>Big Girl
>Think about it- You just don’t see too many nine-months-pregnant women out and about. It’s not that we’re invalids, sore and achy and unable to fit behind the wheels of our cars. Oh, no. It’s not us at all.
It’s you.
Last night, I went to a soccer game. It was the last night of the girls’ season and I didn’t want to miss it for anything. Plus, I still remember being stuck at home after Baby was born for several weeks, suffering from severe cabin fever but unable to take her anywhere. I figured that now was a good time to get out of the house a few last times with relative ease before the new baby arrives.
I knew all the parents would be there for the last game, so I made sure I looked good. At least, I thought I did. The faintly shocked and amused looks on their faces when I arrived said otherwise.
“Are you okay?” a mom in front of me asked.
“Well, yeah,” I said, shrugging. “I mean, I’m having a baby in two weeks.”
“I bet you’re ready to get it over with this time!” she exclaimed, eyeing me appraisingly. “You look bigger than you did the last time you were pregnant.”
“Actually,” I said, giving her my best evil eye, “I gained 20 pounds less with this one. But thanks.”
In my mind’s eye, my decent-sized pregnant frame swelled up like a hot air balloon. But hell, there were other people to talk to… Like, um, Maryanne behind me.
“When are you due?” she asked.
“I’m having him in two weeks, no matter what,” I smiled. “I have an appointment.”
“Great!” she said, grinning. “Because you look HUGE.”
“Huh. Thanks,” I replied. “Thanks so much.”
Honestly, I walked right into that one. It was, after all, the very same mom who asked me several months ago if both my babies have the same daddy.
What a mistake it was to enter the realm of moms-of-teens, women who’ve gone so long since the birth of their last child that they’ve conveniently blurred and rearranged the events of their pregnancy until they’re absolutely convinced they gained no more than 25 pounds and wore their size 2 jeans home from the hospital.
I could’ve thought of something catty to say back to these moms, but I didn’t. After all, I can lose the weight.
But they won’t ever get any younger.
*Thank you, thank you, thank you to my wonderful friend MommaK for throwing me a surprise blog baby shower. What a nice surprise! Head over there and check out some lovely bared bellies if you, like me, need some third trimester inspiration (or memories)!
>With my first pregnancy I had a guy in my office building dare to ask me if I was having TWINS. And I do think women conveniently have post pregnancy amnesia. Because I know I was able to squeeze myself into my pre-pregnancy jeans right away. Cough.Hang in there mama!
>I’m working on a post Lindsay… photo and all. It’ll be up later today… I had to dig through my pics.Those Moms are all just JEALOUS! Next time, they’ll all be fawning over your new baby, wanting to hold him and coo-chee-coo him. Just you wait.
>Good luck to you and your new little one on the way. :)Elizabeth
>I’ll gladly email you a picture of me in my third tri…but you won’t see it on my blog…though I almost…ALMOST considered posting it for my baby’s birthday post yesterday. Lemme know if you wanna see me in my 3 foot belly glory!
>Considering that we were STOKED that we even MADE it to the third trimester, I have absolutely NO qualms with posting my third trimester pics. So, I made this post, just for you:http://thejhatfields.org/blog/2007/03/02/misery-loves-company😉 Be sure to click on the one that is in the “PS” to fully appreciate the uncomfortableness, which is a word, of my last day of pregnancy.Best of luck! 🙂
>Hmm, to make the url work, I should probably do this: click here for Misery Loves Company.
>we posted! we posted third trimester pics! in fact, we posted post-term pics! if you want to see what my wife looked like at 40 weeks, 4 days, you can go here.our son was finally born at 41 weeks, 3 days. but at that point, i think that she might have destroyed any camera pointed in her direction!
>Well take heart..not all Moms of teen are complete and total a@@holes. I have 2- One that is 14 and one that isn’t 2 yet.Next week, I plan to devote to the differences between them. The times in my life that seem like North and South and all that goes on between.9 month pregnant women….are such brave souls, whether in public or not.Congrats on the new baby!
>I hear you sister…I’m only 5 mo and suddenly strangers want to touch my belly and one trainer at my gym gave me some VERY unwelcomed ab work out advice…hello? It’s sort of surreal…
>I’m only 6 months and I’ve noticed that people haven’t commented at all. Other than the occasional, “you look like you have a beachball under your shirt!” ugh. I wonder… how bad is it that they aren’t saying ANYTHING!! or are they just well trained.I’ve posted a few pics…with no head (aka double chin.)
>I will gladly email you a pic of my big ass belly right before I gave birth. Keep in mind, I gained over a 100 pounds and weighed more than my hubs.It was a proud moment. You need cheering up, reach out and touch me, chicky!
>LOVE the pics so far- You are all making me feel a whole lot better. And you all had gorgeous third trimester bellies!
