Part of a Team

Ever since I found out I was pregnant, I have found this strange affinity for other pregnant women. So far, I've held in check the impulse to accost them in the street, at the mall, or in the grocery store just to say "I'm pregnant, too!" So far, I just pause in what I'm doing and think good thoughts their way. Little prayers for their safety and wellness. It's this odd feeling that we're somehow on the same team. Some sisterhood that I'd never realized existed before. It's not a nasty, exclusive club that looks down on other women -- most of my friends do not have children and won't for some time, and I feel very comfortable talking about how I'm doing or how I'm feeling with them. It's just this feeling that I could accost them in public places and they would know and understand how I'm feeling at that very moment.

Not that every pregnant woman goes through the same thing -- I feel very fortunate to have slipped through the first trimester without any morning sickness. I talk to other women who have been pregnant, and they often have terrible stories of pulling over the car just to vomit. At moments like those, Jesse and I look at one another with wonder and confusion -- I mean, I have had digestive issues my WHOLE life -- how is it possible that I've made it through pregnancy so far with nary a belly problem?

Not only that -- I've somehow left my lactose intollerance in the dust -- as if God thought "Hey, not only am I going to give you a kid, I'm going to give you nine months to eat ice cream, pizza, ranch dressing, and peanut M&M's, just as a bonus." And you'd better believe that I am living as though this reprieve will end, though some tell me that I may be fine with dairy from here on out. I figure, it's a bit like having someone tell you that you have only nine months to live -- if they're wrong, and you have more time, great, but if they're right, you'd better make the most of the time you have. And be grateful. So I do, because I am.