Friday, September 23, 2011

Pregnant Lady vs. Pregnant Mom


Did anyone watch the season premier of The Office last night? Pam is pregnant again! (Not a spoiler--I read it weeks ago in Entertainment Weekly and it's been all over Hollywood because Jenna Fischer is pregnant in real life.) Last night's show was super emotional for her--and I could relate because I totally had a day like that yesterday. Crying at every stupid thing! Couldn't stop laughing. Pregnant ladies are hilarious to watch.

Being a pregnant lady is hard. Your stomach and ankles swell, you have to pee all the time, and your boobs inflate to proportions that don’t seem humanly possible. Losing control over your growing body is hard to accept and throwing in a plethora of hormones can make for a pretty interesting nine months.

Being a pregnant mom is even harder.

Though this is my third pregnancy, I feel like it’s my first time being a pregnant mom. When I was pregnant with Little Sister, (was it really ten years ago?) Big Sis lived with her mom, so it was only The Hubster and me…and our psychotic cat. When I was pregnant with Little Brother, the girls were 8 and 14…so while I was still a mom, they were pretty self sufficient. I could sneak off for a nap when I needed to, or go cry in my room without someone watching.

This time around is different. I’ve never had to protect my growing belly from the kicking feet of a toddler who won’t sleep. I’ve never been woken up from one of those crazy pregnancy dreams by someone pulling my hair, yelling, “Mom! Mom!” Little Brother still gets up at night two or three times a week. There are diapers to change, more laundry to do, and a baby to entertain and keep out of trouble

Although the exasperating fatigue of early pregnancy is finally slipping away, I’m tired. Some will say that it’s because I’m older now, but there are moms much older than I am who are doing this, too. More will smirk and make snide comments about birth control…yes, I know how babies are made, and though this one (or any of them, for that matter) wasn’t planned, I still feel blessed. After so many years of heartache when we were trying, it was a thrill to be surprised with one more when we weren’t.

And even though I’m exhausted, I’m not sure I could be more excited to be a Pregnant Mom. Well…maybe if I’d gotten more than four hours of sleep last night.

4 comments:

Charlotte said...

Oh honey! I SO feel your pain. It's hard. I'm not going to lie. But it gets easier every day and by the time the baby is a year then you'll be glad you have them so close together because they'll be great friends!

Chelsea Leis said...

It's true that going through 9 months of pregnancy is never easy. However, the ecstasy you will feel the moment you see your new-born baby can make you forget all the struggles you've been through. Everything's worth it in the end. =)

Matt Skillen said...

That's the part I'm worried about! We are toying with the idea of throwing prevention out the window and letting what will be, be. But I am nervous about the pregnancy fatigue. I guess women have been having babies close together for years.....hope you get a few naps here and there!

BEK said...

Matt Skillen was actually me- Bek Skillen- darn automatic sign in!