Second Trimester Recap
I see now, why people say the second trimester tricks women into thinking they could have a bazillion babies. This trimester was so amazing! I felt like my normal self, plus a cute not overly gigantic bump, and generally just felt so happy to be pregnant. I'll go into more detail below.
Symptoms
Nausea gone - I didn't usually puke every week even in the first trimester, but on week 16, I randomly puked twice and then it never came back, and the nausea left me completely. It's like it had to go out on a finale haha
Boobies - Sore, full, and leaky. Not trying to be TMI, but figured I'd give full disclosure.
Round ligament pain - This tapered off a bit in the later part of the second trimester
Thick hair - I read about it, and basically your hair just stays put instead of falling out like it normally would. There's hardly any hair in my brush these days, and my hair feels so luxe. I love it!
Emo - Gah, such a sap! And the dumbest things made/make me cry now. It's just a constant up and down of emotions sometimes, and I'm actually able to recognize it and laugh (and cry-laugh) about it. It's so bizarre to have no control over it haha
Extreme hunger - I didn't get crazy hunger pangs in the first trimester, but second trimester (and into third) have been sudden, dizzying, NEED FOOD NOW bouts.
Hemorrhoids - hey, I'm not gonna sugar coat. And this one legit suckssss hahaha
Back pain - just from the growing belly and your back having to compensate for the weight and balance. Thankfully I have a great husband who willingly helps a wifey out!
Clear skin - From bad acne in the first trimester, to luminous skin in the second - I'll take it!
Pee all the time - This has been my worst nightmare from BEFORE pregnancy. I have THE tiniest bladder, and now in pregnancy it's made functioning to a normal degree so difficult. I probably get up four times a night (and I don't flush every time because I'd have to flush a thousand times a day - and Tom sees all my pee in the toilet and can never believe it hahaha). But if there is one thing about pregnancy I'd complain about, it would be this. I pee before we go somewhere, and 15 minutes later I have to go again. So irritating.
Cravings
I can honestly say, I got a couple honest to goodness cravings in the second trimester. For a while there... Taco Bell (so bad, I know). But our nearest TB happens to be consistently really good, and Mexican pizzas are just so stinking delicious. Makes me want one right now as I type this, actually. Ha! The other one - MILK. For a couple weeks we had to buy so much flipping milk because I was guzzling it down like I'd never tasted milk in my life (normally I'm not a huge milk drinker). This one is still lingering, but it's not as insane as it was. We ran out of milk at one point and I nearly cried that I had to go to the store for more hahaha!
Second Trimester Journal
Weeks 13-15
We heard the heartbeat again at 13 weeks (the day we announced) and it was beautiful. We publicly announced a few days before 14 weeks, then we drove to Minnesota for Thanksgiving which was really fun. My mom took me maternity clothes shopping, because she was afraid I'd be a hobo pregnant woman and wear men's shirts (accurate).
Our Georgia house went under contract, but the buyers were a royal pain.
Weeks 16-20
The day before 17 weeks I got a kidney stone and we found out the gender in the ER. My belly popped a bit more during this time. I started to feel baby move more obviously, but Tom didn’t until...
the middle of week 18, baby was moving a LOT at bedtime. So much so, I could actually help Tom feel little jabs! It was so precious to say “There!” and he could correspondingly feel it! And then I’d be quiet and he was feeling them without me telling him. Super precious and fun. Like a goldfish hitting the side of a bag.
I was 19 weeks at Christmas and cried before church one morning because my clothes were ill-fitting. Not because I was sad to get bigger - that’s great, but that I didn’t have anything to wear that I felt cute in. It was that awkward in-between time where maternity clothes didn’t fit well yet, but regular clothes were too tight or laid weird. More and more, though, that belly was showing up!
At 20 weeks, my belly was round. Still smaller, but definitely pronounced. Tom made sure I got some clothes to make me feel better, and that helped immensely. Baby’s movements were obvious and often! There was no mistaking those little kicks and rolls.
Weeks 21-24
This baby MOVES! Bladder kicks were still shocking when they'd occur - haha - but overall, I loved this time during pregnancy when it’s just unmistakable what’s happening in there. We also had the anatomy scan at 21 weeks and baby looked so darling.
Week 22 we moved into our new house and it was BUSY! The day we closed, it iced. Then it snowed. Our move-in date got pushed two days later and our washer and dryer got delivered 10 days late.
On week 24, I started getting symptoms of a UTI, but I didn’t get any of the major symptoms. So my guess is that my bladder just suddenly got more squished! Around this time, I was also getting particularly emotional and needy. Bless Tom and his patience and sweet nature.
I also shared on social media and in my last blog post that we're having a BOY! We are over the moon.
Weeks 25-27
Still lots of movement, and much more intense. Those kicks and rolls started showing themselves through my clothes, even! The belly is also super apparent and it's fun when strangers ask about it or want to know what we're having, etc.. I also spend time talking to our little guy and singing. We slowly started going through our registry and buying things up and now we have all our furniture for the nursery and just need the other basics!
Overall, the second trimester has been amazing. I have continually kept the perspective that I don't know anything. I am intentionally allowing myself to let go of any expectations about pregnancy, birth, and parenting, because frankly, everyone does their thing and they really just figure it out as they go. Witnessing others who have gone on to have children before me, has taught me this - each and every person I've spoken to in regards to these topics has had something completely different to say. So my expectation is that I have none, and honestly, it has made this pregnancy feel fun, fresh, and new to me and I've been able to fully enjoy it and be grateful. The internet and people's experiences and opinions can be helpful, but sometimes they can be a hinderance to your own joy. All that to say, take your life as is, and don't compare and contrast it to another's - that is for them, this is for you. And for me? Well, right now, I'm happy and so content. *Now picture me raising a heaping glass of milk to cheers this next trimester!* Yippee!
