- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
May 2016 Moms
swflJD
member
GTKY: What are your hobbies?
swflJD
member
Because work is slow today, and I'm bored: what are your favorite hobbies, interests, etc.? Have you been able to continue doing them during your pregnancy? Do you plan to continue them after your baby arrives? STM+, did you plan to continue participating in your hobbies after your first child was born? If so, were you able to?
Here are mine:
Here are mine:
- Sailing. DH, our crew of 3-4 others, and I race our sailboat in our local regatta circuit from October to May every year. We found out we were expecting just before the start of this regatta season, but I haven't missed a race yet. It's getting more difficult, though, so I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to do it safely and comfortably. We have a regatta this weekend, and I'm going unless the conditions are really rough. DH and I have decided that we won't be racing much next year, but we're still planning to occasionally when we have family in town to watch our LO. We plan to go back to our regular racing routine year after next, provided we find a reliable sitter by then. I'm not sure how long we'll wait to take LO out on the sailboat, but I'm guessing we'll probably take him out in nice conditions by the time he's a few months old.
- Softball. I have played on a co-ed slow pitch softball team for years. DH plays on our team as needed, and he plays full time on a mens league team. For obvious safety reasons, when I found out I was pregnant I told my team I was sitting this season out. Since we weren't ready to announce the pregnancy yet, I told my team it was because of a (nonexistent) ankle injury. I felt bad when several teammates kept recommending different ankle braces and local doctors, so I eventually caved and told a few of them early and swore them to secrecy. I would like to keep playing after the baby arrives, but I'm not sure how practical it will be since we usually play right after work on weeknights. I may just play when DH is available to meet me there and watch with LO.
- Fishing. DH and I have a small fishing boat. We do mostly backwater fishing, so it's been easy for me to continue doing it. We plan to continue fishing (or at least just going for boat rides) after the baby gets here. It will probably be easier than sailing with a LO since we can easily beach the fishing boat and take a break if he needs to.
Re: GTKY: What are your hobbies?
I feel like a lot of my hobbies have taken a back seat after college and getting locked into my work & marriage schedule.
-sand volleyball I was playing in a couple pretty intense be leagues so I was sad I had to quit, I'm hoping to start again in October
-curling dh and I are part of a club and so far I have been able to keep up
-crafting, I love sewing so hopefully I can keep that up with a LO around. I also sometimes scrap book
-dog activities, nothing competitive but I like to take them to fun classes (agility, nose work, obedience) and my intent with my vizsla was to start competitive agility so hopefully after baby is born I can look into that.
-outdoor things (camping, fishing, hunting) DH and I are very excited to share our love of the outdoors!!!!
I also crochet. It's easier to do it when they're babies bc now DD yanks my yarn and runs off with it. I crochet at work usually.
I cook and bake. I love to be in the kitchen. That's my safe place. I did freezer meals with DD and fully intend to make more with DD2 bc they were so helpful.
I do a lot of Pinterest projects. I like building things (small things) and doing crafts with DD. This pg I've slacked off bc of lethargy.
Been married since 2009.
Unicornuate Uterus (yes I menstruate glitter)
Several MCs
DD born 2013 (our miracle "you can't have babies" baby!)
Scrapbooking: I currently have about 60 scrapbooks and I am gathering things to put together LO's first album. I go on a weekend retreat twice a year, and I'll tell you, it's a lot less fun doing it without a drink thanks to being pg and everyone else is half in the bag!
Painting: I've been dabbling in some acrylic painting but I still need ideas to go off of instead of original ideas. I'm hoping to do some artwork for LO's nursery but I'm still learning the technique.
Edited: the pictures are being TW's today...
My big ones:
-- Dog training. Tricks, Rally, comp ob, agility, etc. On the back burner this year (we're not actively competing, are barely in training); I hope to be able to get back into it when I'm out on maternity leave. I doubt I'll be back on the competition circuit anytime soon though. I also do a lot of fostering and rescue work, which is presently on hold except for my unpaid inbox monkey "job." I don't think I'll be fostering too much for the next couple of years, alas.
-- Writing. After starting in original fiction, I shifted over to writing tie-in novels for a couple of different fantasy game properties (chiefly the Dragon Age and Pathfinder RPGs). My current manuscript is due next month, which is good because it'll force me to get that finished before the futurebaby's due date in May. I'm hopeful that futurebaby's arrival won't interfere with the actual writing too much, although it has knocked out my convention plans for the summer. But, eh, I was never big on doing the convention circuit anyway, no huge loss there.
