Sorry but where: this is the most annoying thing about being pregnant

As if I swallowed a watermelon: my belly is round and the end is in sight. Or rather, the completely new beginning, actually.

Another life is at the door and it could knock at any moment. Every second of the day I wonder: are they coming today? Or tomorrow? Or this weekend? Are there even good doctors working on the weekend? Because the best doctors probably get to choose their own days and they would of course prefer to work from Monday to Friday, right? Hello? I'm going to call the hospital. That idea.

It has been quite an overwhelming time, this pregnancy. Literally from the first week and especially from the first ultrasound. But the beautiful thing about time is that it teaches you a lot. I needed every week to get used to the idea of twins. Two boys right away, mama of two boys, two little sons that I can cuddle, hold, and kiss soon. It's still unbelievable, but I'm ready for it. Not just with the nursery and the house and the stroller and the two Maxi-Cosis in the back of the car: I'm mentally ready for it. I want to be their mother so badly now that I almost want to hang upside down, eat pineapples and go wild.. Let them be in this world – they are so welcome and I am so curious about how they are.

The downsides of being pregnant? Aside from the necessary physical ailments here and there, I know the answer right away. Because, sorry, but it's true: the opinions of others, that's what drove me crazy. I still get crazy from it. The comments you get thrown at you as a pregnant woman are not mild. People may not even mean it unkindly, but wow, how often did I have to bite my tongue. For example, I have absolutely heard these things in the past months and I am still amazed by it:

• Wow, two at once. That's going to be very heavy. Did you really want that?
• Jesus, two, I'd rather you than me.
• I don't think that's really fun, a twin.
• My god, two children to start with, I wouldn't want that.
• Wouldn't you have preferred a girl? (A doctor asked this. No joke.)
• Oh, I actually see you more as a girls' mom.
• Your belly is really very, very, very, very big compared to others. Really heeeeeel big.
• What a heavy pregnancy you have compared to others, I must say!
• Are you getting a cesarean? Wow, that seems so bad to me.
• Do you take afternoon naps? Can't you bike anymore? Are your ankles swollen? Oh, my mother/aunt/neighbour/cousin didn't need that at all! My dentist/friend/sister/mother-in-law could do everything until she went into labor!

If I've learned anything and if I take anything away from this rollercoaster, it's that I will never say such things to friends, colleagues, family members, or acquaintances who are pregnant. A pregnancy is so personal, so unique, completely different every time for every woman, that nothing can be compared. Just be extra kind to the one sitting across from you with a pregnant belly and don't judge. It's not up to you. It's already exciting enough for a woman. Every woman does it in her own way and feels what is possible and what is not and what is good. I have truly never thought in my life about having twins, of course not. You don't take that into account. But it is what it is and it's good, for me and the man of the house. And that's what matters.

Well, you do get a bit of maternal instinct you know, in month eight, nine. Then you suddenly want to protect your offspring and even stand up for them in articles. Wonderful. I really think I'm ready for it. On Monday morning please, boys, if possible.