Many pregnant women experience a desire to clean, organize, and otherwise get their homes ready for their new arrival. It often results in a flurry of activity that is commonly referred to as “nesting”. Nesting can happen any time during a pregnancy, and many times there is an extra burst of it right at the end of pregnancy as labor approaches.
For some reason, during my last pregnancy, I did not have any urge to nest. I listened to my two pregnant co – workers describe the things that they were doing around their homes and I began to wonder whether I was abnormal because I was not inclined to do those kinds of things at all. In fact, the farther along in my pregnancy I got, the less tidy my house became.
I did a little research and found out that not everyone nests during pregnancy. For those who do, only some experience the kinds of things that result in exciting stories to tell. I am sure you have heard stories of women who have alphabetized canned goods, cleaned the kitchen floor with a toothbrush, washed and folded baby’s clothes twenty times, and so on. If you find yourself doing these things, know that you are perfectly normal. If not, know that you are also perfectly normal.
This time around, I have a lot of desire to clean and organize. Sometimes I am able to act on those urges, and sometimes I choose not to either because I need the time to get work done or because certain tasks are just not feasible with a two year old “helper” and would be more frustrating than productive. Fortunately, my little “helper” is always eager to help, so when I do think of a project that I think we can tackle successfully together he is a willing participant.
Photo by hotblack on morguefile.com.