8th October 2008

I Can’t Sleep - and Melina is Moving About at 5:30 a.m. 1 reply

It’s 5:30 a.m. and I can’t sleep.  The good news is that I’ve given into the mind and am now online, where my mind can do more than run rampant at this hour in the dark.  I’m in NYC, so that means I can hear the city awaken easily and know I”m not the only one up at this hour.  I’m rarely up at this hour for long.

I brought protein snacks with me, so if I got hungry in the middle of the night, Melina and I had could have some nourishment.  It’s funny what you can eat at eight months pregnancy at this hour while travelling.  Tuna snacks, right?  YUM.  I’m kinda kidding but not.

Melina is now bumping and grooving inside me, now that she’s had something to drink and eat.  I’m also out of what has become an extraordinarily uncomfortable position, and that’s side lying for hours at night.  I imagine when I’m more at ease, Melina is.  Your hip and shoulder joints are not meant to take the pressure of sleeping on your side at night with growing weight, and thus scream in protest from stiffness after a night’s sleep.  I’m up every hour or so throughout the night, and consider that it’s good the blood is flowing normally when I arise from bed.  However, the discomfort at this stage can sometimes be amazing.  I’ve decided that this is the real reason pregnant women cry  more at this stage - we’re exhausted!  I had friends over last night to watch the debate in my hotel room, and one of the ladies commented at how she remembers such discomfort at this stage in pregnancy.  She loved pregnancy but agreed that this stage is not so much fun.  You simply can not get comfortable, for long.  You find a comfortable spot, and then you transition moments later, but it’s causing a shooting pain, or numbness somewhere in your body, or your belly is just too big, too heavy.

However, despite the discomfort, in some strange way, you still feel beautiful.  To have the luxury of being pregnant, to feel a child moving in your womb, is amazing.  I get a kick out of what most of the men say in my life when they see me - “Uh, wow, geez….”  Now, guys, you are supposed to see a pregnant lady and see the beauty here too, regardless.  I mean do you know how many men we look at with beer bellies, some of which I might add are larger than a woman’s pregnant belly at 32 weeks????  Yet, despite the fact that we have to push out a turkey from our oven, or have the child surgically removed with a massive incision in our belly while we are awake no less, some men are incapable of seeing the beauty here, or for that matter saying so. 

Most women I know that are married, indicate that men are not so good at this, and that sympathy from the men in their lives while pregnant was slim or non-existent.  But thank goodness for women, because they look at you with love, admiration and yes, sympathy for what you’re feeling at this stage in the game.  In the meantime, because of this beauty that comes from within, this glow, I want to find a tasteful nude black and white photographer that captures this maternal essence which is God-given before it’s all over.  Some beautiful photography work, who are not necessarily close to me but truly have captured this stage of life in such beauty:

Linnea Lenkus - favorite photos captured below - too bad she is in California

A favorite shot with the innocence of a child reaching up to the mommy’s tummy - love this shot!

Another stunning shot - black and white photography - of black and white pregnant couple - absolutely beautiful!

A very maternal photo - of pregnant mother holding her young toddler

For newborn black and white photo - of mother and infant

A great father, newborn photo - yawning - great captured moment

The newborn family - raw beauty

Another photographer - Koren -

Maternal pregnancy shot of man and woman

Black and white nude photo of pregnant woman - Jennifer Loomis in California, New York

Shot with daughters and pregnant mother - draped - Jennifer Loomis

So - three  photographers - I salute you for capturing the beauty of pregnancy, with or without men - thank you for your tasteful display of such art.

In closing, women - thank you for your understanding of pregnant women - if you’ve been here, you get it

Men - see the beauty in a pregnant woman - without her, you would not have been born, nor can you be in fact re-born.  Better yet, not only recognize the beauty, but say it.

One Response to “I Can’t Sleep - and Melina is Moving About at 5:30 a.m.”

  1. susan shepherd says:
    October 10th, 2008 at 11:51 am

    Hey Laura,

    I must be one of the lucky ones. My husband thought I looked beautiful when pregnant. I used to get hit on a lot when I was pregnant. Everyone is different I know.
    One thing I did for both my pregnancies was had belly casts made. It was kind of fun actually. With my first one a friend of ours who is an artist/puppeteer made the cast. It was easy. First you put vaseline all over your breasts and belly and then you drape strips of guaze soaked in plaster of paris around the part you want to cast. After it dries a bit you remove it to dry even more. Then you have a cast of your belly.

    Ian helped me do it the second time. I just sat down in front of the fire with a glass of wine and he did it. Weird huh? Now I have these 2 casts in my basement of my pregnant belly with each child. What I’ll do with them I don’t know, but it’s kind of fun to see how my body looked when I was pregnant. Here’s a site that has something similar.

    http://www.proudbody.com/index.jsp

    Of course photos are easier. Enjoy this because it is a miracle.

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