Being pregnant is portrayed as a joyful and happy experience all over the media. However, not a lot is said about the uncertainties and worries that also haunt new moms. Well, maybe some is said, mostly related to the concrete ways in which doctors and parents try to find out more about the unborn baby, like gender, illnesses, and so on. But how about the baby that the mother dreams about, and has dreamt about even before her pregnancy happened?

Having a baby is fulfilling an ancient promise, one that mothers may not be completely aware of. In this promise, there is always something about what she got and what she did not get from her parents, ways that she hopes to fix old wounds, ways in which she worries about what she may be given. Every baby is a gift from previous generations, an undreamt dream of ancestors that takes form throughout the mother's pregnancy. As the baby develops, the mother gradually finds vocabulary to interact, play and engage with it. The dream-baby gains a name, a form, a face in mom's imagination, and becomes more real as the pregnancy evolves.

What dreams moms have about their babies? This is the beauty and mystery of pregnancy. Those dreams are composites of emotional experiences, including the ones the mother lived as a baby herself. Ways in which she was cared for (or not), ways in which she was held and understood, and ways in which she was also dreamt about in her parents' minds. Baby-dreams reveal unique qualities of experience, and it is not uncommon for mothers to realize that being pregnant is as joyful as it is vulnerable. And yet, the precariousness of this experience is what allows mothers to prepare their minds and hearts to receive their newborn and invite them to stay.