Oh Boy

Yesterday we had our second attempt ultrasound to make sure our BabyG is healthy and to try and see what's going on in his or her little pants.

We had the same Doctor as our last ultrasound because she was able to get so little information out of our stubborn bundle of joy that she wanted to make sure she knew where she left off and that she got everything she needed.

Jennie started the appointment by telling us she was razzed by a colleague for how little information she was able to get out of our first ultrasound and was even accused of being an "amateur". We knew we had to help redeem her for that!

Well did BabyG ever redeem itself! First off the immediate picture showed that our little bugger was no longer breech and had flipped into head down position like a good baby. Thank you! I won't lie, I know it's early but I was a little anxious about that. So thank you #1 to BabyG.

Then we saw a LOT of movement and the baby was much much more cooperative than the last time. Jennie was able to show us everything and to even watch the heart for a good long time to make sure everything was pumping and flowing properly.

Then she went further down to see what's going on downstairs. It's worth saying that prior to the appointment, in an attempt to not be disappointed again, I had decided that making sure baby was healthy was our #1 priority. Well I didn't really have to worry about that this time! We were down there checking out hips and feet and legs and lo and behold there was a penis. Clear as day. Even if we didn't want to find out the gender it was there and proud for all to see. Even Jennie laughed and said this was a totally different baby than the last appointment. He was so cooperative and gratuitous with the crotch shots. She even stated there was "penis everywhere" this time around.

To BabyG: Thank you for being so cooperative and funny. We love you already! While we would have been happy no matter what gender you decided to be, mom and dad are so happy to have a little boy coming into our world. Even your big brother Milo is excited to play with you! It brought tears to our eyes to know we were going to have a son. We love you so much. Stay safe and healthy and strong in there. We can't wait to meet you in a few short months. <3

Small Victories

At almost 23 weeks I've been feeling bigger and bigger every day. I've had 2 recent little victories that I had to share.

Yesterday I wore one of my favorite shift dresses because I knew I wasn't going to fit into it much longer. I looked super cute and got a ton of compliments but by the end of the day the dress was feeling tight and restricting and I wanted out of it. A bit sad as I went to put it on back in the closet I took a peek at the tag. Size small. Not maternity small. Normal people small. THAT'S RIGHT. I may have spiked my dress before putting it in the closet. No big deal.

Today I took a walk to the store to get ginger ale because my tummy wasn't feeling awesome and I realized it was cooler out than I thought it was. So I took a look down and went for it. I buttoned my cardigan. Again, size small and the damn thing still buttons. Again. Booyah!

Not to brag but I'm feeling pretty good about myself right now.

The Risks of Pregnant Facebooking

I knew it would happen. I knew it would happen and I let it happen. I was dumb and posted a request for advice on Facebook. And advice I got. Granted, I did get some great information and some helpful natural remedies for my acid reflux (ginger worked wonders, btw!), but I also got a lot of dumb comments about "limiting alcohol consumption" and even recommendations for where in NYC I could find certain products. Have some people completely missed the last 2 years of my life?

It also prompted unsolicited emails about asking my doctor before proceeding with any treatment. I know this comes from a place of love but honestly, I'm not dumb. I'm going to the midwife tomorrow and intend on asking before attempting anything more involved than ginger.

That being said, I think this will end up being my outlet for the remainder of the pregnancy and will help prevent unwanted criticism or advice. We'll see how well that works out...

No Rest for the Wicked

Last night found me sleepless. I was up from 3:45am to about 5 working through some acid reflux and some pregnancy worries.

This is what happens when I have pizza for dinner and read birthing books in bed. Please note only the book happened in bed. I did not eat pizza in bed. I may be pregnant but there's a line I draw.

Anyway, while reading the book, I started to get that anxiety that happens when the gears are clicking at the top of a roller coaster. That fear and excitement that something big is about to happen and you're already too committed to avoid it. You made your bed, now it's time to lay in it.

The birthing book got me thinking a lot about labor. I mean, I know that's what it's supposed to do but I think it made me look at labor as a reality and not just a far away thing that will happen but not right now. It is a far away(ish) thing that will happen but not right now, but its a very real thing that will happen and now I have to start planning for it. But how do you plan for something you've never experienced? Something that by all books and accounts is totally different for all women? And how do I tell my husband how to support me and be there for me during something like that?

