I think pregnant women are so beautiful. DH and I had been together nine years before deciding to get pregnant, so there a good long while before getting pregnant that I gazed lovingly at the big beautiful bellies of pregnant women I knew. There was just something to sweet about the thought of caressing my own swollen belly, knowing what precious life was growing inside.

I don't want to completely minimize the joy of my first pregnancy, because of course I could feel her kicks and knew she was in there, but I did not get the big belly I was hoping for. I was one of those women who people couldn't tell was pregnant even up until the 40th week. I actually weighed less on my due date than I did before getting pregnant, thanks to morning sickness. The nurses could hardly believe I was about to give birth, and during my emergency c-section, the doctor commented about how far up under my ribs the baby was stuck. They had to really push and pull to get her out. She weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz. despite that.

Has anyone else gone through this and had a second or third child? I'm just wondering if I should expect this every time because of my long torso or whatever. I've always heard that women show more quickly with the second pregnancy, so maybe I'll get bigger next time? Or maybe you only show quicker if your tummy been sort of stretched out before (which I wasn't)?

I know this sounds silly. It really shouldn't matter. But I'm curious.