The Bad and The Good

A fellow mommy blogger left a comment on my recent post about being in the end days of my pregnancy that made me feel that I gave too negative an impression about my views of pregnancy...I didn't mean to if so! This particular pregnancy has been pretty tough but thinking through everything that has happened I realize that all of the tough things I've gone through have been pretty great at the same time. Let's see...

* I spent the first 4 months throwing up every day. The only way to spin this in a positive light is that it kept me from gaining any weight for the first half of my pregnancy and has left me in pretty good shape weight wise. This is especially great as I started out much heavier than I should have been which has probably been the cause of much of my discomfort (back problems mostly) during this pregnancy. Also, I really got a chance to learn a lot about suffering and offering up my suffering.
* At the 20 week ultrasound they said I had a possibility of placenta previa. I was told there was a possibility of modified activity level or bed rest. As much as I tried not to I worried about that for about 2 months until they re-checked me. But at the recheck everything was just fine - the placenta had moved up and I was in the clear. Additionally, this was the ultrasound where I truly and completely fell in love with this baby. His cheeks are so huge and I can't wait to kiss them!!
*My co teacher fell and broke her hip leaving me to run the show. I had a string of different helpers in the classroom leaving it impossible to create any feeling of consistency and the class was a little tough as a result. The upside on this one is a little tough to find though but I know that it was a good experience for me. I learned a lot and feel that one day I will be more prepared to take on a bigger role in teaching a class. Also, the one consistent teacher that we did have every Monday is becoming a good friend. She goes to my church and has signed up to do the Bible study with me on Fridays. I look forward to getting to know her even better!
*I had an incident where I thought I was having pre-eclampsia that scared me. It ended up being nothing more than a migraine.
*Then came the arm incident! I was in a sling for two and half weeks without use of my right arm. What is good about that? Well, it was the excuse that I needed to convince myself to slow down, take it easier and spend more cherished time with my two little daughters who are about to lose a lot of my attention for a few months! It showed me the face of Jesus through my fellow parishioners at church. And I got meals for a few weeks - not bad when you're 8 months pregnant! Cooking is the last thing I ever want to do these days!
*And then there was earlier this week when I was having cramping, contractions and nausea and was sure I was going in to early labor. I spent two frustrating days in the hospital. Frustrating because I was always waiting on one doctor or another to make some decision about my staying or going. If I had ever known what was going on at any given moment, it would have been a nice little break! I mean, I did get to spend two days in bed with all of my meals brought directly to me and no chores to do! There were some minor things that needed to be cleared up - unrelated to the pregnancy itself yet affecting it at the same time. I was not in labor and as has been the case all along, this baby is just fine!

All in all, I'd say God was in control of every situation and made good of it in some way. I love feeling the little one move around inside of me. It's especially fun right now since my stomach looks like a wave pool when he moves. I love how nice people are to pregnant women! I love seeing how excited the girls are about their brother. I love how Me Too thinks the only way she can talk to the baby is to lift up my shirt and talk with her mouth smashed up to my belly button. I love how attracted my dear husband is to me when I'm gigantic (Big Bear pronounces this word - jijantic and continually tells me just how jijantic my stomach is) even though I have no idea how this can be the case! And I love being a part of such a special part of God's plan for this world - bringing this little one into it and raising him to serve God in whatever way He is supposed to one day.