-- Gardening. I have only a small container garden on our roof deck since we live in the middle of the city, but it's enough to keep me occupied. Everything I grow is edible. Currently I've got a couple of dwarf sour cherry trees, blueberries, trellised blackberries, a rugosa rose (for the hips), a Meyer lemon, a ton of strawberries, and a couple of lingonberry bushes by way of perennials, and a rotating cast of annuals (that I'll need to figure out for 2016 in the next month or so, once I see how much damage this weekend's hard freeze does to my current plants). I can't see this one being affected too much by the baby's arrival. If anything, going up to the roof garden should be a welcome breather when I can't handle being stuck with a newborn anymore.
-- various frivolous collections (jewelry, lingerie, perfume, all the girly things). All totally silly stuff, but on the other hand, that lingerie collection is a ferocious motivator to get back into shape ASAP...
I also love to garden and cook!
DS: Born 5-17-16
I also LOVED my kickboxing classes but stopped that not only because it is dangerous in pregnancy but super expensive. I dont think even after LO is here I can go back due to the costs...
I don't have a crafty bone in my body, but love to live vicariously through you all! Show off your pinterest crafts!
Does obsessing about baby count as a hobby? Or sneezing, because I have been doing that a lot too!
@merciel I wish I was better at gardening. I struggle to keep house plants alive. Since I live in such a warm climate, I would like to plant some fruit trees in my yard, but I'm afraid I'll kill them. I had a passion fruit bush in a planter last year and accidentally killed it.
@yogahh I hear you! I was not blessed with crafty genes either. I would like to try yoga during pregnancy since it seems like a good low-impact exercise, but I would feel like a complete idiot because I would have no idea what I was doing!
I envy all of you crafty ladies. I struggle to re-sew a button if I lose one! DH bought me a sewing machine for my birthday last year because I said I wanted to learn to hem my own pants. It's still in the box, but you ladies on here and on the craft thread have inspired me to break it out and try something soon!
Like @yogahh, kickboxing. I love it. It's such a great workout and it's also very empowering. I gave it up because it's not baby friendly, but I still have about 30 classes that are paid for and not used. I'm hoping to at least be able to go back enough to use those up. I'm not optimistic that I'll be able to though, just based on childcare issues. After the classes are used I doubt I'll continue because it is so very expensive.
And like many PP, running!! I also gave that up when I got KU...the 1st trimester I was too ill, and the one time I tried in the 2nd tri it was too uncomfortable. I miss it A LOT. I decided I wanted to train for a half marathon and ended up doing 4 of them in a 12 month period. I also set a goal that year to run a 5k, 10k, 15k, 5 miler, 10 miler, and a 1/2 marathon in the calendar year (which I did!!). Now, I get winded climbing stairs
And cooking. I love cooking and baking. I haven't done a lot of this either due to food aversions, but I do plan to freeze as many meals as possible for when baby comes. I"m hoping the joy of cooking comes back!! My husband hopes so too, LOL. It's hard to lose so much of yourself during pregnancy.
These days, my hobbies are spinning, napping, Netflix, baby planning, and eating Lucky Charms.
Eta-- I love to cook too, though workday weekday cooking is decidedly not fun anymore.
Before baby:
After baby:
Is there life after baby? Just kidding...kind of. I haven't worked out since mid-pregnancy with DS. I have read a few books, but they are few and far between. Biggest hobby now is taking DS to Target. That's a hobby right??
Golf: I golfed until I was 8 months pregnant with DD. This time around I have only gone a couple of times because I was so sick/tired first trimester and now it's winter. But we take DD with us to play golf. It will probably happen less with 2, realistically.
Rock climbing: I haven't done this since I was pregnant with DD, and I miss it so much! I plan on getting back into it, especially as the kids get older and can join in.
Traveling: Is that a hobby? We still travel regularly. DD is very familiar with airplanes lol. We just sleep less than we used to because she doesn't sleep as well when she's not in her crib...
Reading: I'm ashamed to say that I only read a couple of books a year now. It was a lot more pre-kids.
Other than riding I love all crafty things, and refinishing furniture.
That is so cool! I've always loved watching curling and tried it once at a local club, and I was AWFUL! Everyone there was a beginner, but I was the worst! Was too embarrassed to ever go back
I still like watching it on TV though!
DH and I enjoy going to community theatre productions; I hope we can continue doing that once baby is here because it is a really inexpensive and enjoyable date night!
I used to have way more hobbies, but graduate school really sucked the fun out of me lol. Writing my dissertation has been my biggest "hobby" for the past few years.
eta: @KaKip what geography game? We love GeoGuessr and are actually halfway decent at it
Been married since 2009.
Unicornuate Uterus (yes I menstruate glitter)
Several MCs
DD born 2013 (our miracle "you can't have babies" baby!)
Traveling-I've been to a few other countries, but we don't plan on going anywhere far once baby is born..
