Friday Top 5 - Things We're Looking Forward to After the Baby is Born

Kathryn:

The top 5 things I'm looking forward to after the baby is born are always the 5 most anxiety-causing parts of pregnancy for me. I hate the unknown, or being unprepared for things, and everyone who has had a baby before will tell you that nothing can prepare you for how life will change when your first child is born. So as excited as I am for all the changes that are coming, I am feeling a little anxious about all of the unknown things. Here’s my list of the top 5 things I’m looking forward to after the baby is born:

1. Being a mother – and everything that comes along with it. Just seeing, holding, caring for and loving that little baby and knowing that he or she is mine, that he or she is a product of the love between me and my husband, is a feeling I can’t wait to experience.

2. Finding out if it’s a boy or girl and seeing what he / she looks like. I have spent countless hours lying in bed dreaming of this little baby. I imagine naming him or her, dressing him or her and, more than anything else, that moment when the doctor says, “It’s a ___!”

3. Being done labour – I’m pretty scared for labour. Not only the pain that is inevitable, but all the unknown that goes along with it. Will the baby be healthy? Will there be complication? Will I have a short or long labour? Can I make it without getting an epidural? I’m really looking forward to all that being done and over-with!

4. Sleeping on my back / rolling over in bed – I know I can’t realistically say I’m looking forward to getting a good night’s sleep, because everyone knows that wont happen, but I am looking forward to being comfortable in bed. I'm a back-sleeper, so I’m excited to sleep on my back again. But I'm now finding it difficult to even roll from one side to the other now that my stomach muscles are less-than-functional.

5. Breastfeeding – Another brand new experience for me as a first time mom. I'm really looking forward to that special bonding time between baby and me, even if it can often be difficult at first. I'm determined to push through the beginning stages and to do what’s best for me and for my baby!

Natasha:

#1 - Finding out if it's a boy or a girl. The suspense is killing me now!!! On a visit to labor and delivery a few weeks ago, the basinnette in my room had a pink and a blue knit hat in it, which is what they do when they don't know which gender you're having. It made it so much more real to me that in only a few short weeks, a nurse is going to put one of those little hats on my baby! Which one will it be??

#2 - Introducing the baby to the kids. They are all so excited about this baby, and have been very involved in my pregnancy right from the start. I remember always begging my parents to have another baby when I was a kid (what kid doesn't do that??) so it's fun for me to watch especially the older ones be excited for a new baby. 

#3 - Being able to take a deep breath. I can't believe I still have eight more weeks of growing to do! As this baby gets bigger the space inside my belly gets more and more cramped. I often have trouble breathing and finding a comfortable position to sit in, and as much as I love feeling the baby move around inside of me I have to say that I really can't wait to be able to sit and watch TV with my husband, and be comfortable.

#4 - The late nights. This one surprises me, but I have this stupid, romantic feeling whenever I think about being up in the night with this baby. I remember it so fondly with my last little one, and I've done it enough times now to know that it passes quickly, and so instead of dreading it I am looking forward to it. My current baby awoke in the middle of the night for the first time in forever the other day, and rocking him to sleep and looking at his little sleepy face reminded me that once upon a time, we did that almost every night. There is something so peaceful in the magical combination of a sleeping household and having a baby all to yourself that makes being awake so worth it.

#5 - Enjoying food. As the baby grows, heartburn is setting in for me. And while I am able to enjoy food so much more now than I did in my first trimester, I usually end up paying for whatever I eat not long after it makes its way through my crowded inner system. I keep gum closeby and chew it constantly (one of the best heartburn tips I've ever gotten!) and that seems to keep it at bay. But I do have to say I am looking forward to that day in the near future when I can indulge in a really delicious meal and not have it come back to haunt me!