Pregnancy Update

I've been asked several times "Nish, why aren't you blogging about being pregnant?" That's a great question that I'm more than happy to answer.

Because the first part of pregnancy really, really sucked. No lie. I had a rough go at it the first three months. It was really discouraging to be honest. I puked, slept and puked my way through the first trimester, and I really didn't feel like writing about it. Do you blame me? I mean, if you really want to know how many times I threw up each week, I can let you know, but that was all there was to report. We got an ultrasound at week 10, which was super rad (our kid looked like Casper the friendly ghost. Yes, seriously), but beyond that, it was a really unfortunate experience that I hope not to relive with the next child. Here's to no morning sickness after the first one!

Now that I'm 18 weeks into this thing, there's some more excitement building and more of my belly showing. We find out the gender in two short weeks, so planning the baby's room can begin to get a little more serious and I can start buying a couple of things here and there. I haven't bought a single item yet. We inherited a baby bouncer and a Boppy pillow (both gender-neutral), so that's $100+ bucks we don't have to spend! But other than that, there isn't a trace of an upcoming birth anywhere in our house.

*Note: We'll know the baby's sex in 2 weeks. Once we know, feel free to pass along any items you aren't currently using that you'd like to get rid of for a while! We're all about hand-me-downs (clothes, toys, etc.), especially since the baby will grow out of it in .25 seconds.

I've moved into maternity jeans, though I can still get away with some of my other pants and I can still wear all of my skirts & shirts. Not bad for almost half way, if you ask me. Haven't really had cravings since the beginning, either. Aside from the morning sickness and fatigue, I've felt pretty normal. I've only gained a couple of pounds (which could be good or bad, we'll see at the next appointment), I'm sleeping great, and I've been keeping my emotions is pretty good check. Erik has said I'm not the crazy pregnant lady that he expected, and I've gotten several compliments along the lines of "Aside from your baby belly, I can't even tell you're pregnant!" Two points for the home team, please.

Overall, we're getting really excited. I think in a lot of ways, it's still very unreal to both of us, even though I'm capable of feeling the baby when it moves. People say that the woman feels like a mom the moment she becomes pregnant and the man feels like a dad the moment he sees his child for the first time. I'm thinking I might be an exception to the rule, at least at this point in the game. I really don't feel mom-ish, though I'm not sure there is such a thing. I still feel like me. I think that God is really teaching me what it means to be flexible and easy-going when it comes to motherhood, and forming me to be a pretty chill mom when the time comes. I've come to the realization that you can only plan for what you know... and at this point, I don't know much. I don't know the sex of the baby, I don't know how the rest of my pregnancy will go, I don't know what my child will be like when it's born. You can hope and pray and plan for the ideal, but there's always a chance you won't get it. At the very least, it's certainly not going to be what I expect... many a mother have already made that quite clear.

But, no matter what my child will be like or what kind of obstacles we might have to face, I'm getting really excited for the adventure of it all. I'm reading some great books recommended by some great ladies: "On Becoming Babywise" by Gary Ezzo, "Shepherding a Child's Heart" by Ted Tripp, and "Sacred Parenting" by Gary Thomas... to name a few. I'm learning a LOT. There are so many things I never even thought of when it comes to parenting, aside from the breastfeeding vs. bottle, attachment vs. schedule feeding, etc. debates. I'm learning about how parenting is used as a fantastic tool by the Lord that shapes us and molds us, and molds our marriages, too. It's all so messy and beautiful. While pregnancy is great and mysterious, I'm learning that it doesn't even hold a candle to the mystery of raising a kid. I'm thankful that I still have 22ish weeks to get more tools, resources, advice and books under my belt.

With that said, I'm actually not adverse to any and all advice you have! I am keenly aware that everyone has an opinion on everything when it comes to pregnancy and parenting. But, with the amount of kids that I've raised currently numbering zero, I am welcoming everything! I'm taking notes, planning on trying the options that sound like they best fit our child and our personalities. But if those first options that we liked end up not working out, I'm not going to be unwilling to try something new. So, if you have books that you've read, or advice that you've been given, or experiences that you think we'd benefit from... for the love of God, TELL US! Men, this includes you, too.

Aside from pregnancy & parenting news, we're in the full swing of our summer schedule. For those unaware, that means that Erik is out of town Thursday through Monday every week, so I see him on Tuesdays and Wednesdays after work. He has to be down south to run OTT. To answer your question, yes it sucks. No, it's not ideal, but yes, we're handling it okay. It's hard with me being pregnant, because its easy to let my emotions get the best of me, but we're doing the best with what we're given.

I'll try to blog a lot more. I feel like I'm processing a ton lately, so I'll be willing to share what I'm learning, and at the very least, maybe post a picture or two.