This may seem a little too obvious, but
depending on how you deliver your news this can be very exciting or very scary.
Even for women who have been trying to conceive, I think all women experience a
little (or a lot) of panic the moment they see that test come out positive. I
can’t stress enough how important it is to gather your emotions before breaking
the news to your partner. Not only did you just find out your life has taken a
complete 180 degree turn, but your hormones are running a muck making you about
emotionally developed as a fifteen year old girl during her first break up. For
the love of God woman, control yourself! Just kidding.
Some women like to set up a cute way to tell
their partner they’re expecting, this was my orginal plan. After I stopped
crying (tears of joy, of course) I got on Etsy and found a little onesie that
said, “My Daddy is a Firefighter.” I purchased it on the spot and couldn’t wait
for him to get home from his fire and open it up along with my ClearBlue
pregnancy test. However, he informed me later that night over the phone that he
was being extended which meant I had to keep this a secret for over a week! I’m
not good at keeping secrets… so I asked him to FaceTime me and I broke the news
over the phone while still being able to see his face. By this time, I had
already gathered my emotions and been to the doctor to confirm my pregnancy. It
ended up being perfect and he couldn’t have been more excited, but for the next
go around I want to find a more creative way to tell him.
2.
Don’t be
afraid to tell everyone
This is a subject matter of great importance to
me. When I first started to tell people I was pregnant, I was only seven weeks
along. I found a lot of people thinking that it was necessary to tell me to
keep it a secret until after my first trimester. This is a norm that needs to
be broken. Miscarriage is so common (about 50%), and when you tell a woman to
keep her pregnancy a secret you are setting her up to live in fear of the
unknown. Personally, if I did have a miscarriage I wouldn’t want to go through
it alone. The more support, the better. I am also a HUGE believer in energy and
the more people you tell, the more positivity and excitement surrounds your
little bundle of joy. Some women choose to just tell close friends and family
and not announce it on social media until after thirteen weeks, that works too!
The point is that it is a CHOICE. If you feel like you want to tell the world,
then do it! Don’t let old traditions keep you from being excited.
3.
Get on
Pinterest
If you haven’t joined the wonderful world of
Pinterest already, now is the time to do so. Start creating boards that get you
excited for baby. Chances are, you are feeling like crap all day and the lack
of appetite and constant fatigue is starting to make you go insane. I would
normally tell someone to start a new hobby or craft, but you may not have the
energy to do that just yet. It gets better, I promise! This is where Pinterest
comes in handy. You can plan projects for when you are feeling better. I think
I spent an average of three hours a day on Pinterest looking up nursery ideas,
mom blogs, DIY art projects, etc. to distract me from how awful I felt in the
first trimester. Now I am in my second trimester and starting to complete those
projects and begin new ones!
4.
Plan your
baby announcement
I had way too much fun with this one. I bought a
cheap chalkboard off of Amazon, with some chalk markers and got to work on
ideas. We decided to announce our pregnancy in October so a pumpkin had to be
incorporated, duh. This is a fun activity to involve your partner in as well,
they will most likely be just as excited as you are. Bounce your ideas off each
other and find one that works for both of you. If you decide to just put up a
picture of your ultrasound on Facebook, that works too. Personally, I find it
to be way more fun planning a simple photo shoot (this is where the self-timer
function comes in handy) and again, it helps distract you from feeling like
crap.
5.
Research
We all know that parenting comes with it’s own
set of troubles that no one can prevent. Being a parent is hard, or so I have
heard. But doing your research on certain topics and being firm in your
decision can make it just a little easier. These topics range from small to
huge, but they all need to be talked about. Breastfeeding, vaccinations, circumcision,
delayed cord clamping, homemade baby food, cloth or disposable diapers, or
something as simple as the color of the nursery. Make sure that both you and your
partner do your research on all of these topics and stand firm in your
decisions before you have to make them. Look at the pros and cons of both
sides, and decide which works best for your family. As important as it is to
talk to your physician about all concerns, keep in mind that at the end of the
day they are a business. Sometimes, their opinions will differ from your
intuition as a mother and I strongly encourage you to listen to that intuition.
Take the nine months of preparing for your little miracle and get informed, you
won’t regret it.
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