Pregnancy = Fun?

I had a co-worker the other day ask me if I was having fun being pregnant.  I said “sometimes,” but on the way home I thought about it a little more.  Is “fun” the word that should be used to describe such a life changing and scary event?  I guess it could be included in the huge amount of words that I have probably used so far in discussing the events of the last 6 months with family and friends.  However, since I make pro and con lists in my head for everything, it struck me to make a “fun” and “not fun” list for pregnancy.  Since it has been a more positive than negative experience, I will work my way from “not fun” to “fun”:

Not Fun:

Morning Sickness – This started for me around 7 weeks, and honestly, there are still mornings when I get sick, but they are now fewer in frequency.  I’m most glad to be over the constant gagging, it just drove me crazy!

Fatigue – All day fatigue didn’t last too terribly long for me, but there are still days when I become just dead tired.  For someone in a career in which many times you “just push through” to get the work done, this may have be the most difficult symptom to cope with as my busy season has gotten into gear.

Acne – My skin has never been great, but geez, this is ridiculous.

1^st trimester worries – Am I doing everything right?  What can go wrong?  What was that pain?  I think as society has become more open about pregnancy, there has been more information available, but there’s honestly too much.  Too much information that discusses worst case scenarios that are very rare.  I didn’t realize until I got pregnant just how hard it is for some to get pregnant and get through the 40 weeks with no complications – it makes me very grateful for the experience that I have had so far, and I pray every night that it stays that way.

Fun:

Decorating – The nursery was painted this weekend, and ¾ of the furniture is in place.  We still have a few decisions to make, but it has been really fun to do something with so many cute elements.

Name Decisions – Although it’s been really hard to decide, (who am I kidding, we still don’t know for sure!), it has been fun to think of names.  You think about calling your kid’s name at the park, and how her name will look on wedding invitations, and it makes you all the more excited about the future.

Feeling/Seeing Kicks – Right before I started typing this there were 2 kicks that I could actually see from the outside.  I have been feeling kicks pretty consistently for the past couple of weeks and it never gets old.  I am thinking I will probably even miss it a little when she actually gets here.

Really crossing the threshold into being a “family” – I know we became a family when Joey and I got married, but now it’s really starting to all come full circle.  There is just something so awesome about knowing that you are making a contribution to a new generation.

Being Excited in General – Through all of it, the bad and the good, I have been really excited.  I’m sure I haven’t shown it a lot in my actions, but even the bad things have been completely worth it.  I can’t believe that in 16 weeks I will actually be holding this little person in my arms, and not just feeling punches and kicks.

Well, now that I have just completed the longest post I have ever done, I will now add the 24 week update:

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts her at just over a pound. Since she's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), she cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon start to plump up. Her brain is also growing quickly now, and her taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help her air sacs inflate once she hits the outside world. Her skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.