Ben Simmons: When Two Worlds Become One

Merry Christmas!

Christmas with my family is always nothing short of extravagant. My grandparent's house is decorated with lights and wreaths on the outside, just a mere comparison to the decorations on the inside. Garland on the staircases, Christmas trees ranging from 5 feet to 20 feet, holiday knick knacks, scented candles, and carols playing through the sound system. My family loves Christmas. 

At my house, you always feel like a 5 year old during the holiday season. We play board games at night, drink hot cocoa, watch Hallmark movies. We wear matching pajamas the night before Christmas and curl up on the couch with all of our favorites as the fire crackles. 

After enjoying a homemade breakfast of snowman shaped pancakes and bacon cooked by my amazing mother, we head over to my grandparent's house, along with the rest of the family, for presents and dinner. My grandfather only had one child, and my parents only had me, so it's always a very family oriented day. 

Oh, and this is the first Christmas I'm spending with my family while pregnant. Before I continue telling you about Christmas, I'm sure you're wondering how my date went with Zeke. 

It didn't. After the Johnny incident, I took a step back and really started to evaluate my life. I'm nine months pregnant, my baby is coming any day. This child deserves the best life possible, and the only way I can provide that is if they have my whole attention and I'm not trying to juggle being a mother and a new boyfriend. I will have plenty of time to date in the future, but right now, I need to focus on being a mother.

Zeke is a fantastic guy - he is funny, considerate, humble, and we share a lot of the same views. After all, I am the reason he's on the team. He will make a wonderful boyfriend to whoever dates him, but right now, that girl isn't going to be me. Back to Christmas.

My grandmother nearly had tears in her eyes as she walked to greet me in the foyer. "Oh my gosh, you're glowing!" she expressed and hugged me tightly. "And the baby! Are you ready?" Not only was this the first time I am becoming a mother, but my parents would also become grandparents and my grandparents will become great grandparents. It's an exciting time for everyone.

She showed me to the living room where my grandfather was sitting on the far too expensive couch next to the ginormous tree. Nostalgia came over me as I had flashbacks to being a five year old little girl, running into this very room and hopping onto his lap. 

My parents joined me, and everyone spent the first few minutes catching up. We talked plenty about the Cowboys, plans moving forward for the team, and how amazing Dak and Zeke are (awkward). As much as I was going to miss being a recruiter, traveling around the country and meeting with players, I am so excited to be an advisor. It will free up a lot of time and stress for me to just focus on the baby, but the weekly meetings with my father and grandfather mean I'll still be up to date on the game. And, I'll still get to sit in the owner's suite during games. 

My grandmother interrupted the deep football talk with gingerbread cookies and a request that we "for once stop talking about football, and open presents". I wasn't about to complain. We all ripped into the presents, and about an hour later, we looked around at the sea of wrapping paper surrounding us. 

While I definitely prefer giving than receiving, I never object to receiving presents. Among my favorites were a pair of Jimmy Choo Raffy sunglasses, a Louis Vuitton purse, earrings from Tiffany, and a new pair of black Louboutins. But, my absolute favorite present was upstairs. My grandparents converted one of the spare bedrooms into a nursery for my sweet angel. It was absolutely beautiful, and I felt so fortunate to have such an incredible family supporting me. 

"If you ever need a little sleep, we're more than happy to give you some time alone," my grandmother said.

The more time passed, the more I realized, maybe I don't need Ben. I have plenty of people supporting me, who love me and the baby unconditionally. 

Merry Christmas to you all!