The Perks of Being Pregnant

I’m going to just go ahead and say it – I like being pregnant. It agrees with me. I don’t get too sick, or too tired, or too moody. If you’re reading this and you’re a miserable pregnant person – I’m sorry. Don’t hate me.

To elaborate further, there are certain things about being pregnant that I love… parts I wish I could take with me post-pregnancy. Here goes…

The ability to rock a fat stomach. Oh yes, when you’re pregnant, the pooch becomes an accessory! You can flaunt it, accentuate it, dress it up and certainly don’t have to worry about covering it up. Since after my last two pregnancies, I spent a lot of time trying to hide the mommy-belly that followed, it has been liberating (to say the least) to wear tight clothes proudly!

The desire to want to clean. all. the. time.  The theoretical me is really organized and keeps a really clean house. The real me sucks at these two things. The pregnant me, however, has found some deep, deep motivation to constantly pick up and put (and keep) my house in order. My husband wishes this part would stay around too. I can’t say I blame him.

The maternity pants. When I was pregnant the first time, I remember clearly being in a Motherhood Maternity dressing room, trying on maternity clothes and being a little depressed at the thought of wearing them. And also depressed at the thought that I would get big enough to fit in them. Wow – what a wake up call. I put it off as long as I could, but when I finally retired the rubber band that was holding the buttons on my normal pants together and surrendered to the maternity pants, I could not believe I had waited so long.  The maternity pants I’m referring to are the over-the-belly variety. Seriously one of the best articles of clothing ever invented. You spend most of your life trying to fit your stomach in pants that are too tight, and then all of the sudden you get some with an elastic stomach and it is just awesome. This will be one of the saddest things to retire after this baby is born… if I retire them. It may be handy to keep a pair for Thanksgiving. Hmmmm.

The boobs. Really, do I need to explain this one any further? Just awesome!

Eating for two. I would consider myself a pretty healthy eater (most of the time). But the quantity of food I consume is just stupid some times. My co-workers accuse me of the hollow-leg syndrome. Seriously, I don’t know where I put it. That’s the non-pregnant me. The pregnant me does the same, but in an unashamed and entitled sort of way. Don’t look at me crazy for eating my entire 2-pound Chipotle bowl – I’m eating for two!

Getting the say in the food selection (and eating whenever I want). There is something about being pregnant that people automatically defer to you for what to eat. “Where do you want to eat?” I ask. “Wherever you want, you’re the pregnant one,” they say. “Do you mind if I reschedule our meeting, it’s right in the middle of my lunch,” I say. “Sure thing! Would hate to keep the pregnant lady hungry!” they reply. Why, oh why, can’t the world appreciate the non-pregnant me’s need for food too?? Even if it’s fleeting, I will spend the next 5 months relishing in this one for sure!

I think there are more… but one of the downsides to pregnancy is “pregnancy brain” (a for-real condition) which has caused me to forget the rest of my list. Oh, and this condition also causes typos. So any typo you see on my blog is directly attributable to this – even the posts prior to this pregnancy because pregnancy brain lasts until your kids are at least in elementary school, so it was probably left over from one of my prior pregnancies. But I digress.

One could say I’m in the naive stage – out of the first trimester funk – not too uncomfortable yet – sleeping most the night. And they are probably right. This, my friends is the blissful part of pregnancy. And sure, I miss sushi and beer. A lot. But since this is the last go-round for this pregnant gal, I am focusing on the perks and trying to appreciate them more than I did before. So bring it on heartburn and stretch marks and swollen ankles! Me and my big-boobed hungry self in the stretchy maternity pants – we’ve got this!