Oh how I love the second trimester! I know some poor mamas do not get a break from the woes of the first trimester and sheesh - hats off to them. That would be miserable! I was worried that would be the case for me as my first trimester this time was just awful, but thankfully things cleared up and I have felt pretty good ever since. I’ll go into more detail below…

Symtoms

Nausea gone - I slowly weaned off of the Unisom+B6 combo around 15 weeks and even though I had a couple bouts of severe nausea, it ended up being fine!
Boobies - I had super leaky boobs with Silas, and these took a while, but it’s back this time too (nearer to the end of this trimester)
Round ligament pain - The usual! I think I do get a bit paranoid having an incision right around where round ligament pain happens, but I’m remembering more and more that it’s normal and there’s nothing to worry about.
Thick hair - finally! I was waiting for this one.
Emo - I definitely feel a lot more hormonal in the second trimester versus the first. All the cheesy things make me cry and if Tom says something even slightly off-key I’m a crying mess hahaha it always makes me laugh a little because I can literally feel how hormonal I’m being IN the moment.
Extreme hunger - so.hungry.
Back pain - sciatica pain from baby positions and just generally feeling that belly growing!
Clear skin - love this part of pregnancy.
Pee all the time - just like with Silas, this is my most complained about and most hated “symptom.” Having to pee SO BAD and nothing but a trickle comes out is the WORST feeling. And then needing to do it all again 10 minutes later (because I drink water like crazy). Ugh. Not sorry for complaining about this. Nightly bathroom trips. Bladder kicks that seriously kind of hurt. Gahhh.
Leg cramps - This was a new one - it’s happened maybe three or four times and means I probably need more magnesium or potassium. Someone told me to flex my foot the opposite way I normally would during a cramp, and it literally goes away immediately!

Cravings

Meh, nothing much. Milk is a big one that I had with Silas and I have had it this time too, but I can’t say it’s very extreme like it was last time. I will say I have a lot of texture aversions this time around which is unfortunate. Pastas of all kinds, lettuce??, and just random ones that crop up out of nowhere.

Second Trimester Journal

Weeks 13-18

During week 16 I started getting sciatica pain. I’m sure it’s always based on baby’s position, because it usually goes away on its own or after a good walk, but yikes is it painful when it’s around. Week 16 is also when I FINALLY felt movement for the first time. But only in very specific positions. Come to find out I have an anterior placenta so that explains that! Week 18 is when I felt movement more regularly. Past week 18, I have actually felt this baby a LOT and he is WAY more active than his brother was in utero… which is fun and also scary that I’m gonna have a wild-child OUTSIDE the womb haha :)

Weeks 19-27

The 20 week scan! Because of COVID-19, Tom couldn’t come along, so we did a video call during the ultrasound. We asked her to write down the gender so we could open it together at home, but I stupidly thought she was done looking for the gender because she moved the probe thing… and when I looked up she was typing “boy” on the screen. Haha! I texted Tom afterwards that I had accidentally seen. And in a weird way, it was sort of nice to process that information alone for a bit (because we were sure it was a girl and really excited about that). But once I had a bit, I got really excited and happy about another boy! Brother besties :) Tom opened the envelope at home and it was still really special. And everything looked great! Healthy baby boy.
At 21 weeks he became a crazy moving MACHINE and hasn’t slowed down since.
24 weeks was my first in person regular appointment in the office. Up until that point it was all tele-med visits. Thankfully I already owned a scale and blood pressure monitor (and a heartbeat doppler because Tom was bummed to never get to hear those in person), so my phone visits were pretty straightforward and normal. But oh man - haha - so awkward trying to find the heartbeat while my poor OB listened to me taking forever!
We met our doula and her backup during this time and it was great and we all clicked so nicely. She has already been an awesome support and I’m so glad we hired her for her expertise with this VBAC attempt.

I had a dream that my water broke and that I peed. And I woke up from it kind of thinking my water broke. Nope. Peed my underwear a bit and had to change them in the middle of the night… hahahaha this is still making me laugh. So weird and hilarious.

And lastly, I had my 1-hour glucose test on week 27 and failed by two points. So I went in for the dreaded 3-hour test and thankfully passed on all four blood draws! That said, I’ll be adding in more exercise and less sweets/simple carbs to make sure I’m keeping healthy! Hard when you’re an avid baker... but I can do it!

So there you have it - the second trimester with baby #2. I still think of the mamas in the trenches of loss and infertility so often. The dads too. And I keep them in my prayers. Pregnancy and the miracle to be able to carry life is never lost on me. It’s not something I take for granted (though I’m sure I have my moments). So here I am, just immensely grateful to carry this sweet boy around, even on the hard days or the days when my two year old is a ball of emotions and defiance. And I hope and pray for all the mamas who are hurting and hoping day after day after week after week after year…

I’m looking forward to this final trimester and all the nesting involved and preparing for a VBAC attempt. We have a double stroller all ordered, and now I’m trying to decide how many of the new products that came out in the last two years need to land in my online shopping cart! Who knows… but if anyone has some good products to check out, let me know! Always fun to look anyway, while we’re all still holed up at home.
(I’m typing this from our “vacation week” that has not felt like a vacation in the least but we’re making the best of it).
Also, how are my other pandemic pregnancy mamas doing? How was it giving birth during this (if you delivered recently)? How have you been doing emotionally or mentally? I’m not an anxious wreck of a person like I was when we lived in Georgia, but I’ve definitely had some moments that have made me really sad to be pregnant during this time. I’m sure it depends on where you live, but Tennessee has been crazy and I just wanna give birth without a mask! But all will be well <3 I’m focusing on the positive and have actually been doing just fine over here in our compound - haha!