As these thoughts and many more ran through my head last night BabyG was bumping away in my belly doing his or her best to always remind me what's really important. It doesn't matter how he or she gets here. It's that they do and that it's safe when they do.  BabyG will be here one way or another and once they're here it won't matter what method I used or even where I gave birth. It matters that he or she is healthy, happy and loved. I think I can do that. I was also just given the advice to listen to RKelly The World's Greatest during labor. I really think that could help. That song is damn inspiring.

Testing the old wives

As we prepare to make our second attempt at finding out BabyG's gender, I decided to test some old wives tales to try and figure it out on our own.

My sister gave me this book she read while she was pregnant, and I also consulted the Chinese Gender Chart.

First, the Chinese Gender Chart. So the gender chart uses the mothers age at conception and month to determine gender. Legend has it the chart is 90% accurate. The first time I did this I put in my age of conception at 30, but that's actually wrong! I was technically 29. So initially I thought this was a point for boy but now I'm revising to a point for girl.
Results: Boy Girl

Now onto the book. There are a lot of myths in this book. A lot of them contradict each other, but here goes.

Ring test. We held a ring over my belly. The rumor has it that if it spins in a circle it's a girl and if it swings back and forth, it's a boy. At first it- spun in a circle, then straight. I think my husband has shaky hands.
Results: Inconclusive

Hair - The old wives say that if your hair gets thinner during pregnancy you're having a girl but a full bodied mane means boy. I'd like to scientifically debunk this one because of prenatal vitamins and folic acid, but regardless. My hair has been pretty awesome lately.
Results: Boy

Leg Hair - Apparently if your leg hair grows faster than it did before your pregnancy, you're having a boy and if it's the same you're having a girl. I don't see much of a difference there so this point goes for pink.
Results: Girl

Legs - This one is also pretty easy to debunk. Apparently if your legs get "trunk-like" (no joke, that's totally the phrase the book uses. Offensive, right?) then you're having a boy, but if they stay thin, it's a girl. I've generally always had thin legs and my calves have gotten a little bigger, but I've also been spinning, which builds muscle so I will begrudgingly put my trunk legs in the boy category.

Results: Boy

Hands - As I sit here lotioning my hands for about the third time this morning I am met with this old wives tale about rough hands bringing you a rough and tumble baby boy and smooth silky hands bringing you a prim and proper lady. Going to have to chalk this one up to my future lumberjack.
Results: Boy

Nails - Again, another one debunked by folic acid, but faster nail growth means a boy and no change means girl. While my hands are rough, my nails are tallon-y. While I don't believe this one scientifically, another point for boys.
Results: Boy

Butt - Oy. Really? Apparently anyone with a giant ass will always have girls while  skinny bitches get to have boys. Well anyone who knows me knows baby got back. So apparently Trina and I will pull our fat asses over to the girl category. Wait, what did Amber Rose have? Oooooh I just looked it up! Bitch had a boy. Debunked. Anyway, this point goes for girl.
Results: Girl


Face - Again with making me feel awful about myself. Thanks a lot for this book! Ok so if your face gets rounder you're having a girl and if it stays the same, it's a boy. Well I've definitely noticed some jowls during downward dog so I'm going to have to close my eyes during yoga and put another point in the girl category.
Results: Girl

Sickness - So the old wives say that girl babies will make you sick where a boy waits until its born to upset you. Fun stuff, huh? Who writes these things? Anyway, I was super duper lucky and not sick at all so boys, this one is for you.
Results: Boy

Grandma - Ok so this one is pretty funny. If the maternal grandmother has colored hair, the baby will be a girl. If the maternal grandmother has grey hair then its time for a boy. The funny part is that when my sister used this book, she had "girl" marked off because my mom was still dying her hair blonde. Now that she's let herself go grey, I have to put this point in the boy category. This seems to have no actual reasoning behind it whatsoever by the way. This book is dumb...
Results: Boy

Citrus - If you crave citrus you're having a sugary sweet little girl. If you don't then you're going to have a boy... and scurvy. No scurvy for my little pirate. This buccaneer be a girl.
Results: Girl

Kicking - Ok so this is another one that I feel could change depending on how pregnant you are when you read this. If the baby kicks more at your ribs then it's a boy and if it kicks more at your abdomen, it's a girl. However, the one thing we were able to see in the ultrasound heard round the world is that BabyG is currently breech and regardless of what's packing downstairs, would be kicking me in the low stomach unless it's The One and I have to name it Neo because of its Matrix-like ninja moves. 

