The first trimester was harder for me this time compared to the last time. But I think having Sameer helped in some ways. At times, he would come over to chat with me while I was resting to cheer me up. At the same time he was on his own for long stretches of time. Usually, he just cannot do that, even now. Somehow he managed to keep playing on his own for most of the day during the entire first trimester. He has never been a very picky eater, although he does have his likes and dislikes. But never made a big fuss about having to eat the same food three or at times even four days in a row, even though he hated it. Every day I would have to tell him that right now we just don't have anything else ready for lunch, and he would accept that explanation and stop demanding something else. At the same time, since he was around I had to make an effort to get up and work a bit, whether it be cooking for him, taking him to swimming classes during summer, library or just out to the playground.
He wants to keep hugging and kissing my big pregnant tummy, all through the day. There was also a period when he was really into pretending as a doctor and do checkups with instruments he had fashioned out of lego. For his Halloween party at school, he dressed up as a doctor too.
I am so looking forward to seeing the bonding between the two as the newborn gets older, able to interact and play with Sameer.
One thing that really helped comfort Sameer, I think, was talking to him about the pregnancy and the baby almost everyday and of course when he asked too. So far, we have told him that Ganeshji put the baby in mom's tummy and a doctor will help us take out the baby in a hospital. We let him see a lot of his photos from the first year of his birth which he found really interesting. Babycenter sends a really nice weekly update on your pregnancy, explaining the size of the baby in terms of fruit or vegetable items, along with what to expect in terms of growth. For him that was a lot of fun. Sometimes, it was a grape size baby, then an apple, then a mango, an avocado, banana, melon, spaghetti squash and so on. Plus the fact that my tummy started getting bigger was really interesting for him.
While he never asked for a sibling, and we have to remember that fact once the baby is born, I am hoping for the two to enjoy having each other's company.