>I can’t even imagine how they would have reacted to my 5’2″ frame carrying twins! Of course, I really should have been carrying around a “wide load” sign with a red flag hanging off my butt…
>You all are charting new territory here. Where brave women before you have feared to tread…a public forum for pregnancy pictures. I cannot participate because, wisely, I avoided all photographs during my two disgusting third trimesters. Now,that’s an accomplishment!
>I work with a bunch of OLD ladies…each had their own theory on my pregnancy. I have so many things I could share, but I’ll say that after everything, I don’t like any of them very much. You are beautiful…and young…so HAH. In a month, you’ll be SO over them!Because I care, I’ll tell you that THIS, horrible acne and all (and missing half my face), is what I consider my BEST 3rd tri picture. :-O You’re welcome.
>Plus, I still remember being stuck at home after Baby was born for several weeks, suffering from severe cabin fever but unable to take her anywhere.I wasn treading this blog when baby was born. was there a reason that you could not go out?
>There just aren’t many places you can take a weeks-old baby- too much work, breastfeeding every two hours, germ concerns, crying, etc. Of course I went out a bit, but not in the usual way. And I didn’t like leaving her home with someone else, either. Just for the first few weeks, but they seem to drag on and on and on…
>Here you go!
>As a friend once said… “The big ones are always mean to the little ones and when the little ones get big for a few months, that’s when they get REALLY viscious!”. She was also a 2nd wife, stepmother of child 17 years youger than her and often heard the “what are you, 12?” remark.
>I got just the opposite reactions. I was due mid-October and people were guessing December. I had been very overweight prior to this and had lost 92 pounds before I conceived Allison. Damn it! I wanted to be proud of being huge for once in my life. No dice. I kept on my doctor about why I didn’t look more than six months pregnant and he said all women look different. As it turns out, Allison was only 5 pounds 8 ounces and born at 41 weeks. I guess I was small because she was small. No matter what people say or due, women at the end of their pregnancies can never win.Good luck with your birth!
>Those women are such dummyheads.
>Judging by the comments here, it seems like the ‘twins’ remark is a common one. When I was pregnant with my first one I had a woman come up to me in a crowded office building lobby, put her (slimy) hands on my stomach and say, “You MUST be having twins! I’ve never seen anyone so HUGE.”God, I wish I had my mace then.
>The Belly Hoppin’ Baby Shower is going on all weekend. Please send me your links and I will add them to the collection.FYI- Not only did I post a picture of myself in my 3rd trimester, but I posted a picture of myself in my 3rd trimester naked. Beat that. I win.
>I did a post about a month out from my c-section date about how I had to ask my 11 year old to help me put my shoes on because I couldn’t reach them, and included a picture.It’s nearly over, hang tough.
>Congrats on making it this far. I’m glad I have. And I did post pics of my third trimester. 🙂
>You only look ‘bigger’ because you gained less all over. “Bigger” belly makes you look “huge”.I’m sure you look lovely. Nice glow and all.
>Just stopping in to see how you are. Glad to see you’re still given ’em heck! Can’t wait to help you welcome your little one (and, of course, to start reading all the hilarious stories you’ll hopefully share!)
>Those biotches. No they didn’t. Hags.
>How else are they going to describe you? Pregnant women are HUGE! Don’t take it the wrong way. It’ll be over soon.
>I know just how you feel, I only go out to golden corral and barely ever leave the house where my neighbors might see me. In fact some already thought I must’ve given birth, truth was I hate all the questions and comments. Heck, even on halloween I had to be touched and told how HUGE I was.
>The day I gave birth I went to the zoo. Why sit at home?! The bad part? Nothing would fit over my feet, so I had to wear white footies everywhere. Maternity shorts, tent tops, and white footies. To Kmart, grocery store, mall. I kept waiting for someone to tell me to put some shoes on or I had to leave…….maybe they knew better than to mess with a pregnant woman who had gained 47 pounds in 6 months.
>I just wanted to say “hey” b/c we’re always sitting next to each other on the blogtopsites thing-y, so I feel like we’re practically neighbors. And I haven’t even introduced myself.Also: you look fabulous. You’re glowing. Not that I’ve seen you in person or anything…but a little encouragement never hurt anyone. Oh no ma’am it didn’t.Hang in there. And good luck with all the baby-birthin’.
>My ds had a Mom in his class who just had a baby. She WAS huge-but beautifully so! And we all told her that 🙂 Those Moms are just jealous-when I was pregnant at 25, and I’m a naturally thin and younger looking person, I had comments like that too. One friend kept telling me how she couldn’t wait until I got “totally fat” just like her. She wasn’t pregnant.Even at 9 months, I wasn’t nearly as big as she was.
>Twinsanity doesn’tlook human!!!! kowai!!! thats scary in Japanese. I am a twin. In Japan you are frowned upon if you gain more than 14 kg about 25 pds