7 Things I loved about being Pregnant

17 Feb 2016 Comments

I’ll be honest with you, I wasn’t the biggest fan of pregnancy.

I will hold my hands up and admit that I complained. A lot.

I had always wanted to have children for as long as I can remember. The moment I got pregnant I was elated. Finally, it was my time to become a mum! I dreamt of having the perfect bump, the pregnancy glow, all of it!

However I became less of a fan of pregnancy as the months went on. The pelvic pain, the acid reflux and other ‘fun’ symptoms almost got the better of me and as the pregnancy months ticked by, I added more and more discomfort to the list.

Of course I will always be eternally grateful that I’ve been blessed twice with carrying a bundle of baby fun but 9 months is a loooong time to do it.

If it was up to me I’d say 3 months would be perfectly adequate time to be pregnant.

This could still be split into 3 manageable one month trimesters.

Here is my proposal:

Month 1

The first month would be where you and your partner exist happily together in your secret baby bubble for two.

It would be just long enough for you to enjoy it but not have to come up with yet another excuse to your friends as to why you were not drinking/eating/doing anything fun.

Month 2

In the second month, you would announce your happy news to the world and show off your now-noticeable baby bump.

You would always get a seat on the bus but not be overly uncomfortable. Lovely.

Month 3

This final month would probably fly by with trips to the midwife/doctor, baby-showering fun and setting up the nursery.

Before you know it, you’d be a parent and pregnancy would be over and done with!

Yes, 3 months would be a much more appropriate length for pregnancy.

Oh but despite the quick-growing bump, you wouldn’t get stretch marks. That would be unfair.

They really should make 3 month pregnancies the law. It might be difficult to enforce and make actually possible I suppose.

So 9 months it is then and I will say that the moment my babies arrived, the pregnancy symptoms (somewhat) faded into the past.

I’ve since had time to reflect on the parts of pregnancy I DID enjoy and came up with seven!

Here are the 7 things I loved about being pregnant:

1. Dressing the Baby Bump

Pregnancy was the only time in my life when I have felt confident enough to wear figure-hugging clothing.

Having spent most of my life trying to hide my lovely lady lumps and bumps, pregnancy was my chance to embrace my new curvier curves and show them off to the world. With a bow on top sometimes!

I didn’t have to suck my tummy in once and the rounder I got, the better I looked in my maternity clothing. Well I certainly filled them out better anyway.

I especially loved how hard and ‘solid’ my baby bump got as the months went by – but not so much after the baby came and it the squishiness returned! That was a shock to the system. I’d almost forgotten that I wasn’t thin!

2. Eating Treats. Quite a lot of them

Now this is clearly a controversial one as no-one should go overboard and ‘eat for two’. Apparently.

However having been on various diets for as many years as I can remember, it was nice to have an extra treat every now and again and relax a little more about what I could and couldn’t eat.

Dessert? Don’t mind if I do! Ice cream? Yes, you too please!

I don’t know about you but my babies loved me eating chocolate. And cake. And biscuits. They loved it.

3. An excuse to go to bed early

A guilt-free early night without feeling that I was wasting the day or missing out on something was lovely.

As was a lazy lie in too!

I was told by everyone I encountered to get sleep while I could before the baby came – so I did! Oh how I long for a lie in now. Even a 7.30am one would be nice.

4. Washing my hair less

I don’t imagine this works for everyone but when I was pregnant my usual greasy hair dried out which meant I could go longer between washing it – sometimes 4 days at a time(is that gross?).

This meant I spent a lot less time washing and drying my hair and a lot more time getting those extra Zzzzs in the morning. Priorities, people!

5. Always getting a seat on public transport

All it literally took was a waddle onto the bus or train, a rub of the tummy or leaning back with my hands on my hips and bang, I was offered a seat. Everytime. I do miss that.

Yes, I did milk it and I’m not sorry.

6. Compliments

I know I’m needy but it’s so nice when you’re told more than once in a day that you look nice, glowing, blooming etc – who doesn’t appreciate a compliment?

Funnily enough, I rarely get complimented on the eye bags and tired face look I rock these days!

7. Taking it easy

Well as easy as a working mother with a toddler too could take it easy of course but I did enjoy it when I had the opportunity to put my feet up and rest.

Especially when I anticipated the chaos that awaited me after the next baby arrived!

So you see, pregnancy wasn’t all that bad and it definitely did have its advantages. And despite feeling like an eternity at the time, 9 months isn’t really that long in the grand scheme of things is it?

I can say that confidently now I’m done!

What about you? What did you love about being pregnant? Or did you loathe some of it?

Did you miss anything about being pregnant after the baby was born?

Mim Jenkinson

Tags: Pregnancy

Mim Jenkinson

Mim is a married mother of a 2 year old little girl and baby boy. An advocate of hypnobirthing, positive thinking and laughing at herself, she blogs about family life at lovefrommim.com. In November 2015 Mim was diagnosed with Triple Negative Breast Cancer and, after a successful lumpectomy, is currently undergoing chemotherapy. Her career spans creative and business writing, social media...