Wait for me! No matter how much I pleaded, Jane wouldn’t pause her pregnancy while I’ve been working like crazy. Baby Tarzan is growing like crazy and he’s not waiting for anyone. 
Although we missed pregnancy week 22 somehow, I’m here to talk about pregnancy week 23 and share Jane’s pregnancy week 23 belly picture with you.
I feel horrible that somehow pregnancy week 22 flew by without a blog post or a picture, but we’ll just take two pictures when Jane is 22 weeks pregnant the next time around.
So, what did pregnancy week 22 and pregnancy week 23 bring? Lot’s of movement!
Baby Tarzan is jumping all around in Jane’s belly. Although, I haven’t felt it yet. :( I have a feeling I’m just a few days to a week away from being able to feel my son moving around in Jane’s pregnant belly. I can’t wait – that is going to be amazing and something that I’ll always remember. Now that is something that I’m going to rush to blog about to document it because it’ll be a huge event in my life! I can’t wait.
Also, as you know by Pregnant Jane’s blog post, it has brought a cold. Besides that, her pregnancy hormones still kick in from time to time and I’m often walking on egg shells and of course break a few here and there because I never know when her pregnancy hormones are kicking in.
It’s tough sometimes for a father-to-be. Jane can go from being perfectly happy one minute and change to being upset and emotional at a drop of a hat. I could go downstairs to get a drink of water and Jane is acting fine. I could then go back down a few minutes later and Jane is emotional and can easily take anything I do or say the wrong way. It’s tough sometimes because I know if I don’t say anything she could get upset at me or think I’m mad at her… and if I do say something, there is a potential it could be taken the wrong way.
Ahhhh…. Oh well. What can I do? :)
Another thing that Pregnancy weeks 22 and week 23 has brought is SNORING.
Every night Jane snores now. Some nights are worse than others and I think it’s worse now because her nose is stuffed up because of her cold. However, there was some snoring going on before she got a cold.
It was funny, last night shortly after I went to bed I just couldn’t take it any more. Her snoring was keeping me up and I got out of bed to go sleep on the couch. Pregnancy Jane asked me where I was going and I said I was going to sleep in the living room because her snoring was keeping me awake.
She told me that she wasn’t sleeping yet and she wasn’t snoring. Hmmm… I of course know better now-a-days not to argue or disagree with a pregnant wife so I just went back into bed and laid down. Thankfully I went right to sleep and didn’t wake up to any snoring.
Jane’s never ever snored before and I have a hard time going to sleep whenever I hear any snoring… and that includes our dog. Yes, sometimes our dog snores and nearly drives me though the roof! In fact, the other night when Pregnant Jane’s cold was hitting her hard, both her and our dog were snoring like crazy.
Let’s just say that I’ve fallen asleep on the couch watching TV a few times this past week. :)
Other than that, all is good. I’ve been working SO SO hard lately and haven’t been able to find the time to post on this blog lately. I feel horrible for that and I’m thankful Jane has taken charge and is continuing to blog about her pregnancy.
I’m just working so, so hard right now with the goal to have some really good things going by the time baby Tarzan is born so I can spend a lot of time with my family. I also feel bad that I’m working so much lately because that means that Jane and I don’t get to spend a lot of time with each other, but we both know the reason why… Work hard now and have the time later to spend with her and Baby Tarzan.
I haven’t worked this hard in many, many years… something snapped in me a few weeks back. The realization of having a son on the way really set in along with the thoughts of the economy, what we have going on here, etc. hit me like a ton of bricks. As I’ve said in previous blog posts, I do not EVER EVER want to be the type of father who works 24/7 and misses his child(ren) grow up. You can never have that back.
So I figured that I’d work my tail off now to get some good things going so we can afford me taking a lot of time off – or at least cut my working hours to like 5 hours a night or something so I can have a lot of family time. That’s so important to me. My father always did all he could to be involved in my life in every way since day one – and still does! Although he had a job that required him to leave the house to go to work, like most people, he changed his hours, schedule, stepped down from a position that required a lot of his time, etc. to have more time to spend with me.
I’ll never ever forget that – and although we live many miles away from each other, we talk 3-4 times a week. We’re very close and I know it’s because of the time he spent with me growing up and the father-son bond that was created that I know many men lack from their fathers. (Many of my friends and previous friends growing up did not have that special bond with their Dad’s.) So I know I have a very special father – and I want to be that special father to my son so one day as he’s blogging about his first child, he’ll make the same comments about me and how incredible Father Tarzan is.
The shift is on.
I have felt my mind changing since shortly after Jane became pregnant. I have noticed massive changes in my thinking. I have noticed massive changes in my actions. I am not the same person on the inside as I was before Jane became pregnant. There is no doubt about it… I’m convinced that just as a woman’s mind changes into a “mother’s mind”, somehow the same type of chemical reactions go on in the father’s mind to prepare him for fatherhood.
I have no idea if there has ever been any research done on the subject, nor have I ever looked. If there isn’t, mark my words, one day there will be proof that a soon-to-be father’s mind changes during his wife’s pregnancy. Maybe it’s seeing her belly grow and knowing that your child is inside is all that is needed to set off the chemical reactions (which also causes father-to-be hormone issues I’ve found!) in ones mind to set off the changes.
Maybe it’s just the fact of knowing you’re going to be a father. Or maybe it’s something else that we’ll never understand. But I know for a 100% fact that my mind, thinking, actions, etc. have changed. It’s like a whole new area of my mind has been activated – an area of my mind that is new, undiscovered, and full of new emotions I have never felt before.
