Embracing the Bump

Some people document each week of their pregnancy with photos of their belly. It ends up like a flip book, where you can see how the belly grows over time. And I personally LOVE seeing these pictures! I honestly can't get enough of them. So why is it that during my pregnancy, I pretty much refused to have my picture taken, let alone posted in any sort of public viewing arena? My husband and I actually started out on a good foot - we took two weeks worth of pictures (basically when there was zero bump - just some nice bloating). But then morning sickness set in, and... welll... let's just say that everything went down hill pretty fast after that : )

Next time I am prego, I'm going to document every week of it in pictures. I promise. Every stretch mark. Every yellowish-purplish bruise from my Heparin injections. Every strange shape my belly button takes. Because no matter how uncomfortable it is at the time, it's something we only get to experience a few times in our lives. And it's BEAUTIFUL! I may even commemorate the whole thing with a belly cast right before birth. Ok... that may be crossing the line... but we'll see!

I actually wanted to do that - create a belly cast - before I gave birth to Paige. I saw Kendra Wilkinson do it on her TV show (don't judge! : ) ) So I went out to Michael's Craft Store, picked up all the supplies, and sprung the idea on my unsuspecting husband the next evening when he arrived home from work. I even had the Kendra episode cued up on the DVR and played it back so he could see how "magical" it was. Let it be known that Daniel isn't very artsy nor crafty, and after 9 long months of my craziness, the thought of putting plaster of paris over my bare belly in the middle of our living room pushed him over the edge. Actually, I think it was my comment that I wanted to hang the belly cast - painted in metallic bronze like an ancient Greek sculpture - in our entryway once complete that really frosted his cookies. **SIDE NOTE: I always wondered what would be the final straw to what he was willing to do while I was prego... and this, my friends, was it! My luck had run out**  Two days later I was admitted to the hospital, and then... no more belly to make a cast of! Although a cast of my still swollen uterus may have been interesting... YEAH RIGHT!!! Wow... I really digressed there! : ) Anywho...

So in an effort to make up for my lack of photo memories as a prego, I've created an album on the Sweet Leigh Mama Blog Facebook Page where all the pregos and mamas can post their belly pics. Fun, right? I posted one of my own belly to start... a photo that until now has remained locked far, far away.... So please add your pics ASAP so I'm not the only fool in there : ) (If you can't add directly to the album, upload to the wall and I'll move them over!)


Yaaaaaaaay bellies!