For nearly 31 weeks (or 7 months) pregnant, I have to admit
I’m feeling pretty good. This
pregnancy has been similar to my first: some nausea & vomiting in the first
trimester – but nothing debilitating, fatigue that often makes my bedtime match
up with Mariah’s, and my arch nemesis: heartburn. This time around is also very different though since I have
a toddler to keep me busy, so there isn’t much time to sit back and reflect on
the pregnancy itself. I still get
excited to feel the new baby kick or daydream about holding her. But I find the pregnancy is flying by
so fast this time, that I can barely keep track of the weeks. With Mariah, I prided myself in staying
active throughout pregnancy – doing prenatal yoga and aquafit until the last
few weeks. I was starting to feel
bad about my lack of exercise this time, when I realized that lifting a twenty
pound baby several times a day definitely counts for something. The other difference in this pregnancy
is that I’ve become a lot more lax and comfortable about what I choose to put
into my body. With Mariah, I
didn’t eat one coldcut sandwich, let alone raw sushi. But this time I’m going with the research that says pregnant
women can pretty much continue to eat anything, as long as it’s from a
reputable place. Last time I
tortured myself with handfuls of tums that would temporarily reduce my constant
heartburn. Whereas this time I’m
on a prescription dosage of antacids that have nearly eliminated the
problem.
My ever-expanding belly is finally starting to create some
aches and pains. I can barely lift
my legs high enough to put on pants each morning, and I sometimes wish there
were a mechanical crane near my bed that could help me roll at night. But overall, these complaints seem
pretty mild compared with the average preggo. I only need to use the bathroom about once a night and other
than that, I sleep pretty soundly.
I don’t seem to get any swelling in my ankles or legs. So for the most part, I feel like a
‘normal’ person, who just happens to pant when she goes up a flight of
stairs.
Mariah appears naively clueless about the concept of
pregnancy – understandable for her age.
She will occasionally kiss my belly on command, but usually slaps it
afterward in an early display of sibling rivalry. I had always imagined reading stories to my first child and
trying to prepare them for a new sibling, but since she’s so young, there’s not
much we can do except keep our fingers crossed that she doesn’t consider her
new sister to be a threat. Lucky
for me, the new baby is due at the start of Ivan’s summer holidays so we’ll
have plenty of transition time together as a family. My guess is that Mariah will show some pretty fierce
jealousy in the beginning, but that she’ll eventually be excited when she
learns the new baby can become her playmate…or guinea pig. (I say this from experience, since my
older sister somehow convinced me to bite into a wax candle when I was 3, when
we weren’t sure if it was candy).
Before I end this entry, I should update you on Mariah’s
latest antics and adventures. She
is becoming quite the comedian, who loves making people laugh, including
herself. Her best new ‘trick’ is
her angry face in which she can instantly turn her smile into a grumpy frown,
eyebrows furrowed and all – just long enough to crack you up before she starts
smirking herself. When asked ‘what
does mama say?’, she responds ‘uh-uh-uh’ while waving her little finger in the
air. We took a recent trip to Toronto
where she basked in the attention of family, and fell in love with a ‘doggy’ –
which she learned to scream in a high pitch as she chased, pulled tail, and
poked eyes. If I weren’t allergic,
I would consider getting one just to keep her entertained. With the weather improving, Mariah is
living up to Ivan’s expectation of being and outdoors girl. She has her own colorful set of garden
tools that she uses to ‘help’ him do whatever it is he does in the
backyard. Mariah will gladly drop
anything she’s doing to put on her shoes and head to the park. And one of her new favorite hobbies is coloring
with sidewalk chalk. In fact, she
may be a little Picasso since she can also sit and color for ages at the
miniature purple desk her daddy built for her. I just hope my next blog does not include a confession about
crayons on the walls!
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| Patiently awaiting the ultrasound to find out her sibling's gender |
