Not a Flotation Device

When Tom and I were deciding if we should leave our hip urban Oakland neighborhood for life in the suburbs, there were a number of factors we had to consider. We would be moving away from friends, favorite restaurants and a charming turn-of-the century California bungalow that we loved.

But for Tom the opportunity for a freeway-free, fifteen minute commute made the sacrifice worth it. For me, the draw was a house with a pool. Typically, suburban swimming pools are tragically underused, but I'm proud to say this isn't true for us. With the benefit of solar heating, our pool is a very pleasant temperature and I go in almost every day. Any woman whose been pregnant and experienced a pool will understand. In the water I'm weightless, agile and quite buoyant. I swim laps, use a kickboard and even work out with floating dumbbells.

This habit has made me feel like less of a fat blob despite my expanding size. I've also acquired a tan that would send a dermatologist into convulsions, but gives me a nice faux pregnancy glow. The pool also does a great job of luring our urban-dwelling friends into the burbs.

I'm mean, take a look; could you resist?