Hiroko from The Sweet Escape tagged me to...
If her warmth-craving soul can find something positive about this 10 degree weather, maybe I, too, I can overcome my pregnancy-induced irritability at this...pregnancy.No matter how much I tried to suppress it (and I tried desperately to come up with something else) I knew immediately as soon as I read the meme that I had to write about pregnancy. And I was so enjoying my misery...
So I will put on a brave face and remind myself that even though I feel frumpy and uncomfortable in maternity clothes at least there is a lot better selection in stores these days than during my first pregnancy nine years ago. Hooray for Old Navy Maternity and the invention of low-rise elastic-waist pants!
And when I'm struggling to wash dishes around my protruding belly, I'll remember how much I love my seamless solid-surface counter and kitchen sink at which it is actually slightly easier to wash dishes than the old one. And it's nice to have a husband who'll pitch in and wash dishes every once in awhile, too.
While I'm dragging my extra 40 pounds up another flight of stairs, I'll remember that I put this weight on for two reasons: first because I'll have a big, healthy baby at the end of it all and second, because it's so much fun to eat and eat and eat while I'm pregnant and enjoy my hearty appetite.
Example: I couldn't have eaten this lunch today if I weren't pregnant: 1) two battered fish tenders drenched in homemade tartar sauce (ok, I made it with light mayo but that was only because our jar of regular mayo tastes funny), 2) half an apple smothered in peanut butter (yum!), 3) a dill pickle spear because as I was reaching for number 4 I figured I should have some vegetables first (I know pickles don't count as nutritious vegetables, Mom, but it was green--I'm eating the rainbow here!), and 4) a bowl of vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce and peanuts because plain ice cream just doesn't do it for me these days. And then a couple of mini candy canes left from Christmas because they sounded good.
When I see the piles of laundry that didn't get folded, dirty floors that haven't been mopped, and the bathrooms that are starting to grow, um, I don't want to know what...I'll remember that absolutely delicious feeling of crawling into a cozy bed on a quiet afternoon when the boys are at school and Maggie actually takes a nap. Naps are so yummy--and so refreshing--when you're pregnant. And the best part? You don't have trouble falling asleep again at bedtime! Plus, when do you have a better excuse for sluffing housework than in your third trimester (except maybe when you bring that new baby home)?
When my back aches and my shoulders ache and my hips ache and my feet ache and my stretching belly feels like it's going to burst, I'll be glad that I have healthy, normal pregnancies and I don't have to deal with difficulties like diabetes, hypertension, or violent morning sickness. Many people don't know that Charlotte Bronte, author of Jane Eyre, died from her first pregnancy--she couldn't keep food or water down and the world was deprived early of a great literary mind.
When I realize that I'm terrorizing my poor children with my unpredictable mood swings and I find my patience fraying desperately, I'll count my blessings, four of them: four bright, healthy, happy children. It's a privilege to conceive, bear, and raise these precious souls because there are many women, good friends of mine, who have not been so blessed.
Yes, I'm a lucky pregnant woman. And I'm especially lucky to live in these modern times of many birth control options so if all my other silver linings fail me I can find comfort in the knowledge that this is my last pregnancy.
I pass the torch to Tori, Katharine, and Julie:
Write a new blog post about thinking differently.
State that your post is a part of the Think Different Challenge and include a link back to this post. Feel free to use the above banner (inspired by Seth Godin).
At the end of your post, go ahead and tag some fellow bloggers. Don't forget to let them know they have been tagged.
P.S. The grammar geek in me just has to point out that the purple cow graphic should read "Think Differently". I know...but it's bugging me.
10 comments:
Way to go, Elly! You are a champ! I didn't know that about Charlotte Bronte...
Oh Thanks so much! PMS and this too. Ha! See my blog. I still think you are the cutest- let's do lunch next week. :)
Elly, how in the world am I supposed to follow this? You're too good of a writer. Mine would be poop compared to yours. Maybe I should write about being the 2nd child... P.S. If I do decide to follow through with your tagging, I WILL change the purple cow graphic! How annoying! :)
Julie: you're feeling that mid-January cabin fever, too? Don't worry, lunch is in the works...
Tori: Thank you, but you would do great. I rewrote this thing about 5 times in between long breaks because I was so frustrated with it all. (In fact, just listing all the things I hate about being pregnant put me in one of those pregnant MOODS. Poor Brian couldn't understand why I was suddenly snarling at him.) It finally just came out this way. Maybe you should write about poop... Haha!
This cracked me up. Just last night I was complaining to Anthony about my pregnancy. Of course I am JUST at the beginning of my 2nd trimester and I was bemoaning the fact that STILL every night I feel so bloated and uncomfortable, that feeling normally goes away around 10 weeks for me. I think I've been more of a grump during this one than the last 2. Go figure.
Great post!
Just think, someday you won't even be having any more periods and pregnancy will be a dim memory. This, too, shall pass! Of course, there will always be other challenges...:)
I loved reading your blog!
Elly,
Wonderful post. I think I have learned more about being pregnant in this post than I ever knew before.
By the way, if one takes the topic above and considers the word "different" as a adjective modifying some unstated noun, then the phrase could be grammatically correct as an imperative. As in, "think (of something) big, think (of something) beautiful, think (of something) smart". Unusual, yes, but it works. I have often wondered when I have encountered the phrase "Think Different" before if this is not what the author intended.
Love,
JR
See?? That wasn't worse than a root canal was it? ;) I have to admit though, you look darling when you're pregnant - I just looked like the fat version of Monica from "Friends!"
I see your point, Dad. But I still think that in this case "different" should be an adverb with "-ly" because the challenge is not to think of something different (or something else) but to look at your problems differently. Here's the address of the original author of this meme:
http://www.iwillchangeyourlife.com/2007/10/29/the-think-different-challenge/#comment-4734
I agree with all your miseries about pregnancy. I have a hard time being excited when the baby kicks for the first time because I know it's only going to get harder and way more often. Good job looking on the bright side of things.
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