Waiting... Still waiting...

Pregnancy really is all about waiting. Seriously. In the beginning you are waiting for the right time. Waiting until you are ready for a baby. Then you wait to find out when you're pregnant. Then once you get a positive pregnancy test, there is more waiting.

Waiting to get your pregnancy confirmed by your doctor. Waiting to hear the heartbeat. Waiting to see if you'll make it out of the 1st Trimester. Waiting to tell people. Waiting to show. Waiting to buy maternity clothes. Waiting for it to be real.

Then you finally can tell the world and shout it out from the rooftops! You are 13-15 weeks along and things have started to be real. But now... Now, you are waiting for your monthly doctor's appointment to make sure you didn't imagine it all. Waiting to feel the baby move. Waiting to find out the gender. Waiting for the tests to make sure everything is OK.

I have to say, end of the 2nd Trimester really is the best. There is the least waiting! You know the gender. You know your baby is doing good. You can feel her kicking up a storm in there. You have started to show and are now sporting a cute little bump. You have finally started to wear your maternity clothes, and boy are they cute! And you have energy!

Then comes the end. And, once more, you are WAITING! Waiting for your appointments to be every other week, then weekly, waiting to hear how dilated you are. Waiting to fall asleep. Waiting for the crib to arrive. Waiting for baby to arrive. Waiting. Wondering. Is it cramps or gas? Will I know when labor starts? Will it happen today? Tomorrow? Will this backache ever go away? Will my ankles return? Will this belly ever turn into a real live cuddly baby?

I've read that labor itself involves even more waiting... Waiting for the contractions to get closer. Waiting to call the doctor. Waiting to go to the hospital. Waiting to progress. Waiting to dilate. Waiting to deliver... I guess the waiting all stops when they say to PUSH... Of course then you are waiting to see your baby! And waiting to hear if the baby is OK!

So anyway. Pull up a chair. And a pillow. And prepare for the waiting that is pregnancy.

Btw, still nothing on my front. But I am now not sleeping very well. Tossing all night. Had a backache all day Sunday. Menstrual-like cramps on and off. Noticed on Saturday that my ankles have disappeared. My bump has moved beyond the "cute" phase and into the OMG YOU ARE HUGE phase. I get alarmed panic-stricken looks when people ask "When are you due?" And I respond blankly: "Wednesday." Yup. This Wednesday. In three days.............

As you were. I'll just go back to waiting................

P.S. I just heard that SHOPPING could bring on labor. Might have to give that a try. You know, since I am home now and have nothing to do. And, seriously, shopping sounds a heck of a lot more fun than scrubbing floors, as some "nesting" women do!