Motherhood Lesson No. 1* (Okay, probably not the real first one I've learned, but definitely the first one I've blogged.)

I am starting to wonder why my bulging stomach means there is only one topic of conversation I can have.

Motherhood.

Subcategories:
1. How bad labor and delivery is. I won't go into too much detail, but "tearing" has been said to me more than once. Way to pump up the mom-to-be.
2. Women who have catastrophic things happen during labor and delivery.
3. Stories about their pregnancies and experiences as a mother. Mostly the pregnancy stories are negative (except for my friend M who always tells me how much she loved being pregnant and that really does make me feel somewhat sunnier about my swollen extremities and acne) and the motherhood experience stories run the gamut.
4. Breastfeeding.
5. How I'm going to deliver this baby (currently, I'm planning on a walking epidural, not that it's any of your business. Not that you have been nosy enough to ask, but people have, and I feel like the only people who have a right to ask that are the Merry Midwives.)
6. Diapers. For the record, disposable, and if you hate it you can suck it. I've done extensive research, and cloth really isn't all that more environmentally friendly, what with the energy wasted in washing and soap and stuff.
7. (And this is my favorite) How big my stomach is.

And I love my daughter. When she kicks, I pretend like I'm annoyed (and occasionally at 5am I am annoyed) but mostly I love it when she lets me know she's there. I'm so happy I'm having her, and I've started planning her nursery and buying teensy little hats and socks (the socks will break your heart) and a blue corduroy stuffed elephant because it looked like it needed a friend.

But I have been growing frustrated with the general public's inability to see past the protuberance and realize that I have a brain.

However, today I think I figured it out.

So I'm visiting my in-laws, and we stopped to pick them up some Subway. I'm in line, and I've already got my milk in my hand. There's a woman in line ahead of me about my age who looks at the milk, then me, and smiles. I smile back. It's nice to have a good choice acknowledged.

She orders a sub and a pizza, and requests an extra box to use when she splits the pizza amongst the kids. We chat about what a good idea that is. I get my husband to hold the door for her on her way out.

We order our food. As we're leaving, I see the mom and her husband and kids picnicking in the parking lot. She catches my eye again and waves like we're old friends. And that's when it hit me.

I'm in the Motherhood Sisterhood now. My application is signed and accepted and sticking way out in front. I'd been inducted and all that is happening in the mommy chats is, essentially, woman's wisdom to me, the neophyte.

So while I reserve the right to be annoyed, I am also grateful. It's nice to be in a club like this -- membership is international. We'll know each other just by sight -- no special handshake needed.

Oh, and when I am inducting new members, I promise to be more like M. Some (okay, a lot) of stuff will suck, but it will be worth it. And some of it will be awesome. I will tell you the truth about the stuff that sucks, though I will not focus on it, and I will do my best to help you focus on the awesome.

*I promise this won't become a Mommy Blog, though it will be hijacked from time to time (probably with increasing frequency through the end of this year.)