You never know. This might be the last belly update! I've heard that typically, first time pregnancies go a bit beyond 40 weeks. But I know of a few people that had babies recently that had them around this time! Now, the phrase that people have been saying to me for so long, "Any time now!" - seems a lot more legitimate. It really could be any time now.
Now that I'm pretty much at the end of my pregnancy, I can give somewhat of a recap of how it went. I had a very easy and healthy pregnancy. There were never any red flags. I passed all the tests at my appointments. Physically, I didn't have too many complaints. I had always imagined it to be so much more dramatic and so much harder than it was. People love to tell their horror stories!! I don't understand that. Keeping a positive outlook through the whole process, focusing on staying healthy and taking good care of myself, and educating myself all contributed - I would think - to the healthy pregnancy that I have had! It is not all within our control, but it doesn't always have to be full of horribly uncomfortable side effects and symptoms. I wish everyone could experience it in this way.
I think pregnancy itself prepares you for parenthood. Yes, there are parts that are hard and uncomfortable and disrupt your normal day or way of doing things. But there are so many cool experiences in between all of that - things that sort of blow your mind. I've always heard people describe the baby "kicking" and thinking that it must be awful! Kicked in the ribs, seriously?! No thanks! Yet, without experiencing the baby movement for myself, I would have never known that it is the coolest and most amazing thing. It doesn't hurt at all, even now that she is gigantic and basically a full size baby. Sometimes I just sit there and stare at my belly and watch it move around. Better than YouTube! Before pregnancy I would have never known how great it feels to take care of yourself in a way that you know you're taking care of the little person growing along with you. Having a little buddy along with me all these months has been really cool. Somehow I already enjoy her company.
I like to think about all the things from my childhood that I'd like Luna to experience in hers. They're not extravagant things. The simple things are the best things in childhood. I want her to draw all over the sidewalks with chalk until her knees and feet and hands are covered in it. I want her to climb a tree and pretend that it's a castle or a space ship. I want her to walk around and collect rocks or sticks or leaves or anything that she finds beautiful. I want her to ride her bike to the library and come home with her bike basket filled with books that she can't wait to dig into. I want her to frost a cake and then decide how she should decorate it to make it unique. In a world that becomes more complicated and full of technology and fast-paced lifestyles, I want her to grow up in a simple, happy, loving environment that nurtures her creativity and spirit.
