So here we were. Both of us just 17 years old and about to have a baby. I went ahead on my trip to London and Scotland. I had a really good time but missed Mike horribly and wondered constantly about what our lives were about to be like. No such thing as everyone having cell phones back then so we didn't get to talk to each other for 10 days. Long time when you have such a heavy burden to carry.
We were actually very lucky. We had families that were willing to help us. When I got home from my overseas trip, my daddy took me to look for a new, mobile home. He bought us a small, two bedroom starter home and also furnished it with furniture, appliances and other things we needed to get started. Mike's mother and grandmother gave us household items and Mike's father paid for half of the medical expenses throughout my pregnancy. Now remember, I had just graduated high school before getting pregnant. Mike, however, had been behind me so he quit high school and got a job. Yep, he stepped up to the plate to take care of his new family. I don't think at the time it was too big of a deal to him... he hated school and didn't do very well with his grades. Later on, he did regret not getting a high school diploma instead of a GED, but I was very proud of him either way.
On August 28, 1987, Mike and I, with our immediate families tagging along, went to the courthouse and we got hitched. Very awkward. Knowing we were pregnant and still "kids" and here we were standing in the same room with both sets of our parents and getting married. I'm a people person and not normally shy, but even I was a bit embarrassed by it all. I've never been one to want a wedding. I was never the little girl who always dreamed of a fairy tale wedding, so even just a simple ceremony in a courthouse was still too much for me! We went to Panama City Beach for our little weekend honeymoon. THAT felt even more strange than the "wedding". I was actually Mrs. Mike Holley..... at 17. Just a little over three months before that, we weren't even officially together. Wow, how things can change so fast!
We came back home to "play house" together. I was having a great pregnancy, well other than the fact that if I didn't eat every two hours I would get extremely nauseated and dizzy. That resulted in me gaining over 60 lbs. during my pregnancy, which you'll hear much more about later on. But I was very happy. I was so proud of Mike for getting a job and wanting to take care of his baby. So many teen pregnancies result in the guy leaving the girl all alone. I guess this really was true love. I guess maybe Mike was right. Even if I hadn't gotten pregnant, maybe we still would've ended up together.
At 6 a.m. on March 18, 1988, contractions started. Our baby was about to arrive. I was scared to death. Mike was too I'm guessing because he was driving about 80 miles per hour to get me to the hospital. My mom rode with us and she kept laughing at him and telling him to slow down, that labor with a first baby would take quite a while and perhaps it would be better if he didn't get us killed on the way. Well, mom was only partially right. My first baby only took six hours to arrive. At 12 noon, Kasey Nicole Holley was born. An 8 lb. 6 oz. beautiful baby girl with a head full of dark hair. I don't remember Mike being in the actual delivery room, but I do remember that when the doctor held her up in the air to show her to me, still wet and yucky, the very first thought that entered my mind was, "that is NOT my baby". HA! Since she was still not cleaned up and had all that wet dark hair, I thought she looked like she totally didn't belong to me! Silly pain meds. The nurses in the hospital just loved all that hair and put a little pink bow in it, Pebbles Flinstone style, on top of her head. It was official. We were mommy & daddy.
We were excited to take her home. Of course, we had lots of visitors in the beginning. Life was good. I stayed home with Kasey while Mike worked. He eventually quit his first job and began working with my daddy and grandaddy on the family farm. I LOVED IT! Yes, it was often times much longer hours but I loved that farm with all my heart and to have Mike be a part of it meant the world to me. Later in life, he looked back and realized how much it meant to him too. We were all getting along pretty well, adjusting to married life and a new baby. Kasey was a fun baby so overall we were happy. But again, time changes things. It was about to get a little bumpy. Click, click, click, click up that roller coaster hill...... about to barrel down the other side.
Life Lesson: Teen pregnancy is NOT a fairy tale. Most guys leave. Most girls don't have supportive parents. Most couples, if they're lucky enough to stay together, DON'T have their "start up" life handed to them. Yes, we were extremely lucky to not only be together, but to have all of those things given to us. BUT, that was the illusion. Real life, as teens with a baby, got hard.
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