Water Works

I can think of plenty of pregnancy symptoms I have encountered so far that just seem cruel - morning sickness (it should be called endless motion sickness), dizziness, extreme exhaustion, and several body functions that we just won’t get into here.

There are also several pregnancy symptoms that I think are kind of funny (note: I probably have a warped sense of humor). One I have shared in the past that is still plaguing me is crazy dreams. While the dreams have subsided a little bit over the last few weeks, I am still having my fair share. Poor Sam received the wrath of this particular symptom last night when my sleep talking woke him up. Evidently my dream was so bad that I was sobbing loudly in my sleep. I have a vague recollection of the dream and it was pretty frightening.

Even funnier than the crazy dreams is the newest pregnancy symptom I have developed which is crying fits. At this point these crying fits are fairly brief and are usually provoked by heartwarming news stories or television programs. In my non-pregnant state I am not one to cry over these sorts of things. I have been known to tear up a little over a touching book (see: “Marley & Me”) or a movie (anything based on a Nicolas Sparks novel) but otherwise I am pretty tough. I have been told that this is just the beginning and that I should be prepared for more extreme cases of this to come. According to a coworker, by his wife’s third trimester of pregnancy she couldn’t watch a long distance commercial without tearing up.

Last night’s episode was sparked by a story on the nightly news. It was one of those “feel good” stories that they end the news programs with. This particular story was about a lady that recycles flowers from weddings and other events to take to the elderly patients in nursing homes. The image of those sweet little ladies receiving flower arrangements was all it took to start the water works. Based on what has triggered tears in the last couple of weeks, I have noticed I am particularly sensitive to stories involving the elderly and the disabled. This sudden sensitivity really amuses Sam and who could blame him? The sight of a grown woman crying over a sappy news story has to be pretty funny. I can’t imagine how much ridicule I will get if and when I start crying over commercials. I know one thing for sure, we are going to have to add Kleenex to the shopping list!