What babies need...Lebanese Baklava (Caroline)

I’ve been enjoying being visibly pregnant.

Before we left for Australia, a few people knew I was pregnant and a lot of people didn’t. While I was in Australia, I started to find people looking curiously at my belly to work out if I was pregnant, and now there’s no hiding it. (On the way to Australia, I could pull the tray down on the plane; by the time we came back, I was eating dinner on the baby’s head).

And so, the unsolicited advice and comments have begun. It’s quite fascinating. I get daily emails from colleagues telling me the optimal time for mat. leave or birthing tips.

There’s one colleague who I have always got on well with, but our relationship has been strictly professional. But now, he happily shares his son’s birth story and the difficulties of parenting a child who refuses to sleep through the night. He is adamant that we should have another baby right away – he and his wife wanted more because he thinks that kids really should have a sibling but were only allowed one due to the Chinese One Child policy. He checks in regularly to make sure I am drinking enough water and am eating and the other day he held is hand out to me as I crossed campus to make sure I didn’t slip on the ice. This is a man who doesn’t talk much about his emotions, and yet there is this passion, life and gentleness that comes out when he talks about his family. I’m really enjoying the connection. It’s like parenthood is a club. You don’t realise it’s there until you become a member and then suddenly a whole new world opens up.

Another source of support that I didn’t necessarily expect is from the student leaders I work with. There is one in particular – a 19 year devoutly staunch Roman Catholic boy – who has really surprised me. I was initially a little concerned about telling him, but his genuine interest and excitement for me is beautiful and he’s got very protective of this little baby. He comes into my office and asks “How’s baby Caroline?” (not necessarily asking me how I am first!). After the break, he came back from a trip home to Lebanon (and a trip to Rome to visit the Pope), and proclaimed “I have baklava for the baby. The baby needs good baklava.” He told me that it was very important that the baby understands that Lebanese Baklava is the best in the world. We shall have to make sure that we repeat that to our baby once it is more aware of its surroundings...

Of course, the other major source of advice is Anna. Now she emails me at work not to ask me how my day’s going but to remind me to do my kegels! It’s like having my own personal cheerleader. “Go Caroline go. You can do it!” If people at work only knew what muscles I’m exercising as they come and go from my office.

All in all, it’s been a lovely journey so far. I’m getting tired and starting to look forward to the end of this stage, but also relishing the new connections that pregnancy is fostering for us.