I've always been a careful person, a woman with a good head on her shoulders who tends to make wise choices. I said "tends to." That means I slip up from time to time. Or, if you count my nine months of pregnancy, a lot.

I read a zillion expectant mom books and took good notes at the doctor's. I stayed away from the bad fish and alcohol and painkillers other than the occasional Tylenol. I didn't whiten my teeth. I took care of myself and my growing baby and was generally healthy (we won't talk about that month of weekly candy binges). But I still unwittingly committed 6 of the pregnancy deadly sins.

I could blame my blond hair. It's a convenient excuse for what those who know me well dub my "Catherine moments." Or I could blame pregnancy brain. But in the end, all I can do is blame my own damn ditzy self.

It’s one thing to announce your pregnancy when you have meticulously planned and prayed for a child. Everyone is waiting patiently for the big announcement and when it finally comes, it warrants nothing less than a ticker tape parade.

When you get pregnant unexpectedly; as a teenager, being unwed, having sworn to anyone who will listen that you were DONE, or worse falling into the advanced maternal age category, it can be a completely different story.

It may feel a bit more anxiety ridden because, though it may be the greatest unexpected blessing to ever come into your life, you fear what others reactions might be. I’ve come up with a few ways to break the news to unsuspecting friends and family members.

We all know the signs of to look for when our biological clocks is going off. It’s pretty obvious to know when we have baby on the brain. Suddenly, anything and everything baby sends our uterus into a 7.6 babyquake. But what about when we are done? Maybe we have bypassed the wanting to be pregnant altogether. Or maybe our biological clock has died. May it rest in peace. It happens. Not all of us want to have children, some of us are perfectly happy with our lives as they are.

Here are a few signs that your biological clock may have stopped working:

Ah, pregnancy. The time in a woman's life where she has to share her abdominal cavity with another human being. There's nothing more amazing than knowing that you're growing a new life inside of you. It's magical.

It's also hysterical.

Here is YOUR Pregnancy, Month by Hilarious Month.

I've always wanted a baby girl. I'd love to have one of each, but long before I got pregnant, I'd dreamed of a daughter. When I was four months along, I found out I was expecting that little girl of my dreams. (Actually, when I was four months along, the first results were inconclusive -- the doctor said, "It's a boy!" and then took it back and said that was probably the umbilical cord she was seeing, not the other thing.)

Anyway, even before the happy news came, people reveled in regaling me with nightmarish "it's a girl" myths. I'd call them old wives' tales, but that's just as sexist as what I heard about the horrors of being pregnant with a daughter. What amazes me is that they're still touted as truths, mainly by women. Is feminism dead? When it comes to unborn girl babies, yes. Yes, it is. Sorry, Gloria Steinem.

None of these totally unfair pregnancy myths about girls came true for me. So I thought I'd list some just for the pleasure of squarely debunking them.

Pregnancy is such a fun and exciting time in a woman's life -- but it also has the potential to bring some pretty unexpected and often embarrassing moments, that's for sure! The body definitely just kind of takes over during those nine months, and often we tend to have either very odd symptoms, or certain "urges" that pop out at the most inopportune moments.

A few women who were blessed with great senses of humor weren't afraid to share their embarrassing pregnancy stories with the hosts of The Doctors -- even though a couple of them involved pretty gross bodily functions!

Being pregnant is pretty amazing, isn't it? The whole "glowing" thing kinda rules (if that happens to you - I only "glowed" after I vomited). Explaining why you're eating two cheeseburgers becomes a lot easier when you can say, "I'm eating for two!" And having a new life whirling around inside you, well, that's one of the most incredible feelings on the planet!

However, being pregnant comes with some pitfalls. Mainly, other people. Something about seeing a pregnant woman makes them think they can say and do anything they please.

Here are 3 of the rudest things people you know -- and people you don't -- will do while you're pregnant.

Jennifer Garner is at the Toronto International Film Festival today to promote her new movie Butter (a comedy set in the Midwest about a girl following her dreams), but it's not her good reviews that have gotten my attention -- it's her baby bump. Dang! It looks like she got that thing overnight. Guess that's kinda what happens though, with the whole baby-growing-inside-of-you thing. Anyway, Garner looked absolutely stunning in her champagne-colored Valentino gown and, while walking the red carpet, was able to share some of her secrets for balancing two kids under 5 while having one on the way.

Her tip?