Baby G #1 Bumpdate – Oh, Hello Second Trimester (Weeks 13-20)

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MATERNITY TEE: c/o Boob Design  //  MATERNITY JEANS: Madewell  //  LEMON WALLPAPER: c/o Chasing Paper

At last! I’m back with another bumpdate here on the blog (promise to do the next one in four weeks!). I already spilled all the deets on my first trimester symptoms with baby G #1 and how we found out we were pregnant here on the blog, and today I’m talking about the first half of the second trimester, weeks 13-20. This week officially marks my 20th week of pregnancy, which is HALF WAY there y’all!! It’s so hard to believe we’ll be meeting our little one in just 20 weeks, but I cannot wait to meet her! Which reminds me…if you follow me on instagram, you’ll know that Baby G #1 is already surprising Cole and I. Although all signs pointed to Baby G being a boy, we were SO surprised and excited to see pink at our Gender Reveal party. I’ll follow up at the end of next week with a full blog post featuring our gender reveal party and video! 😉

Click on the read more button below to find out about how my second trimester with our baby girl has gone so far, from my symptoms to my cravings to my momma fears, and a few more bump pics too.

 The above shot was taken just yesterday, so you can see exactly where my bump is at as I’m writing this. Below are more details on our baby girl’s stats so far.

 

How Far Along :

20 weeks, 4 days

Our Due Date:

August 13, 2018

Baby Size:

Baby is the size of a carrot, about 10.5 inches long and 12.7 ounces. Our baby girl is measuring about a half week ahead of schedule right now, but our due date is still the same.

Baby Heart Rates:

2/7 (13 weeks): 159 bpm

3/16 (18 weeks): 147 bpm

The Bump/Weight Gain:

12-15 pounds. So the batteries in our at home scale went out right about the time that I found I was pregnant (which I highly recommend). As you can imagine, I was shocked to see the scale around 130 at my OBGYN appointment this week. Apparently I’m right on track with healthy weight gain, but I’m glad I don’t have any temptation to get up and look at the scale every morning.

 

Oh Hello Second Trimester (Weeks 13-14)

It’s true what they say about the second trimester. It’s SO much better than the first. But just because you get to week 13 doesn’t mean all the nasty symptoms immediately fade away.

Nausea, Again: By the end of my first trimester, my nausea had gone away, but at the beginning of week 13, I woke up with it again. Blah! There were a few mornings where I had mild nausea that sort of lasted all day in weeks 13 and 14, but thankfully, that was the very end.

Baby Looks Human! If you’re lucky enough to get an ultrasound at your second OBGYN appointment (which would be about week 12-14), you’ll get to see a baby that looks a lot more human, which is SO cool! Seeing her profile and little button nose, lips, arms and legs made the pregnancy feel more real.

Teenage Acne: Some pregnant women are blessed with a glow and others (like myself apparently) are greeted with teenage acne. One of the wonderful things my mama passed down to me was skin that’s been mostly acne and breakout free for my entire life. Pregnancy had different plans. My break outs were by no means severe, but during weeks 13 and 14, there were several mornings I woke up to clusters of pimples and white heads on my nose, forehead and cheeks.

Cravings: Jimmy Johns was still my go-to at this time (and yes, I heated the deli meat EVERY time in our microwave), but since I wasn’t feeling as bad, I really tried to start eating as healthy as possibly, adding leafy greens, fruit, avocados and eggs whenever I could. Strawberries also became a big craving (and still are). I started eating about half a box a day.

The Bump: still no visible bump at this time. My belly just looked the same as it did on my period or after eating a giant hamburger and fries…bloated.

 

Finally Feeling Preggers For Real (Weeks 15-16)

It’s a Girl! We got the gender results from our NIPT test at the beginning of week 15 and had to wait a whole week to find out at our gender reveal party (we had the doctor email one of our good family friends who put our gender reveal box together). Finding out that our little peanut is a girl was a huge moment for us. It made it SO much more real being able to call her a she and call her my name, which brings me to my next point:

A Girl Has A Name: Had to throw a little GOT reference out there for all  my fellow fans. 😉 Yes!! Cole and I officially have a name! We will reveal her name before she arrives, but we are waiting just a couple of months until her nursery is finished to make the big reveal. Stay tuned!

Exercise: Finally! I have the energy and lack of nausea to start a little workout regimen. This was about the time I started walking regularly and also found  a prenatal workout video that I LOVE! It’s just 30 minutes and when you start out, it seem a little “too easy” but trust me, you’ll get your heart rate going quick and break a sweat too! 😉

Burn Baby Burn: Heartburn went away for a couple of weeks, but came back with a vengeance in week 15. It especially acted up when I gave into another of my pregnancy cravings…tomato soup. My OBGYN told me that Zantac was fine to take…thank goodness!

