I'm Sensing a Disturbance in the Force

Pregnancy has been a new adventure. When I saw the plus sign, pregnancy was an alien state to me. My closest friends don't have children. If they do have children, they already had them when I met them...or, they had them in another state or country. A little perspective: my sister's baby shower is the only baby shower I have been to in 20 years. Babies were not a discussion topic around the table when I met with friends, except perhaps the occasional, "How is the baby-making going?"

With this all being said, being the knowledge-seeking person I am, I began doing research by reading books about pregnancy. The most helpful (and, don't laugh) has been What to Expect When Expecting. The book breaks everything down, month by month. And, the information is fascinating. The fact that we all walk, talk, breathe, dance, sing, basically do the things we do has become so amazing to me when you consider that we all started out as a fertilized egg. And, the way we develop so quickly...again, amazing!

Well, while reading the book, it tells me that in my fourth month, I may begin to feel the baby moving. Um, excuse me? Move? Okay, this is the stuff of sci fi movies, right? And, why don't other women who have been pregnant tell you about this?

It was about week 17 when I felt the first flutter in my abdomen. It wasn't gas. No, definitely not. It was different. Kind of like a butterfly or feather inside my tummy. The next week, it felt more like a gentle nudge from inside; someone very lightly poking me. My reaction? "Luke, I'm sensing a disturbance in the force." (yes, more talking to my tummy...I think this may have been when I started talking to my tummy more frequently in fact)

By week 20, the nudges were more frequent and more prominent. And, they seemed to occur on a schedule - 3:30 a.m., 7:30 a.m., 1 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 8 p.m., 11:30 p.m. When I talked to the doctor about this, she told me very nonchalantly, and with all seriousness, that the baby was already training me. me: "Training me for what?" doc: "Feeding and taking care of it." me: "Oh? (pause) Oh!"

The movement hasn't always been a nudge, there were also somersaults or a rolling motion from week 18 through week 24. Imagine how your stomach feels when you are on a roller coaster plummeting toward the ground. Yeah, that feeling. It almost knocked me on my butt one day when I went running.

Right now, that little water dragon of ours is beginning to lose the space to do somersaults and move around with ease. At 25 weeks and 4 days, he or she is a little more than 1.5 pounds and nine inches long. And, with it losing space to move around, that also means that over the last three weeks, the movement is definitely more noticeable, more frequent and stronger. This little one is active! We think that perhaps he or she will take up karate or soccer. These little kicks can now be felt when I put my hand on my abdomen and they must be something akin to a roundhouse kick.

Having physicians and nurses in the building where I work has been helpful. They assure me that all of this crazy movement is a good thing. One of them told me that it shouldn't surprise me - active mom, active baby.

So, it isn't just a disturbance in the force, but it still is taking me some time to get used to. Those little kicks are reassuring that my little dragon is growing and healthy..and, for me, that is what is most important.

P.S. We'll keep you posted if our little one becomes a karate champion or World Cup Footballer.