Have you ever starting talking to someone, and the more you talk to them, the more you connect with them? That’s how I felt about Jenn, from Fox and the City. We met on Twitter (of course). In the beginning, we would make casual small talk about baby poop (or whatever the SAHM topic of the day was). But now, even though we’ve never actually met in real life, I consider her a friend.
Jenn is, like me, a survivor of PPD, and she writes so honestly about it that I just read her posts and nod my head until the end. She’s relatable to the nth degree. One way I don’t relate to Jenn, though? She’s a kickboxing queen, and as evidenced by this post, she’s also Super Woman. (I think we might define “fun” a little differently. Hee hee!) Oh, and she’s Canadian, eh (which is why she writes things like “favourite”). But I love her and her little chick egg guy. Welcome, Jenn!
I am a wee bit of a pessimist andso I try never to set expectations, or at least ones that I deem too high,because without expectations one can never be disappointed. I know.. . I know . . . that may be a strange way to live my life but it has sortof worked for me so I stick with it.
So when I found myself pregnantwith my first kidlet I did NOT set out this great long birthing plan outliningthe music I wanted to listen to, or informing anyone who dared to read it thatI hoped to labour in water for as long as possible. Oh hell, I didn’t even come up with a birthplan . . . which I suspect was my firstparenting fail because all the books say that I should totally have a birthplan . . . I just figured I would wing it.
This is what you call setting thebar low. However, I did have a fewsmallish expectations that I had mentioned to Brad and to my midwives. They all knew that I wanted to give the wholeno pain medication thing a shot. Thatbeing said, they also knew that I had no plans on being a martyr and if it hurtlike hell then I was sure as hell going to be accepting any and all drugoptions. I also mentioned that I hadhoped to labour in water because I hate pain and that was, according to the books,a way to help lessen the pain. To thisend we decided on the hospital that had lovely private birthing rooms, abirthing tub and was very accommodating to my midwives.
Remember how I mentioned that Itry never to set expectations because they can so easily fall through. I just assumed, or expected, that I wouldhave my kidlet in the hospital. I neveronce considered the whole home birth thing. It had been brought up . . . forsome reason when you mention you are having midwives assist with the birthpeople assume or expect, that you are the home birthing type . . . I was NOTthe home birthing type.
At least I assumed that I wasn’tbut it turned out that Little Miss had other plans. So all of my great, and not so great,expectations concerning the whole birth of my first child were shot all to hellby a newborn who had her own GreatExpectations . . . she expected thather mommy was totally the home birthing type and so I became the home birthingtype . . . for her and her brother.
I am glad I set the bar lowbecause this was so not how I had ever expected it to go!
Jenn
You can follow the Fox on twitter and on her fabulous blog. Thanks, Jenn, for stopping by!
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