What should a pregnant woman look like?

Women get pregnant and give birth everyday, but somehow pregnancy feels miraculous because it's happening to little ol' me.  I find myself rubbing my belly, imagining our baby's face and personality and thinking about how different life will look by the end of the year. 

Thanks to a Facebook memory, I was reminded that I once said I didn't think I would have children and that it would take a good man to change my mind (shoutout to Mr. Everett 😊). The post was written after hanging out with my friends boys, who at the time were one and two. 

But dear friends, we must chat about this whole pregnancy thing and make a clear PSA: pregnancy impacts each woman differently. Even more intriguing: the same woman can experience pregnancy differently in regards to how much weight she gains and how she carries the baby. I'm nearly 6 feet tall and weighed 165 pounds pre-pregnancy. 24 weeks into this amazing journey and I've gained about 15 pounds. "Oh, you just look like you ate" is probably one of the most common things I've heard about being pregnant and while it's not offensive, it is slightly dismissive of this tremendous task of carrying life. Admit it, our idea of a pregnancy, even at conception, is that of a waddling woman, carrying an additional 50 pounds. 

I'm thankful in so many ways: our baby girl is healthy, growing as she should and thus far, my pre-pregnancy clothes still fit. Only in the last month have I been asked, "When are you due?" 
Instead of comparing pregnancies, let's look at this task for what it is: amazing, miraculous and hard, yet rewarding work!