It seems a though nearly everyone is pregnant these days, and that translates to lots of good company for comparing notes on all things baby. I had dinner with a friend tonight who is three weeks further along than I am. She’s looking great and doing well and equally as excited to meet her little boy as we are to meet our little bundle. Naturally, when we get together, we talk about how we’re feeling, what foods we’ve craved, what our nurseries will look like and how often baby moves around. It’s uniquely sweet to share this season while we’re each experiencing our own firsts.

I am surrounded by a multitude of supportive and loving and encouraging people in this process, but there is something special about connecting with women who are writing this same chapter in their lives at the same time.

What’s greatest to me about the opportunity to swap belly stories and compare notes is that we’re all about to embark on the greatest adventure we could possibly imagine. Pretty soon, instead of carrying bumps in front of us, we’ll be pushing strollers and cradling newborns. We’ll have play dates and sleepless nights and milestones and mommy woes at the same time, and the next season of sharing and learning from each other will naturally evolve. Someday, our kids may be classmates–or best friends. If we all live in the same place for long enough, they’ll play on sports teams together, go to dances, possibly even (gasp!) date. And we’ll look back on all of the “remember whens” and “can you believes” and still have the same memories to recall.

So much is changing right now, and so much is staying the same. Just as we’ve gotten married, created homes, grown in faith and shared countless conversations over meals and coffee, we’ll continue to progress as people and friends–and now parents, too. I so highly value all of my friendships and the ways that each one has grown to support this new life (for baby) and way of life (for us). Still, I can only begin to conceive how significant the bond that is developing between bellies as some of us become first time parents–within days and weeks and months of one another! 2011 has been, and will continue to be, a year of abundance in so many ways. And there is certainly a sweetness, unparalleled, to it all.

anxiously awaiting, and all the while celebrating,

mm