You're Really Pregnant.

I’ve hit a new level of being pregnant today. I went to the grocery store and finished checking out and the lady turned to her special store microphone and said “Charlie to the front of the store please”. As she handed me my receipt she said “Charlie will be helping you to your car with your bags”. Oh, Charlie is coming for me? And so Charlie showed up and he pushed my cart out to my car and helped me load the bags into the car. I said my thank you as Charlie took my cart back to the cart bin and went back inside. I climbed in the front seat and just soaked up the moment. I had hit the “you are SO pregnant you must need help doing everyday things” level. Wow. I tried to protest the assistance at first but now that I was sitting in my car, only having lifted the fruit bag and the bread bag, I really am glad they didn’t listen to me. Can Charlie come home with me?

That was a fun experience. I get so caught up in being independent and self-reliant that I fight any help that people try and provide because I should just take care of it myself. It’s a hard lesson I am learning, to ask for help with common things, but I like how appreciative it is making me. I am able to enjoy the kindness of people more now that I need their help. Yay for not being able to tie your shoes anymore!
Now to talk about something less sentimental.

Have you ever come out of the bathroom with your skirt tucked into your underwear? A pregnant woman has her own version of this. It’s what I like to call Rhett’s peek-a-boo game. Every now and then, my little belly likes to peep out from under my shirt. And most of the time it is in public. Yep, I’m that redneck grocery shopper, smacking her gum with her belly hanging out. But it’s not like I can see that my shirt rode up and I can’t feel it either. I just have this “oh, crap” moment, pull my shirt down, and move on with my life. I know this isn’t the last time Baby Geffken will be embarrassing me in public. I mean, have you met his father?

As I have mentioned before, I have been blessed by so many wonderful people who have allowed me to borrow their maternity clothes and my very big closet is packed with this blessing. I figured out that there are only 9 items in my current wardrobe that were purchased new either by me or for me. Everything else is borrowed or from consignment stores. That’s a lot of clothing to keep track of. I have labeled everything but I have started something new to make the sorting process even smoother. You know how movie stars on the red carpet are always asked “who are you wearing?” Well, I decided to start my own version of that every morning.

“Good Morning, Erica. You look fabulous. Who are you wearing?”

“Well, Erica, the top is by … and the pants are….”

“Truly a stunning combination.”

“Thank you so much.”

I’ll end this post with a few shots of our family out at the beach. We were also blessed with the company of some really great friends!