Greetings squeezers! It's the start of a new week, and for me, that means I'm officially at the halfway point of my pregnancy (release confetti here)! In another 20 weeks, I'll finally get to meet Rocco. It's surreal just how quickly the time has flown. Didn't I just pee on that stick a few weeks ago?!
I'm posting this a little late only because I had doctor's appointment yesterday and I wanted to include a report of my visit. The last couple of days have been slightly stressful because I hadn't been feeling Rocco as consistently as I would have liked, so of course I started to internally freak out. My doctor said not to worry and I'm probably not paying attention to the movements as much because I'm preoccupied taking care of another kid. Plus, to not forget that that babies sleep, which honestly, I forget all the time. We listened to his heartbeat, and of course, we were hearing all these 'swish, swish' sounds coming from my belly. He's not even born, and already he's giving his mother agita! Marone! Ironically enough, he didn't stop moving all afternoon and night!
I got on the scale, expecting to see an extra few pounds, and I was surprised to learn that I didn't gain a single pound in the last month. Now, I'm not bragging here. I was actually concerned so I asked Dr. Bonilla if this was normal. She assured me it was. It means my body is leveling off and the baby is weighing and measuring exactly how he's supposed to, so it's not something I should worry about. She did suggest I eat more protein so I wouldn't lose muscle mass. I assured her I wasn't carrying that much muscle to begin with.
This past week I also finished my registry at Buy Buy Baby and Myregistry.com and I'm happy to report that after having Maya, navigating Buy Buy Baby was cake. I'll never forget the first time Coco and I walked into Buy Buy Baby on 6th Avenue to register for Maya. We looked at each other, completely overwhelmed by the aisles and aisles of stroller toys, onesies, strollers, and we both mouthed, "WTF is all this?!" Five hours of scanning later, our heads were still spinning. But this time around, I walked around that store with bulletproof confidence and knocked it all out in less than an hour. I'm in the Buy Buy Baby big leagues now!
As far as Rocco's registry goes, it's not extensive since a lot of the things I already had for Maya were gender neutral. I purposely did that so I could use them when I had a second (registering for gender neutral items is a great way to save money for the next one), so I focused on restocking older items like diaper genie refills, sleep sacks, and pacifiers. I also added a few boy onesies, an extra seat for my Uppababy stroller, and a new diaper bag. It's a very practical registry. In the next coming weeks, I'll be sharing a list of my registry must-haves with all you, squeezers! It's my way of paying it forward. And here's a tip. Never register for blankets. For some odd reason, people love giving you blankets as gifts. I don't really understand the blanket obsession since you really don't need any more than 2-3 blankets, especially in Miami. Your baby will overheat.
On a fun note, I got to partake in a Mother's Day segment at the Ritz Carlton Spa for Channel 7 news (airs May 7th at 10pm). Taking care of yourself during pregnancy should involve the occasional pre-natal massage. It should be mandatory for every momma-to-be to get pampered, spoiled, and soothed during these nine months. Plus, it works wonders for back pain! I'm very big on treating myself, so this was an awesome perk that I will definitely be repeating in my third trimester.
Before we wrap up, let's talk 'life after baby.' There seems to be this silly and annoying misconception that some parents have irresponsibly fueled, that leads new parents or even non-parents to believe that once you have a baby your life is OVER. FINITO. Hearing something like this, will frighten anyone, especially new parents. It may cause some people to not even want or have kids. Would you blame them if this is something that someone tried to constantly drill in your head? I remember when I was pregnant with Maya, and Coco and I started sharing our happy news. We had a few Debbie Downers give us the whole 'you better enjoy all that traveling now, because you can't do that when you have a baby.' Or my other favorite, 'once you have kids, your life is over.' Um, okay, you're all depressing and that's a shitty way to look at life with kids. Coco and I pride ourselves in having a healthy social life. We love to travel, we love going out to eat, we love hosting dinner parties, being with our family and friends, and exploring new things to do in our city. We loved doing these things before we had kids and guess what? We still love to do these things now with our kid. I feel sorry for anyone that truly thinks that 'life is over' the moment you bring kids into this world. Yes, it changes and it becomes a little more chaotic and you need to plan a whole lot more and have an army of babysitters at your disposal, but your life is definitely not over. And it doesn't mean you can't continue to travel or go to dinner or plan a night out with your significant other or with your friends (what I don't recommend though, is drinking way too much. Babies don't care about your hangovers). Babies aren't boulders. They're mobile. You can take them places. You can do things with them. And they may actually make adventures a little more fun. The key is to have a sense of humor. To leave your pride at the airplane door. You can't care what other people think of you or your potentially crying baby. Keep your head up. Have a glass of wine. And pack a lot of toys.
Maya's been traveling since she was two months old. She's gone with us on a 10-day trip to Sicily and survived jet lags and connecting flights. She's been to more museums and dinner parties than most kids (and adults) I know. When she was four days old, we were already having tacos in the outdoor patio of our neighborhood taqueria. My life wasn't going to stop because I had a kid. I was going to cherish and enjoy the change. The point is, babies are born into your world, not the other way around. Your life doesn't have to be over unless you want it to be. Yes, it will require a ton more work and effort, but it's doable. Take advantage of it when they're infants. They're so easy to transport and you can take them anywhere! The stroller or that Baby Bjorn will be your best friend. And the biggest plus of all, imagine all the memories and experiences you get to give them in return- showing them the world, meeting different people, enjoying experiences and wonder through their eyes. Kids will remember these things as they grow, and they'll remember that one sliver of memory- whether its building a sand castle at your favorite beach, eating gelato at a piazza, watching the electric parade at Disney, riding a train for the first time- creating and cultivating these lifelong memories are priceless.
I'm taking my bump to my sister-in-law's bachelorette party this weekend and I'm so excited for some family time and virgin pina coladas by the pool! I'll be back next week with another update and hopefully some eerie looking 3D pics of Rocco's anatomy sonogram part deux!
Bumpin' love,
Rocco's mom.
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