Free Love?

More practical freedoms surface during pregnancy as well. Making love without birth control, for example, convinces you that (for the moment, anyway) your life is still one of abandon. "Not having to worry about getting pregnant definitely adds to the fun of lovemaking," says Ripple.

For many women, this time in their lives also serves to connect them to a kind of primordial power they've never experienced before. As Stiles puts it, "I got to be part of the tribe." As a pregnant woman, I too felt connected to humankind in a new way. I felt part of a much bigger picture, and I relished my new role as earth mother and creator.

Father-To-Be Knows Best

Of course, a husband's increased attention doesn't hurt. In the mornings, mine would put his head on my stomach, straining to hear his child. When the baby started kicking, I'd slide his palm across the wake of our child's limbs. Or we'd just watch my belly ripple and try to guess which arm or leg our baby was moving.

"After my husband felt Sadie kick, he paid closer attention to my body, and we were much more affectionate with each other," Stiles says. "I know he found me more alluring, and I never stopped to think I might not be."

When Wolfe-Hood was feeling sexy, she would put on a miniskirt. "My husband would say, 'Ooooh, you look good,'" she says. "That made me feel even sexier." But it wasn't just his wife's body that Rodney Hood found alluring; it was her attitude. "There was an aura of anticipation around her, and I could sense the love she felt for the baby," he says. "I found that very sexy."

While pregnant, I learned that sensuality resides as much in the flesh of our lives as in the flesh of our bodies. My husband and I were poised to become parents. We had agreed that together we were strong enough to raise a child, and as we watched the baby inside me grow, we understood for the first time what love is all about. What's sexier than that?

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