No one ever told me that...

Over the past seven months I've read almost as many books, magazines and websites as Mrs B. I've become au fait with all the amazing and magically intricate changes that are taking place in my wife's body, and in the growing body of our baby. I've also learned, or at least read with interest and varying degrees of scepticism, about what we can both expect now, over the coming weeks and months, and once Baby B arrives.

For a first-time father I think I'm pretty clued up, or at least I thought I was.

Last night I discovered something that none of the expert literature mentioned, a pregnancy side effect that struck us, and me in particular, out of blue, sending shockwaves through our house, and possibly our neighbours' houses to boot.

Mrs B has begun to snore.

And we're talking proper snoring, the kind of snoring that's usually reserved for post-Christmas dinner grandfathers in their favourite armchairs, the kind of snoring that rattles glasses like the 'here comes the T-Rex' scene in Jurassic Park.

To say that I was surprised was an understatement. My wife has never snored. Indeed, she usually lies next to me barely breathing, making only the slightest noises as she peacefully drifts away to slumberland.

Last night, however, and indeed over the last few nights, my wife was replaced by a steam train, hammering away for hours on end and leaving me staring at the ceiling.

I can only put the end of my beloved sleep down to my unborn son or daughter, but am I alone? Are there other sleep-deprived fathers out there who have fallen foul of this secret pregnancy side effect? Can we start a support group?

More importantly, can I catch 20 winks at my desk now without anyone noticing?