Ciara Shows Off Baby Bump, Talks Pregnancy at American Music Awards

Oh, baby! Ciara looked nothing short of amazing when she hit the American Music Awards red carpet Sunday night. The songstress — who is expecting a child with her Seattle Seahawks quarterback hubby, Russell Wilson — opted for a black turtleneck with a ruffled hi-lo skirt that showcased her burgeoning belly. While this wasn’t the first event she’s attended since announcing her pregnancy, it was the first event where her bump was showing. (Last month, she dropped by the CFDA/Vogue fashion fund show and tea at Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood, but sported a ’70s-inspired dress that kept her midsection under wraps.)

“I’m feeling great!” she chirped while speaking with E! on the red carpet. “I’m feeling awesome, actually. I’m finally getting to a place where I feel almost normal.” She then revealed that the first few months of pregnancy hadn’t been the easiest.

“It was a bit of ‘I don’t want to throw up’ but ‘I don’t feel regular. I’m in-between,’” she explained. “That’s kind of worse. It’s like you’d rather just throw up and get it out. Get it done. But I’m feeling good and excited. I’m happy to be here tonight.”

One of the best remedies to fight back against her maybe-morning sickness? Work, work, and more work.

“You got to push through it and be strong. I think when I’m working I don’t feel anything at all,” the 31-year-old revealed. “I was just dancing in New York for a Christmas special with Dave Meyers and I didn’t feel anything, and I was like, ‘There’s a baby in my stomach!’” she laughed. “But when I’m working my adrenaline keeps me going and I feel good and everything is easy, but then when I get home and sit down and I eat good meal, right after it’s like ‘eh.’” She smiled and added, “And if I burp, it’s like, ‘eh.’” (To be clear, “eh” was not a happy sound.) “I’m going through all these different things right now,” she said.

Related: Stars Hit the Red Carpet at the 2016 American Music Awards

Asked if she was having any cravings, she didn’t miss a beat. “Water with lemon has been my thing,” she shared. (Apparently, Ciara missed the memo about what qualifies as a proper pregnancy craving: Calories are required!) “I’ve had moments where I drank water with no lemon and it’s been like, ‘Eh.'” (She really likes that word.) “Water with lemon has been fun!” she reiterated in a final attempt to sell water as a pregnancy craving. She did add that in the morning she loves acai bowls, so at least there was that.

“I love eating and I enjoy it and I take advantage of it when I’m carrying,” she continued. “So this is like ‘game on’! I eat all the food that I’ve wanted to at any time!” (Like … water.)

When asked if she would be OK with her son Future (whom she shares with her ex, also named Future) going into the music biz, she responded, “I’ll have to be OK with that. If that’s his dream, I’ll support him, but this is a tough industry. It’s my dream that he does something else.” Still, she admitted her 2-year-old “has good pitch right now! It’s crazy! He loves singing!”

As a final thought, she added, “My baby will be tough and ready for anything.”