Women carry their babies for basically a year. The average human gestation time is 40 weeks and the majority of first time pregnancies do not deliver until 41 and 1/2 weeks. That's essentially 10 weeks shy of a year (52 weeks). I've also learned some theories about the "4th Trimester" that the first 3 months of a newborn's life can be viewed as an extension of the gestation process based largely on brain development and the degree to which human newborns depend on the mother to survive as compared to other warm-blooded mammals.
I am 24 weeks pregnant right now. I am in my 6th month. I became pregnant in January 2011 and will (Lord Willing) deliver my baby in October 2011. Feels like a year to me, so I am rounding up.
I have had a relatively easy pregnancy. I didn't get very sick, I just had massive food aversions - especially to chicken. My only complaint is not sleeping well, which I am often told "get used to it" which doesn't really make me feel better, only points out the harsh realities of the inevitable.
All in all, I have had a good experience being pregnant. I am not one of those who LOVES being pregnant, but I have also not had my head in a toilet for the last 24 weeks so I am counting my blessings. I also enjoy feeling the kid move around. Its really amazing and fun, until she starts having a dance party on my bladder in the middle of the night.
My only regret is that I didn't try to lose more weight before getting pregnant. Another myth I believed, that since I was "trying" to get pregnant, it didn't really matter what I ate and if I was over-weight before getting pregnant because I was just going to get fat with the baby. What I didn't realize then was how important nutrition is to the baby's development, that pregnancy isn't a license to eat whatever you want with abandon without significant consequence now and after birth, and that I would look like I was giving birth to triplets at the half way mark.
We have been busy getting ready to bring baby home to our 760 square foot one bedroom apartment. This has taken some creativity and strategic thinking on our part. But it has been so much fun to do together. Before I was pregnant, a part of me was sad that I would not get to decorate a nursery. I know how superficial that sounds, I am just being honest. I obviously got over it. But what I didn't know then was how much FUN it would be to redecorate our entire apartment! We have spent the last year cleaning out, downsizing furniture, selling things on Craigslist, and buying new, smaller furniture to make room for things like cribs, high chairs and play-pens. Once we have the entire re-do of the place complete, I will do a blog just on the transformation of our apartment. We have enjoyed doing all these little projects together and have spaced them out over the course of the year so we are not stressed out about getting things ready at the last minute.
The other myth I told myself was that I would still be able to do all the same things that I normally do. It has been challenging to keep up my normal pace of activities with a baby on board. I was tasked with a project at work that has had me working alot more hours this month and this has exhausted me to a degree I didn't think was possible. Again, the moms of the world laugh at my exhaustion and say "wait for it... wait for it... you know nothing of exhaustion grasshopper!" I am not complaining about the being tired all. the. time. part, I am just saying I was/am really surprised at just how tired I am. So tired that its been nearly two months since my last blog :)
There is much more I would like to write about concerning the last several months, but I will save those thoughts for another post. I just wanted to get some of these myths off my chest and confess my own ignorance regarding the miracle of gestation. I am learning so much, and I am SO thankful for the 41 and 1/2 weeks the good Lord has given me to get my own heart and mind ready for what is coming.
