WORDS OF ADVICE

One of the things I've come to love/hate so far about being pregnant are the words of advice that people freely give you, as soon as they find out you're having a baby. It's everything from "be sure to take your prenatal vitamins" to "oh - you can have a glass of wine now and then", from "get your exercise" to "rest as much as possible", from "who's your doctor" (as if they might know every doctor and have an opinion on him/her) to "better start thinking about preschool now before it's too late" (because in New York, even preschool is competitive!).

And when that advice comes from someone who means well and is happy for me, I'm usually good natured enough to take it with a grain of salt, knowing every pregnancy is personal and filled with memories of sage wisdom - the glory of hindsight.

Though on the rare occasion when those opinions come from someone who I feel is being judgmental ("oh... you found out the sex... i think it's better to be surprised"), or when it comes from someone who has never been pregnant before ("i've heard that it's the most painful thing your body can ever go through - worse than running a marathon even"), or - and I'm not usually sexist - when it comes from a man ("you think you're big now... you'll be big as a house in another few months") - well, then it's a bit harder for me to be so good natured about it.

And though I know they are just trying to relate to or share in my experience, there are moments when I wish someone would've told them that a smile and an "i hope you're feeling well" would be the nicest thing to hear.