A Mom's Life

I loved being pregnant with Caroline-well after the first 12 weeks of vomiting every morning, Noon and night like clock work. I ate whatever I wanted because I was "eating for two"- yeah, yeah, I know you're not really supposed to do that but I didn't care. My normally mousy and thin hair was thick and lustrous and my pale skin was vibrant. I had a great infectious laugh and my jiggling belly usually made me erupt into more laughs. I stopped monitoring my exercise and striving for the next mile during a run and instead let myself sleep in instead of getting up at 6 am to head to the gym before work. I got a new wardrobe. Whether wearing hand-me-downs or items from a first-time trip to Motherhood Maternity, I had no choice but to showcase all new duds. As my belly grew, so did my closet. I like to be the center of attention and pregnancy put my right in the spotlight. All women gravitate to pregnant ladies, whether they know you or not. There were always tons of ...

How can the person who brings you the most joy also be the person who can drive you to the brink of insanity? Sometimes when I am with Caroline she brings me total peace. Like a zen moment, I can actually feel my breathing slow, my heart calm and my mind clearing. When she puts her arms around me and I feel her chest rising and falling in sync with mine, I am taken to a new level of consciousness. I am so happy it makes me want to cry and often the moment brings real tears to my eyes. Tears also come to my eyes on many other occasions with Caroline. As quickly as she can calm me, she can agitate me. It's like she has a good girl/bad girl switch that turns on and off as quick as the "That Was Easy Button". I know her behavior is a stage because the terrible twos actually happen during the third year but it doesn't make it any easier for me to accept or to deal with. A bad attitude for Caroline starts at sun up and ends at sun down. It's as though she has decide...

Anybody who knows Andy is aware that he has as much sympathy as a rock. If ever I am feeling fat or bad at my job or have a spat with a friend, Andy is the last shoulder to cry on. His typical response is something like, "You feel fat. Go to the gym." or "If you think you're not good at your job then maybe you're not." or "Well, maybe the two of you aren't really good friends after all." So much for tact. And forget about being sick. When I have a head splitting migraine and need nothing more than a dark, silent room, Andy informs that that I'm faking it and leaves the bedroom door open so that Caroline or a cat can come in and jump on the bed. I have to say, once when I had a sore throat, he tried to make me tea. He ripped open the tea bag and presented me with a hot steaming cup of water full of swimming tea leaf flakes. At least it was an attempt to make me feel better. Luckily for me, the human rock can procreate and helped me mak...