What were your biggest pregnancy surprises and pet peeves?

Lucky you if you actually know how to fight for your seat—I’m terrible at that kind of thing 🤣 But hey, you’ve gotta stand up for yourself sometimes, right? 👍

Personally, I don't mind people touching my belly—it's actually pretty sweet because I know that's my first instinct whenever I see a pregnant friend. Though, I have to admit, people usually approach me a bit cautiously when they want to touch my stomach—probably just trying to gauge if I'm okay with it 🤣
My mom even patted my belly three different times 😁

But I guess I only truly get why it's annoying before you actually have a bump to deal with.

Honestly, it’s been driving me nuts lately—friends and acquaintances just won't stop blowing up my phone asking how things are going, if I've had the baby yet, or when my due date is. I know, I get it, people forget stuff—but seriously... 🤦 at this rate, I think most people would prefer a formal written notice once I actually start going through labor. I really just want to tell everyone: you'll find out when the baby arrives, so please, don't worry too much.

So, I just hit the 9-week mark, and we made a pact to tell only our immediate circle—parents and siblings—with a huge "please don't spread this" disclaimer. Well, clearly, nobody listens! Just yesterday, I get a random text from my uncle's second cousin—someone I barely even say hi to in passing—congratulating me. She found out from my Grandma, who is basically a walking thunderstorm of negativity that I can hardly stand to talk to, and apparently, my dad was the one who leaked it to her. My dad and I haven't spoken in a decade, so there's that. Grandma is honestly such a nightmare to deal with.
Then, in the afternoon, my husband gets congratulated by his mother's first cousin once removed—a woman I’ve literally only met twice in my entire life—who then proceeds to give him a full-blown lecture on pregnancy. His mom told her explicitly that we wanted to keep this quiet! She calls me to ask if she can tell her brother, and then immediately blabs to a complete stranger.
Lesson learned. The next time anyone hears news about this baby, it'll be when they're actually born.
I’m being extra careful because I’m older, this is my first baby, and after 11 years of marriage, I am beyond exhausted from being judged by every single family member and acquaintance about why we didn't have kids sooner. I am seriously over it.
I feel absolutely terrible.

Grace Richardson said:So, I just hit the 9-week mark, and we made a pact to tell only our immediate circle—parents and siblings—with a huge "please don't spread this" disclaimer. Well, clearly, nobody listens! Just yesterday, I get a random text from my uncle's second cousin—someone I barely even say hi to in passing—congratulating me. She found out from my Grandma, who is basically a walking thunderstorm of negativity that I can hardly stand to talk to, and apparently, my dad was the one who leaked it to her. My dad and I haven't spoken in a decade, so there's that. Grandma is honestly such a nightmare to deal with.
Then, in the afternoon, my husband gets congratulated by his mother's first cousin once removed—a woman I’ve literally only met twice in my entire life—who then proceeds to give him a full-blown lecture on pregnancy. His mom told her explicitly that we wanted to keep this quiet! She calls me to ask if she can tell her brother, and then immediately blabs to a complete stranger.
Lesson learned. The next time anyone hears news about this baby, it'll be when they're actually born.
I’m being extra careful because I’m older, this is my first baby, and after 11 years of marriage, I am beyond exhausted from being judged by every single family member and acquaintance about why we didn't have kids sooner. I am seriously over it.
I feel absolutely terrible.

Oh man, that is exactly what happened to me.
It’s been the same exhausting battle for three years now, dealing with IVF and everything else that comes with it. When I finally saw that positive test, I told nobody but my mom, and she was wonderful—she didn't breathe a word to anyone until I gave her the green light, not even to my dad.
But then my husband, caught up in all the excitement, went ahead and told his mom, and I didn't even freak out at first because I figured, hey, if I felt the need to tell my mom, he probably felt the same way about his.
But boy, was I wrong! Right before Easter, he tells her, making sure to emphasize that it is WAY too early and that she absolutely needs to stay quiet for at least a month. And wouldn't you know it? The very next day, on Easter, every single relative who called to wish us a happy holiday had already heard the big news.
And get this—they told me it like I was "MAYBE" pregnant or something! Great. Now I look like an idiot who doesn't even know if she's actually pregnant or not.

Total lesson learned on my end, too. But, on the bright side, I haven't had a single question from my mother-in-law about the pregnancy since that day. And honestly, I hope it stays that way forever! If she tries to ask me anything, she's going to have a very bad time.