Fitness- Prior to being pregnant I was working on losing weight and getting healthy. I kinda pooped out part way through the 1st trimester. I have quite a few training sessions left that I will resume after I'm healthy enough to return to the gym after baby is born.
Gardening- I just started to get into it last summer and normally I kill everything, but I didn't do too bad. I'm hoping my mom will help me some since I'll be busier with the baby.
Video games- Sims is my favorite and then i like to play with my husband when he plays the mario games and I can help but not be a hindrance (I'm not very good at it and he is very good at video games lol).
Been married since 2009.
Unicornuate Uterus (yes I menstruate glitter)
Several MCs
DD born 2013 (our miracle "you can't have babies" baby!)
Has anyone else's hobbies changed when they met their SO? Mine has - we now have shared hobbies (movies and series) but he's a gamer and I read when he plays so we're still cool with giving each other space.
- Hiking
-Traveling
- Running. Had to stop ages ago , pregnancy related... Sigh. I miss it. My whole lower body misses it... Eeeek... But I'll get back into it once baby is here and it's safe to exercise again. Or so I hope. No. I will. It clears my head and keeps me from going nuts. I should definitely keep it up!
- Fooooood! (going out to eat or reading about it, cooking it, and if I'm lucky, maybe once a year or so? DH cooks for me.
I sang growing up but now that's just something I do in the car.
I also love scrap booking but have a hard time finding the time lately.
Here are mine, in no particular order:
- Ballroom dance. I don't compete or anything (and have zero desire to anytime soon), but I love to go social dancing when I can. I'm particular to West Coast Swing, Salsa, and (American Standard) Waltz, mostly because I suck at everything else. I've lived my whole life in Texas and I'm ashamed to say that I can't country dance to save my life. SO jealous of the people who can. :P I haven't gone since I first started having morning sickness, but I think that after the baby is born I'm going to register for some East Coast Swing classes somewhere...its been a loooooong time since I've done that, but it's a lot of fun and a great workout.
- Writing. I run a creative writing group that meets at a local pub on a weekly basis. We are NOT a critique group - we mostly just get together because we know we won't get anything written at home. Throughout most of the year it's very casual and relaxed, and then in November it's National Novel Writing Month, when I make everybody Shut Up and Write and force them to compete for chocolate and bragging rights. It's awesome and fun and I love it.
- Video Games. I love a good RPG with a strong story and lots of character development. DH and I are currently obsessing over the latest Dragon Age - we've been switching between each other's playthroughs and snarking at the other's strategies and it's hilarious and so much fun. Occasionally we'll play something together - we work well as a team in games like Resident Evil 5/6 or Borderlands - but mostly we just prefer to let one person play while the other person helps strategize.
- Reading. Though I've been really bad about it lately...my usual scatterbrained self is even more scatterbrained lately, thanks to pregnancy. My writing's suffering, too. I just can't focus the way I used to.
My other hobbies are soccer, hiking, and skiing. I played soccer for years all the way through college, and had the chance to win a national title with one of my summer teams. I only play for fun now, but obviously had to sit out this year.
My DH and I have a little cabin in the woods in Maine so we love to hike up there. There are miles and miles of trails all around us. The dogs love it, and we are really looking forward to taking this little guy out into the woods. Can't think of a better way to spend the summers with a little boy than out in the woods in Maine.
Our cabin is also about 40 minutes from Sunday River, so I was pumped to get my season pass this year, but had to forego that as well.
Can I include beer and wine tasting as hobbies?! We have so many great local breweries and vineyards around us, that we often like to spend Saturday afternoons out sampling new places. I have greatly missed being able to keep this up the past 7 months!
This has been a fun thread! We have so many interesting ladies on this board!
Things I don't get to do as much anymore but love: wine (researching, tasting, buying and selling for investment), travel, concerts.
I'm amazed at how many crafty people we have, I'm the least crafty person ever. I can't even sew a button!
I've been practicing power yoga for the past 10 years (since college) and within the past year became an instructor. I teach hot vinyasa flow and a sculpt class (yoga with hand weights). It's definitely my passion! I love practicing, and I love teaching even more.
When I'm not in the studio, I love to garden. I've always had a green thumb and I cherish my veggie garden in the summer. People stare at me when I say I don't go grocery shopping for 4-5months, but it's true. I grow lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, squash, etc. It's something that I take pride in.
H and I also love to spend our summers traveling to concerts. We've done RHCP, DMB (a million times), Jack Johnson, John Mayer, the killers, and a bunch more. Music is so important to us and our little family. We're always rocking out to something
Some other random hobbies of mine/ours are sporting events, mainly baseball and hockey games (Phillies and flyers!), traveling as much as we can, baking, and reading whenever I have a chance.