Rockin' The Bump

I love pregnancy. 
Love it!
I think it is perhaps one of the greatest parts of life that I've experienced.  
The miracle that it is.
A life growing inside of me.
Trying on a decent size rack for a change (but always happy to be done with it when it is over...I like my small boobs).  
Finding out that I'm pregnant,
Feeling my baby move for the first time,
Getting some curves,
Feeling like it is Christmas for 9/10 months and finally opening the main gift!  


I love it!  
Even with the constant urge to pee, the exhaustion, getting fat, my nose growing into the size of a small planet, swollen feet, cankles, mood swings, nauseousness...the list goes on..... Even with these things...
Pregnancy is a beautiful thing!


So when Marjorie from Taking It On shared her pregnancy photos tonight for this Rockin' The Bump link up, I knew how I was going to spend some of my Friday night.  I don't usually do "link ups" but I couldn't resist this one!  


I'm sure there won't be many people who will give a rip about these but this is fun for me...purely self absorbed here.  How many pictures of Amanda's belly can she post in one night?!  Ha!  I've got many.  Can't find any of my second pregnancy on this computer...that was the pregnancy that I got really soft and chubby.  All I wanted to do was sit on my bum and eat cookies.  My third pregnancy was the one that I actually got professional photos taken because I knew it would (should) be my last.  

First pregnancy at 37 weeks

Whose boobs are those??!  

We were just kids here!  

Okay, the following photos are purely to embarrass my husband.  Sorry honey.  This is when the photographer thought we should try one of those sappy poses where the husband looks up adoringly at the wife and we take ourselves too seriously.  My husband just COULDN'T do this!  We were laughing so hard!  Made for a great belly laugh and I love the photos because they capture this fun moment where we both got lost in our laughter.  

Random pregnant thoughts:

• Some of us like to rub our bellies when we are pregnant.  And then there are some that think this is the most annoying thing ever!
• What is up with people that just come up to you and touch your belly when you are prego?  I understand if you know me or ask first but random strangers sometimes think that it is okay.  What?! I don't come up and touch your belly.
• Never ask someone when they are due unless you know FOR SURE that they are prego! 
• Don't offer your advice about how to raise babies and everything they should do with their labor and pregnancy UNLESS YOU ARE ASKED!  Seriously.  This is so personal.  Don't tell a mother how they should put their child to sleep, whether they should or should not use a binky or bottle, etc.  Why do people do this??  
• Don't tell a pregnant mother what they will and will not still do when they have their baby!  Don't place your own life experiences and lesson on others and assume that they will fall into the same life patterns.  I couldn't stand it when people at school would tell me how I wouldn't want to read professional literature or take classes anymore once my child was born.  Or how I wouldn't camp or go back backing.  They just had to tell me that my adventurous and ambitious life would be over.  No thank you.  
• Don't place your own ideas and opinions about labor, breast feeding, etc. on others.  This is a personal thing!  
• DO Tell a pregnant woman how beautiful she is.

• DO ask before you touch a pregnant belly.
• DO offer your advice if they need it (and ask) and let your pregnant friends know that you are there for them.
• DO give the positives about motherhood and childbirth.  
• DO take your close friends a meal after their baby is born.  This helps a ton!
• DO understand that everyone is different with what kind of support they want.  Don't assume that your pregnant friends are like you.  They might NOT want visitors for awhile.  And this is okay!  

1. If you've been prego before, did you like it? Hate it?  Feel indifferent about it?
2. For those 4-5 men that read my blog (Mike, Slomohusky, Chris, Kovas..), what was it like for you to have a pregnant wife (or girlfriend...I don't know your story)?  Did your wife enjoy it?  Was she a happy prego?  
3. Future preggos...do you look forward to being pregnant?  What do you think you'll like/dislike the most.  
Amanda

Pregnancy

I have 3 kids. I am happy. I love our family with all the chaos included.  We are sleeping well again.  Our house is just big enough for all of us and we could probably get by with living here forever.  I'm running again and I don't have to share my body with anyone (if I don't want to).  No nursing, carrying a baby in my womb, no waking up in the night to pee 3 or 4 times (or more).  My husband and I are actually getting regular date nights and we are able to hang out and make plans to start traveling more often and going on family back packing trips.  We are able to do things that were just too much work for us with babies.  I'm even ready to race competitively again like I did before kids...actually like I have never done before.  I'm ready to push my body to limits I have never dreamed up.  If my hamstring cooperates with me (tonight it really kind of hurts), then I think I'm ready to see what this running body can do.  Really, life is great.  Wouldn't want to change a thing. 

Except.....

Why....

Do I...

Miss...

This..........?

Yes, that's right folks!  I'm one of those crazy women that LOVES being pregnant!  Of course, I love the end result too.  I love everything it means to have a big family.  Yes, kids are so much work!  They suck the life out of you.  But they also give so much life to you.  They make our life rich in so many ways.  I know that with 3 kids, I have more than most and I'm already getting the eye rolls from people who think people shouldn't have more than two.  I also know that we are probably done having kids.  There is just a big part of me (a crazy part) that would love to do it one more time!  I definitely feel like I have room in my heart for another child even if I don't get to be pregnant again. Perhaps we'll even adopt.  Will this feeling of wanting another eventually just go away? 

What about you moms out there....Did you like being pregnant?  Or were you one of those moms that would rather poke your eye out?  What were your favorite parts of pregnancy?
I'm going to steal Hungry Runner Girl's idea and answer my own questions.  Thanks Janae.  :)  I love the miracle of having a child grow inside of me.  I love feeling the kicks and the hiccups.  I love watching my belly grow and get HUGE!  I love the anticipation.  It is like a 9 month long Christmas and then I finally get the greatest gift on the planet! 

Did you run while you were pregnant? 
With my first and third child I ran up until about 5 or 6 months and then I just walked daily.  I could have continued running but I felt content without it.  My hormones were so different and just didn't need running to feel balanced like I do now.  With my second pregnancy I had a hard time running because she was sooo low and put too much pressure on my bladder.  However, I had marathon cookie eating sessions every night! 

How long did it take you to get back into running again after you had your baby?
With my first and second I was back to running right away.  Maybe even as soon as 3 weeks...at least jogging.  I also had Mastitis (breast infections) six times with both of them.  I finally wised up by my third and realized that running was part of the problem...I am just not one of those women that can run and nurse. Perhaps it has something to do with these really small boobs trying to hold enough milk to feed a child.  It is one or the other with me...running or nursing.  I can't have them both.


Would love to hear your stories and answers to these questions. 

Amanda