Hi!

First time post-er!  I was realizing last night that I'm having overwhelming feelings about my cats.  I have 2 cats, 5 1/2 years old.  They are wonderful companions to me and I'm finding myself anticipating that my relationship with them will change after my baby's born.  I'm sad about that. I wonder if I'll still love them the same. I'm sad about having to keep them out of my room or out of certain areas of the house, and hurting their feelings and upsetting their lives.  I'm not the kind of person who thinks they're babies, I don't dress them up and take pictures of them like they're little people. But they really have been my babies for almost 6 years and I love them as if I made them, and I am mourning that our close bond will change. 

Maybe this is just me with the crazy emotions right now.  I'm only 11 weeks.  It's our first baby, and we've been trying for over a year. We had a miscarriage last summer.  I feel like this is kind of frivolous to talk about, there are so many serious concerns we should be having (about the baby's health, our marriages, etc) and we do have those concerns too, but I thought I'd put this out there and see if any one can relate.

 Thanks for 'listening,'
Friscnwhit

 Congrats on the new baby! Some pet owners feel the same way about their pets. It's just something that has to be overcome. I may be getting a new kitten before my baby is born and will just have to train it to stay out of the baby's bed and whatnot.

Hi I just wanted to say that you are not alone. We have a little dog who has been our "baby" as well. We had been trying for 2 years so she was always a source of love and entertainment during the hard times. I've worried about hurting her feelings when the baby comes, but we have talked about it and we just have to make sure that we give her the love and attention that she needs. Although we do know that she is a dog and she can survive if we forget to pet her on a bad day or whatnot. Well I just wanted to let you know that we have had that same worry about our dog. Good luck and I'm sure it will work out!