Pregnancy then and now

Well I've officially reached the 20 week mark in my pregnancy, which means I am halfway through this journey. This is where I step back, thank God (again), and give a huge sigh of relief. The 20 week mark is momentous to me in many ways, of which I wont bother to bore you with all the emotional details. It's amazing to me how different this pregnancy is from my one with Eli simply because, well, of Eli. Here are my top 10 pregnancy then vs. pregnancy now observations...

1. Then, in the weeks of the first trimester when I felt so very sick, I could vomit in a discrete and dignified manner, privately.

Now, in the weeks of the first trimester when I felt so very sick, my then 16 month old would stand over me and not only laugh but also attempt to imitate my retching and thus make himself laugh harder. Dignity, gone.

2. Then, I had the luxury of laying in bed for an extra hour in the morning after snacking on crackers until my stomach felt more settled.

Now, 7am is wake-up time and toddler's don't have a snooze button.

3. Then, if you were to ask me how far along I was I could tell you in hours, as in I'm 15 weeks, 2 days and 3 hours.

Now, I actually have to keep a written reminder in my planner of the weeks passage and I usually answer people in terms of 25% through, halfway through, etc.

4. Then, I invested in the expensive stretch mark creams "guaranteed" to prevent any evidence that you were ever pregnant at all.

Now, I slather those lovely scars in Jergens and just pray that no new atrocities will form this time around.

5. Then, I spent hours watching live birthing videos on Youtube and trying to prepare myself for my big moment by apparently scaring myself to death.

Now, been there, seen that.

6. Then, every day at 4pm was my "me" time where I would pop a bag of popcorn, make a big ole' mug of hot chocolate and kick up my feet for an hour while I watched Oprah, perhaps dozing in and out of consciousness.

Now, I can get 24 minutes of "me" time thanks to free Barney on Demand, if I'm lucky. Popcorn must be shared with a ferociously hungry boy repeating the phrase "moe pease" while clambering for a place on my lap. Relaxing? Not so much.

7. Then, I spent days writing and perfecting my birth plan and then proudly presented it to my OB explaining how I wanted things to go.

Now, I laugh in the face of birth plans. My plan is end up at the hospital and go home with a baby. Preferably mine.

8. Then, I hoped my belly would grow really fast so everyone would know I was pregnant and I could wear all the cute maternity fashions.

Now, I'm pretty much always sucking in and just counting down the days until my tummy tuck.

9. Then, I thought one baby would be a cinch. All it takes is organization, preparation, and proper planning. I planned on having 4-5 kids back to back.

Now, Eli struggles to understand my organizational needs. I am amazed at the utter destruction one child can cause to a clean house. I still want 4-5 kids, maybe.

10. Then, I was pretty sure I would like being a mom. I was pretty sure I had everything figured out already and could conquer parenting like I conquer home improvement projects.

Now, it's all the more exciting knowing the miraculous gift that birth and babies and parenting is. I certainly have realized that I have nothing figured out except that you cannot conquer parenting. You survive each day and pray that God empowers you to be a better mom tomorrow than you were yesterday.