Plenty of experiences in life are memorable: a great kiss, a really cool lightning storm, your first trip to another country, that shot of Brad Pitt's abs in Thelma and Louise – the list goes on. But there's one experience nothing else can touch, and that's the experience of nurturing a new life inside your own body. Let's break it down:

P is for preparation. Finding out you're pregnant is a bit like being proposed to. The moment that happens, you shift instantly into planning mode, becoming nearly unrecognizable to everyone around you in the process. And that's just the first few weeks, before you really move into overdrive. Learning you're pregnant can prove a similar catalyst, though most moms-to-be wait until the end of the first trimester – the traditional "safe period" – to start raiding the retail stores. Let me just say two things about preparing for the arrival of your baby. One, you have more time than you think. Two, you don't have as much time as you think. Good luck!

R is for reality. As in, yours is going to do a complete 180. Pregnancy is great training ground for being a live, honest-to-goodness parent, because after becoming pregnant you'll quickly find that every decision you make involves the tiny creature growing inside you. This focus will only become more intense as you go, so don't worry if you feel you might be over-anxious or unreasonably preoccupied with the baby or foolishly paranoid about keeping it safe. You're none of those things – you're just becoming a mother. And what could be more wonderful than that?

E is for exhaustion. Before you got pregnant, your body was accustomed to using everything it took in just for you. During the first weeks of pregnancy, it has to get used to supporting two systems: yours and your baby's. And that's draining. Extremely. You may find yourself becoming astonishingly sleepy at the drop of a hat throughout the first trimester. Don't feel guilty; it's your body's way of preserving its energy so it can keep sustaining that little miracle growing inside. And the good news is that is E also stands for euphoria, energy and exhilaration – all things you'll likely feel when that second-trimester high kicks in.

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