Life
To be honest, I kind of (read: definitely) hate being pregnant any time of year. Each season has pros and cons as far as pregnancy is concerned, in my humble opinion. That said, there are so many reasons why being pregnant during New Year's Eve is the worst. I am serious, you guys. The worst.
I used to love New Year's Eve, too. Staying up late, putting on fancy clothes, attending extravagant parties, watching the ball drop, and sharing a kiss with my honey at midnight? That sounds like a great time. Then I experienced my first pregnancy, and all of my New Year's plans went out the window. While all of my friends were drinking champagne, attending parties, and watching the ball drop, I was puking, falling asleep shortly after dinner, and getting annoyed by the midnight fireworks that would wake me up without fail.
I had almost reached the end of my last pregnancy when New Year's Eve came around again. My husband and I decided to rent a fancy hotel room and have a babymoon of sorts. I ended up throwing up (again), being too tired to go out for the dinner we planned, and falling asleep while watching HGTV. Then, when midnight came around, those damn fireworks interrupted our child-free hotel sleep. Those bastards.
Fun fact: if you aren't pregnant yet, and you don't want to be, you should know that New Year's Eve is actually the second most popular holiday on which to conceive. I don't know if it's the alcohol, the Midnight kissing leading to other things, or the fact that it's so cold outside you decide to just stay in bed, but over 4 percent of babies in the U.S. are conceived on New Year's. Who knew?
Regardless of how far along you are in your pregnancy, if you are anything like me, you might just find that it's the absolute worst. Happy freaking New Year, my friends.
Because You Can't Have Champagne
So, if you don't enjoy champagne, missing out on the classic New Year's Eve tradition of a midnight toast might not seem like a big deal. I'm not ashamed to admit that I like champagne, though, and the tradition of ringing in the new year with the clink of a glass is one of my favorites.
But when you're pregnant, and regardless of whether your glass has real champagne or sparkling cider, I promise someone will make a stupid joke or offer you their unsolicited, and likely shaming opinion regarding your beverage of choice.
Because You're Too Exhausted To Go Out
Pregnancy is exhausting. Early on, you feel like a vampire is sucking out your life force. Later, it's exhausting to carry around all that extra weight around. If given a choice between going out or staying home, I'm staying home every single time.
Because None Of Your Fancy Clothes Or Cute Shoes Fit
None of my cute dressy clothes fit when I was pregnant, and even if something fit, there's no way I could squeeze my sausage feet into the cute shoes that would match. It seemed like a waste of money to buy a fancy maternity gown for one evening out. So, yeah, I had nothing to wear on New Year's Eve.
Because If You Do Go Out, You Immediately Regret It
Between crowds of people bumping up against your baby bump, precarious icy sidewalks, and a low tolerance for noise, I immediately regretted going out on New Year's Eve when I tried.
Because You Are Too Nauseated To Enjoy Party Food
I didn't have morning sickness during my first pregnancy. Instead, I had all day sickness. Then, during my last two pregnancies I had hyperemesis gravidarium and threw up all day for months. So yeah, when you can't drink and are really looking forward to yummy hors d'oeuvres, New Year's Eve is such a bummer.
Because You Fall Asleep Before Midnight
There's no way I could stay up until midnight when I was pregnant, no matter how hard I tried. I did, however, randomly wake up at different times all night long, courtesy of my pregnancy insomnia, so I suppose I may have been up around midnight.
Either way, there was no way I was going to be able to actually plan to watch the ball drop on Times Square.
Because You No Longer Enjoy Midnight Fireworks
When my neighbors set off their midnight fireworks, I was forced to acknowledge the new year. Yes, whether I wanted to or not. Ugh.
Because Your Insurance Deductible Restarts On Jan. 1
With health care in the U.S. being a dumpster fire, and insurance deductibles through the roof, I have to admit that it was frustrating to watch New Year's Eve come and go, knowing I have to start my insurance deductible all over again. This last time, I only had six weeks of my pregnancy left to go. As a result, I actually found myself hoping to deliver early. That is so messed up, and I fear health care in this country is only going to get worse.
On the bright side, with as hellish as 2017 has been, next year is bound to better, especially if you are expecting a new baby. At least, I hope so.
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