The Second Trimester

In my last update we were still waiting to see our Midwife after going to our first (and probably only) ultrasound. We have been to see her twice since then and everything is looking great.

The ultrasound came back looking really good, no abnormalities, everything is developing well and my size is pretty much right on. The tech gave a due date that is 5 days earlier than what we originally said, but since due dates don’t mean much to me, I’m still just saying mid-June to mid-July. 

We also got back blood test results from ages ago when we tested my thyroid and iron. Both were not doing great pre-pregnancy but I am very pleased to see that they are near perfect now. I was originally told that pregnancy would likely make my thyroid worse, so I’m extra pleased to see that isn’t currently the case.

My belly has measured perfectly at all appointments so far and baby has continued to have a “female” heart rate, always in the high 140’s to 150’s.

A lot of people ask me if I have a “feeling” whether it is a boy or girl and I can honestly say I have no idea at all. I just assume that anyone who thinks they KNOW what they’re having is just projecting what they want to have or basing off of wives tales and/or previous pregnancies. I am fairly certain that I am having a human baby, but that’s all I know.

As of March 5^th, 22 weeks + 5 days, I am able to feel movement even when I am standing or moving, that gives me a good sense of baby’s growth and increasing strength.

Speaking of size and strength, I had wanted to be more active all along and finally joined a pre/post-natal gym that I found not far from where we live. I’ve been going 3 days per week ever since I joined and I really love it. The first class absolutely killed me, I was so sore the next day that I could barely walk and it actually made me nauseous, but I’ve been slightly less red and sweaty each class since then (hoping that means I’m getting stronger and more fit!) The aim of the classes, I do aerobics and yoga, are not to lose weight or change my physique, but to remain as strong as possible throughout my pregnancy. Any time an exercise feels particularly difficult or long the instructors always remind us that we can do anything for 1 minute and that includes eventual contractions. Little encouragements like that really go a long way to remind me of what I really can do, mentally and physically.

Despite my activity level I am certainly starting to feel bigger and heavier, as I should be. My belly gets in the way of more and more small tasks like tying my shoes, getting in and out of the car, picking things up off the floor and washing dishes ( I can’t stand as close to the counter/sink as I would prefer.) By the end of the second trimester I’m up 10 pounds but still able to wear most of my normal clothes. 10 pounds gained puts me right on track for what I hope to gain overall, about 25 pounds. Some people seem concerned that I am working to stay within a certain weight gain, but when you consider that I was technically overweight to begin with and that there are potential health risks for babies if Mom gains too much, my midwife and I are both happy with how I’m gaining. That being said, if anything changes and I’m told I need to gain more, I will obviously do that. I can honestly say though, I did have a small fit of sobbing around 26 weeks when I decided that I didn’t like the scale anymore. Ryan promptly reminded me that I’m pregnant, I told him that doesn’t mean I have to like it and then I got on with life and all has been fine since. What can I say; sometimes the hormones get the better of me.

The only new symptoms that have come up in the second trimester are occasional acid burning my throat (fingers crossed for a full head of red hair!!) I am feeling much warmer overall and having a harder time cooling down and I have a rather sore tailbone on some days. Unfortunately, because I sit in an office all day my tailbone is harder to deal with, but my boss let me order a ball chair so hopefully that helps.

My other comfort purchase was a Boppy pillow and I can confidently say, it has been the best thing, ever. I was literally dreaming about this pillow in my first trimester, before I knew it was real and having it has been amazing. The little wedge fits just perfectly under my belly when I lay on my side, almost completely removing the weight and keeping me from feeling pulled or stretched. I also use it under my hip so I can lay on my back without feeling guilty (apparently pregnant women shouldn’t sleep on their backs,) this was actually the reason I wanted it. And its final beautiful perk is that if I get it wedged just right under my boob/rib/armpit, I can sleep in my pre-pregnancy side/belly positon! Highly recommend to all.

My final thought of the second trimester is this: I thought pregnancy would be different.