Results: The Red Pill (Girl)

More Kicking - So regardless of where little Neo is kicking me,  there's another legend that girls kick more on the left hand side and boys on the right. I've been feeling more of my kicks on the left so this is another one for girls.
Results: Girl


Final Results:

Boy: 6 points
Girl: 7 points

It was a close race but it looks like the girls just wanna have fun in my uterus and beyond. We'll see which team reigns supreme. Ok I know that's for Iron Chef and might be kind of gross. My baby is not the secret ingredient, I just love Iron Chef. Get over it.

Compliments to the chef

I just received some of the most amazing and totally needed compliments today! Seriously folks, if you see a pregnant lady, just compliment her. I promise it will make her day.

"You look adorable"
"You can't even tell from the back, which is just the best"

If you could hug words I would. <3

Adventures in Nesting

It goes without saying that I'm a very very lucky girl. Not only does my husband humor my crazy nesting instincts, but we were able to enlist the help of some very amazing friends to assist along the way.

Saturday afternoon I went to Home Depot and was greeted by a popcorn machine and about 30 other pregnant ladies. Apparently I'm not alone in this nesting nonsense...

About 4 gallons of paint and an hour later, I'm on my way back home to... well... nap. I was super tired. I did get some sanding done on the chair rail, which took way less time than I had anticipated, but I had begun to let myself believe I was actually going to get things started on my own. Silly pregnant lady...

Milo was super exhausted too...

So cut to Sunday and after a full loaf of challah french toast, 1lb of bacon, another lb of strawberries, 2 bags of chips, 1 package of hot dogs (for the first time I was actually kind of sad I couldn't have hot dogs), 2 packages of cupcakes (mini ones!), 10 full working hours (not even kidding you) and 4 total adults + 1 super patient MiniJ, we had a fully painted living room (completed by me and J) and the start of our new mudroom storage bench and organization system (completed by E and K).

It's amazing what a coat (or 3 in the case of my chair rail) will do for a room!

Here's a before and after of the living room.

I've also done my best to never photograph the heat register in our living room because it was always SUCH an eyesore. Seriously, when is off-white and a wood grain ever a good idea for a heat register? Even in the 80's when this was likely installed? Either way, 2 cans of high heat spray paint and voila! It's still not pretty but it is much less of an eyesore than before.

Next weekend will find K & J back at our place with the ever patient miniJ in tow for another (hopefully shorter and less taxing) work day of painting the nursery (I am confident J and I can knock this out in an hour or 2) and a slightly more taxing day of finishing the mudroom build and then hanging my new living room accessories for the boys. Although, I'm sure when we finish painting the nursery J and I will start tackling the wooden entertainment system with white paint and then the newly finished mudroom as well. I swear, this will be a pretty and bright house by the time BabyG comes to town.

All of the hip pain I'm having today, which caused me to lose sleep for the first time ever, is totally worth it. I'm so much happier with how our home looks and I cannot wait to finish things up. Luckily I'm kind of a genius (I mean, I do have 2 brains right now) and made a massage appointment for today and another for next Monday. Of all the weeks for me to have excruciating hip pain, this isn't a crappy one. I don't have a ton of meetings, I have a massage today, yoga on Tues and Thurs and a chiropractor appointment on Friday after our second attempt to find out what BabyG is packing downstairs. I think I'll be in good shape for our next work day! Let's hope I'm in better shape AFTER our next work day than I am right now... Milo too..

Either way. Bring it on nesting instincts!

Perspective

As I spend hours researching and starting to worry about finances and planning and getting the nursery set up, BabyG decided to remind me what's really important in all of this by performing some amazing acrobatics tonight. Most of which I could feel on the outside of my bump, which was really cool. Thanks again BabyG for keeping mom in check. I love you so much already.

Things that go bump in the night

Well, it happened. E got to feel the baby move! I honestly thought it would be much longer because it took me so long to feel it. I was kind of hoping to have a few more weeks of private mommy and baby time, but the look on his face when he felt it was 100% worth sharing these moments.

I love that I married a man who is so excited to be a daddy. It really makes me love him more every day.

