The Next One Might Kill Me

Having babies takes a lot of sacrifice: monetary, emotional and physical.  I'm trying to lose all the baby weight right now so my mind has been focusing a lot on the physical sacrifice lately so I decided to make a list of all of the things my body has endured (as well as many other women I'm sure) in order to bring two beautiful babies into the world:

1. Weight Gain
2. Nausea
3. Stretch Marks
4. Edema
5. General Lethargy
6. Abdominal Separation
7. 2nd Degree Tears
8. Uterine Cramps
9. Hemorrhoids
10. Near Mastitis (I just barely avoided it but it was still painful)
11. Pregnancy Induced Hypertension
12. Prolonged Bleeding from Retained Products of Birth (I'm still bleeding!)
13. Gall Bladder Attacks
14. Gall Bladder Removal Surgery
15. Surgery Recovery
16. Scars from surgery
17. Hip Displacement
18. Pulled Groin

It's a pretty decent list and I only have two kids.  Plus, I didn't even mention all of the sleepless nights up with newborns.  I don't even want to know what might happen to my body if I have a third!  

But, of course, it's all worth it when you get to hold that little bundle and wonder who he'll look like and what personality will emerge from such a tiny being - what new struggles and joys will be yours to experience just because he exists.  

-J