Then and Now

Last week I got to spend a few days with my daughter, who is ready to deliver our first grand baby ANY DAY NOW!  It was so much fun to see her and try to figure out ways to spoil her.  While I was with her, I got to thinking about when I was pregnant and how different things are today. 

It wasn't really THAT long ago.  Okay, maybe it was...the 80's were kind of a long time ago.

First, maternity clothes are so much cuter now.  I seriously wore what looked like a tent.  I remember trying to hide that pregnancy as long as I could, so the bigger the clothes the better.  I actually wore some of Ray's clothes when I wasn't going out in public.  Not cute!

Me, back in the day, wearing Ray's clothes

 

Cute Heather a few weeks ago

Heather has a wardrobe of DARLING clothes and not one of them looks like a tent.  It seems the more form fitting the better.  She has the cutest beach ball belly to show off through her shirt right now.

Back then we didn't have ultrasounds unless something was suspected to be wrong.  Not the case today.  Pretty much everyone uses one now to find out the gender of their baby long before the birth.  The first thing people ask when they find out a couple is expecting is if they are having a boy or a girl (although I did hear a girl recently say that they decided to be "old fashioned" and chose not to know).  With two of my three kids we did not know, and I kind of liked the surprise.  On the one we knew, personally I felt it took a wee bit of the excitement out of it.  Although as a grandma it's been pretty exciting to know.

Until recently I'd never heard the words "birth plan".  When it was time to give birth it just happened.  Everyone seemed to do it the same-you started having contractions, you went to the hospital,  you had an epidural, and the baby was born.  There wasn't really a "plan".  No one ever discussed being induced.  And back then hardly anyone I knew chose to do it "natural".  At one of Heather's recent appointments they said it was time to discuss her "birth plan".  I don't even know what that means!  I guess she has multiple decisions to make.

And all these people in the delivery room today???  When I had my babies, my doctor advised only those who were there when the baby was conceived should be in the delivery room.  Today there don't seem to be any limits.  Sometimes the entire family (and a photographer) are there to witness firsthand the miracle of birth.  I don't know...

I could go on, but it's wearing me out just thinking about it, and makes me glad I did it my way.  One thing that hasn't changed though is the excitement we all feel.  I was excited back then and today we all can hardly wait.  Just like then, these last days seem to be dragging by.

It is kind of surreal to think about my baby girl having a baby girl.  I really can hardly contain myself.