The person I need to focus on loving more each day is myself. For some reason, this week, I've had a really hard time coming to terms with the fact that I'm 5 months pregnant and it's OK to be visibly pregnant. I still get a little weirded out when strangers comment or say something about me being pregnant. It's not a secret anymore. And it's ok. My baby app said I should have gained somewhere between 10-16lbs at this point in my pregnancy and I weighed myself yesterday at exactly 16lbs up from my start weight. While it's refreshing that I'm in the normal range, I've really always strived to be at the low end of it. I need to come to terms with the fact that it's ok. I'm not eating 2,000 calorie meals or entire pints of Ben and Jerry's. Ok so maybe partial pints but it's still not a full pint.

I don't think I realized how hard it would be to love my pregnant body. It's doing wonderful things right now and I should love it for what it's able to do and how I've been able to basically live my life almost uninterrupted while growing a human. That's amazing and I should be more thankful to my body for that. So thank you body. Thank you for being kind of awesome. I have boobs for the first time in my life, clothes fit me the way they should (granted, they're maternity clothes but whatever) and I'm able to maintain my fitness routine, daily job and personal life while making life. Pretty ridic. So while I may not be super hot or even the most fit pregnant woman in the world, my body is pretty damn awesome. Let's see if I can remember this...

Sadness

I just left one of the most relaxing hours of my day in Restorative Yoga to learn of the bombings at the Marathon in Boston. It is truly heart wrenching to me that I have been pregnant a mere 21 weeks and I've clenched my growing belly twice now. Once during the horribly tragic shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary in CT and now again as innocent people are dying as they attempt to accomplish such a major physical feat or to support others. It's truly a sad day.

Stay in there baby. It's safe in mama.

Fit Pregnancy

For some reason I woke up with a crap ton of energy on Sunday and decided I should just walk a boatload. In preparation, I stayed in active gear the whole day. Bathing be damned...

First thing in the morning we took Milo for a walk just shy of 3 miles. After coming home I decided to run some errands and grab a coffee with my sister. This led to a failed thrifting attempt at Goodwill. Believe me, it is NOT as fun as that song makes it sound.

Anyhoo, I came home to a slightly frazzled husband who had spent the better part of the day figuring out our finances and the best way to file our taxes next year to avoid the brutalities of this years' filings. After we spent the next hour reorganizing our home filing system (fun stuff, I know) I then demanded he go take a shower and relax for the rest of the evening.

Well seeing as energizer prego bunny was still in full speed I decided to catch up on calls to my parents while taking the dog for another walk just shy of 2 more miles. After experiencing absurdly horrifying leg cramps the past 2 days (like, the worst ever) I decided a banana snack and some serious stretching were in order. After a big stretch sesh with Milo, I got to making dinner then decided baking cookies was necessary. Seriously, where did this energy come from?! I've heard lore of these pregnancy energy surges but I didn't think they happened so soon. I figured they would hit when I'm painting the nursery and assembling furniture while cleaning the bathroom at the same time. Ok so maybe I already want to do all those things... sue me.

I was a bit worried I'd be sore or crampy today but I was pretty good! I think the stretching really helped. I did skip spin class this morning to get some work done early, but I'm really excited for my first restorative yoga class at 3pm today. Let's hope it's as amazing as it sounds...

Tonight bump and I are going for our first girls night. Pizza and mocktails with some lovely ladies sounds like the perfect end to a busy busy few days.

Baby Movement Test 2

There was a definite lull in baby movement from breakfast until now. But now that I've had lunch, baby is at it again. Moving and grooving.

Here's what I ate to get an idea of what the baby moved to. Side note: don't judge me. It's mid-April and sleeting and I couldn't leave the building so I got stuck with a very unhealthy lunch.

Pizza:
Again, not the best pizza but it was sustenance that didn't require me going outside in gross weather. One small slice of cheese pizza (whole wheat crust thankyouverymuch) and another small slice of grilled zucchini and mushroom pizza with a side of carrot sticks and a gluten free chocolate chip cookie.

Results: 30 minutes after finishing all lunch items there is a boatload of movement in my uterus apartment. Maybe Baby G just loves food. I mean, he or she IS a Goldfried after all...

Baby Movement Test 1

So after our cooperation issues on Wednesday, I decided to do some tests to find out what makes Baby G move so I can make sure I do those things before my next appointment.

Today was test day #1. Here's a recap of our test results:

Orange Juice:
Based on feedback from other moms, I was told to try drinking some orange juice to get the baby moving. Honestly, I don't drink a ton of OJ and I only just started feeling the baby move so I figured it was worth a try.

I had a small carton of Tropicana on my way in to work and didn't really feel anything right away. I'm sure it takes some time for the baby to get the sugar into their system, but I wasn't seeing that one as a real win.