But please, don't feel bad about yourself. This is your pregnancy, it's your joy, and you should try to soak up every single second of it. Try your best to build a wall so these things don't get under your skin. I’m the same way, but I’m trying to learn how to just channel all that energy into something else instead. 🙂

I see someone already mentioned her dad blurted out the news way too early. Honestly, my old man isn't usually the type to brag or anything, but he went ahead and told everyone he knew—he even brought it up at a friend's funeral (talk about awkward). It's pretty morbid, I guess, but he's just a clumsy guy. I can't really hold it against him since I know he’s just stoked about becoming a Grandpa. 🙂

Then there's this one friend. I love her, but I'm finally seeing how shallow she actually is. She keeps asking me how I'm "coping," as if I've been diagnosed with some terminal illness. She keeps insisting she could never do this and that she doesn't want to be one of those "moms who stop living once they have a kid." Like, seriously? That was a little too much.

What gets under my skin most is my partner, who still hasn't started making any actual changes, like cleaning up after himself. Sure, he respects my cravings and will hit up Taco Bell at 1 AM because I'm dying for some Nuggets... but what am I supposed to do? Just tolerate everything?

And then there are those comments like, "You're talking too much, you must be having a boy..." That stuff just makes me laugh; it doesn't even bother me.

Maybe the most annoying thing is people asking, "Why are you still working??" My job is remote and computer-based, so I don't get it. They're all like, "Don't get stressed, it's bad for the baby." Look, I know they mean well, but I'm not getting stressed on purpose. This is just my life; I have a bit of a temper, and nobody should expect me to suddenly become this serene, Zen woman overnight. I'm doing my best for my little baby, but people seem to think this whole transformation happens in a single day.

Since my stomach is a bit bigger, I don't really mind people staring because I always end up being first in line at the bank, the pharmacy, or the DMV. On the bus, I just pray someone younger offers me their seat because I'm honestly terrified of falling down. One girl rolled her eyes at me, but then her friend chimed in and told her I was pregnant, which led to them asking me all about the pregnancy, my sex life, and even what I'm naming the baby, haha.

People touching my belly doesn't bother me... it feels like kindness and happiness... I haven't had much physical contact lately anyway...

Nothing, absolutely nothing; unfortunately, I was really looking forward to those quirky little questions women tend to ask, mostly because I enjoyed coming up with my own answers even more.

But honestly, nobody has bothered to question me or throw any strange scenarios my way.

Only three people have actually touched on the topic of my stomach, and they were all pretty close to me. As for what exactly they asked... well, it doesn't really matter. Not one single soul has asked me what we’ll do with the dog once the baby arrives—which is exactly what I was hoping to discuss.

So, all things considered, it's been quiet on that front so far.

Strollers, baby supplies, nothing at all—not a word from anyone.

Honestly, nothing really got under my skin. Nobody was constantly breathing down my neck asking a million questions during the pregnancy, even though it was people I’m super close with. Didn't get any annoying comments either. Just a few family members checking in to see if we'd picked out a name yet. Only person who actually rubbed my belly was my mom. That was pretty much it.

Honestly, I’ve reached a point where even having my stomach touched doesn't bother me nearly as much as reading comments from people with the IQ of 🙄

Ohhh, just a little bit longer, right? Nope, still three months to go... oh man, you poor thing, you're stuck in this until the very end...

Oooooh, twins, huh? 🙄

restlessmoose73 said:Honestly, I’ve reached a point where even having my stomach touched doesn't bother me nearly as much as reading comments from people with the IQ of 🙄

Ohhh, just a little bit longer, right? Nope, still three months to go... oh man, you poor thing, you're stuck in this until the very end...

Oooooh, twins, huh? 🙄

What gets to me most is my 8-year-old girl talking to my stomach all day long. She doesn't even call me Mom anymore; she just calls me "Baby" or Taylor Swift.

Everything is just getting on my nerves lately—absolutely everything and everyone. It’s especially frustrating because I have this ultrasound image of my baby's bottom and genitals, yet the doctor can't even tell if it's a boy or a girl. 😠I had no idea determining whether there's actually a penis present was such high-level science! To make matters worse, she tells me she thinks it's a girl because she sees a "hamburger." A hamburger. And I actually paid for that opinion. Honestly, I should have just stuffed the cash in my pocket and gone to grab an actual burger instead.
On top of that, my little one's bladder won't empty properly, which makes getting a clear view on the scan even harder.
Can anyone help me make sense of this ultrasound? 🙂

Roger Rodriguez said:Everything is just getting on my nerves lately—absolutely everything and everyone. It’s especially frustrating because I have this ultrasound image of my baby's bottom and genitals, yet the doctor can't even tell if it's a boy or a girl. 😠I had no idea determining whether there's actually a penis present was such high-level science! To make matters worse, she tells me she thinks it's a girl because she sees a "hamburger." A hamburger. And I actually paid for that opinion. Honestly, I should have just stuffed the cash in my pocket and gone to grab an actual burger instead.
On top of that, my little one's bladder won't empty properly, which makes getting a clear view on the scan even harder.
Can anyone help me make sense of this ultrasound? 🙂

What week is this?
Is this it?
😁
The second one, the side view, I think is around 12 weeks. They both look like they've got a little something going on, looks like steps lol

