I'm almost 22 weeks along and on a mere daily basis I get asked how I am feeling. Being one who hates small talk and loves active conversations I can't stand saying, "I feel good" (even though it's true) so instead I say things like, "well, I'm in the so-called 'honeymoon stage' of pregnancy!" or I'll talk about my terrible charlie horses I get first thing in the morning (side note: I've never had a charlie horse in my life until pregnancy yet I've now had about 4-5 and they are the weirdest pain I've ever felt in my life). The biggest lesson I've learned about pregnancy is that everyone loves a pregnant woman. Suddenly you're the center of attention, everyone wants to know how things are going, and you simply can't ignore the lady with the swelling belly. Luckily I love talking about my pregnancy because it's all new to me so I welcome the comments and gawkers.
Here are the enthusiastic comments and questions I get on a daily basis:
1. Your belly is so cute! I love the bump! Wow, your belly has really grown! (Maybe other women would be offended by this, but I love that people are noticing that I'm growing because I carry that belly around with a huge sense of pride)
2. Do you know the sex?! (nope)
3. Are you having any weird cravings? (Nope--except for Sprite and Mountain Dew which I don't give into)
4. Oh, don't worry about the baby being due in December, it's going to go by so fast! (I sure hope so)
5. Are you feeling kicks!? Those kicks are so amazing, I remember when I first felt those kicks, it was so incredible! (yep and yep)
6. How's Jon feeling about the pregnancy!? (he's more excited than I am)
7. Have you set up the nursery yet?! (Uhh-what?)
8. Do you want a boy or girl? (I really have no preference, but I think Jon wants a girl)
9. Have you picked out names yet? (Oh dear--if we did I'm sure we would change our minds at least 10 times before the delivery)
10. So are you, like, tired all the time? (Nope, not at all. I have not had any fatigue or exhaustion)
Following my 20 week anatomy scan I started to become more confident in the "twitches" I was feeling that were maybe, possibly, sort of, kind of, (hopefully) kicks. In the last week they've become a bit more frequent (yet still sporadic and unpredictable) and a little stronger. They feel less like twitches and more like something is bumping into me on the inside--kind of like popcorn popping (because you know--we all know what it feels like to have popcorn popping inside our bellies). The most amazing feeling is to wake up in the morning and still be laying in bed and feel these kicks. The other morning I did not feel the kicks (which I know is normal) so at work I decided to give my belly a poke and suddenly something was kicking back at me! It was just a few taps before it stopped as if to say, "please stop poking me and let me sleep!". It was my first real interaction with the baby and my face lit up in excitement! In the coming weeks when I'm feeling less than enthusiastic about work I'm sure that I'll be keeping my baby from sleeping by my constant jabs and pokes to the belly if only to say "hi". And baby will learn a thing or two about irritation and annoyance before it's even born ;)
Jon and I attended our first group prenatal class last weekend. Instead of our traditional monthly prenatal midwife visits, we attend a group prenatal class for 2 hours with other couples who are due around the same time. During the visit the midwife meets with each couple individually to assess the vitals and heart tones, but the rest of the class is devoted to a topic. This past week the topic was on breastfeeding. During the beginning of class we went around the circle to introduce ourselves, our EDCs and then one concern or wonder we had about breastfeeding. Now, after listening endlessly to my sister promote the many health benefits of breastfeeding, it's a no-brainer that I would breastfeed and Jon agrees. My "concern" I expressed was something trite along the lines of concerns about going back to work and having to break myself frequently to go pump. When the group got to Jon he introduced himself and said, "I don't have any concerns about breastfeeding, I'm all for it and I think formula is bad and I don't like it". I had to catch myself from laughing too hard at the adorable things my husband says, but feel very proud to have a well-educated husband with an open-mind.
As Jon would, "22 down, 18 to go!" :)
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