Friday, January 06, 2012

Am I too old?

Apparently not - I'm pregnant, aren't I?

I was at the park today with some moms that were of course much, much younger than me ;o) (30s), one of whom is pregnant and due in April. We talked about age a little and which MOPS we'll try to go to so we're not the only ones who remember VHS tapes, and how unimportant maternity fashion is to us.

Of course I know that I am a little older than most moms, but there are plenty of us late 30's and early 40's moms out there. So we went on and watched our kids play as we talked, and eventually a couple with a 20-month-old baby boy came to the sand area. The mom was obviously pregnant and about as far along as me as far as I could tell. After awhile the family walked behind us and the mom said, "How old ARE you"?"

She didn't really. But my friend did say with a smile after the woman had walked by, "She's not in our age group," and she probably wasn't. It just made me giggle. It's nice to have a kindred spirit.

That all being said, I don't feel like an older mom. I'm just a mom doing the best I can. I have plenty of mom friends who are a decade or more younger than me, and some of us have a lot in common. Some of us don't, and that's fine too. I don't feel awkward around young moms, but I do like to joke about it. I might as well, I earned my age and I get to poke fun of myself if I want to.

Sure there are risks at having a baby after 40, but there are always risks. We've decided not to do any screening for genetic abnormalities - we'll find out soon enough. With Andrew we did a few of those tests for peace of mind, but at my age the risk of a false positive is significant and I'd rather not spend the rest of my pregnancy worried about what problems our baby may or may not have. At our big ultrasound on the 26th any major abnormalities will be noticeable and we can investigate further then if we want to. But I know we wouldn't terminate so really, what's the point.

Morbid much? Not really. Just letting ya'll know that we trust the Lord and what He has planned for us. We've learned well enough that we are not in control of our fertility or our children's characteristics beyond basic responsibility, and that is the beauty of trusting in God and the perfection of our eternal, permanent home.

How old are you, anyway?

4 comments:

Allison said...

I have a friend who had her first child at 44 years old. You're not too old by any means, Amy. Though you are a decade older than me... ;-)

Amy T. S. said...

Stinker! lol

Unknown said...

My mom was 43 when she had my little brother! He's a genius too. You'll punch me if I tell my age, so I won't.

Ann said...

A good friend who had her third child at age 43 says it keeps you young! Her third child is now 13 and she still agrees with this point.