My First Pregnancy

I have been wanting to post about my pregnancy for a long time! So now, almost three months from the day B was born, here is my attempt to remember a little something about this amazing experience.

Candice Holcomb Photography

1. My first semester was exhausting. I mean, "can't keep your eyes open for the life of you" exhausting!

2. Main blessing for the first trimester: I never once got sick. Can we say AMEN!

3. Favorite foods during pregnancy: fruit, spaghettios and fudge rounds. Real healthy, I know!

4. Had a few scares: first one was a spider bite. Second one was when I slipped and fell letting the dog out of the pen... I fell hard and fast. Had a few "eating" scares where I was worried that something I ate was going to hurt the baby. Lesson learned through all of these: if you are okay, than your baby is probably okay. But you can never be too cautious, NEVER!

5. I learned that nothing is stronger than a mother's instinct!

6. I also learned quickly that being pregnant is like wearing a sign on your stomach that reads, "Touch me, rub me, coo at me and ask a million questions about what is inside of me!" I definitely should have invested in a shirt that read the sex, name and due date of the baby!

7. In addition to the questions from strangers comes the advice. When I was pregnant it annoyed me (unless it came from someone I know.) Now, looking back, I realize those people were just being kind.

8. Maternity clothes are not that bad... and it's worth the money. You just don't want to go too overboard! (And if you have a mom like I do, it can actually be fun to shop for maternity clothes!) Next pregnancy I will invest in 3-4 QUALITY pairs of jeans, QUALITY!

9. One more thing about the advice... I constantly reminded myself that no woman is alike and no baby is alike, therefore no pregnancy or labor is alike.

10. Sister's and best friends that just had babies are a treasure... really.

11. Whenever I was worried because I had not felt the baby move a lot I would drink apple juice or really cold water. A good 2 minutes later there he is!

12. Gaining weight is supposed to happen during pregnancy, it's a good thing (in moderation!)

13. I got really tired of hearing people say, "Wow, you're 8 months along. You are TINY." Well, I just went to the doctor and found out that I have gained 25 pounds so tiny isn't quite the word I was thinking of, but thank you!

14. I am very glad I started to lay on my left side early on. And there is nothing like being able to sleep on your stomach again!!!

15. Apple juice, apple sauce, apples... bring it on. Meat was my enemy. Very uncharacteristic of me.

16. Pregnancy was great for my hair! It just seemed more manageable for some reason!

17. Naming the baby... probably the biggest challenge of our entire pregnancy. I was so glad to see the day when we were happy with our selection... and so were Elly, Ansley and my family! I drove them crazy playing the name game!

18. Pregnancy photos are important. I am so glad my sister is a photographer or I would not have had them done. I'm not good with that kind of stuff (but now that I'm a mom that is changing.) Candice made it happen, and you can tell I was procrastinating because we literally took them like 2 days before Brooks was born! But I am SO glad we did!

19. The nesting process... our house had never been so clean!

20. Labor: Oh so many fond memories!

One: I made them give me a bigger room. I had been dreaming of that bigger room for 10 months and I had to have it! I remember saying, "I really need a bigger room, I have a big family!"

Two: I bet I asked about 200 times through out the course of the day, "Is he okay? Is this normal?" John said he didn't have to ask any questions because I asked all of them plus more, over and over!

Three: I still laugh when I think about John and mom when the contractions were getting stronger. Apparently they were just talking and I said loudly, "Just quit looking at me, everyone is just looking at me." Mom said they weren't even talking to me!

Four: If the epidural isn't taking, that's not cool.

Five: When the epidural does take, that's amazing!

Six: I had been watching "Devil Wears Prada" and the doctor came in to break my water. I turned to John and I was like, "Umm... maybe we should turn that off." I don't know why but I just remember being embarassed that I was watching that movie!

Seven: Candice brought me a huge bag of candy and magazines. If you know me, you know why this was fabulous for me!

Eight: The doctor asked if I wanted to see the baby as he was crowning. I looked at John and said, "I think I want to. Do I want to see it?" He said, "You know how when we went to Arkansas and you thought you wanted to go duck hunting with me but then when I actually took you, you hated it and wanted to go home? It's kinda like that."

21. I was so busy the last two weeks before Brooks was born. And I was so worried I would not have time to get a pedicure before labor. But it all worked out!

22. I starting gaining weight around 18 weeks. Started really showing around that time too (makes sense!) But I started feeling him a bit earlier than that, like at 16 weeks - just little flutters.

23. John was so perfect through out the whole process. Especially during labor/delivery. He was SO calm and quiet, and that was probably the most helpful aspect of the entire day for me. Best of all, he had always promised me when we had a baby he would quit dipping. He had his last one the night B was born and hasn't done that since. I am so proud of him!!!

24. Gained 35 pounds exactly. I really did not want to go over 30 and I literally gained 5 pounds the last week of pregnancy. But at that point, I did not care, I was just glad he was healthy. After all, that was the ultimate goal!