Me and My First Baby meme

For all you mommies out there...feel free to have at it!

1. Were you married at the time? Yes - 11 months

2. What were your reactions when you found out you were pregnant/approved? Very pleasantly surprised, then elated, then overjoyed

3. How old were you? 25 throughout

4. How did you find out you were pregnant? Home test

5. Who did you tell first? My Beloved, of course - I have never seen someone blush from the neck up before. It was adorable. Once I was sure he wasn't suffering an aneurysm

6. Did you want to find out the sex? Oh yes

7. Due date/Expected arrival date: 2/28

8. Did you deliver/meet your child early or late? Induced 2 weeks early due to pre-eclampsia

9. Did you have morning sickness/anxiety? Only a little queasiness for a short time (the only throwing up was the result of ill-advised guzzling some diet grapefruit soda because I was out of ginger ale). Unlike many expectant women, I am actually at my nicest, happiest, and calmest when pregnant. No hormonal moody stuff, which I think some women take way too much advantage of. Same thing with cravings and overeating. Of all times to be selfish and unreasonable...I mean, you've got the miracle of life growing inside you! How does that entitle you to be awful to other people or become a glutton? But I guess I'm in the minority on that one.

10. What did you crave? Tuna on wheat sandwiches throughout, apple pie with vanilla ice cream at the very end. (Kid #2 was carne asada burritos, just the meat, with sour cream added, chocolate milkshakes, and fresh strawberries - all of which were in perpetual supply in Southern California, thank goodness)

11. Who irritated you the most? See #9. Generally, any stranger under the age of 80 who grabs your belly needs to be slapped, however.

12. What was your first child’s sex? Girly-girl

13. How many pounds did you gain throughout the pregnancy? Unfair. I gained 30 in the first 7.5 months, then in the last 6 weeks when the pre-eclampsia hit, I gained at least another 30 of pure fluid retention. I stopped looking at the scale after awhile. Fortunately most of the water gain came right off. The rest took awhile.

14. Did you have any complications during your pregnancy? Pre-eclampsia (fluid retention, high blood pressure, horribly swollen hands, legs, and feet)

15. Where did you give birth? Hospital

16. How many hours were you in labour? 36!!! (Induced at 7 pm, gave birth at 7 am 2 days later.)

17. Who drove you to the hospital? The Beloved

18. Who watched/went with you? Same

19. Was it vaginal or c-section? The former

20. Did you take medicine to ease the pain/self medicate to calm your nerves? Oh yeah - epidural followed by morphine. I am not a pain person, I have no shame and absolutely no desire to prove how tough and she-womanly I am where there's meds to be had. I'm tough enough in other ways.

21. How much did your child weigh? 6 lbs 14 oz.

22. What did you name him/her? Due to my privacy policy when it comes to my kids and the 'net, I will only say it is a lovely, classical, Old Testament name that I picked when I was 7. When the Beloved and I were engaged and in preliminary childbearing negotiations, I told him I already had a name picked for a girl. He said that was too bad, because he had a name that he'd chosen long ago, and I'd have to either pick that, or we'd have to have more than one girl (duh!). I pulled the "if I'm carrying the kid, I'm naming her" card, so he'd better let me know what name he thought his second daughter might be allowed to have. Turns out it was the same name I'd always wanted. (Awwwww!!!)

23. How old is your first child today? 14 and fabulous