The trouble with having a blog, and having friends and family read it, means I worry a lot about the things I say offending people. Please know this is never my intention. Look, I hate meatloaf. But that doesn’t mean I judge people who DO like meatloaf (well, openly judge them. Meatloaf is gross). So please don’t take what I am going to say personally. Or anything I say for that matter.

This leads me into my biggest anxiety right now – my maternity pictures. First of all, I’ve always been a big girl, and now that I am pregnant and bigger, I am totally embracing it. But I hate the fact I have 2 baby belly bumps (which pregnancy forum boards refer to as a ‘B Belly’) and I don’t have that perfectly round baby bump. I know at the end of the day, I am growing a super little baby boy, but I am patiently looking forward to a ‘D Belly’ – if it ever appears.

I normally turn my B into a D with full panel pants and such, but I know it’s there, and now that we’ve scheduled our maternity picture session in 2 weeks, I am so worried I will just look like a fat girl having a photo sess with her huberoni.  I am so blessed to have the most amazing, talented, photographer, Laura Dye, who made me look amazing in our engagement and wedding photos. I’ve emailed her quite a few times with my insane rambling anxieties and she is doing a good job of keep me in check and ‘getting it’.

I also sent her a list of things that will not be happening during our maternity photo shoot:

• Naked bellies – Obvi.
• Naked husbands – Hey. Husbands have insecurities too!
• Bows around the belly
• Doing awkward poses in strange places – Showing the bump while laying on the back of a cow. Strange.
• Flowing sheets – Hey! Let’s make the big girl feel even bigger! Plus, I tend to get tangled in my sheets in the middle of the night, so adding it into the photo shoot might be disastrous.
• Lingerie – Unless it’s my big butt, to my belly button maternity panties. I would consider those.

I guess the easiest way to describe what I want is a couple’s photo shoot where I just happen to be pregnant. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes!

I updated my Facebook status a few nights ago and pointed out that I was up at 2AM eating chocolate pudding and my friend from high school noted it sounded a lot like his college days. You know what? He’s right. Here’s how being pregnant is a lot like being in college:

Up all night: When I was in college, I had no problem staying up until 3AM to study, or more likely hit a DC bar or club. Why not? I could sleep until 2PM and be up and functional before my Communication Theory class. As a pregnant woman, I am up all night now again! But this time I am heading to the bathroom, adding to my Amazon wishlist, watching TVLand and worrying about having a baby in just a few short months.

Napping in the afternoon: After a night on the town during college, my roommate and I would cat nap or watch The Hills in the afternoon before gearing up for another night out. Nowadays, by 3PM I am so tired from not sleeping at night, and working I cat nap or watch Ellen. It’s a win!

Eating weird food: I was up eating pudding at 2AM this morning and it was glorious. And yes, I had egg drop soup for breakfast and crave MUG root beer (not Barqs or A&W – Mug Root Beer all the way). In college, we would run through the Wendy’s drive thru for french fries and Frostys for dipping at 2AM. And my roommate might have been known for eating Ramen noodles like they were about to be recalled.

Wearing yoga/PJ pants more often than not: I do own some maternity pants, and they are not fun or really comfortable. Working from home allows me to wear anything I want – so I do. I wear maternity yoga pants, or my bathrobe, or my PJ pants. While in college, I wasn’t as bad as some, but I did wear my Marymount sweatpants until they had a hole in the crotch. And maybe a few times afterwards with my knees closed. Did I mention Marymount is a fashion school?

Skipping events to watch TV: I mentioned watching TV or cat napping before right? I am usually so tired by 3PM, I try to bow out of anything social or work related after that time so I can stay in my jammies and watch Ellen or whatever I missed on prime time the night before. My roommate and I used to skip classes to watch The Hills or the Real World – I am totally dating myself here. And if the class was on a Thursday night once a week, it was a miracle we ever showed up (and frankly a miracle we graduated, sorry Mom).

Lots of whining: In college, I whined about everything – snow ruining weekend plans, cheeseburgers again in the cafeteria, the price of textbooks. Now that I am pregnant, I whine just as much. This time it’s about peeing all night, ugly maternity clothes and that annoying hip pain I get mid-afternoon. I’m sure I am just as fun to be around now as in college.

Gaining weight: At Marymount, the cafeteria helped me gain weight. Now my pudding cravings in the middle of the night and the growing boy are helping me. I won’t go into details.

Spending money you don’t have: Babies are expensive, that’s not a surprise. They need a crib, a car seat … even a stroller (what’s up with THAT?). Thanks to the economy, we aren’t exactly rolling in the big bucks. While our wallets are thicker than they were in college, they are still pretty lean. In college, I was silly enough to view credit as cash, so I was buying Gap  sweaters and TJMaxx purses I couldn’t afford. I’ve learned my lesson, and now shop consignment.

Worrying about your future: While I was enjoying the freedom of college life, I was also worrying about my future. Will I get a job (yes)? Will I have to move home (no)? Will I ever find love (yes)? Now I still worry, but about different things. Will I raise a serial killer (doubtful)? Will I ever be able to shave my legs without leaning over and groaning (probably)? Will I drop the baby on his head (probably … no, likely)?

You want what you can’t have: In college I wanted a lot of things I couldn’t have. Designer clothes, a new car, the usual. Now that I’m pregnant, I want food I can’t have. I am suddenly craving mimosas, cold cut subs and sushi. All things I wasn’t pressed about BEFORE getting pregnant!

Am I missing anything?