Pregnancy: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

*Disclaimer*
This post was almost ready to go up the night before I went to my doctor's office for a sonogram that ended up revealing we needed to induce! Needless to say, I never got to share it - so here it goes, a bit late but oh well. Soon, we promise, we'll share with you photos of our little man!

The Good
1. People are really nice to you.  From friends to strangers, you get complimented and congratulated everywhere you go. Whether you're dressed nice or not.  It's a nice boost to any day. My goodness, even if you leave feeling haggard, frumpy, or tired, hearing a few nice words, surprisingly mostly from strangers, makes you feel pretty darn good!  
2. Maternity jeans are really comfortable.  Why don't all pants come with these elastic bands?! Plus in the winter months, it adds a layer for warmth.  You can also get away with a belly band ( I got mine from Target), which lets you wear your regular jeans for a few more months.  You don't really need pregnancy clothes until you start to show more than just a little bit.  For me that was around 6-7 months. 
3. You forget something? Use the pregnancy brain card.  Get somewhere late? Use the pregnancy card. You're Hangry? Use the pregnancy card.  Say something really dumb? Pregnancy brain.  You're late in sending Thank You cards? Pregnancy card.
4. Getting packages in the mail constantly! Whether you ordered it or someone sent it, it's like Christmas every week. And it's not just fun for the Moms-to-be; Dad's have fun (and feel useful) putting together the furniture, car seat, stroller, etc.  Pete has his Dad bag (backpack) all ready, his baby carrier set. Gonna be a stylish dad.   
5. Nesting - rearranging, decluttering, redecorating, organizing - all of these things make you feel a sense of accomplishment.  And it's totally Pete's bag o' chips if you know what I mean. Every weekend there is a project or task to get done before baby arrives.   He cleverly cleared out a coat closet where we were able to hang the folded stroller so it's not just taking up room in the living room!

The Bad
1. You feel bloated all the time. But you're hungry so you have to eat more! And as baby grows, squishing your organs into your ribcage, you find that breathing becomes difficult.  So you have to learn to eat smaller portions, and eat every 30 minutes (it seems). It actually gets tiring.
2. You walk into a baby store and are over come with wanting everything, feel overwhelmed at all of the options and unsure if you made the right purchase.  Then you feel buyers remorse because there are so many reviews about everything, you're not sure if what you got is the right item for you and your baby.
3. If you're anything other than a side sleeper, you've lost your ability to sleep comfortably.  I, myself, and a stomach sleeper.  I tried some tricky moves like propping my tummy up by tucking my knees in a bit, but eventually event that became uncomfortable.  So you deal with flipping every so often from one side to the other - usually when the arm at the bottom falls asleep from the weight. Inability to sleep properly adds to the fatigue that naturally hits you from doing everyday work, chores, errands.  You get exhuasted way more easily!
4. Back pains from sitting too long - swollen feet from standing too long - headaches from forgetting to pack a snack or not having access to food immediately - getting irritable about 10 times faster than normal just in general. This is unpleasant for the mom-to-be and anyone nearby. *Sorry....Pregnancy card!!!
5. The clothes, they are getting tighter and tighter - even though it's fun shopping for new clothes, it doesn't make up for feeling uncomfortable allllllll the time.

The Ugly
1. You live in constant fear that you won't make it to the nearest bathroom or...gasp!...that there isn't a bathroom even remotely nearby.  I'm always in a slight panic that I won't make it to a restroom in time.  Whenever I arrive somewhere, I ask the first person I see the location of the bathrooms.  Also, something as little as a sneeze makes you go - it's a thing and it's called Snissing. Kind of embarrassing, mostly uncomfortable unless you're carrying spare undies.
2. I'm burping all the time! I can't control it at all.  Its not even related to just having had a meal or drink.  It happens from the moment I wake up to end of the night.  Poor Pete!
3. Putting on socks and shoes is ridiculously difficult.  I can't reach my feet because this bump gets in the way and it actually hurts if you try too hard.  It's also a bit of a work out and you come up gasping for air like you just ran down the block and back! You'd think it'd be as easy as just wearing slip ons, but in the dead of winter, when you're needing to put on thick socks and tie up your boots, this is an actual problem.
4. For some reason, I never thought I'd get that dark line down my stomach if I ever got pregnant, but no, it's there. Linea Negra is what it's called.  I don't like it! It's weird. Hoping that goes away fast after birth. 
5. Heartburn - I'd never had it in my life and so I didn't quite understand what it was like.  Unpleasant to say the least. Luckily, TUMS are on the okay list to take during pregnancy.  When I got a cold, however, all I could take was regular Advil and nothing else. Luckily I got over the head cold pretty quickly, but still, not being able to take something stronger.  In any case, thank goodness TUMS exist for heartburn because we like our spicy foods. Actually, it's not even just spicy or greasy foods that are a problem, anything can cause the heartburn since my stomach and other organs are now pushed up into my rib cage.