Awkward situations

I am the queen of falling into awkward situations and then being unsure of how to exit gracefully. Today I had another encounter. I was speaking to someone in my circle of acquaintance. I would not call this individual a friend, but if I saw them in Wal-mart I would be obliged to say hello. That is the extent of our acquaintance. Anyhow, we were engaged in some form of small talk, you know the kind I mean. We were speaking of the events of the day, how Ryan and I met, how Ryan liked his job...you know, normal small talk kinds of things. Well, the conversation lagged for a moment or two, and then the person asked, "Do you guys want to have kids?" Now, this question I get all the time from my students, but they ask it because they are kids and do not understand social norms yet. But, this was a full grown person. So, I politely said, "yes, I suppose some day we do." However, I was completely unprepared for the next question. Next, the person asked how we were currently "preventing" children. I was mortified. I was so red. I had no idea what to say. I muttered a few syllables and then tried to get out as soon as possible.

This has happened before. One day at my work a person I had NEVER met before in my life walked right up to me, pointed to my belly, and asked me when I was due. Now, I do not consider myself an obese person, nor do I walk around wearing maternity clothes because they are comfortable. I do, however, feel that styles of clothes that have empire waists and cut away from the body are more flattering rather than those that appear as though they have been vacuum sealed to my body. So, there I stood with this person asking me if I was pregnant. I took a moment to consider my answer. If I say "no" then she will feel awkward and embarrassed and I shall have to stand here for five minutes trying to allay her embarrassed feelings. If I say "yes" then I would at some point in the next 7-8 months have to produce a baby. Either way, I felt cooked. I decided on the "no" answer (because it seemed easier..ha ha). Oh that people would learn socially acceptable norms.