Sneezy: I’ve always had seasonal allergies, but they became worse than ever before in the second trimester. I’d have to sneeze like 12 times in a row! Also, the bloody noses from the first trimester still haven’t gone away. I just kind of feel like I always have the sniffles. Luckily, our humidifier and oil diffuser have both helped a lot, and I take the occasional Claritin (which my OBGYN approved, but not the kind with the decongestant) when they’re really bad!

The Bump Is Here: Another thing that made pregnancy all the more real…FINALLY seeing a little bump in the mirror. This was especially true for Cole As you can see from my Bump progression photos above, a tiny bump appeared during week 15. Since my torso is really long for my body (which makes me look shorter than I am…I’m actually 5’6″ y’all!) my bump looks really low, and especially did at this phase. It really just looked like I had an incredibly full bladder all the time.  There was one day during that week that Cole came home and I was wearing a tight maternity top and his eyes got seriously wide as he said “woah…you’re like really pregnant. It’s kind of freaking me out!” It was so exciting to have Cole feel that “OMGOSH, this is really happening!” sense that I’d felt for a while.

 

Stuff Gets Real (Weeks 17-18)

Boobs are HUGE! During weeks 17 and 18, I was traveling and there were a couple of things that happened during weeks 17 and 18 that made  s*** get real, and I debated on spilling them all, but I’m going to anyway. MY.BOOBS.ARE.HUGE. As you can see from the bump progress photos above, my bump wasn’t the only thing growing rapidly in the second trimester. My upper half was growing equally as rapidly (I’m not wearing anything but a non-padded sports/maternity bra in all of the photos). I think I’m up at least 3 cup sizes, and NONE of my old bras fit. Thankfully, I’ve been rotating between two maternity bras that I love (more details at the bottom of this post).  Just a little tidbit for anyone in the itty bitty titty club as I used to be…when your boobs get big, they don’t go up. One day as I was getting dressed Cole commented on how “low my boobs were” (gee, thanks Cole!). I think lots of men have the unrealistic perception that as boobs grow bigger, they grow up. News flash! Gravity is a real thing, and without the help of silicon (which I absolutely do not judge anyone for and fully expect to have done myself after I’m finished having babies), as your boobs get fuller, they sink lower.

“Bladder’s Like a Pillow”: So this is the part where pregnancy really gets real, and I’m gonna share it because I assume I’m not the only one who this has happened to. At 18 weeks on the day that I flew from Florida to Colorado to meet my family, I was absolutely exhausted and decided to lay down for a nap. Almost instantly, I fell into a deep sleep. I woke up a couple of hours later in a daze to find the bed was damp where I;d be sleeping. At first I thought it was sweat. But alas! I’d peed the bed. Y’all – I have NEVER peed the bed before. I never had the issue as a toddler or child and even during those college nights of drinking, I;d never had an accident. In fact, I’m notorious for holding my bladder for far too long, because I’ve always been able to (which even lead to lots of unwanted UTI’s and bladder infections, which I talked about in this post last year). I was quite horrified to be honest. Because I knew I had a long way to goo in pregnancy, and had always heard that this issue was more likely to happen in the third trimester and/or after giving birth. I told Cole and we had a good laugh about it, and it never happened again (so far at least). But I was still concerned. Sure enough, at my 19 week sonogram appointment, before I even said anything, the doctor explained…”wow, your baby is literally lying on your bladder and kicking it like it’s a pillow.” Gee thanks, baby. She also explained that because she’s so close to my bladder, when it’s full, it’s squishes her and doesn’t give her a lot of room to move around. Needless to say, I’ve been peeing about 20-30 times a day/night after my appointment.

Mama’s Hangry: While my appetite had been increasing steadily throughout my entire pregnancy, weeks 17 and 18, I noticed a MAJOR surge of hunger. In fact, while I was on my trip at the Hilton San Destin, I’d have to order room service after our meals at night because I was so hungry afterwards.

