Kicking and Screaming - Part 1

As soon as I could feel my daughter moving in my belly, she’d been kicking as if she were preparing to punt for the Super Bowl champions. I think she was trying to imitate me and my time on the elliptical machine or the stationary bike. Or maybe she was already paying homage to the sport that is most popular in both Italy and Mexico. Not sure exactly but she definitely knew how to do damage with her legs and feet. I told the doctors that I thought she was going to be a soccer player, a kick boxer or a rockette based on her kicks. 

There were times during my pregnancy when I thought she had it in for my ribs. It seemed that she wanted to kick them out of place so she had more room to move. I remember one night she had been kicking me for 2 hours straight that I was sure she had broken a number of bones in my trunk. I even remember crying hysterically because it was so painful. 

A few weeks ago as she was sprawled out on her changing table, she was cycling her lower limbs as if she were pedaling through the Tour de France. My husband said “Now I know what you were going through when you were pregnant.” I told him that was the one thing about being pregnant that I didn’t miss – the constant bombardment of her legs on my internal organs. Now that she was free of her constricting space, she must have been enjoying her feet so much more. 

Whenever she is in her stroller and is upset (not that I ever know the exact cause), she kicks her blanket(s) right off and onto the ground. I find myself playing the game of pickup sticks except there is no ball and no sticks, just various handmade warming garments. One day in a particular fit of rage, she kicked them off 5 times. I contemplated not putting them back on but it was cold and I worried she’d get sick in the distance it took to get home.  I started trying to reason with her but really, what was I thinking? She didn’t understand what I was saying. So instead, I hunched over the stroller handle and put my hands on her blankets as I pushed the stroller with my ribs. Luckily, she didn’t break them during my pregnancy because they were coming in very handy in these desperate occasions. 

Some people believe you can see what your kids will be good at from a very early age. Maybe she will turn out to play in the World Cup or make her ascent up the mountains of France or perhaps she will run marathons but for right now, I’ll just enjoy her – kicks and all – and see what time will reveal.