And if my crazy assumptions are correct about the above, I have one other BIG one that fits with everything above. I have a feeling that the moment I see my son for the very first time, my mind with explode with this “fatherhood chemical” from this new area of my mind that has been activated. And from that very millionth of a second, I will never ever be how I was before. At that very moment I will begin to worry about Baby Tarzan – a worry that will never ever go away.
I’ll go from not knowing Baby Tarzan, to within a second willing to do anything for him – and do everything to protect him. I have a feeling it’ll be an emotion/feeling that will set in within just one tiny second, but be with me for the rest of my life.
Everyone says everything is going to change… that when you have a child, things become different. No one has really been able to explain this fully to me. They say they cannot imagine their lives without their child. They say that it’s the best thing in the world that has happened to them. How can this be? Why hasn’t anyone been able to fully explain this to me? I have a feeling I know why….
No one can really put a finger on what “it” was, or what changed within them. Why?
Asking someone what changed within them when they became a parent is like asking someone to explain what it feels like to love someone.
You cannot truly explain human emotions. And what are emotions? They are the things we feel which are set off by chemical reactions within our minds. Which brings me right back to the start of this… that a new chemical is released into our brains; both for a mother-to-be and a father-to-be when pregnant. And I bet another chemical is released the moment your child is born that changes everything.
Soon after our son is born, I bet you’ll be reading blog posts from us saying that we cannot imagine our lives without Baby Tarzan, along with all the other things parents normally say. And of course, they will all be 100% true, but for someone who is a little strange like me and actually thinks about this stuff, I’ll have an understanding why we feel that way, at least according to my reasoning and beliefs above.
In relation to everything above, as Pregnant Jane’s belly grows, I really feel things settling in. And I really feel that is one of the forces that is pushing me to work so hard right now – to be able to support and spend a lot of time with my family.
Crazy stuff, huh? Or am I the one who is going crazy? LOL
Well, I’ll be back as soon as I can to post more. I hope everyone is doing GREAT and I believe me, I miss posting here and hope to get back to my normal daily posting routine soon. :)
Oh, and I’ve also updated our Pregnancy week-by-week page with Jane’s week 23 pregnant belly photo. Week 22 isn’t there. :( I am sorry about that and I’m not a happy camper about that one.
You might also want to read:
- 21 weeks pregnant belly picture: Our baby is kicking Jane’s butt! I mean belly…
- Pregnancy Week By Week: Weeks 36, 37, 38 Pregnant Belly Pictures Added.
- 11 weeks pregnant belly picture
- 35 Weeks Pregnant Belly Picture And The Preparations Begin.
- Here’s Jane’s 18 weeks of pregnant belly picture – Whoa! Her belly is growing like a weed!
= a post from Mommy Jane 
= a post from Daddy Tarzan
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Coming up: Somewhere between week 26-28, start putting your head on Jane’s belly. Eventually, you’ll be able to hear the baby’s heartbeat. It will be much faster than her’s, so you’ll be able to tell. You may have to move around til you figure out what position he’s in, too. Hearing the baby is when my husband really got excited. It won’t last for long though- soon he’ll get too thick to hear it anymore so enjoy it while you can!
Tarzan, you’re going to make a wonderful dad. And your right, something will click on within moments of seeing your son born. I don’t know if it’s chemical or just “instinct” but all of a sudden it goes from being you to being a parent.
I just had my son less then 2 weeks ago, and I will tell you, EVERYTHING does change. All of a sudden, the rest of the world can wait and all that matters is caring for your precious baby. And you can’t describe the love you feel for him either, its just there and the best feeling in the world. I’ve never felt so different and happy in my life, and you’ll get this pride about you that everyone will see. It’s amazing, and I can’t wait for you experience it.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for this blog (recommended by a friend on Twitter) and for this post, in particular. I’m blogging about my pregnancy, as well, and I know that the pregnancy has been a life-changing event for my husband, too– it’s so nice to hear “the change” articulated by another man–it makes me feel that my husband is less alone. (But instead of working, he stays up all night and worries–and makes his way through the entire Netflix catalog).
Ok, just last week – at 23 weeks for me (Jane and I are about a week – if that – apart) – hubs FINALLY felt the baby “kick” (or something). Again, a couple of nights ago. It seems that if I tell him to come feel, the baby senses this and she’s all like, “Uh-uh. I’m done. Not moving now, just because you want me to!”
But now, at 24 weeks, my belly is bumping around and it’s fun to place an “object” on my belly and watch it jump. We’ve done with with light-weight plastic plates, toys from our preschooler and the tv remote. Try it. It’s entertaining.
Welcome back T! We missed your posts, but I really admire your plan to work now and be there for your son and Jane later:-) How lucky you both are to have each other. I think you guys are going to make great parents.
Your comments about ’something changing’ when your wife is pregnant and when the baby is born made me remember something that happened to my sister. She was 42 when she had her first (and only) baby. During the pregnancy, she was excited but kind of bewildered. I think she was wondering what everyone was so excited about. I kept saying how I was so thrilled that she would finally get to realize the feelings I’d been trying to explain to her for years about being a Mom and how it changes you.
The day the baby was born, she called me and said 3 words. “I GET IT” She said she saw that baby and it was like a light switch went off in her head and everything became clear.
I know it’s not this way with everyone though. It’s good to remember that often parents don’t “instantly bond” or immediately feel love for their babies. That’s normal and natural as well.
Our dear friend Rob called my husband just moments after his son was born to share the good news. He said to my husband, “He’s so gross looking, but if anyone says anything bad about Connor, I’ll kill them!”