Topic Archive: pregnancy

January 16, 2012

New Year’s Reminders

It’s the New Year and the traditional time to make resolutions. I’ll be honest, with the baby a month away, I’m not really looking to set steadfast goals. Would I like to write a book? Absolutely. Brush up on my French? Oui. Drop each and every pound of baby weight? I think that answer is pretty obvious. But, with this being my third baby, I know what lies ahead and I don’t want the pressure of caring for a newborn, while feeling guilty if I don’t have the energy to meet certain objectives. So, I’m not making resolutions this time around. Instead, I’m reminding myself of what I feel is important and desirable. And, so, my New Year’s reminders are as follows:

• Finally settle on a baby girl name.
• Have a natural birth with a healthy mom and baby.
• Spend at least the first year nursing without complaining about the time commitment.
• Read a lot, even if I’m tired from caring for a newborn.
• Run. And feel blessed to be able to do it again.
• Encourage a good sleep schedule for the baby, but don’t be beholden to it.
• Be more flexible. And I’m not talking about touching my toes (though that would be nice, too).

What about you? Did you set any resolutions or reminders?

December 18, 2011

The Fidgety Fetus

I just finished listening to PregTASTIC Episode 242: Epigenetics and the Science of Pregnancy. And I’m scared. What bothered me about the episode wasn’t the thought of how my choices and actions in pregnancy could affect the developing fetus. That can be frightening in and of itself. After all, that is a lot of pressure on the pregnant woman, making her feel as though she must exercise often, avoid eating too many hamburgers, keep the stress levels low, and so on. It could take mom guilt to a whole new level. But, what concerned me most was the discussion about how fidgety fetuses can turn out to be feisty kids.

My first two were fidgety enough in pregnancy and have turned out to have their fare share of feistiness. So, when I signed up for #3, it was with the unwritten understanding that this one would be that textbook baby that I’ve read about. I have heard that babies can be calm, relaxed, laid back and easy going. If in utero movement is any indicator, the existence of that textbook baby for our family will remain only in books. And I’m beginning to think those books are more of the fiction variety. (more…)

December 7, 2011

The Little Annoyances

When people ask me how I’m doing lately, their tone of voice tells me they are hoping for something dramatic like, “Oh, I’m just miserable! I have all sorts of strange cravings and symptoms and aches and pains!” But lately, now that morning sickness and fatigue are history, my reply has been “I’m doing great!” And it’s true. I feel the best I have since the pregnancy began. I’m 29 weeks as I write this, and although I’m now technically in the third trimester, I still feel like I’m in the honeymoon second trimester.

Nevermind the incurable heartburn. I can deal with it. And the sciatic pain and numbness? It could certainly be worse (and probably will be)! What about having to get up in the night to pee? It’s not so bad when I have snuggling back into my warm bed with my husband to look forward to each time. The stretch marks? They’re easy to hide. Pelvic pressure and shortness of breath? They’re merely reminders that my tiny son is getting bigger and his arrival closer! The excitement of the pregnancy totally overshadows the little annoyances at this point. (more…)

October 4, 2011

The Ultrasound

During my first two pregnancies, I viewed the ultrasound primarily as a way of finding out the baby’s gender. Sure, we also got to see the fuzzy little person growing inside. Plus we got to make sure he/she was growing and developing on schedule. But, that was all routine stuff, right? Just tell me if it’s a boy or girl! Then I had a cousin who during her second pregnancy last year got news she wasn’t anticipating during her “routine” ultrasound. She learned that her baby had multiple birth defects. Suddenly the simple scan was anything but routine.

That ultrasound led to a variety of tests and further scans. The baby was diagnosed with different birth defects, including a congenital heart defect. She was born a few months later at Riley Children’s Hospital, a few hours away from home. She came out fighting and made it through some surgeries, but a few short weeks into her life, she took her last breath. Before she ever got to go home. Before her mom got to spend hours holding her, rocking her, nursing her to sleep, smelling her little baby skin. (more…)

September 17, 2011

Birth Fear

This is pregnancy #3 for me. I should be an old pro by now, right? Perhaps that is true in certain regards, but in other ways, I’m not sure any woman will ever feel like a pro when it comes to birth. Even after labor and delivery twice before, and having two pretty ideal experiences, I still have a few fears. What’s the biggest one? That my luck has run out.

I know they say the third time is the charm, but with kids, anything goes. Before even becoming pregnant with this one, I wondered if I would be pressing my luck with another delivery. I’ve experienced two natural births that have been quite low on interventions. And I’m very pleased with that fact. Still I can’t help but wonder how this one will go. Will I be able to once again avoid the interventions I fear? Will I make it through this delivery without a c-section? (more…)