Still Waiting....

I feel like I have taken many of pregnancy's punches like a champ. To be fair, it hasn't been that bad but there has been the constant undertone of nausea, the super-sonic sense of smell, and the disdain for any "normal" foods. I have gladly accepted all of this because pregnancy has promised me some bright spots. Pregnancy is supposed to give you that rosy glow, luscious locks, long and beautiful nails, and the adorable little round belly.
Well ....my belly is round all right but it is hardly that cute little shape that just shouts, "I'm pregnant, rub me." Nope, instead I have what I always knew would be my lot which is that I am just getting ROUND, there is no shape, no pregnancy paunch, just an ever-expanding waist-line. Kevin keeps wanting me to take the obligatory monthly belly shots and I am tempted to cram myself into a mold ahead of time (or better yet, borrow the fake belly from the maternity store) just to have something documented but alas, it's pretty much looks the same as it does after a big night out at the buffet. This rounding is no doubt exacerbated by the fact that my parents bestowed upon me there infamous lean legs (they do have nice legs) and so I look like someone shoved an apple on top of two toothpicks.
If that is not enough, don't even get me started on the hair. Although first a side-note: I have been poring through the pregnancy books and have to admit that most of them leave me shocked, depressed, or frightened (or all three) but the one I have found to be the most palatable is the "Girlfriend's Guide." I was enjoying this book right up to the point where the author puts out a huge disclaimer on cutting your hair short anywhere near the time of pregnancy. She is adamant that this is a huge mistake that will surely be a major regret. Well.... too late for me given that I had a bad mishap at a Great Cuts (don't ask) just a few weeks before becoming pregnant. So back to the unfulfilled pregnancy promises; rather than cry myself to sleep about my supposedly awful mistake (the worse part is that the picture in the back of the Girlfriend's Guide" is of the author and her 4 kids sporting a super-short as in boy-short haircut!!) I comforted myself with the notion that I would soon be growing hair faster and longer than Rapunzel and would have such sheen and shine that it would distract from my apple physique and any other flaw.
Alas.... my hair doesn't seem to be growing much at all and instead of luscious I have actually spotted my first grey hair!! (it's all the worrying caused by the pregnancy books). And how about the nails, every morning I inspect mine and even in a generous moment, I cannot say they look like anything other than the short, ratty, stubs that I have been sporting since high-school (only now, I don't have the excuse of "Um, I purposefully keep them this way for basketball").
So... I am a bit down but am certainly not out. I have many more months ahead and I will continue to inspect myself for pregnancy perks, I will also try to coax my belly into submission, but most of all, I will continue to count my blessings and be honored that I get to partake in this journey in the first place.