Eight Months

Wow, I can't believe we're here already! She will be here in no time...I just hope we are prepared. As I am getting closer to the end of this adventure, I started to reflect back on the milestones and the things I've learned...

At 12 weeks I started showing (well, at least to me...I knew that wasn't all just holiday eating that was forcing me into larger and more elasticized pants!).

At 22 weeks I started feeling her kicking inside me. What a weird sensation. It definitely feels just like there's a small animal squirming around inside you.

Now that I'm 32 weeks, I just can't believe I'm already at this point. It's been a really great experience (true, I have been lucky not to have any real complications or sickness or anything). Now we're just eager for the next step. I mean, I think we are. Yes...yes, we are.

I guess the biggest thing about being pregnant (besides your uterus, natch) are all of the sacrifices you make. This cannot be taken too seriously...you have no idea! Of course there is giving up alcohol and any other bad-for-you things that you do. But you also lose your waist and your mind. You forego an intimate knowledge of your feet or the condition of your pedicure. You also must graciously alter your diet for the benefit of the baby. I selflessly increased my calcium intake just for her. This involved many bowls of queso at Los Tres and countless quarts of ice cream. All for you, baby. Just today, I have loaded myself up on antioxidants by helping myself to the blueberry coffee cake that a coworker brought in. Just be prepared all you potential moms out there.

You should also be warned about all of the pregnancy literature and theories out there. I would definitely advise taking in this information with a mound of salt (except that it will inevitably make your feet and ankles swell). The raising of babies is such a careful art that it changes constantly. What was best for baby yesterday is now surely the thing that could lead to their harm today. My best example of this is when Troy and I attended our Baby Care Basics course last week. We were told that swaddling is bad and can lead to SIDs and our teacher refused to show us how to properly swaddle our fake baby. When I later posted this on Facebook, it caused a little bit of a ruckus. You don't have to tell me, people. I know lots of babies who loved being swaddled and made it out okay. Just know as a new or soon-to-be parent that people have been having babies long before sleep positioners, swaddling, pacis, bumpers and all that other stuff. Babies are pretty resilient and I hope ours will be (and that I will be able to accept this fact once she's out). I'm not sure if this is advice to my readers or just a pep talk to myself but I hope we all feel better now.

I think it's time for more coffee cake! Baby needs some blueberries.