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Sunday, November 6, 2011

Pregnancy FAQ

So I keep getting emails/texts/Facebook comments wanting to know more about my pregnancy.

I've know I've been pretty vague as far as letting the public in on the intimate details of pregnant life.

I have reasons for this. The first and foremost being that I find pregnancy being something very intimate between me, my husband, this baby, and God.

The second being that it drives me nuts that people think that they are owed every detail of my pregnancy. I'm not talking about my due date or anything like that. I mean when I get questions like, "so how much bigger are your boobs now that you're pregnant?" from people who I barely even know.

You might think I'm terrible, but the other morning at the grocery store, a stranger came up and started feeling my belly and asking questions. I told her that I wasn't pregnant. She looked like she was going to cry of embarrassment. I look back now and wish I had just played along, but I've always had an indignant ornery side to me and coupled with hormonal surges, it's hard to control sometimes. I'm sure once I'm not pregnant anymore I'll look back and regret being so closed off to people, but for now it keeps me happy and sane.

Anyway, here are some answers to the frequently asked questions I get.

When is your due date?
Technically, it's Valentine's Day, but because this baby is measuring so big on the ultrasounds, that date will probably end up being the end of January.

Do you know what you're having?
Duh. A baby. Half Vulcan, of course.

No, seriously. Are you finding out the gender?
Yes, we know the gender of our baby. It's another one of those intimate things I mentioned. I'm not much of a feminist by any means, and I'm not not revealing the gender right now because I'm all about gender neutrality or any of that nonsense. Right now it's just close family members that know. Don't feel left out or offended, please. We'll let you know soon enough, promise. We're not weird like these people.

Have you picked out any names?
Yet again, one of those intimate things. I've always said that I would not go into labor with one sole name picked out. I really think God has a sense of humor, because He gave Paul and I both a very strong impression as to what this baby's name needs to be. So yes, we have one name picked out. That will not be public until baby's birth certificate is signed.

Are you going to breast feed?
Yes. Definitely. It's good for baby in 1,000,000^10 ways.

Are you going to use disposable or cloth diapers?
Cloth. At least for the first three months while baby is a newborn. The startup kit costs $200, which is about what we would spend on disposable diapers in a three month period anyway. If we hate it, we'll stop after three months. If we love it, we'll say "I-told-ya-so" to all of those negative Nancys and save about $3,000 over a two year period.

How are you feeling?
Nervous. I'm worried I won't know what to do when baby is crying. I've never even held a newborn except for my little sister, but that was around fifteen years ago. I feel so responsible for this little life that is coming into my own and I'm still sort of questioning Heavenly Father why he thought entrusting me with such an important person was a good idea. He knows better than I do about these kinds of things though. Physically, I am so uncomfortable. It is difficult to sleep, to stand for too long, to sit for too long, and to bend over. At least the morning sickness is gone. That was horrible.

Do you have a birth plan?
I've been asked this several times so I finally went and googled it. I know most women have specific birth plans, but I do not. A baby the size of a watermelon is coming out of me; I plan to try and survive.

How does Paul feel about you being pregnant?
At first he was extremely freaked out. As in, staring at me open-mouthed while I clung to the toilet in my first trimester. Now, he is adorably happy about it. He talks to and kisses my belly and it makes me surge with love for him. When we go shopping at baby stores, he drives the strollers around and makes Nascar noises. He claims that he will be baby's favorite. He is going to be such a sweet daddy.

Are you craving any specific foods?
Yes. Anything with loads of butter and sugar. I try to refrain as much as possible. I will reward myself occasionally when I get all of the food groups and their servings in per day. I am dying for Dr. Pepper and McDonald's french fries, but I have completely eliminated those (and all other fast food and caffeine products) from my diet. Some foods still throw me off, like fish and orange juice. I can't stomach even the smell of them.

Are you going to post any pictures of your ultrasounds?
I've already posted a few on my blog, but here is one more. Baby was looking over shoulder at the camera. Paul said, "that's my little alien" and the ultrasound technician laughed.


Anyway, I hope this helped satisfy those who were wondering more.

Have a lovely week!

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3 comments:

  1. 1) That's good you're going to breastfeed. It's healthy for both of you and helps you bond. But it's also good to invest in a pump for the difficult days when you first start nursing. And it's nice when you'd rather not flop your boob out in public! lol
    2) I think you're going to be a GREAT mommy! You'll know exactly what to do to help soothe your baby..plus baby will always have a reading buddy and good meals coming it's way.
    3) I was worried at first that I didn't have a birth plan, but my midwife said the more you plan the more likely less is going to go according to plan. So I didn't have one. Haha
    4) That's interesting you're doing cloth diapers. You're the first mom I know to try that. Let me know how that goes. You're brave! With Lydia's blowouts I wouldn't stand a chance lol
    PS: I love reading your blog! And I'm excited for you to be a mommy. I wish I was there for you the way you helped me those few months! Best of luck to you the last few months!

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  2. people are nosy. this didn't change for me after ellis was born, they want to know everything from hoe breastfeeding is going, if he is sleeping through the night yet, how you are doing emotionally, how your marriage is. and they will try to touch your baby. you are going to be a great mom. i know because of the way you write about your excitement for the baby and also about your husband. it's funny, i used to love babies, but the last 6 or 7 years, i really just didn't like other people's kids. and then i had ellis, i'm obsessed with him. i practically want to make out with him, he is so cute. it is amazing , how naturally everything comes once the little babe is here. plus when they are super little, there are so few things they need, it's fairly quick before you know what he/she will need when they cry.

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  3. You couldn't pay me to do cloth diapers. But my sister is doing it, and she's kept with it. You will probably need to buy some disposable diapers for when you go places. I dunno. That's how Sarah handles things like other people watching her baby, church, car rides...

    It is totally weird and not normal for anybody to ask you about the size of your boobs. I have been pregnant three times and nobody has asked me that once.

    If you want to shut people up about the, "so, how are you?" or "What's been the hardest thing so far?" you could talk about depression. Seriously. Nobody wants to talk about that. (Lucky you if that isn't an issue for you). It's even more awkward when you describe how awesome the meds are.

    Birth plans should be flexible, that's for sure. My birth plan has been a piece of paper that says, "I want an epidural. I want to avoid a c-section as far as is possible. I will be breastfeeding." You should probably make it very clear to your nurses in the hospital that you want to breastfeed. I think they're pretty good with that sort of thing in Utah, at least where I delivered.

    It's funny that Feb 14 is your due date. For most people, that's their date of conception.

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