That said, completely OPPOSITE of balls - turns out my baby is a girl! WAHOO!
We would have been thrilled either way, but just knowing is amazing. I can now refer to my baby as "she"or "her" instead of "it." I never ever thought that I would be a person who would find out the sex - I ALWAYS wanted to be Team Green, but now that I know, I don't regret it for a second. As someone who still struggles on the regular with "infertility brain," I feel like for me, this has helped me bond with my baby.
Bonding aside though, this still doesn't feel real. I'm almost 19 weeks pregnant, which means I'm almost halfway to the finish line, but I don't feel even remotely prepared. Sometimes I think my kid will be sleeping in a dresser drawer with paper towels taped around her butt unless I start getting my OWN butt in gear! It's all so overwhelming, I am just not even sure where to start. Between figuring out childcare, insurance, maternity leave benefits, moving into a new apartment, keeping up with Dr. appointments, and getting all of the practical necessities in place (like a crib), I feel like I can barely keep my head above water!
In addition to that, I need to share some cold, hard truths about pregnancy. Let my preface this by saying that I have had a REALLY easy pregnancy. Not even one upchucking incident, generally feeling pretty good, no complications, and an overall healthy baby. This is NOT a series of complaints - just a series, of "huh, so that's what happens?"commentary.
1) My boobs have stretch marks. Pinkish, angry looking stretch marks. Yay! My boobs are bigger! Boo! They look like they went through a blender.
2) I constantly look like I am nipping out. Despite wearing multiple layers of fabric over the girls, for some reason my nipples always seem to be popping out to say hello.
3) Farts happen. There's no real way to handle that one gracefully.
4) Everything is dry. Yep. EVERYTHING. I have been moisturizing parts that I don't even want to admit to moisturizing.
5) Walking up stairs feels almost equivalent to running a half marathon.(Not that I have actually run a half marathon. But in my mind's eye, it's the same thing.)
6) Sleep, while sporadic and unreliable, requires no less than 6 pillows shoved in various angles under and around almost every limb and body part.
7) Nesting is a real thing and it will make you crazy.
I've learned SO much in the last 18-ish weeks and I still feel like the learning curve is steep. Wish me luck!
