"I Can't Wait to Hold Our Baby!"
by Lucille Giordano
It's amazing the way motherhood can make two women chat like two old friends. Jensen Buchanan (Vicky/Marley, ANOTHER WORLD) allowed me to peek inside her world, the world of a mother-to-be, the place where every experience is new and every baby tidbit is chockfull of information. This is the place where I was allowed to be in for a short time, where Jensen revealed all sorts of wonderful things about her experiences thus far, in a way only she could. If you've ever spoken to a woman who is close to becoming a first-time mother, you'll find the glow they speak of is contagious!
DTV: Are you excited about impending motherhood?
Jensen: Yes, I am. I always thought this was something I could be potentially good at. I'm really looking forward to it. I'm an only child myself, and I always wanted to have one child, maybe more. At my age, it was time to start. I love it, and it definitely has its benefits. I have a very close relationship with my mother. I would like to have more than one baby. It's a fun atmosphere around the studio now, too! Judi (Evans, Paulina) just got married. Kaitlin (Hopkins, Kelsey) is getting married, I'm pregnant, so there is a lot of fun family stuff going on around here now.
DTV: How does Gray feel about the whole experience?
Jensen: He's really happy about it. Gray's gone back to school and he's studying physical therapy, so he's very involved and committed in school right now. I think it wasn't until he actually started feeling the baby more that it became real to him. Now he's pretty excited about it.
DTV: How did you feel when you first found out you were pregnant?
Jensen: Well, I was a little bit surprised because it happened so quickly! We thought the timing was right and we should start trying. It took pretty much the first shot to tell you the truth! (laughs) I was delighted. I had to go out to Milwaukee for a meeting, and that was the day I was supposed to call the doctor's office to get my test results. I called and got the results that I was positive. Then I had to go back and sit in a meeting and wait a whole flight home before I could tell Gray.
DTV: That must have been nerve-wracking for you.
Jensen: Yes, but it was exciting. In a way, it was fun just to keep it my secret, at least for a couple of hours. The whole plane ride home I was planning how I was going to tell Gray. It was kind of an exciting flight back to New York.
DTV: Was Vicky's pregnancy planned beforehand, or was it written in after you told the producers?
Jensen: I told them in the beginning of the summer that I was going to try and get pregnant in the fall. So they had planned for that. It's a miracle that it all worked out the way it did.
DTV: I'm sure it is a lot easier for you also, because they don't have to hide you. It can just be a natural progression of things.
Jensen: It is easy, but also it is at the time that they've decided to bring Marley back, and Marley can't have children.
DTV: Everyone wants to know how far along you are in your pregnancy.
Jensen: When this comes out, I'll be almost seven months pregnant. Demi Moore I'm not, but I think it's nice that you can be pregnant and still be okay-looking.
DTV: You know, there's a certain look in a woman's face when she is pregnant.
Jensen: I was actually reading about that. I thought it was a wives' tale, but there is a hormonal thing that gives off something that makes your cheeks flush. Some people call it that pregnancy glow, but it's actually for real.
DTV: Did you have a tough time with morning sickness?
Jensen: Yes, I did. Comparatively, I didn't have a hard time. Yet, to me, throwing up once is a hard time. I did have about seven weeks where I had a hard time keeping food down and nothing appealed to me. As fast as it came, it went away.
DTV: Do you feel this is the perfect time in your life to be a mother?
Jensen: Yes. Gray and I have been married to two years and I have a lot of security and belief in our relationship, which I think is the most important thing for me at least, to start a family. There are a lot of single mothers out there. In fact, my mother was one when I was growing up. For me it seems to be the right time. I'm 32 years old and I'm married to a man I love, so it seems right for us. I'm probably in for a rude awakening. I'm sure it will be a lot harder than I imagine.
DTV: What qualities of yourself and Gray would you like your child to inherit?
Jensen: Gray is easygoing. He's not an alarmist at all. He kind of takes life as it comes, and yet he's solid as a rock for me. Also, he has the longest eyelashes I've ever seen and the cutest dimples. I hope my child is not as shy as I am.
DTV: I bet you can't wait to hold your baby for the first time.
Jensen: I can only imagine, you know? I've been keeping this journal since I found out I was pregnant and I hope someday to give it to the child. It talks about the whole pregnancy and how I feel. I was writing in it last night and I was saying how I hope Gray and I make our child proud as parents, and that we love each other so much that the child can feel a lot of security in their family and do whatever they want to do, be whatever they want to be.