Mommy Talk-#4 (well, #1 for me because this is my 1st week)

I stumbled across A Little Mommy Talk this morning, and given my lack of creativity on my blog lately, I thought I'd join the Mommy fun! Every week there will be a question about what your experience as a mom has been. Here's the question for today.

May 7
How much weight did you gain (w/ picture...are you brave enough:) )
and what did you like MOST about pregnancy?
What did you like the LEAST?

So let me start out by saying that I WILL NOT be posting any photos of myself in any stage of my pregnancies. Both times I was pregnant, I allowed only a few photos to commemorate the experience. And since neither of them are scanned and ready to be put on this blog, I will have to pass on this one.

I gained about 35 lbs when I was pregnant with Emma. I didn't feel like this was too awful, right about average with most women, I think. A lot of it was water, as I lost about 30 lbs within two weeks of giving birth. What I liked most about my 1st pregnancy was the newness of it all. I couldn't read enough books or study the fetal growth charts enough that 1st time. I looked forward to every appointment with my midwife and it was kind of dream-like to imagine what our first child would look and act like. What I liked the least was the 1st trimester "all-day" sickness. It was basically an all-day nausea fest. But after that ended, I really had no complaints until the very end. I had the usual uncomfortable, get this baby out of me, feeling.

With my 2nd pregnancy, I gained 25 lbs. Much slower on the weight gain! I remember having a good 6-week stretch near the end of it all, when I didn't gain an ounce! Ella was smaller than Emma, so maybe that had something to do with it, although I doubt it. I think it was probably because I already had a little one to chase around and I wasn't sitting at a desk job this time around. What I liked best about this pregnancy was that I knew what to expect. I didn't feel the need to read every book on the subject and so I think I was less stressed about it all. What I disliked was that my nausea was much worse this time around. I also had a really horrible problem with my pelvic bones, which caused extreme pain from about 34 weeks until I gave birth. But, I made it through and was rewarded with a much faster labor and delivery!