Upcoming Marathon?

I’m going to give you another marathon comparison – I’m a runner, so it is just habit.  If you don’t want to hear it, you may stop reading now.

On Monday night I was thinking about the fact that Tuesday – November 27^th - would be my due date.  I can’t believe the 40 weeks have flown that quickly.  It felt slow for a while there during the summer, but the last two months especially have really sped by.  And these thoughts got me thinking about the actual labor and delivery.  And then I started to feel it.  It’s a feeling I am very familiar with.  It’s not an awful feeling, but it very distinct. 

I felt the Night-before-a-marathon-dread. 

For those of you who have completed a race or many races, I know you know what feeling I’m talking about.

The night before a marathon I will always get everything ready for a quick prep in the morning.  And it hits me.  I know I have everything ready, I’ve trained for the race and I’m ready for it, and I know that the end of the race will bring great emotions of accomplishment, satisfaction and joy – I will be so glad I did it when it’s over.  But one thing looms over me: I have to run 26.2 miles tomorrow.  UGH!  This seemed like a great idea when I signed up for the race – but do I really want to do this? 

This feeling also hits me as I’m being bussed to the beginning of the race - especially if the bus route takes you on the race route.  Because you begin to realize how long 26.2 miles is. 

So this is how I’m feeling.  I’m ready for the labor and delivery, I’ve “trained” for it.  I know that completing it will yield a beautiful baby and a lifetime of joy…but there is still the fact that I have to go through the labor and delivery in order to see the end results.  And that is where the dread sets in. 

To combat this I’m just focusing on the sweet, beautiful little lady that will be arriving and that pushes the gloom aside and I get excited and happy about the “marathon” I have ahead of me.  I know it will be just fine, and I'll rock it.  

Wish me luck!

The Final Countdown

This is it.  The final 4 weeks.  I feel like I've been running a marathon, I'm on mile 23 and I only have 3.2 miles to go.   It is still a decent distance, but considering how far I've come, the finish line is so close I am anxious for it.  

I could compare pregnancy (and I'm sure the upcoming labor and delivery) to running a marathon all day.  And because I've tackled a full marathon 8 times already, I'm pretty sure I can handle what's looming down the road in less than 4 weeks.  

Overall I feel great.  I have some of the typical complaints, such as my back hurts, or I don't sleep particularly comfortably at night...but compared to many, I am fairing pretty well on the pregnancy home front.  In fact when people hear how far along I am and they say, "Oh, you are at the really uncomfortable stage" and I say, "Actually, I feel great."  I always get a weird look from them like I'm not normal.  

I'm sure as I get closer to the finish line I'll feel more miserable and can't wait to be done (there is another comparison for you) but I'm enjoying still feeling great for the time being.