Results: currently inconclusive

Coffee:
While thinking back on my morning Wednesday, I realized I missed my morning 1/2 cup of coffee and wondered if that had anything to do with the lack of movement downstairs. So I made sure I got some coffee this morning.

At the moment, little G is popping and locking EVERYWHERE! I'm not sure if it's the OJ or the coffee, but there is more popcorn popping down there than I've felt to date. Something is making this baby move! I may just need to have OJ and coffee before the next appointment to make sure this kid is stretched out and moving.

Results: looking positive!

The best laid plans...

I'm only 20 weeks pregnant and I'm already learning a lot from my baby. First lesson of the day was that life doesn't matter how much you plan. I had spent days planning a fun photo shoot with my sister as the photographer for my husband and I to announce the gender of our baby after our 20 week ultrasound. On top of that, we arranged to have bouquets of flowers delivered to each of our parents to let them know as well.

Well baby did not want to cooperate with my plans. The first ultrasound picture brought tears to my eyes. My baby was sucking its thumb in the fetal position. HOW CUTE!! Except, other than minor movements, baby would just not reposition so we could see the majority of its vitals and its gender.

While I should be eternally grateful that everything we saw was perfect. 10 fingers, 10 toes, 2 legs, 2 arms, functioning brain, 4 chamber heart, 2 kidneys, bladder, proper blood flow, strong spine and 1 stubborn thumb sucker. Of course, a little bit of the nervous nelly in me is concerned there's something wrong with the baby's legs and that's why it wouldn't move them. But I'm sure it's fine. Just cozy in the fetal position. The midwife even said "well this one clearly knows its a fetus because it just will not leave the fetal position." Pretty funny. Kind of.

The weight part was OK today. 2lbs less than the gym scale yesterday so that was nice. But I'm up 4lbs since the last appointment. Right where thy want you to be but I was kind of hoping to be a bit under. I know, I'm supposed to be gaining weight, but it's hard. I look at my growing belly and hear the comments of me "popping early" and there's only so long before you start to think "am I growing too fast?"

Another difficulty today was that the midwife did say it was a bit early for me to have the back pain I've been experiencing. I'm starting to get concerned that my previous back injury is going to effect my pregnancy and labor. I made an appointment to see a chiropractor the same day we find out the gender so hopefully both appointments will be a bit better than today.

The biggest silver lining here (besides knowing the baby looks healthy right now) is that I've finally started feeling the little stubborn nugget move. The ultrasound showed that I have an anterior placenta, which explains why I hadn't felt the baby move yet. Whew! What a relief.

Making Progress

Today was a much better day than the past few have offered. Although I was up from 3am-4:15am for no apparent reason other than an active mind and general tossing and turning, I awoke only slightly groggy for my usual 6:30am wakeup call pre-yoga class. I proceeded to really nail it in yoga today. Now, one thing you should know about me is that I have decided yoga is indeed competitive. Yup. I said it. I make sure I have a good vantage point near a mirror so I can stay in my postures while glancing around the class to size up the competition. In today's class I was totally the best. Now, granted, this is me saying this and not an actual professional, but when comparing my form against the teacher and everyone else in class I definitely seemed the closest to the teacher of anyone from my point of view. I'll take that as a win.

After feeling good about my yoga win, I got back to my desk and was a just in total beast mode to get things done in preparation for tomorrow's day off. I had a crazy long to do list and each task was just made my bitch in record time. It was glorious!

I even just felt in better spirits and started getting excited about the anatomy scan and 20 week check up tomorrow. Finally! I was waiting to be excited and all butterfly-y and here it is.

Speaking of butterflies. I was sitting at my desk after finishing my lunch and had a weird feeling of "something is moving in my stomach. oh. wait. that's my baby. Holy shit that's my baby." Apparently all it took was a spicy pad thai lunch and slight pressure from some demi panel pants to feel little bumperoni moving around in there. Again, finally!

Now we just count down the very few hours until we find out the gender of our little acrobat in there. All recent guesses point to girl, but that's only public opinion. Hopefully he or she isn't shy and will show us the goods tomorrow!!

Aches and Pains

I honestly never realized how lucky I was to have such an uneventful first trimester. Apparently it's rare to have a more difficult second trimester than your first. But honestly, this trimester has kind of stunk so far.

