First Trimester Pregnancy Update

As of today, I’m officially 18 weeks along, which is beyond my comprehension. I’ve heard that your second pregnancy goes by like lightening, which so far has proven to be true. It seems like we just found out we were expecting, and *poof* the second trimester is here.

Ready for a first trimester pregnancy update? Below are the most common questions I’ve gotten, and a few additional details that I thought you may be interested to read about!

Remind me of your due date again? April 20.

How are you feeling?  This question should be broken down by weeks. I found out I was pregnant pretty early – week 4 – and at that point I felt absolutely no pregnancy symptoms. By week 6, it was a different story. I was exhausted, and like a reliable sidekick, the infamous nausea was ever-present. That pretty much lasted from weeks 6 – 14. Nine whole weeks of lovely, nauseated glory. It was a doozy.

How exhausted are we talking? Not to the point where I’d be falling asleep in meetings or during the day, but close. I’d purposefully avoid too many plans because I was just so, so tired. I’d come home between 5 and 6pm, help with Grace’s dinner and bedtime routine, go to bed when she did around 7:30, and sleep until I absolutely had to wake up for work. Thanks, Dougy, for being a champ and helping out so much.

Are you still really tired, even out of the first trimester? Yes. But it’s really not as bad. I crash now at 9:30 instead of 7:30 – heeeeyyy wild woman – so we’ve gained a few hours there. Last Friday I had a staycation with my girlfriends in Chicago and even stayed up until midnight! It was monumental. However, I will tell you that I have fallen asleep on the couch, during conversations, every single time people have come over for dinner and stay past my old lady bed time. So that’s…well, really embarrassing. (You all know who you are and I hope are laughing with me right now. Sorry! I love yew!) 

Let’s talk about your nausea. What helped? Honestly, not that much. I’d chew ginger candy which seemed to tame it a bit, drank hot lemon water frequently, and ate whatever I could stomach. Every day it seemed to change; one day any vegetable would turn my stomach and the other it’d be bananas or even foods that I love, like greek yogurt. The consistent things I’d be able to eat were carb-based, but even then, some days were hit and miss.

How would you compare it to your first pregnancy with Grace? So far it’s been surprisingly similar, however I will say that though the nausea feeling is the same, it happened more frequently this time around.

Any cravings? Okay so my answer to this is really weird. I have been loving cottage cheese. You can find me with a carton, every day, eating it by the spoonful. I find it so odd because while I generally liked it before, I’ve never craved it or gone out of my way to have it.

Are you more relaxed this time around? It’s almost laughable how much more relaxed I am. For my first pregnancy, I read so many pregnancy blogs, books, apps, and asked an insane amount of questions almost every day in the beginning. My doctor literally told me, “Stop reading so much. Your body knows what to do, just let it do its job.” At that point I stopped hyper-focusing on every myth or advice and just enjoyed the process, and it really was the best way to do pregnancy in my opinion. So I went in with that mindset this time around – beyond being careful about things like not eating raw or undercooked foods, and of course avoiding unpasteurized cheeses, I haven’t been stressing about every nit-picky detail. I even have been allowing myself to drink coffee, which I never did before. Just going with the flow!

So, wait, you still drink coffee? I’ve surprisingly been asked this question a lot. It’s a somewhat controversial topic because many people believe that absolutely no caffeine should be drank while pregnant. From all that I’ve read, a cup of day is absolutely fine, and my doctor backs that up too. So yes, when I need a little morning love, coffee and I are still buddies.

You still don’t look pregnant. Lulz. I know. Here’s the thing: As with Gracie, my body just shows later, I think because I’m tall. During my first pregnancy, one day my belly just popped. I woke up and – BOOM – there it was! I was excited to have that scenario happen this week actually. Today I tried on my normal jeans and couldn’t button them; I’ve got a little bump that’s getting hard to dress. I’m still in normal clothes, but nearing the end of my ability to wear them. Time to shop maternity!

Does Grace understand that she’s about to be a big sister? I don’t think so! I keep pointing to my belly and saying, “There’s a baby in mommy’s belly!” and she looks at me like I have two heads. So right now she just thinks I’m a loon, but I’m sure she’ll start to comprehend it all once we get closer and my stomach grows more. Just in the past few weeks she has started saying “Baby!” and carrying around a baby doll as her favorite toy. But honestly I don’t know if that’s because she sees babies at daycare or if she actually gets that her mom will have another baby soon. Either way, it’s adorable!

How do you already know it’s a girl? Don’t you usually find that out at the 20 week ultrasound? Yes, that’s usually the case! However, technology is moving fast. There’s a new blood test that you can do at 12 weeks that tests for abnormalities and also tells you the gender. It’s usually reserved for women 35 and up or high-risk pregnancies, however since it’s so accurate many insurance companies are starting to cover it for all pregnant women. I was lucky and my insurance covered it, so we said why not!

That’s so nice that you can reuse all of Grace’s baby stuff! Are you planning for any major purchases beyond what you already have? We’re planning on getting a double stroller to cart around two kiddos, and new furniture for the baby’s room. Beyond these and a few other minor things, we’re covered! It’s so nice having two close together, and that they’re both girls.

Baby’s room? Where will that be? Don’t you live in a tiny city apartment? Gooood question! We have a two bedroom right now but technically it can be a three bedroom; the third room just doesn’t have a closet. So we’re being creative! Our third, front room was once used as an office, has since turned into Grace’s playroom, but will now be a nursery. Grace is going to keep her own room; we want to limit her transitions as much as possible. Gotta be fair to the little lady!

Are you excited? So, so excited.

Any other questions? Leave them in the comments below and I’ll answer them!

PS – In case you missed it, here was our pregnancy announcement! Also, you can read about my first trimester with Grace, and 10 Noteworthy Newborn Facts!