Everything’s Funnier These Days

“The pregnant body produces a hormone called relaxin. This is what loosens the pelvis making it mobile to help your baby be born. However, this can also cause waddling! I also refer to this as “feeling like a Barbie with her legs pulled off.” This is only temporary, and while it may be a pain now, come birth time you’ll be rather grateful!” – Pregnancy Week by Week

It’s little nuggets of information like this that help me feel less embarrassed about my body during pregnancy. I laugh about it rather than let it stress me out- usually (I am hormonal sometimes and can cry about anything on a bad day).

I am no longer offended that a friend told me that I waddle. There’s a reason for it. And the peeing-a-million-times-a-day-and-night, that’s because the amniotic fluid changes out 8 times a day. So it’s good to be drinking lots and peeing lots. I’m peeing for both me and the baby.

I have to admit that I still don’t like being called “bigger” or “fat”. I learned that a better way to say it is “Look at how baby has grown!”

One thing that has shocked me is just how funny everything has become. I get the giggles pretty badly. It kind of hurts my neck when I laugh too hard and long, so David tries to calm me down, but then I can feel his body shaking with silent laughter and it sets me off again.

One particular incident comes to mind regarding laughing uncontrollably (besides watching UHF last weekend!). It was the day I had to drink Glucola (I think it’s funny that they try to make the glucose drink enticing by using the word “cola”) and get my blood tested for gestational diabetes. Since I’m hypoglycemic, I knew it would be a rough day, and sure enough, my blood sugar was sinking pretty low by the time I saw the midwife. She kept the visit very short and let David take me home, making me drinking lots of water to try and dilute the awful stuff in my system. I needed protein badly, so I peeled a hard boiled egg and stuck it in the microwave since it wasn’t completely cooked through.

“BANG!”

I saw the microwave jump off the counter with the explosion. And with that, I exploded into a violent fit of laughter. That triggered an urgent need to pee, so I sat on the toilet, still laughing, peeing, and moaning “I feel like I’m gonna throw up,” and laughing some more until tears were streaming down my face. I ended up crying because I felt sick, but little fits of giggles would punctuate throughout my heaving tears. I went to bed and slept for a good three hours and woke up feeling a bit more normal again (thank God). And no, I don’t have gestational diabetes.

Back to not being apologetic for pregnancy-related things, I was feeling a little sheepish about wanting to get everything ready for the baby now, basically what everyone refers to as “nesting.” But my friend Rachel understood and encouraged me to follow my instincts and do what I wanted to do now.

She said she would get the desire to do this or that while she was pregnant with Naomi, but put it off until later. Then Naomi came 3 weeks early and Rachel didn’t get to do those things. So, instead of being embarrassed about my nesting instincts, I boldly plow forward with getting things ready. It eases my mind for if the baby comes early.

My friend, Tiffany, also commented on nesting on an e-mail today:

“Ahh, the nesting. My parents’ had a neighbor that whenever she got pregnant she moved the furnature in their house almost daily. It was kinda funny to think of her husband coming home a bit later in the dark and about kill himself on a couch that was across the room when he left for work!”

Hee hee – I don’t have room in my little apartment to move furniture around! I guess David’s lucky.