Just a Season

Today was a great day to remind me of seasons. How seasons come and go. That no stage lasts forever and even the hardest of times pass.

I still felt pregnant today - I guess I should, seeing that I'm 39 weeks today - but it was a much more comfortable day than normal. I felt like I was back in my second trimester!

The biggest factor was that I woke up without ANY sciatic or hip pain, a huge change from the past few weeks! My sciatic pain has been pretty consistent over the past few weeks and it's LITERALLY a pain in the butt. Honestly, it is. A pain that starts in the middle of my butt cheeks and extends down into my thighs, making it difficult to lift my legs or move them (as in walking or flipping from side to side during the night.) The nights are the hardest. And then waking up is difficult, getting out of bed, all through the day you get the idea. But last week, I added a crazy hip pain to it all. My left hip would pop every time I walked and ached horribly. So between both symptoms, I was pretty uncomfortable. Even still, I've been trying to take it in stride, knowing those are normal pregnancy symptoms that are helping your body transition to when your baby will come out!

But this morning, I woke up without any pain. Uh, what a glorious way to start the day! I know it was from my friends' prayers, after I posted something on a friend's FB wall yesterday, a friend that I knew also had sciatic pain throughout her pregnancy. The added bonus was the fact that I woke up on my BACK, a position I've been missing for the past few months and hadn't been able to achieve because of the weight of the baby. In the past, I would lose my breath from being in that position for more than five seconds. Being able to be on my back - even for a few minutes at a time - seemed to help alleviate some of the pressure from my hip. Wonderful!

My husband said I was "chipper" this morning. He obviously noticed what a difference being without pain made me! But I was reminded of the fact that this is just a short season. It will not last forever. We're 39 weeks today, which means she could literally come any minute. Even still, I'm hoping she stays in for another week!

I posted my excitement about being without pain on FB this morning and received a myriad of comments about how they expected me to go into labor today. I've got to admit. As much as I've been ready for our little one's arrival, thinking that these could be signs that she was ready to come NOW sorta freaked me out. I didn't feel any other symptoms, though, and the baby was still moving regularly, so I was pretty sure we wouldn't be meeting her today. But I did blow-dry my hair this morning before playgroup, just in case!

This is a season. It will not last forever. Some of the symptoms may be carried with me after our little one is born (a friend of mine continues to have sciatic pain and her youngest is four years old,) but ultimately, I will not always be pregnant. I will have energy again.

I was feeling pretty good tonight (since I did take it easy and still took my daily nap,) so I made a lovely dinner for my family. It's been a while since it's been something more than a CrockPot meal, grilled cheese or tacos. My husband was thrilled. Even that reminded me that I will be able to do more after the baby is born. Things will never be just as they were when we were first married, nor will I probably EVER have that much energy again. But I will definitely have more energy than I have now.

And that is something to get excited about :)