Bodacious Boomer

Awhile back I started painting the billowing bellies of obviously pregnant ladies. It’s a popular thing to do at baby showers. These days it seems it’s perfectly acceptable to bare your belly while expecting. Remember the naked photo of Demi Moore while she was pregnant?  Now I’m going to say something that’ll make me sound like I’m 106 and sitting here gumming my dinner because I’ve forgotten how to chew.

Back in my day, women just didn’t do this. I had Brett in May 1983. I shopped at Motherhood Maternity at the local mall for my “ex-pan-do wear”. They had swimsuits for pregnant ladies then, not sure if bikinis were an option though. Not a problem for me. I never thought about swimming when I was pregnant. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that). If someone had been as insane as to have suggested that they’d paint my belly at all, much less with others around, I’d have thought they were on crack.

Maternity wear has gone through a huge metamorphosis over the last 25 years. All the tops I wore when I was pregnant looked like they’d been made by Omar the Tentmaker. They all had smocking across the top to give you plenty of room. Expectant moms just didn’t bare their bellies by choice back then. If you saw a bare bulging belly peeking out from under a top back then it was because either the mom couldn’t afford a maternity top, or had outgrown the ones she had. These days women proudly wear skin hugging t-shirts and sweaters that celebrate their temporary curves. Maternity tops now are really, really cute. I wouldn’t even mind wearing some of them now, but then I’d have to explain how I’m carrying my own grandkids.

Since I was able to quit work the last half of my pregnancy I never bought a lot of maternity clothes. I just rewore the same few pieces over and over again. My mother-in-law, Betty, is a sewing wiz. So I was all excited when she called and said she’d made me something. I eagerly awaited the arrival of my new duds in the mail. She made me a dress alright. It was a nightmare in polyester-  muddy olive green and cranberry plaid print- a large plaid. To embellish the plaid, which was special enough on it’s own, was printed ecru lace. It was the most butt-ugly dress I’d ever seen in my whole life. I called Doug at work to tell him just how awful it was. He defended the dress to me. (Once home, he retracted his defense). In good conscience I couldn’t even donate that dress to charity. It went straight to the trash. I only wish I’d taken a photo of it first.

Kinda got away from the whole belly painting thing- sorry.  (You know how I can be when I get wound up). Anyway, the photos on today’s posting are from the first two bellies that I ever did. I think they were pretty cute. It just goes to show you how much times have changed I guess.

Well in case you haven’t heard the news let me be the first to tell you-Michele Duggar is pregnant again! It’s big enough news that it was on CNN today. Now for those of you who don’t know who she is I’ll clue you in. She is the mother of 18, yes that’s 18, kids. She and her husband live in a small town in Arkansas. Their new bundle of joy is due in 6 months. Her daughter-in-law will give birth next month. That means the new baby, as yet unnamed, will be younger than her aunt who will be born in October.

The Duggars have their own reality show on TLC. It’s called 18 kids and counting. I guess next year they’ll have to change the name of the show. (I’ll admit I have watched the show from time to time.) I have to hand it to them; they receive no support of any kind from the government. I cannot imagine anyone wanting to have that many kiddos. Perhaps that’s because when I was pregnant with my second child, Amanda, Brett was only two and had his stroke. Our lives changed forever.

The Duggars have been extraordinarily lucky and have not had, up til now, any child with a serious illness. Michele home schools all the kids. From what I have seen I think the kids lead a fairly isolated life unless they are out with the entire family on a trip. (Which they take in a bus that they bought.) They go on a fair number of these trips so it’s not like they never see the outside world. However, they don’t have a lot of day-to-day interaction with their peers that I think is important. (Of course Michele and Jim Bob would say that’s they way they prefer it for their kids.)

One of my favorite photos of Doug is when Brett’s sitting in his lap and listening to a book that his dad is reading to him. I wonder how much individual time each child can have with their mom or dad when they have 17 other siblings? The Duggars have said when a new baby is born an older sibling is chosen to be their “buddy”. This buddy carries a lot of the responsibility in caring for the new baby. Michele Duggar is 42 at this time and does not believe in any prenatal testing. I guess her plan is to just keep having kiddos til she can’t anymore whether they have genetic abnormalities or not. So be it. It’s their life, not mine, thank God.

I cannot imagine what condition her female parts must be in. Every woman I have ever spoken to has had a problem, however brief, with incontinence when she sneezes after their child is born. After 18 kids- I can’t even fathom that. Labor though is probably pretty easy. One of my friends theorized that when her children are born it’s as if they’re coming down a big water slide at Six Flags. I don’t think so though. I’m guessing that she had velcro installed years ago, maybe after number 10.