Whale Ho!

Posted by E-George on September 14, 2008

It was advised to me that it would be nice to have some documentation that showed the progression of my pregnancy through some means other than oratory and writings.  I thought I had been as successful as the chupacabra at evading photographic capture, but a dip into the household NAS’s photo archives has proved otherwise.  So, I present for your viewing amusement:  George grows a MiniSack.

This first image is when I was just wrapping up my first trimester (~3 months), and was just starting to feel like I could eat again without wanting to puke and/or kill myself in an effort to puke.  The picture was taken at my parent’s house for Easter dinner, and, if you look closely you’ll see that I’m wearing one of Matthew’s shirts.  At this point, it had become more comfortable to wear his clothes than mine, since mine were starting to fill out in all the wrong ways. Shortly after this picture I purchased my first (and only) pairs of maternity jeans.

This next image is at 4 months. We had taken the Tram to Sandia Peak with Spenser and Amy who were in town visiting for the weekend. Two important features of this experience: (1) This was my first time on the Tram, despite having lived in Albuquerque my entire life; and, (2) that was the last time my jacket was able to be worn AND zipped. After this weekend, the jacket was worn OR zipped, but neither at the same time when on my body.

5 months. You may wonder why there are so many of us staring at the motorcycle as if it were some alien space craft. The truth is, it was driven by the worlds smallest motorcycle rider and we were all taunting him. Not really. We were doing corporate portraits, which Matthew was taking, and he snagged this candid.

Time marches onward, and so did my girth. Here is at 7 months. We had gone to Colorado to visit Spenser and Amy for Independence Day weekend, and were hiking around various stops along Rocky Mountain National Park. At this point, mobility wasn’t an issue, but breathing was. As was the persisting requirement for bathroom access.

Finally, we have 9 and 1/2 months. I can be readily described as B³ (Boobs, butt, & baby). Mobility is definitely an issue these days, and I now have the privilege of being able to feel every twitch, every nudge, every hiccup, every sock to the bladder, and every shove of the rib cage all while watching the slow, outward progression of my navel. Soon, I’ll be the brunt of those stupid “Your belly button looks like one of those turkey timers! HARHARHAR!” jokes and because my arms are too short to do any harm I will be unable to strike the imbecile for their impudence. The reason my hair looks like that is because there was an incredible amount of wind in the park, and I had to find a pose that showed off the belly while staring into the sun and still keeping the hair out of my eyes, nose, and mouth. This is one chief reason why I’ll never be a supermodel. That, plus being rotund and stubby and generally unqualified.

All that’s left is the race to the finish. Our estimated due date is 30-September, and as some may know, Matthew and I are planning to have a home birth. It made the most sense to us, and was the most comfortable option of those I had available. Naturally, we have a contingency plan, should it be required, but we don’t anticipate needing to invoke it. We have an extremely well-qualified CNM (certified nurse midwife) who has been attending births since 1981, and her pragmatic personality and calm demeanor are exactly what I was wanting in a caregiver and birth attendant.  We are fully pursuing what we feel will give us the most rewarding birth experience possible.

Technically I’m on maternity leave now, although I still have a lot of work I have to wrap up. I’ll be going into the office a couple of more times next week, but hopefully I’ll be able to walk away and take a break before the critter makes its debut.

Filed Under: Lookit, Thank you, and GOOD NIGHT!, hur-hur - Comments: 4 Comments to Read



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