The Baby Bump

November 27, 2011
I never understood why people were so anxious to get their bump. Of course it’s cute, and yes, it shows the world that you are carrying a child inside of you. It’s a way to shout to the world, “I’m becoming a mother—look at what my body is doing right now!”. But the allure, so to speak, just did not quite make sense. I have to buy new clothes. I have to worry about bumping yet another body part on everything I come across. I have to carry this growing bump around for another few months, hurting my back, feet, and everything else. I'm clumsy enough without it!
But then I got pregnant, and everything changed. I long for that bump not only to tell the world that there is a miracle growing inside of me, but so I do not go back to my inevitable thought process of this growing gut meaning I need to return to the gym or lay off the junk food. It’s a hard mind-set to change. My husband’s grandmother told me at church last week, “You are starting to look thicker in your middle”. While I understand this is meant to be a compliment, it was all I could do not to snap back and say, “Well I am growing a person, and all I can seem to
stomach is comfort food, let alone a workout”. No, alas, these new comments are meant to be compliments, and I should be ever-so-thankful that people know I’m pregnant and do not attribute it to laziness. And even if they do think I’m lounging around, I’m ALLOWED to be lazy for the first time in my life. I should take this excuse and run with it!
Now I’m sure the day will come where these comments become compliments to my mind, and I respond, grinning ear-to-ear, “I know! Thank you!” But that day’s not today. It’s probably nicer to tell a newly pregnant woman she appears tired, or sick. For now, I’ll take them all in stride,
remembering our cognitive restructuring that I have learned through school…”being told I’m thick or getting bigger means I have a HEALTHY baby growing inside of me”. One day…