TMI (too much information) warning for this post.
The latest development with The Soybean is that she’s now so big, and so active, that when she moves around she hits my cervix. I think of this as “pinging my cervix”*. To ping is a computer term. In Facebook parlance, it’s like “to poke”. It’s sending a message to someone without saying anything.
The term has become part of my daily language. I ping my coworkers via instant messenger to see if they’re available before launching into the question I have. I’ll ping my friend Kelly when I’m ready to meet her for lunch, so she knows to meet me on the corner.
The way the word sounds also fits the feeling I’m having. The baby is just saying “hey, are you still there?”, probably wondering when she can come out and play. As my (very pregnant) friend Mary described herself, I too no longer have a round belly. It’s getting corners.
For those of you who’ve had a Pap smear, it’s similar to when they swab your cervix. It doesn’t last long, but you definitely notice it. PING!
I keep wondering how much assault my cervix can take before it gives up. I have three weeks till my due date, but the way she’s squirming, I think the Soybean is going to throw herself out of me. That, or it’s going to be a very long three weeks.
Then again, I should be grateful that she isn’t pinging my bladder. I hear that generally results in an underwear change.
*I think Kelly actually used this term first. Since she had a 10+ lb. baby, you can imagine all the pinging.
