Before, during and after pregnancy

I have some funny observations about how different things can seem before, during and after pregnancy and thought I would share them:

1) Bathroom Breaks
    - before pregnancy you want to find the cleanest stall, even if it's the last one and someone is in it and you have to wait for it; or you want to find the cleanest gas station, even if that means you have to drive an extra mile and your bladder is about to explode...you wait
    - during pregnancy you hit the first stall running and barely are able to pull your pants down or you'll use the restroom on the side of the road if you have to (no I never had to do this), but whatever you have to do, you do it quickly without thinking about cleanliness
    - after pregnancy...I think I just went in my pants...hahahaha, no really, after pregnancy you have to wait until diapers are changed, baby's been fed and is asleep and you can find someone to watch him for just a short moment while you dash to the restroom and go so quickly you'd think the house was on fire!

2) Eating
    - before pregnancy you ate when you wanted to, at your own schedule, it didn't matter but you didn't have to worry about anyone but yourself, never wondering just what that spicy Chinese food might do to you or those hot wings and how you might feel in a few hours
    - during pregnancy you eat everything in sight from sun up to sun down, usually throwing most of it back up from the morning sickness or it just not agreeing with the baby; you worry that everything you put in your mouth might be bad for the baby
    - after pregnancy...you eat in shifts, and you eat so fast people think you are in a food eating contest and of course this is after diapers are done and baby's been fed...so if you even get to eat is an accomplishment in itself!

3) Sleeping
    - ahhhhh before pregnancy you could go to sleep when you wanted, sleep however you wanted, wherever you waned and for hours on end, nothing could wake you up and you could snuggle up with a pillow and be just ever so comfortable
    - during pregnancy everyone tells you to get your sleep while you can because once the baby is here you won't ever sleep again; in your first trimester you are woken up by sickness and running to the restroom, in your second trimester you are beginning to fill out and it's beginning to get hard to get comfortable, and in your final trimester you are so larger you can only manage to "cat-nap" on your back which usually leads to you snoring or tossing and turning which leads to your spouse kicking you to the couch...sleep is something you fantasize about at this point
    - after pregnancy it really is true, BUT, it can be made easy...you can get sleep if you are smart, get on your baby's schedule...of course there are those moments where you wake up at every sound the baby makes, then you wake up when they don't make a sound to make sure they are still breathing, then it's time for a diaper change and then it's time to feed...yea sleep doesn't exist at this point anymore, it's a figment of your imagination

4) Moods and Emotions
    - before pregnancy you are the angel, always happy and not a care in the world
    - during pregnancy you are the biggest witch in the world but you get to blame it on the pregnancy hormones and everyone understands, you have a very short fuse and it doesn't take much to set you off and when that happens...Lord help us all!
    - after pregnancy your filter is pretty much gone and at this point you really don't care anymore and "because I said so" is a permanent statement in your vocabulary; you are a constant basket case and think you are the craziest person in the world and that it's never happened to anyone but you!

5) Your Personal Life
    - before pregnancy you can pack up and go on a vacation at a moment's notice, you can go out to dinner and drinks and even a movie and it's ok; you don't have to check your schedule, it's always free for something
    - during pregnancy you slow down a bit, you obviously can't go out and drink but dinner and movies are a must just at a slower pace, vacations are ok too, you just have to make sure it's between weeks 12-30; your schedule consists of eating...bathroom...eating...propping feet up...eating...bathroom again...and maybe a little bit of sleep here or there
    - after pregnancy YOUR LIFE AS YOU KNOW IT HAS JUST BEGUN...PERIOD!

When I was a little girl I couldn't wait to grow up and be married and have kids, once I was pregnant I began to wonder just how much a child would change everything, now that he's here, I can't imagine my life ever without him. I never knew I could love someone so much so instantaneously! I carried him for 9 months, I felt his first movements, or when he didn't like what I was doing or eating, or when he thought it was fun to push on mommy's bladder...then I held him those first moments he was born...not exactly the birth we had planned for but I have a healthy baby boy to show for the delivery I had. I've seen him laugh, and cry - and I've laughed and cried some too, but I honestly can't imagine how I got on with my life before this handsome lil' man came into it.