I've found myself grumpy, emotional, weepy at times and with more aches and pains than I know what to do with. Since Friday I've had huge knots in my left butt, tightness in my hips and for some reason, pain in the bony part right around my tailbone like I fell or someone punched me. What's with that?

That being said, I know I'm still VERY lucky in the grand scheme of pregnancy pains and setbacks and the fact that I have free fitness and massage facilities at my disposal at work. Spin class this morning definitely helped work out some of the kinks and hopefully my massage appointment and yoga class tomorrow will help work out some more. I almost skipped spin this morning because of the pain but I have to remind myself that being active is the only way to keep this from getting worse. I know I have to listen to my body, and I do, but if I only listened to my body and not my brain I would be at home on the couch in my pajamas every day eating Sriracha potato chips and that's not going to get me where I want to be. I mean, it sounds heavenly, but not really smart. 

Peaks and Valleys

Today I'm officially 20 weeks. Halfway. 50% done. I'm not sure why, but I'm not elated.

I had wanted to do something fun, outdoorsy and active to celebrate today and unfortunately the Vermont weather is not participating. Instead of the 48 and sunny originally forecast today it is 20 with 15MPH winds that make it feel like 10. TEN. It's April. I'm over this.

Sadly, I did not plan a back up "celebration" for today so now I'm stuck filing and organizing insurance forms, considering the financials of my maternity leave and well, being a bit grumpy. I don't want to be grumpy. Believe me. But after a disappointing Friday night and now this, I really need Wednesday to be amazing. I'm worried I'm putting too much pressure on the appointment and following photo shoot to lift my spirits. Setting unrealistic expectations has never gotten me anywhere positive. Now what can I do to break this funk?

I got a feeling...

As I lay on the couch not watching a gruesomely violent mobster movie my husband picked out I realized I haven't felt my baby move yet. I know they say first time mothers often don't know what to feel for and have often felt the sensation without being aware. But even based on what I've been reading, I don't think I've felt it.

I'm not sure why, maybe it was the horribly depressing movie on TV, but I started to worry something might be wrong. Why isn't my baby moving? Things have been so smooth so far that I'm almost waiting for something to happen. I know it's a terrible thought, but it was the first thing to pop in my mind.

I haven't felt bubbles or flutters or gas-like sensations, but I do think I feel my pulse in my stomach. I think that's just my nerves...

I'm not sure why I started feeling emotional and negative tonight. I was really happy with my outfit today and I felt really pretty. (Ok I know that sounds really superficial, so sue me) Maybe it's because I met with our HR benefits partner today and I came to the realization that if I want to take my full 12-week maternity leave I will have to forego pay for 6 full weeks. While I'm very lucky to have an employer that subsidizes 6 full weeks so I'm making 100% pay, I still have 6 more weeks unpaid leave. That stings. Of all the things I thought I had to worry about, I never thought unpaid leave was one of them. The way our society treats motherhood is just gross. The fact that I'm technically on 'disability' is embarrassing. Not to me, to our country. As a new mom I am not disabled. If anything, I'm more able than I have ever been in my life. I've made life, passed it through my body and am now caring for another individual for the first time in my life. What sounds disabled about that? Nothing to me.

As I lay here in bed with my loving husband beside me and my sweet pup fighting sleep at my feet, I can't help but feel absolutely blessed with the life I have been allowed to lead. I can only hope I'm allowed to lead this blessed life for many decades more. With or without 6 weeks of pay...

If you have nothing nice to say...

With all of the wonderful parts of pregnancy come the inevitable negatives. As many of you may know, I've been avoiding posting full body pregnancy photos on Facebook on purpose. Mostly because a dear friend of mine encountered so many unintentionally awful comments about her changing body and I saw how much it hurt her feelings. I just did not want to deal with that. Sadly, after getting a lot of crap from family that I was 'shutting them out' of my pregnancy by not posting pictures I gave in and posted one today. It took about one hour for someone to post a thoughtless and hurtful response.

While I know this person would never intentionally hurt me, they did. Period. I understand it was a joke. A bad joke, but a joke nonetheless. I'm not sure what people are thinking when they comment on a pregnant woman's weight, but I think they're likely not thinking at all.

Do these mothers remember being pregnant for the first time? Watching their bodies change in ways they've never known and the inevitable insecurities that can come with that? Apparently not. Well as a reminder from someone living it right now - stop. Think before you speak. Now is not the time to test your comedic chops and this is surely not the best audience for it. Say something nice or say nothing at all.