Things No One Told Me...

Everyone gives you advice when they learn you're pregnant. Everyone includes the mamas who adopted and tell you that you wouldn't know anything about infertility, the mamas who had children 20 years ago, 30, and even 60 years ago, and the mamas who were never mamas to their own children, but classrooms full.  The advice has always been welcomed, albeit most of it unsolicited.  Now that I am nearing the end, I realize that there are things no one tells you... or things that no one told me. 
1. No one told me that your shopping habits change drastically.  There's nothing I love more than shopping for my baby boy, when I used to love shopping for my clothes, home decor, etc.  I used to look for frilly shirts and cute shoes, and now my eyes are always peeled for something with ducks, or something to monogram, or something for Remington to wear. Current obsession, baby jackets:

2. No one told me that I would always have someone to talk to, whether friends or strangers, because of my belly.  Everyone at the doctor's office in the elevator asks if he is our first, how far along we are, and what his name is.  Friends ask how I'm feeling, how they can help, and relay excitement to meet our sweet baby.  
3.  No one told me how strange it feels to see your nose and your husband's lips and chin on another human, and to picture what that will look like in non-fuzzy black and white. No one told me how anxious I would be to know simply what color his hair is (now that I know he has a head full).  No one told me what it feels like to let your mind run through how incredible the whole process of pregnancy is, start to finish.  

4. No one told me what exactly the kicks and punches and pokes feel like. No one told me that they would always come when I was feeling down, scared, anxious, as if to remind me that he is there and loves me and isn't going anywhere.  When we had our scare at 12 weeks, he was there to cramp tight and remind me he was there.  When we had a scare with his heart, he backed his little butt up into my ribs to try to get as close to my heart to remind me he was okay. 
5. No one told me how much love you'll have for this little gummy bear looking blob on a screen that you meet at 8 weeks old, and how that love will grow and change the bigger he gets.  I don't have words for the love I feel for our son, and how much I can't wait to see Jackson hold him.  I have had a 9 month head start on keeping this child of ours safe, and I can't wait for Jackson to experience that feeling.