Joshua Myers9 said:What week is this?
Is this it?
😁
The second one, the side view, I think is around 12 weeks. They both look like they've got a little something going on, looks like steps lol

I actually just Googled this myself. 16 weeks. In the first photo, it looks like a girl because of that line down the middle, but there's also something sticking out. It's a total toss-up. 😁

In the second shot, everything is leveled out, so nothing is poking out. I got a little carried away during the ultrasound and told the doctor I thought it was a boy, even without my glasses on, only for her to tell me it was just a leg.
Later, looking at the photo, I realized it was just a leg 🙄 and nothing was actually protruding. With my first son, I didn't have to guess or search online at all since his "antenna" was clearly visible by around 14 weeks.

Roger Rodriguez said:I actually just Googled this myself. 16 weeks. In the first photo, it looks like a girl because of that line down the middle, but there's also something sticking out. It's a total toss-up. 😁

In the second shot, everything is leveled out, so nothing is poking out. I got a little carried away during the ultrasound and told the doctor I thought it was a boy, even without my glasses on, only for her to tell me it was just a leg.
Later, looking at the photo, I realized it was just a leg 🙄 and nothing was actually protruding. With my first son, I didn't have to guess or search online at all since his "antenna" was clearly visible by around 14 weeks.

🤣 😍
By the next appointment, you'll know for sure! Honestly, I'm putting my money on a girl! 😁

I guess the pregnancy was what caught me off guard the most, though I have to say, this constant nausea is really starting to get under my skin. 😁

Joshua Myers9 said:🤣 😍
By the next appointment, you'll know for sure! Honestly, I'm putting my money on a girl! 😁

I’m starting to believe her too—when the doctor said she wouldn't make a call unless she was absolutely certain, it felt sincere. Not that it really matters to me, but I’d love to finally have a name so I can start visualizing our future together.
Though, I have been reading that some women don't find out until after the 30th week just because the baby refuses to settle into the right position.

Robin Adams24 said:I guess the pregnancy was what caught me off guard the most, though I have to say, this constant nausea is really starting to get under my skin. 😁

Aren't you being modest? 😁 I’m still dealing with it myself; I’ve actually gotten so used to feeling sick that it feels strange when I wake up and *don't* feel like throwing up. I really hope it passes for you soon so you can finally feel like yourself again! 😁

Roger Rodriguez said:I’m starting to believe her too—when the doctor said she wouldn't make a call unless she was absolutely certain, it felt sincere. Not that it really matters to me, but I’d love to finally have a name so I can start visualizing our future together.
Though, I have been reading that some women don't find out until after the 30th week just because the baby refuses to settle into the right position.

Aren't you being modest? 😁 I’m still dealing with it myself; I’ve actually gotten so used to feeling sick that it feels strange when I wake up and *don't* feel like throwing up. I really hope it passes for you soon so you can finally feel like yourself again! 😁

Oh man, I suppose it'll pass for you soon enough. 🙂
For me, the nausea started right along with a migraine, so I figured that was probably it. When it didn't go away after a few days, I assumed maybe it was just some bad takeout I'd eaten. 🤦😬
Once my period stayed missing longer than usual, I took a test, then another one, and both turned positive at the exact same moment... 😁

It seems like it's always worst in the mornings and evenings, I guess. It just feels like everything is sitting right in the back of my throat, waiting to come up. 😵

And honestly, my absolute terror of any kind of medical exam is making it impossible to even schedule an appointment. Just thinking about getting blood work done makes me start panicking and hyperventilating. 😢

Not really on topic, but man, what a great comparison! 😁
Right now, I’m dealing with this totally annoying situation...

Before you're pregnant—it's always "So, when are you guys finally going to get pregnant? What are you waiting for?"

While you're actually pregnant—people are like, "How can you have such bad morning sickness? Why are you being so sensitive?"

And then after the baby comes, it's the classic: "When's the next one coming? Don't wait too long..."

Basically, people can be total jerks. It's driving me crazy right now, and I just know it's gonna keep happening long after the pregnancy is over...

Oh please... first it’s "when are you having the first," then "what about the second," then "when comes the third"... For me, the absolute worst was being asked if we actually planned on having a third. Or if it just kind of happened?! Like, why do you even care

Is there a thread about what’s been driving us crazy since we gave birth?

Before I find one, please excuse me—I just have to get this off my chest. I wasn't even particularly irritable during my pregnancy, but now? I honestly can't wrap my head around people who just stare at a sleeping baby. What is the deal with staring at someone while they sleep? Whether it's a dog, a cat, or a person... seriously, don't you realize that if you stare at someone long enough, they're going to wake up?
When someone is sleeping, let them sleep. When they're eating, let them eat. And when they're busy having intimacy, well, just leave them alone, for goodness sake.