5 Reasons to Love Summer Pregnancies

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Four years ago this week, I was heavily pregnant. We’re talking 41 weeks pregnant. And unsurprisingly, it was hot. Are you sweating in sympathy yet?

I didn’t plan to be pregnant in summer. And when I did the math, soon after seeing that positive pregnancy test and realized I was due in July, I cringed. Would I be able to handle being 9 months pregnant in the Carolina heat?

The answer: Yes.

Air conditioning helped, of course — and I kept reminding myself that had I been alive 150 years before, I’d have been doing this in hoop skirts and cooking over an open fire. So I had it pretty easy, if you take the long view.

Pregnancy brings aches and agonies no matter the season. But a summer pregnancy has some distinct advantages over its wintertime sister. And if I’m ever planning another pregnancy, I’d love to have it occur in summer.

Here are my favorite things about being pregnant in summer.

1. Flip Flops 

Whether due to expanding feet or an expanding middle, most women I know have given up “proper” shoes by their third trimester. Heels, straps, buckles or laces are inconveniences that no one needs. If you’re pregnant in winter, your options are limited. But in summer: flip flops, baby. They’re light, often cheap (so you won’t mind buying shoes just for pregnancy), available everywhere and seasonally appropriate.

2. Pools, Lakes, and Oceans

With a heavily pregnant body, movement is hard. But just add water, and everything gets easier. In water, gravity eases its pull on your joints and you move like you used to. And in summer, it’s easy to find an excuse to lounge in the water — plus, you’ll have plenty of company.

3. Lightweight Clothing

Normally I much prefer winter wardrobes to summer ones. But when I think of struggling to pull a pair of maternity tights over a pregnant belly…no thank you. In summer, clothing is simple: light top, cool bottoms. Shorts if you can get away with it, loose pants if you’re hamstrung by an office dress code. There’s no struggling to fit a winter coat over your baby bump; no sweating through a sweater due to a pregnancy hot flash.

4. Easy Sympathy

Co-workers or family members may not know what it’s like to be pregnant, but they sure know that pregnant women feel the heat. You can so take advantage of this. Just a slight expression of discomfort — a wipe of the forehead, a slight grimace, a hand on your belly or the small of your back — and you’ll have a glass of ice water and a place to sit before you can say “Braxton Hicks.”

5. Smooth Legs

My very favorite thing about pregnancy was that I rarely had to shave my legs. When not pregnant, I am very lazy about body hair upkeep, and I only do it when going barelegged. And when you add a third-trimester belly, the chances of me taking the time to shave very frequently were slim. But my body took pity on me, and my leg hair grew very, very slowly. One shave would keep my legs smooth for about two weeks, as opposed to about two days pre-pregnancy. This made it much easier to stay cool in shorts and skirts (see No. 3 above).

Bonuses of Summer Babies

Summer pregnancies generally mean you’ll welcome your baby before cold and flu season. This makes things so much easier. You’ll still need to be careful to avoid exposing your little one to illnesses, particularly if he or she is born early, but you won’t be afraid that every visitor is harboring a viral plague. And summer babies are much easier to dress; my son spent his first month in T-shirts and diapers, with a light blanket to ward off aggressive air-conditioning.

Final Thoughts and Encouragement

Pregnancy in any season has its joys and its aggravations. And of course, a healthy baby is the most important thing, no matter when he or she is born. But if you’re mid-pregnancy and wondering how you’re going to make it through Columbia’s famously hot summer, take heart: I’ve been there. You’ll make it.

Did you have a summer pregnancy? What advantages would you add to the list?

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Marian
As a writer and editor, Marian Cowhig Owen made her living crafting – or at least striving for – perfect prose. But motherhood taught her quickly that there’s no such thing as a perfect parent. It’s a lesson she’s learning over and over every day. A Midwesterner by birth, Marian lived in North Carolina for 14 years before her husband’s job brought the family to Columbia in fall 2013. She and her preschooler have quickly found new favorite haunts in the Midlands, including Saluda Shoals Park, EdVenture and the Irmo branch library. In her spare time, this NPR junkie also sings, bakes and does needlework. She’s recently taken up running, with an eye toward her first 5K race in the fall. And as for that perfection she’s been seeking? Her Pinterest boards are very carefully curated.

2 COMMENTS

  1. I have never been very far along in pregnancy in the summer, but I can think of another bonus – summer time birthday parties, when all you need is a pool, cake and ice cream. My daughter was born in January, and wintertime parties are not as easy to plan for. 🙂

    • Yes! We are taking advantage of that this weekend. 🙂 My friend whose son was born in December swears her next will have a summer birthday. Or at least spring!

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