In almost every way, I thought it would be different than it has been. Media really makes pregnancy and childbirth look so different than they are. I expected to be much bigger, thought I would have been much sicker and always sore, thought I would forget what pre-pregnant life felt like, I thought I would have a deeper connection with baby and I expected myself to be perfect. Don’t get me wrong, I’m really not complaining, I have absolutely loved being pregnant, it just isn’t what I thought.

Pregnancy Update - Halfway!

As of today, I am officially halfway through my first pregnancy! It seems to have taken forever to get this far and has simultaneously flown by.


We've been for our third visit with the midwife and everything looks good. I'm measuring right where I should be so feeling pretty confident about when this little babe should arrive. She always listens to babies heart with the Doppler and it sounded just as strong as ever; if you're into wives tales for gender prediction, our 152 heart rate would suggest we are having a girl.


Since I have no pregnancy issues and can easily take things day-by-day, I mostly focus on the actual birth and what life might look like after. I've been reading Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth, googling ideas as they pop in my head and researching cribs, car seats (this is ours) and anything else that I may need for baby.


We've had the box that baby will sleep in for quite a while now but have also recently bought a crib and mattress for when the box is too small. We've had to do a lot of furniture shifting to make room for a crib and make the room safe to have a baby in, but I'm quite pleased with how it is coming along. I still need to paint my old desk, it will be the dresser/change table, but that will happen in the spring.


A few weeks ago now, on January 22nd to be exact, I felt my very first kick! To be honest, I was unsure it really was one, but hopeful that I would get more soon. That was at 16weeks + 5 days. Two days later, at 17 weeks pregnant while sitting in a meeting at work, baby decided to have a dance party. Not only was it really amazing to feel someone in there, but it was undeniably what I had felt earlier in the week.


Ever since then I have been feel kicks everyday, throughout the day and I absolutely love it. Ryan even got to feel his first (very) tiny, (almost imperceptible) movement.


I hadn't realized the change until someone asked me how I've been feeling, but I am finally not so tired anymore and generally feeling very normal. No sickness, aches and pains are very rare and usually related to being very busy. No aversions and ice water is still the only thing I crave. I'm nearly back to my pre-pregnancy weight after losing 8 pounds in my first trimester, not because I was particularly sick, but because the idea of eating while feeling  blahh  just didn't appeal. I'm happy to say I can eat pretty normally now.


Finally, and up there with the more exciting moments so far, our first ultrasound! Because the tech isn't able to share any info, (she just does a tour for us and takes pictures for the report that will be sent to the midwife,) we don't know anything much more than we already. That being said, we got to see a lot. Baby did lots of moving around, flipping and switching sides, shaking her head, sucking her thumb and crossing her legs. We saw the heart valves pumping away (heart rate 145,) saw his brain and other organs, 10 fingers, 10 toes and an impressive little spine.


We won't see our midwife again until the end of February to get the official report so you will hear how that goes next time.


And my final little update, as of last night baby now responds to music! In particular when I am sitting or laying, I can put my phone or headphones against my bump and he has a little dance party! We can even see the little movements from the outside now. Looking forward to those movements getting bigger and stronger!


** I am very aware that I refer to baby as 'her' and 'him' in consecutive sentences, we still don't know and I still don't like 'it' :) All will be revealed in a few months!

The First Trimester

In my mind, I was going to tell Ryan that I was pregnant in some cute way, but in reality, I told him via hysterical sobs and shaking a recently peed on stick at him within moments of getting the solid second line. The line was so faint he could barely see it, but when you have been waiting for as long as I have to see that double line, you take what you can get. I’m pretty sure he wasn’t actually convinced on day 1, but the gradually darkening line from day-to-day couldn’t be denied.

After I managed to stop sobbing/laughing/stomping my feet and “got over” the urge to shout it from the rooftops, I looked up my due date and then confirmed it on 72 different apps/websites. To be clear, I don’t actually believe in due dates, but it is nice to have a date to countdown to. That being said, I’ve chosen not to share that date with most people and instead say I am due mid-June to mid-July.

