Saturday, January 24, 2009

Oh Baby, Baby, Baby

People look at me like I am crazy when I say I loved being pregnant, but it's true....I really did. It was just such an amazing feeling to know that there was a little life growing inside of me. I loved how it felt when they moved, when they had hiccups and when they would stretch out their little hand or foot or their little butt. I would be pregnant again in a second...if I wasn't already 57 years old!!

I had good pregnancies for the most part. I gained 35 pounds with Tresa, 40 with Michael and 45 with Matt...maybe it's good that I didn't have a fourth baby! Never had morning sickness...I refused! Lots a cravings for ice cream...or at least that's what I told Irv they were so he would go get me some!

Tresa was born when I was 22 years old. I was so ready. I had been around little kids my entire life. I loved kids. Tresa was little Miss Perfect. She was a happy, healthy little girl that we toted everywhere with us. If we went to friend's houses to play cards, she would bring her little blanket and when she got tired she would plunk down within sight of us and go to sleep. As a toddler she slept 12 hours a night and took a couple of good naps every day. She talked really early and had this very grown-up little voice that caused people's heads to turn in the store when she started talking. Tresa was the perfect little baby, but she sure didn't prepare me for what was next.

That was Michael! Oh the trouble that little guy gave me. I went into labor at 6 months and again at 7 months with him and ended up in the hospital overnight so they could stop labor. It's a darn good thing they did too. Michael was born with Hirschsprung's Disease. He had no nerve cells in his colon and to make it simple to comprehend...he couldn't poop! One emergency surgery, one colostomy, and two other surgeries and he was as good as new....well actually there is a heck of lot more to it than that and he has given me permission to write about it which I will do another time. It was the most frightening thing that has ever happened to me, and made me realize just how lucky we are when we have a healthy baby. With a sick baby that refuses to sleep in a bed, you turn into a zombie, even though it is mostly your fault for never letting the baby cry. You do get to know all of the late night tv shows and you walk around in a haze a lot, but I would do it again in an instant. He was a neat little kid!

Then came Matt.....hmmmmmmm....what can I say about Matt? The pregnancy was uneventful, and we and the entire hospital staff celebrated when he pooped for the first time! That meant no Hirschsprung's Disease for him. Matt was born able to run and ride a bike! Well that's an exaggeration, but he did ride a two wheeler without training wheels the week before he turned four. He told us to take the training wheels off because he couldn't keep up with Michael and his friends when they road through the trails between some of the houses with them on. We took them off, and after a number of crashes....he was gone and we never saw him again.! Another exaggeration of course. Matt was a terror on wheels. We only made a couple of trips to the ER for stitches and broken bones, but I always said that if he had been my first...he would have been my only.

For those of you that have kids, I'm sure you can relate. For those of you that don't but plan to...I hope I haven't frightened you.

8 comments:

aliceinparis said...

Awww. So cute. I liked being pregnant, sort of miraculous really being able to create a child!
My niece is due tomorrow:)

lyptis said...

ah thats cute to read, sweet pictures too! i dont have kids and im not planning too(atm anyways), but its sweet to read other peoples experiences,
im glad they were all healthy in the end!

T.Allen said...

Such beautiful stories, motherhood truly is an amazing gift.

Um...I did not enjoy pregnancy at all and still consider it an evolutionary glitch when you look at the gestation time frames and litter sizes of other mammals. I felt more like a "host" than a glowing fertile goddess, each pregnancy replete with morning sickness, hot dog sized toes and exorcism like labor! Alas I did it twice and am loving every minute of it! (when I'm not counting them down.)

Another great thought provoking post! (smiles)

NewLifeDesigns said...

Thanks for posting that, Kathy. I'm 56 and have 2 grown boys. My first came breech, and had to stay under the bilirubin light for a week or 2, but after that, he was quite the little man. My second was born normally, but that was the last time we could ever refer to him as that! I can't say I enjoyed the pregnancies, but it was well worth it. After all, look at the prizes we got for our effort!! LOL!

Michelle said...

a wonderful post.. thank you for sharing.. I Loved everything about being pregant and labor and having little ones running around.. now with 5 teenagers I am learning new ways one can have their heart broken.. and I am still loving every second of it. Looking forward to the day I am a grandma * not before 5 years I pray *

Tins and Treasures said...

I enjoyed your post today...I, too, really liked being pregnant. In fact, I just said that to my Child Development class a couple of days ago. They (high school age) looked at me like I was nuts!!

MamaCta! said...

It was so fun to read about your babies! I have 3 babies as well, they are still little. Although pregnancy was increasingly worse with each one, I loved the good parts of it, and the end result was so worth it. I'd do it all again, except that my plate's pretty full right now-so the jury's still out about another! (and may stay out!)

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

This was fabulous and sweet to read. I loved being pregnant too! I wanted a third but my first and second were caesarean sections and my husband felt two surgeries were enough.
Your chilren are beautiful! So glad Michael is doing OK.

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