While Waiting On Baby

Waiting for baby at the end of your pregnancy is probably the most difficult part of the whole process. You have been waiting nine months and are now anxious to meet your little bundle and move on with your life as a mom. However, each day can be excruciatingly long. You wait in anticipation and still no baby. You field increasingly numerous calls from friends and family members, all wanting to know the same thing, “Has baby come yet?” This, of course, only adds to your frustration and impatience.

For me, the biggest culprit was my husband. For some reason, he thought I had control over the process and would constantly give me advice on ways to get the baby out. “Maybe you should roll around on your belly.” “I heard jumping jacks speed up the process.” “Sitting around all day is not really helping your situation. You need to walk around a lot more.” Needless to say, he was not helping me at all.

My biggest fear was having to go to the hospital to be induced. All I wished and prayed for was an end to this natural process in the same way it had begun: naturally. I abhor intervention and wanted to have this baby on its terms—not the doctor’s.

I wanted to set goals and take a break from my hectic life and work schedule, but I couldn’t do that until the baby came. My husband needed to get back to his work schedule, which included scheduling days of being inaccessible all day (plus he wanted to go snowmobiling again). My daughters wanted to meet their little brother or sister and “give him kisses and change him’s diaps”. Everyone wanted to know the sex of the baby so they could buy presents. It seemed that life stopped for our family until the baby came.

All pregnant women know that carrying a basketball around in front of you all day long is not the most comfortable experience. By this time, most of us can’t even remember what we looked like not pregnant. We are eager to reclaim our bodies back for ourselves. We want to be able to go to the bathroom and eat for just one again. At this point, just being able to put the baby down would be an accomplishment.

The best advice I can give while waiting on baby is to try to keep as occupied as possible. Take long naps and try to remain low-stress. Plan an activity every day to alleviate boredom. Play with your other kids and talk about the impending birth. Distract yourself as much as possible so you don’t go crazy.

I tried to keep busy to keep my mind off of the fact that baby was late. I would clean the house, do laundry, work for my husband at home, mess around on the internet, play with my kids, pet the dogs till their fur came off, read books, and cook elaborate meals. It would work for a little bit but having a baby was still the one constant in the back of my mind.

I always told people that my baby is late because it takes extra time to grow the most beautiful babies. Since my other two daughters were late and they turned out beautiful, I know this other baby will be just as gorgeous when it finally does decide to reveal itself and make a mark on this planet.