Because there were almost no symptoms that early on and nothing to be felt physically, it didn’t feel real at all. Honestly, even now in my second trimester, it’s only just starting to feel a bit more real.

The most significant symptoms I had all started around 5-6 weeks. I was sick for about 2 weeks, finally realized it was my vitamin making me sick, quit the vitamin and haven’t been sick since. I had (very few) random days that I felt nauseous but mostly I just felt unsettled. Always tired. I sneeze a lot? No particular food aversions, but no desire at all to eat. I’ve developed a horrible gag reflux when brushing/flossing; really hoping that goes away soon! And the thing I had heard about so many times but apparently no one that I know has ever actually experienced, the disgusting mouth taste. I’ve mostly heard it described as being metallic, but for me it tasted like my mouth was unclean (despite brushing 3-times daily!) and my tongue needed to be scrubbed to remove the taste – scrubbed with a tooth brush, causing me to gag.

Looking back now, I’d say I had a fairly easy first trimester. Ryan might disagree, being that he had to listen to me whine constantly, did all the cooking and cleaning, all the driving and had to put up with my ridiculous demands. Most notably, the only craving I had was for ice water, but I wanted it in a specific glass, with 3 ice cubes and my reusable metal straw because it made it taste colder. The only other part of that time that I would say was quite difficult was the first week that I was getting sick. I couldn’t drink water, couldn’t eat much besides soda crackers and I spent my work days running for the bathroom (while trying to look casual and hoping no one else was in there.) The few things that did make me feel better were orange Fanta, deep inhales outside in the cold winter air and being asleep.

In mid-November, around the 8-week mark we decided it was time to tell our parents. The original plan was to wait until Christmas and tell everyone at once, but even managing to keep it to ourselves for that long was challenging. Since I had never shared our desire to start trying this year, they were understandably shocked. Once that wears off everyone has been excited. A few weeks later, we finally told our friends and siblings, receiving some interesting reactions from some.

I’ve been emailing myself throughout with thoughts or ideas and I’m going to share those too.

-I really wish someone would have explained to me how much the sickness was as much a mental struggle as it was physical. Pregnancy aside, when I am sick I don’t want to eat, period. During my pregnancy sickness if I didn’t eat, it made everything worse. However, the idea of eating and most likely not keeping it down made it extremely difficult to convince myself to eat. I fought a vicious cycle with myself about it every day. I never thought I could struggle so hard to just chew and swallow a cracker.

-Another interesting realization about pregnancy is that it basically turned me into a toddler with a driver’s license and a job. I need naps, I only wanted food that is plain and usually devoid of nutrition, I need to be paid attention to a lot, I may have a tantrum or start crying for no good reason and there will be no calming me down. And I became pretty useless around the house, not cooking or cleaning.

-That mind-blowing moment where I realized that I have created human life. This one gets me every time I think about it and it doesn’t get any less mind blowing.

-And finally, I am not the person I thought I would be. I expected to be super strict with myself about eating, drinking water, being active, getting enough sleep, etc. I also thought I would be super connected/obsessed/excited as soon as I found out, but I honestly have days where I hardly think about it at all, not to say I am not excited, because I am, but it feels very different than I thought. In a way I’m disappointed in myself, but also this is my first pregnancy and it’s a very new experience; I’m doing the best I can and making an effort to improve myself all the time. I’m fine and baby seems to be fine so really, that is all that matters.

On the note of baby doing fine, I guess I should also mention that we were fortunate enough to be taken into midwifery care within 2 weeks of finding out about baby. We haven’t had an ultrasound yet (we will at 20 weeks) but we have had a few appointments with our midwife and baby had a strong heartbeat. I also got to hear kicking which was very exciting since I cannot yet feel it.

A few things that people like to ask so I will leave them here. We will not be finding out the gender. We are planning for a home birth. We have agreed on a girl name but no luck with a boy name yet. No, I will not tell you the names.