well, I didn't see that coming.

I hit a milestone of sorts today. What, you ask? Patience. I'll get to it.

Over the weekend I took the plunge and purchased a few maternity clothing items. I am now the proud (?) owner of two pairs of leggings, a pair of jeans, a pair of cords, and a skirt. Low elastic waistbands galore. But I haven't worn any of the new clothing yet. I'm afraid of chemicals in unwashed clothing. (Plus, I'm not a fan of the Gap/Old Navy scent that sticks to everything in the store.) So I had to wash everything. And the skirt and pants needed to go to the dry cleaners for some much-needed hemming. (Short legs.) So I'm still making due with my normal clothes + Bella Band.

Yesterday I needed to class things up a bit. My office has no dress code, but when we're going to court, we try to play the part. I was observing a colleague's oral argument, and needed to look lawyerly. Realized none of my dress pants would fit, but thought I could pull off a certain pair of black suit pants or the matching skirt that always fit a little loose. Put on the skirt, shuddered at the stuffed sausage image that popped into my head, took it off. Tried the pants, same. Back in the skirt. Back in the pants. Ended up going with the pants + the Bella Band, which was the lesser of the two evils. Added a form fitting business-lady top. When I glanced in the mirror for a final once-over, all I could think was, "Woah. I look pregnant." But it worked, i.e., it wasn't horribly obscene. Plus, the woman doing the oral argument is really pregnant, so I counted on looking svelte in comparison.

Fast forward to today. It's 80 degrees in Chicago, and I didn't need to dress like a grownup. So I put on a comfy jersey skirt and a loose-fitting t-shirt. Looked in the mirror and thought, "This is more like it. Looking good. Definitely not looking pregnant." Go to work. Pass by the front desk. And one of the fabulous support staffers looks at me and says, "Robin, are you pregnant?" (Crickets . . . Blank stare . . . Crickets . . . Swallow . . . Crickets . . . quick glance at my ensemble to see if it had miraculously changed while I wasn't paying attention . . . nope . . . Crickets.) "Um, yeah. I am."

I was NOT expecting to get that question for another month! I mean, I think I look pregnant, because I am intimately familiar with the before and after. But I've been assuming that when acquaintances and strangers look at me they just think I'm in desperate need of the Abs of Steel series on VHS. So when she asked, I was blindsided by a question I should have seen coming. And I'm not sure I was ready for it.

While we're on the subject of my ever-expanding midsection, I really wish I had a decent picture of my bellybutton pre-pregnancy. Because I think its circumference is growing. I made Brad examine it last night, but he was no help. I thought the same thing about my boobs when I first got pregnant. But Brad said that picture would have been inappropriate. Don't care. I'd love to be able to really study the changes. Apparently my feet are also going to grow (this is why Brad says I cannot invest in an expensive pair of boots right now; I'm not so sure). But I don't think I'm going to want a close-up of my feet. But then again . . .