Pregnant Bellies

Life, recently, has been quite joyous. Despite the heart-wrenching toast that made half the table cry at Thanksgiving at Grandma's house for the last time (thanks Dad!), our family, I think, is generally happy.

Many of you know that my husband and I don't want kids (yea, still!). However, I do not think it is wrong for me to enjoy other people's pregnancies. The first pregnant belly I ever touched was a friend of mine's, Robbie's. I just asked her one day at church, and I just thought it the most interesting thing ever.

Now, before your start thinking it, I won't just touch any stranger's pregnant belly. That, truly, is out of bounds.

None of my immediate family has ever been pregnant and in close proximity, until now! Rachel is about 6 months pregnant with a boy (Andrew William) and with a proud daddy, my brother, Thomas. I guess you could say she is the 2nd pregnant belly I have touched.

I would tend to say that Rachel and I are close. I mean, we ARE family and all, but she is my sister-in-law and wife to a brother whom I am very close to. Thus, by default, we are close. The neatest thing is that she invites me to touch her belly (I do give warning!) pretty much all the time.

I felt Andrew kick for the first time on Thanksgiving day. That was an experience. I mean, my hand moved and everything. He's got one heck of a kick!

I never really realized what pregnant tummies felt like until I touched one. I guess I assumed that they were squishy and jiggly. But that's really not the case at all! They are actually quite firm! It is the neatest feeling to touch a pregnant belly and know that there is a living little person in there.

I put my ear to her belly and couldn't hear anything. We even tried a stethoscope and really just heard a lot of liquid swishing and maybe a very faint pitter-patter. The little one only weighs a little over 2 pounds, so I suspect we'll hear more when he gets bigger.

She is due in late February and we are all excited! My Mom is still not sure she's ready, especially since she has no grandma budget yet. What grandma really has a budget anyways?

By the way, Andrew was thought to be Maria Grace for a full month until the last ultrasound. That's when the nurse admitted to a boo-boo when spotting Andrew's family jewels. I just know that my Grandma is just laughing from heaven about the boo-boo as she knew it before us!

Pregnant ladies really have a lot of say in life. If she wants to eat this, then we all go there. If she needs a nap or rest, then she does it. Nobody thinks twice if a pregnant lady has something to say or wants something. We just go with the flow. That is pretty much a given and Rachel has the right (she is so reasonable!)! It does take a lot of BTUs to bake in that oven (the womb!)!

I know what some of you are thinking. "Oh, she's talking her way into having a kid." No, in fact, I was pretty much scarred from wanting to have one when I ran my first EMS call. Really, enjoying and watching others go through a pregnancy is fulfilling enough of that call of nature!