It’s hard to believe that I’m halfway through this pregnancy, give or take a few days, pending on when baby boy chooses to arrive. I don’t plan on doing tons of pregnancy update posts, but I did want to document just a little bit of this journey so that I can remember everything myself!
The second trimester has truly been the “sweet spot” of pregnancy. I had a brutal first trimester and was basically bound to the couch between the all- day nausea and exhaustion. It made me feel so unlike myself because I couldn’t cook, couldn’t do my normal activities, and couldn’t even take a walk around the neighborhood! Now that I’m past all that (the nausea really started easing up at 15 weeks), it’s SO nice to feel good again. I’m not really feeling any big side effects right now and don’t feel like I’m showing a ton either. While I’m anxious to finally “look” truly pregnant, I also know that I’ll probably be huge at the end and ready to NOT look pregnant haha. The baby bump that I have now makes me happy and I’m excited to see how my body changes over the second half of this journey.
Cravings & Food
In my first trimester, I had a few weird cravings, mostly in the form of fruit: peaches, grapes, and anything key lime flavored. During the second trimester, I can’t say I’ve had anything that is truly a craving. Things sound better than others on some days, but there hasn’t been anything that I NEED to have. I’m curious to see if that changes in the coming weeks.
The biggest thing that I’m surprised about in the food category is my hunger level. I’d heard everyone say that you just get so hungry during pregnancy and I haven’t experienced that at all. If anything, I feel more full than I ever did before. I’m also not snacking as much as I expected. Again, this could all change easily, but right now, I’m surprised at how I’m not ravenously hungry.
Second Trimester Symptoms
There’s a long list of second trimester symptoms you can experience: everything from nosebleeds to heartburn to crazy leg cramps. The only things I’ve experienced so far are just a bit of round ligament pain and pregnancy dreams. Oh, the dreams! I’ve always been a pretty vivid dreamer, but pregnancy takes it to the next level. I dream just about every night now and have had the most bizarre dreams. One night I dreamt I gave birth to a kitten! I’ve heard that the crazy dreams are a side effect of hormones, so I’m chalking it up to that. Right now, I’m just grateful I don’t have back pain and restless leg syndrome! I’ve heard those two are very common at this stage that I’m at.
Helpful Products
Body Pillow: I’m sure you’ve probably heard of or seen this body pillow before. It helps with comfort at night and keeps you sleeping on your side. I’m a chronic stomach sleeper and it was really hard for me to transition to side sleeping. This pillow has helped a lot!
Comfy Dresses: While my stomach isn’t massive yet, it’s grown enough for me to want to veto pants and shorts. Comfy dresses like this one have been on constant rotation, especially just for lounging around the house. I love that Amazon offers so many at such an affordable price point!
Pregnancy/Baby Books: The minute I found out we were pregnant, I started reading. I’m an avid reader already and wanted to learn as much as possible in the 9 month wait time. So far, the books that I can definitely recommend are Bringing Up Bebe, I’m Pregnant!, The Happiest Kids In The World, Cribsheet, and Moms on Call. There are so many great books out there, but these are the ones that really stand out to me as being worth your time to read!
8Sheep Lotion: My mom told me about this lotion when I started having some trouble sleeping. It helps with leg cramps, but mostly relaxes muscles to ensure sleep. It’s lavender scented and has only 6 ingredients. I love the way that it smells!
What’s To Come
We have our anatomy scan very soon and we’re SO excited to see our little boy again! Additionally, Brandon and I are excited to take some time off for a baby moon this fall. We’ll be quarantining at my parent’s beach house! They normally rent it out but decided to keep it open for use this fall and we could not be more grateful for a safe travel option! Finally, we’re in the process of planning a baby shower, not knowing if it will need to be drive by or virtual. Regardless of COVID, I want to find a way to celebrate this sweet life and look forward to doing that with some kind of shower this fall.