Yes! Alexander has been kicking! A lot! It is a funny feeling and I can't really describe it. Of course, NOTHING describes this feeling very well. It's kind of like popping pop corn in your belly. James has been able to feel him now and is loving every moment. A couple nights ago, I was tossing and turning, and accidentally woke up James. Alex was moving a lot and I placed his hand on my belly. Finally, after Alex decided to let Daddy know it was him, James gasps and asks "Was that a kick?" I got so excited! It's been weeks and I've felt so bad since James hasn't been able to share all of this with me. He's happy now that he's finally made some sort of contact. It's crazy though, Alex is only super active when I'm relaxing or getting ready to fall asleep. I guess he's starting early on making my life interesting. I'm now 23 weeks along, more than halfway through the pregnancy. 17 more weeks to go and I can hardly stand it!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Dear Alexander...
I may not be the best mother in the world, but I will try my hardest for you. I will give you everything I have as a mother, all the wisdom, guidance, happiness, love that a mother can give to her child. I will make mistakes, I'm human. I will ask you to forgive me, and I will hope you forget them. I will punish you when you do something wrong and I will NOT enjoy it. It will kill me to take away any joy and happiness from you, but it's all part of the learning process.
We'll learn together, Alexander. I don't have this parenting thing down. I don't know what I'm doing. I just know that I'll love you unconditionally. There is nothing you can do that will make me deny you as my son. I would gladly give you my life to make you happy. I will sacrifice everything that I have and that I am to give you everything you deserve. You don't know this, but you deserve the world. You deserve all the love in the world.
My wish for you is to grow up and to find your place in the world. To find out what God has intended for you to do. I pray that you find a woman that will complete you, a job that will fulfill you and a relationship with God that will be everlasting. You don't have to be a CEO to be successful. You've got all the opportunities in the world ahead of you, I just want you to take advantage of them. All I want is for you to be happy. And I will try my hardest, my life, my everything to help you get there. I love you, son. I will always love you. No matter what you do, no matter where you are, your mother will always love you.
With love,
Mom
Sunday, October 12, 2008
To non-pregnant people
Dear Non-Pregnant Person,
I hope you find these guidelines helpful in your interactions with pregnant women as failing to follow them may result in serious physical harm. ..
If you are thinking, surely she doesn't mean me- then you should probably read this twice.
1) The appropriate response to a couple telling you they are having ababy is "Congratulations!" with enthusiasm.
Any other response makes you an a$$
2) Through the wonders of science, we now know that babies are made ONLY by the mother and father- not grandparents. Unless the baby is in your uterus or you are the man that helped put it there, you may not ever use the phrase "my baby".
3) On the same note, unless you made the baby as defined in 2, the pregnancy, birth and raising of the child are not about you.You do not have input. No one wants to hear your opinion unless they ask for it. The same goes for the name of the baby.
4) The body of a pregnant women should be treated the same as any other body.You would not randomly touch someone's stomach if they were not pregnant, nor would you inquire into the condition of their uterus,cervix or how they plan to use their breasts.Pregnancy does not remove all traces of privacy from a woman.
5) Likewise, no women wants to hear comments on her weight- ever.A pregnant woman does not find it flattering that you think she is about is pop, must be having twins, looks swollen or has gained weight in her face.Telling her she looks too small only makes her worry that she is somehow starving her baby. Making such comments invite her to critique your physical appearance and you may not act offended.The only acceptable comment on appearance is "You look fabulous!".
6) By the time we are 20-30 years old, most of us have picked up on thefact that the summer is hot. We are hot every summer when we are not pregnant. We don't need you to point out that we will be miserably hot before the baby comes.
7) There is a reason that tickets to L&D are not yet sold on Ticketmaster. Childbirth is actually not a public event. It may soundcrazy, but some women really do not relish the idea of their mother, MIL or a host of other family members seeing their bare butt and genitals.Also, some people simply feel like the birth of their child is a private and emotional moment to be shared only by the parents.Like everything else in life, unless you receive an invitation, you are NOT invited.This includes doctor appointments, ultrasounds, labor,delivery, the hospital and the parents home.You do not decide if you will be there for the birth or if you will move in with the new parents to "help out".If your assistance is desired, rest assured that you willbe asked for it.
9) If you are asked to help after the birth, this means you should cleanup the house, help with cooking meals, and generally stay out of the way.Holding the baby more than the parents, interfering withbreastfeeding and sleeping schedules and making a woman who is still leaking fluid from multiple locations lift a finger in housework is not helping.
10) The only people entitled to time with the baby are the parents.Whether they choose to have you at the hospital for the birth or ask for you to wait three weeks to visit, appreciate that you are are being given the privilege of seeing their child.Complaining or showing disappointment only encourages the parents to include you less.I hope this helps- it sure makes us feel better.
Signed,
All Pregnant Women
Some thoughts..
Okay, I'm not meaning to sound judgmental, mad or anything. I think it's mainly my hormones that magnify anything that I may be feeling. I feel as though some people shouldn't really have the right to tell me what to do when they're not pregnant and when this isn't their baby. I won't go into specifics, but I will post a pregnancy letter that explains how I feel.
My brother in law told me that I read too much. I didn't think that was a bad thing. Yes, I read a lot. I like to read. I would read anything I can get my hands on. When I don't know something, I want to study it. I guess it comes from being in college for so long. I want to be informed, I want to know what's going on, I want to answer my own questions and concerns. I decided a long time ago that I wanted to understand what I was getting myself into when I got pregnant. Keep in mind, I said UNDERSTAND. By no means do I KNOW what is going on. They say every pregnancy is different and that every woman is different, so I just want to understand what's going on.
I already have a birth plan. I know what EXACTLY what I want when the birth happens. James and I have talked it about many times and we have our list of things that are GOING to happen when Alexander is born. I don't entirely trust the hospital system. I've heard so many bad things that's happened, but I like to prepare for the unexpected. I would like for us to be by in a hospital in case something is wrong, but that's my OCD getting in the way. I'm finding more and more women don't really know what kind of birth they want to experience. The common saying I've heard is "I just don't want an episiotomy." I'll post my birth plan on here after I've finalized it. I have a lot more reading to do about Vitiman K shots and eye drops. Anyway, I'm just expressing how I feel right now.
Halfway!
So on October 3rd, I was officially halfway through my pregnancy. I now have 131 days till I can expect this baby! Here's a gross picture of me, but I promise the future ones will be better!
