and continued to passionately kiss her. His rugged strong hands reached up and tangled into her hair. She ran her hands along the back of Tyler’s neck and down to his broad shoulders. Every time his tongue traced the contour of Bailey’s tender lips, it caused an electric sensation to run through her.

As his hands gradually worked their way down to the hem of her shirt, he began to nibble on her ear. Bailey raised her arms overhead, so Tyler could pull her shirt off. He slowly kissed down her neck, past her breast and down to her flat stomach. His large hands cupped her breasts and then he ever so slightly pinched her erect nipples sending waves of excitement cursing through her body. Tyler smirked at her body’s response to his touch. He loved knowing he was the only one who made her excited like this. He kissed his way back up to her body until he was staring directly in her eyes. The lust and love between them was palpable. Tyler brought his lips tenderly to hers. In a move of passion, Bailey grabbed him by the hair and pulled him closer. When their tongues passionately interlocked, Tyler’s hands moved to the clasp of Bailey’s bra. Before he could remove her bra, they heard some rumbling outside the front door, so they quickly pulled away from each other. Bailey rehooked her bra and grabbed her shirt off the counter. She pecked Tyler’s lips before scooting off the kitchen counter.

“I’ll go distract Freddy, to give you a little time to take care of this.” She gently rubbed the front of Tyler’s jeans across his very noticeable erection.

“Not Helping!” He moaned out of frustration to her touch. She gave him another quick kiss before running into the living room.

“Hey Freddy!”

“Oh hey Bailey. Just came to collect a few more boxes to move into the apartment. Didn’t realize you’d be here.”

“Yea, Tyler came with me to my doctor’s appointment and then we came here to drop off some of my things too.”

“Cool, is everything ok? I mean did your appointment go well?”

“Yes, everything’s good. Want to see a picture of the baby?”

“Way to let the cat out of the bag Bay.” Tyler wrapped his arm around Bailey’s shoulder as he came into the room.

“What?”

“I thought you wanted to wait until after the first trimester was over to tell anyone besides our families.”

“Tyler Paul Seguin, how stupid do you think I am? You couldn’t even keep the secret for five minutes from your team, so there’s now way you didn’t tell your best friend.”

“That’s not true!”

“Tyler!” Bailey put her hand on her hip and stared at him in disbelief.

“Well, ok, so technically I did tell Freddy, but only after he kind of guessed and you were the one that told the team in New York not me.”

“I did not! You came barrelin into the hotel, snatchin the shoppin bags out of my hands, sayin I shouldn’t be carryin them in my condition. Stephanie knew right away from your poor choice of words that I was pregnant. We agreed that she could tell Patrice and they would keep it from the rest of the team. But noooo, you had to open your big mouth in front of Brad durin breakfast the next mornin about why I was only eatin plain toast. You know I’m a horrible liar, so there was no way I could deny it when he accosted me. So it’s your fault not mine.”

“I only accidentally told Bergy’s wife and Marchy, not the entire team. You just said so yourself.”

“Everyone knows Marchy can’t keep a secret!” Freddy chimed in.

“Thank you Freddy! Once you told him, the cat was out of the bag. I kind of think you told him on purpose.”

Tyler placed both hand over his heart to feign he was offended by her accusation. “That hurts.”

Bailey rolled her eyes at him. “I’m right aren’t I?”

A shit-eating grin formed on Tyler’s face and he winked at her. “Maybe.”

“I knew it!”

“Sorry, but I was just too excited and thought I’d explode if I didn’t tell someone. I was afraid I’d let something slip with one of the guys, so the best solution was to let all of them know. You mad?”

Bailey tried her best to look pissed, but her giggles quickly gave it a way. “Tyler, if I was mad, you would have known long before now. I think it’s sweet that you’re so excited about the baby. Besides, I told Christina, so I’d be a hypocrite if I was angry at you for doing the same thing I did.”

“Well we’re quite the pair aren’t we?”

Bailey stretched up and gave Tyler a peck on the lips. “Just another sign we’re perfect for each other.”

“You two are sickening sometimes!”

“You know you love us!” Bailey let go of Tyler and wrapped her arms around Freddy’s waist to give him a hug.

“Yeah, I do. So Tyler, how are you feeling about the game tonight?”

“Pretty good. Really hoping we can win and end this, so we can get the Cup on home ice this time. Not to mention I’ll have more time to spend with Bailey and the baby.” He bent down to kiss Bailey’s cheek. “Speaking of which, I think someone’s still hungry.” He placed his free hand on Bailey’s stomach, when he heard it grumble again. “How ‘bout I make her one of my special smoothies or would you prefer something else?”

“A smoothie sounds perfect. Thank you.” She gave him a quick peck on the lips before he headed back into the kitchen.

“So you’re having a girl?”

“We don’t know yet. Tyler just has his heart set on a little girl. I’m afraid he’s in for a big let down if we find out we’re having a boy.”

“I already told you I won’t be! My gut is right on this though, you’ll see!” Tyler hollered from the kitchen.

“It’s goin to be a long twelve weeks ‘til we find out, little one.” She gently pat her stomach.

Bailey, Tyler, and Freddy enjoyed a quick lunch together, before Tyler and Bailey went back to the hotel the Bruins were staying in to catch a nap. A couple of hours later, not wanting to wake Bailey, Tyler carefully slid out of the bed. He quietly changed into Bailey’s favorite suit and tie; it was the one he proposed to her in. He gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead before heading out towards TD Garden. As he put on his suit jacket on the way to the elevator, he felt something funny in the inside pocket. When he reached inside, he found a card. He puled it out and read it on the walk to the Garden. Bailey had left him a sweet and encouraging message.

Take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy this moment! You’ve been here
before and you know how to win! I believe in you and the team. If you
trust in yourself, your training, and all the hard work you’ve put in, you’ll
be unstoppable! You are a part of the Big Bad Bruins; don’t let a team
based off a cute Disney movie get in your head. You’ve been on fire all
season; this is your year Tyler! If you feel a little bit of doubt start to
creep in your head, remember you not only have one lucky charm here
for you, but now you have two that love you dearly!

All season, you’ve asked me to give you little incentives before games.
Since this is such a big game, I thought maybe we should combine some
of your favorites to give you some extra motivation to play your heart out.
When you win the Cup, I’ll bake you all the apple pies your heart desires.
Since you can’t do it alone, I’ll throw in a bunch of my homemade brownies
for the team and those Finnish cookies Tuukka likes. Before he asks, you
can also tell Brad that yes, I’ll make him some baked mac and cheese. I
will also give you extra special kisses for every goal the team scores and
every point you get during the game. If you score a goal, I will give you one
of my infamous full body massages. Since we already spend almost every
night together, if Tuukka gets the shutout, I’ll finally give you that private
performance of “Genie in a Bottle”, that you’ve been begging me for since
my bachelorette party. Now, that you’re hopefully fully motivated, go kick
some Duck ass and win the Cup!!

All my love,
Bailey ♥ XOXOX”

Bailey knew exactly what she was doing when she wrote those words. Tyler was highly energized and driven to win the Cup, when he entered the locker room. His intensity was infectious and the entire team said they were all in when he shared carefully selected parts of the card with his teammates. The Bruins were determined to win the Stanley Cup on home ice and make the entire city of Boston proud and that’s exactly what they did, defeating the Ducks in a shocking blow out 4-0.

Notes

Hope Y'all like this one! We are fast approaching Tyler and Bailey's wedding day. Y'all have been awfully quiet lately, hope that doesn't mean you aren't still reading the story. If you're still out there I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story.