37 weeks. How have 37 weeks passed so quickly? I will have a baby in about 2 weeks time!

When I first found out I was pregnant I thought the following 8 months would be the longest 8 months of my life.

Imagine booking the most incredible holiday of your life and then the excitement of having to wait 8 months for it. And then multiply that feeling by about 75 million and you can pretty much imagine what it feels like to be waiting for your baby.

I was so excited/nervous/scared/excited/terrified that I was on the verge of bursting. But once I got over the shock and excitement of being pregnant my life pretty much went back to normal. I carried on travelling and working and hanging out with my friends and before I knew it I was 30 weeks pregnant. I know this is boring that’s pretty much what happened.

I’d planned to blog more about my pregnancy but – in the very best way possible – I’ve had nothing to say. Yes, I’ve felt tired and sometimes emotional but other than that I’ve had a wonderfully stress-free and uneventful pregnancy. I haven’t had any weird cravings, strange dreams, hysterical mood swings or too much ‘baby brain’. I’m just me. Me but with less wine and stretchier pants.

It wasn’t until I got to 30 weeks pregnant that I started to really feel pregnant. Bump had a growth spurt which slowed me down and I’ve been getting slower and waddilier (surely, that’s a word?) ever since. Up until around the 30 week mark I had a really small bump. I actually had to go for check-up scans because my bump was so small. Everything was fine and the baby was the perfect size so I’m still not really sure why I was so small.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned during pregnancy it’s that everyone is different. No two pregnancies are the same and you can never compare two women. You have to sit back and relax and trust that your body knows that it’s doing.

Here are some other things that I’ve learned, loved and hated during pregnancy.

Things I’ve loved about being pregnant

Mainly the bit about the baby coming at the end of it

Everyone is really, really nice to you. All the time. It’s awesome.

Not having to pick up dog poop (I told Sam pregnant women aren’t meant to do this and he hasn’t allowed to clean up any dog poop from the garden ever since. I’m not even sure if it’s true. Shhhhh.)

The amazement that my body knows how to grow a baby. Blows my mind.

Glossy hair – I wasn’t sure if this was an old wives tale but you really do have rather fabulous hair while you’re pregnant. Allow me to boast because I usually have shit hair.

My friends and family – The love, support and encouragement I’ve felt for my friends and family has been amazing. I don’t know what I’d do without them and I feel like a new baby in our family has brought us so much closer. My brother’s fiancé is also expecting so we have double the excitement!

The hiccups – Baby has the hiccups at least once a day and I love it. For those few hiccupping minutes, my bump stops being a bump and I can imagine a real baby in my belly. This is also a good time for other people to feel the baby moving and I love seeing the look on their face when they feel him for the first time.

Wearing yoga pants - All the time. I didn't buy any maternity clothing, mainly because it's  hideous, frumpy, overpriced and made me look like a whale. But also because I didn't have much of a bump until I was 32 weeks and it felt pointless buying clothes to wear for 8 weeks. So instead I spent virtually all of my time in yoga pants and gym clothes. The beauty of workout clothes is that when people see you they assume you're fit and healthy and you've been working out. You look all sporty when in fact, you're actually wearing head to toe spanks that are just slight step up from wearing PJs.

Having this conversation:

Friend: "What have you been doing today?"

Me: 'Ah you know, just busy growing a baby."

In reality I've done nothing all day but there's no way they compete with that. I can then sit back smugly because this is the only time in my life I could spend all day watching TV and eating cake without feeling guilty. I'm not going to be able to do this again until I'm about 80.

Things I’ve learned

You don’t need to have a drink to have a good time. I’ve had so many nights out during my pregnancy and I can honestly say I’ve had just as much fun whilst sober as I would while drinking. I’ll never be a teetotaller but I’ll definitely be drinking less once baby arrives.

People are really nice – Like I said, everyone is really nice to pregnant women but I’ve been blow away by the kindness of complete strangers.

You can have too much advice – Everyone has a different opinion on everything. I’ve stopped reading baby books because they all offer worryingly conflicting advice. You really just need to trust your instincts and figure out what’s best for you (while smiling through gritted teeth as someone doles out more well-meaning advice).

 

Things I haven’t enjoyed about being pregnant

The tiredness – I’m bored of being tired now. I want to stay up past 10pm and I want to walk further than a mile without getting puffed out.

The lung capacity – I feel like my lungs have halved in size. If I get too excited while I’m telling a story I get puffed out!

Night time pees – Peeing every 3 hours during the day I can handle. Peeing every 3 hours during the night I can’t.

The lack of exercise – It’s a mixture of laziness and worry and physical exhaustion that stops most people exercising during pregnancy. I’ve continued to walk as much as I can but I haven’t done any ‘proper exercise’. I’m not beating myself up about this but I really can’t wait to get back to the gym and go to spin class or for a swim. That’s something I never thought I’d say.

The wanderlust – Sometimes I actually feel like wanderlust is a condition. It takes over your mind until you can think of nothing else but travelling and exploring and seeing new places. I haven’t been away since early December and I don’t plan to go abroad for a few months after the baby is born and the wanderlust is driving me insane.

 Literally 'all bump'. It looks like I have a balloon up my top.

Things I’m looking forward to

Travelling with the baby! I don’t have too much booked yet but I’m so excited for his first trip abroad. We have a few UK trips booked for the summer but his first time on a plane is going to be really exciting.

Taking some time off. If you read my post about the truths of being a travel blogger you will have seen that right up there at number 1 is the fact that bloggers don’t have holidays. I’m not complaining because I love being a blogger but I am looking forward to closing my laptop and keeping it closed for a couple of weeks. The first few weeks are going to be all about the baby.

Sorry for the distinct lack of bump pictures. I hate having my photo taken at the best of times so I've become a little camera shy this last month.