It's been a long time. I am going to go ahead and blame my lack of blogging on the combo new baby + being pregnant. A killer combination I must say. It's been an adventure thus far.
I finally made is past the fatigue the had been stalking me daily. By about 2:30 each day my body would say... so, about that nap? Since I'm working full-time, naps aren't really a possibility. Thankfully, I have a rock star family to help me out. I have a husband who gets up with Lamaya once each night to feed her and I have parents who love to care for her and so they make up the majority of her daytime care. I'm awfully lucky and I am sure thankful.
I woke up this morning and said, "Okay, I'm feeling really pregnant now." When looking down I notice that I can no longer see my toes. My belly has officially outgrown my toe-view. A pretty big milestone!
I realize that I should be blogging because I have this rare opportunity to chronicle the joys and hardships of being pregnant and also having a new baby girl. I'd venture to say less than 1% of women will have this experience, primarily because it's not humanly possible just from a natural standpoint. The only way this scenario would present itself is in the event of adoption. Contrary to "popular" belief, it is NOT common for women who struggle with fertility to magically become pregnant once they adopt. This has been a bit of a touchy subject for me as of late. It's possible you have a friend, aunt or grandmother that this type of thing happened to, but the truth remains... between 3% - 10% of women who struggle with infertility ever become pregnant after adopting a child. Since I've brought it up, let me clear the air:
A while back I posted a Facebook update that mentioned my general frustration for the comment I seemed to hear 9 times out of 10 (no joke, I seriously heard this 3 times just this weekend) in reaction to the news of our double-blessing,"Oh wow! Doesn't that just always happen!? I have a friend that this happened to. So cool!" Now, I know everyone's intention is simply coming from a human need that always looks for a way to relate in a conversation. No one likes to respond to someone's good news that is also highly unusual with a..."Oh wow, that's crazy, I have no idea what that's like or what you could possibly be feeling right now, but good going on it!" It's who we are. We are human and, thus, relatable. So, I understand the immediate need to jump to a relatable circumstance. However, the way this translates to me is more like this: "Oh wow! How very ordinary this thing that has happened to you! You are JUST like everybody else who adopts and wants to also have biological children!"
So, you know, it's just about my least favorite sentiment to respond to. I still haven't figured out how to properly respond to that. But anyway...
Spring is around the corner and I honestly can't wait! I am anxious to get out into my miniature garden this year and plant some herbs and veggies. My rhubarb from last year is already rip, roaring and ready to go. Brand new leaves have already started growing and I'm excited to actually eat it this year.
I figure spring will be my last hurrah to do any kind of bending over. It has become increasingly more difficult. My shoe-tying days are numbered. Pretty soon I'll just go ahead and lay down if I want to try and pick something off the ground. Maybe I should invest in one of those garbage pickers that I see workers with on the side of the road. That way I can pick up clothes, shoes, grocery items and other things from the floor without having to test my body's new equilibrium with the "simple" task of bending over. I wonder what the weight limit is on those? Could I pick up Tucker? I'd be interested to find out.
Just holding Lamaya has become a bit more challenging. I have started holding her on my "hip" (not so much a hip these days, more like and orb in my hip region), which has been better than trying to hold her on my front. I remember thinking how great it would be once she had a little shelf to sit on, but as it turns out, it's not so great. It feels like I got the wind knocked out of me a few minutes prior every time I put pressure on my upper belly. Belly... such a weird word and yet, totally appropriate within the realm of pregnancy. I would never refer to my mid-section as my "belly" non-pregnant.
I'm certainly enjoying both mommyhood and pregnancy much more these days. The up-all-night + 1st trimester exhaustion combination was LOADS of fun, so, you know, I sure do miss that (not even a little bit), but this 2nd trimester + Lamaya sleeping much better and being full of personality is WAY more fun!
If I could describe Lamaya, I suppose I'd say she's a little more on the serious side. She is very inquisitive and seems to be in a constant state of taking it all in. She's generally happy, though. We can really get her giggling with some sounds and tickling. Her giggle is just about the best sound...nope, it is definitely the best sound I've ever heard. I love it. She is definitely the apple of my eye. I keep thinking I couldn't love her any more than I do now, but we all know how that goes. I look back at two weeks ago and think, yeah right. I love her so much more now than I did just yesterday! I actually understand what Rachel Green (Friends) means when she says she misses Emma while she's sleeping. And, no, I learned from Phoebe and I have never wakened my sleeping a baby just because I miss her. :)
Well, as you might expect, I need to use the bathroom. I've reached my 30-minute interval. This little munchkin inside likes to do the jig on my bladder to serve as my reminder that, ehem, you need to use the restroom. Thanks for the reminder munchkin. Dance away, just please don't dance on my spine or my ribs. I'd love to keep those in tact if at all possible. You'll have your hay-day with my body come July.
AA
