Looking ahead

Cradle by the bed, ready for baby

As we get closer and closer to our due date, I find myself fantasizing about all the ordinary things we’ll be able to do again soon. Here’s a little list of things I am looking forward to.

I can’t wait to eat sushi. I’ve craved it throughout my whole pregnancy and instead have settled for smoked and cooked fish (so not the same!). I am eager to enjoy a tiger tail roll (yummy mango, avocado, tuna and salmon) and probably some sort of spicy tuna thing as well. I wouldn’t mind having a couple sips of hot sake too.

I am starting to get really excited about getting back into shape. We went for a (very short) walk yesterday at the park and the thought that we’ll be back there soon as a family made me giddy. I am so ready to resume my runs! (Plus, I love having a solid hour set aside to spend and chat with David!) I know that it will probably take a while to get back to my pre-pregnancy workout routine, that I need to work my way back up to walking the 5 miles first (darn bedrest!) before I can even begin to focus on running them, but I am so looking forward to it. Last night I even dreamed about running in the park. Can’t wait.

I miss my yoga classes! Love that social time in addition to how important it is for my physical health and emotional wellbeing. David and I have been reading several books about doing yoga with babies, so it will be extra fun to combine two loves and do yoga together as a family. In the meantime, I’ve started to introduce a few yoga poses into my daily home routine now that I can move around again. Everything feels so different and I can’t tell if it’s because the baby is just so much bigger or if it’s because s/he is in position in my pelvis or if I have just forgotten what the poses feel like having taken a month break. My balance is also completely different now that there is all this extra weight in the front! I think the baby has grown a lot recently.

I want to eat soft cheeses again. I think a splurge of baked brie something is required for the week after I give birth and I can’t wait to have some raw cheeses too. (Hey, I need to increase my calorie intake while breastfeeding… I might as well be eating the good stuff!)

And, of course, all of the ordinary things that are about to change drastically with the addition of a little one. I think it’s going to be those in-between moments, those “just us” alone times, that will be the most wonderful. The moments together as a family before we go to sleep or just after we wake up or when we cuddle on the couch or read a book together or dance around the house. When I greet David at the door after a yoga class or when he gets home from work, he won’t be kissing just me and my belly, he’ll be kissing me and our little one. We’ll be rushing to the door to welcome Daddy home. Totally chokes me up. And feels me with excitement. All these everyday and ordinary, yet extraordinary, moments filled with love. I imagine that it will be these times together that will be extra special with our plus one.