So my wife Tiffany is pregnant. As I write this, she's somewhere around 14.5 weeks with an ETA for Baby O of around 1 September. There is no shortage of thoughts and emotions that come with this time.
After several negative pregnancy tests, I asked Tiffany not to tell me when she's testing, as the anxiety was hard to overcome. Too many times I paced outside a bathroom door and saw a sad face come out. So it was a thrill on 27 December when she slapped a test with the word "pregnant" visible on the counter in front of me.
Of course, then you go through the worry of the first three months, hoping they go quickly and without incident. Tiffany had a surprising lack of symptoms, which led us to worry that things were not going well.
(I should point out here that just about everything will make me worry; as far as I understood, this whole pregnancy and childbirth thing is a combination of magic and sitcom plots. The book(s) I'm currently reading indicate there's something more complex involved.)
The 13-week ultrasound went as well as it could - we saw the fetus (not sure if I should use the medical term or just say baby) move around which is the best moving picture I've seen since Rocky Balboa. The doctor analyzing the ultrasound said things looked clear, our odds of anything bad were low, and...well, I stopped listening at that point because it felt like the weight of a car had been lifted off my back.
It's a hell of a thing. Up until that ultrasound, the baby was more of a concept, but in an instant, it became more real than almost anything else.
Adding to that has been the sincere pleasure and happiness from our friends and family as we've shared the good news with them. With that, of course, have come warnings, knowing laughs, and advice - oh, so much advice. I must remember pieces I've heard, if only for a later post.
So here we are, waiting for an event that can't come soon enough, except that we don't want it to come before we're ready. So much to do, so little time...that's good, isn't it?
Alright, my bokkie, let's rock.
3 comments:
You should tell people what Bokkie means.
: )
I agree with Tiffany. And please, if I give you any ridiculous advice, feel free to post it here and make fun of me!
BOKKIE: One of South Africa's nicest words, this is a term of endearment which can be applied to either sex. In literal translation it means "little buck" or "little deer", and its English equivalent is "sweetheart." When a couple walks down the road hand-in-hand, somebody may remark that they are "bokkies." If one of them is in a blue uniform and is joined to his or her companion by handcuffs, then they are obviously not bokkies
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