 

Baby Girl Giving Me Butterflies (Weeks 19-20)

Baby’s First Flutters: 20 weeks, 1 Day. According to all of my pregnancy apps, I’d be able to feel baby move between weeks 16-20, so when I still hadn’t felt her at the end of 18 weeks, I started to get concerned. At my sonogram appointment, I learned that my placenta is anterior (meaning it’s on the side closest to my stomach and blocking the baby’s kicks) so it might be a little longer until I was able to feel her. I had a separate OBGYN appointment earlier this Tuesday and my doctor explained I would probably feel her low by my hip bones, where my placenta was not covering her. Sure enough, that very afternoon (this Tuesday, 3/27, at 20 weeks, 1 day), I felt her down low for the very first time. It was after I’d eaten lunch (a homemade taco!) and laid down flat on my back for a bit. I could feel her just above my left hip bone. It felt just like little butterflies, and when I put my hand on my belly, I could even feel it with my hand!! Ever since then I’ve been able to feel her regularly, usually right after a meal and when I’m laying down to go to sleep at night. This was definitely a BIG moment for me. To be able to feel her move and wiggle inside of me is a magic unlike anything I’ve ever felt before!!

Tossing and Turning: Sleeping has not been so fun for me lately. I’m now getting up anywhere from 4-5 times every night, without fail to pee. Not only because baby girl is on my bladder but also because I get extremely thirsty at night and often finish more than a large water bottle (or two). It also just feels really hard to get comfortable. I’m a tummy sleeper, and now that I can feel my uterus when I lay on my tummy, it’s unsettling, so I switch from left side to right side to my belly all throughout the night. And the heat! I turn the AC down to 67 at night and still get hot. Last of all, my dreams have been FREAKING me out lately. Which leads me to my next point.

Mama Brain: Apparently having vivid, intense dreams is very common in pregnancy, and that’s certainly been true for me. Lately, baby girl has been making an appearance in my dreams, but usually I’m worried about something happening to her in my dream. In the latest, we had an intruder in our home who was trying to take her. I guess it’s just my mama brain already worrying about her, but I’m not gonna lie, the scares are not so fun.

Second Trimester Products I Love:

Most of the second trimester products I’m using/loving have to do with maternity clothes since my jeans no longer zip and my bras don’t fit. Below are some of my faves so far! Next on my list of things to buy/try: a pregnancy pillow. Stay tuned for my reviews on that!

Maternity Tops from Boob Design – This is the brand I’m wearing in the photo featuring the yellow striped tee. I have several tees from this brand and LOVE the way they fit and feel. They show off your bump, are made from the softest cotton AND they double as nursing top. See the little cinch under the chest? that lifts, and theres material beneath you can easily pull down and voila! Your boobs are exposed! Not gonna lie, it took  me by surprise and gave Cole and I a good laugh when I realized how it worked.

Maternity Dresses from Sexy Mama Maternity – The grey and wine colored dresses I’m wearing in my bump progression pics are both by this brand. I love the way the material clings to your bump, but is thick enough to smooth everything out so they’re super flattering too.

Maternity Jeans – I wanted to find a pair of jeans that didn’t have the awkward belly flap that goes all the way up nearly to your chest

Maternity Bras from Boob Design & Belly Bandit – As I previously mentioned, my boobs no longer fit in any of my bras, so finding new ones was essential. In addition to being much bigger, they’re also a lot more sensitive, so I knew I didn’t want any bras with underwire and certainly without any padding. The two bras I have and LOVE are from Boob Design and Belly Bandit. One is dark grey and one is light blush pink, but both are made from super lightweight, stretchy material that’s so comfy you can sleep in, but also provide enough coverage to wear with anything.

Belly Support by Belly Bandit – Another product I just recently started using is a belly band by belly bandit. This little number goes over your belly to provide support and also smooths out your belly and helps give it a lift beneath your clothes. I have a very good feeling I’ll be using this lots more in the weeks to come as my belly grows.

Oil Diffuser – disclaimer...Cole and I have had a diffuser for two years now and hadn’t used it until just a couple of weeks ago. I decided to pull out our diffuser and oils and give it a try and I was in HEAVEN! Thanks to my ultra-sensitive sense of smell, I absolutely love the way it make sour room smell and how they help to clear sinuses too. Right now I’m mixing half lemon and half lavender to relax/go to sleep and using the W.C. blend for congestion.

Still Loving My Heart Doppler – Y’all…this thing has been SO essential to calm my worrysome mama brain, especially when traveling. While I was gone for two weeks, it was so nice to use the doppler every once in a while to hear my girl’s heartbeat going strong and hear her moving too! I definitely recommend it to every mama-to-be!

Phew! That was a long one. That’s all for now! I’ll do my next bumpdate at 24 weeks so my post won’t be so lengthy. Stay tuned for more bumpdates from Baby G #1 here on the blog. You can read all of my pregnancy/baby posts here!

 

Fairwell xx,