I had more than a few of you ask me if I will be sharing weekly pregnancy updates like I did with my first pregnancy. My answer to this question is rather long-winded. (You’re shocked, I know.) I think I have a grand total of three belly pictures on my phone at the moment – all crappy mirror selfies and answers to requests from close friends and family – and I haven’t taken any notes or written one word about my pregnancy to share on the blog up until the blog post I published Tuesday morning. I actually didn’t even think about how I was going to share our special news until Monday. Now, even though I’ve been a hot mess of emotion for the past few months, I am finally feeling the itch to share and fill all of you in on everything. As for weekly updates… That’s not my plan this time around for a myriad of reasons.
Part of me feels almost guilty when I think about the way I shared my first pregnancy in this space but another part of me misses the way I had such unabashed excitement and complete faith that things would be okay. Truly, that’s what I wish for any woman experiencing pregnancy! I LOVED reading weekly pregnancy updates from other bloggers when I was pregnant and do not regret recapping my first pregnancy in such a detailed way at all. I’ve honestly enjoyed referencing my first pregnancy posts during this pregnancy to see how things are the same or different this time around. All that being said, I’m in a different place during this pregnancy (my fourth pregnancy… which in and of itself feels so heavy to type) but I’m also in a place where I feel like I realize now more than ever that pregnancy and healthy babies are a TRUE MIRACLE.
I want to share and I want to talk about everything surrounding this pregnancy but I feel conflicted (and still anxious). While I always, always felt joy for those who were expecting a baby, I’ve admittedly had a hard time reading about pregnancy over the past year and don’t want my blog to be a place of heartache for anyone. With that being said, I really do want to let all of you in and share about my pregnancy in this space because PBF has always followed my life and this is currently a HUGE part of it. I guess I write all of this to say that if you are not in a place where reading about pregnancy is good for your heart, I get it and I am sending you so much love. I will be periodically talking about my pregnancy on this blog and don’t want to be the source of heartache for any of you. Please skip the blog posts you need to skip, take a break from this blog if you need a break and take care of yourself.
While weekly updates are not currently part of my plan, I want to share semi-regular updates and will likely do this in a monthly format unless I feel the itch to share with more frequency. I’m planning to play it by ear. As for today’s blog post, this is my incredibly wordy “let’s catch up about everything that’s been happening over the past four months of my pregnancy” post. I’m also planning to do a follow up Q&A-style post to address some of the questions I’ve received, so if you guys have anything you’d like me to dive into that isn’t addressed below, please let me know!
The Facts
When Is the Baby Due?: June 18, 2018. I’m currently 19 weeks pregnant.
When We Found Out: On Ryan’s birthday, October 5. Talk about timing, right? My period wasn’t due for another couple of days but something in my gut told me I might be pregnant. I took one of the super cheapo pregnancy tests I bought in bulk off Amazon right when I woke up in the morning and the faintest – and I mean the FAINTEST – line showed up. It was SO faint I wondered if I was tricking myself into seeing something but in my heart I had a feeling I was pregnant. I didn’t mention anything to Ryan before he went to work and told myself I’d wait until right before he got home from work to use the one expensive “fancy” pregnancy test I had – the one that simply reports back “PREGNANT” if you’re pregnant. I took the test and stared intently at the tiny screen as it began blinking. It read what I hoped and prayed it would: Pregnant.
How I Told Ryan: I put the cap back on the pregnancy test and wrapped it up in a small bag to give to Ryan as his last birthday gift at the end of the day. He was completely surprised and thrilled! And of course he had all the emotions I had which ran the gamut from sheer excitement and hope to the desire to not really dwell on the pregnancy news too much until we were farther along in our journey.
How We Told Chase: At nearly two-and-a-half, Chase is a sponge and repeats and remembers nearly everything we say so we held off telling him about the baby until last Thursday after our wonderful 18-week appointment. Chase came along to the appointment, so I did my best to explain that the fuzzy gray thing dancing on the screen was a baby in mom’s belly. It wasn’t until after the appointment when I showed him my growing belly and explained that a baby was in there – a brother or sister just like his best friend’s baby brother – that the news seemed to click and the excitement and questions began. When I told him we don’t know if the baby is a boy or a girl, his face scrunched up and he very matter-of-factly said, “It’s boy. Not a girl. It’s boy.” Anytime we try to say it could be a girl, he gets angry and tells us it’s a boy and his name is Thomas the Train. With a little coercing we were able to get him to finally suggest a baby girl name and he said Emily, not-so-shockingly the name of another train from his Thomas books and train set.
Does Sadie Seem To Know?: I still laugh when people ask if Sadie knows I’m pregnant. I walked around with a big ol’ bump at the end of my pregnancy with Chase and was 100 percent convinced Sadie had no idea. (She’d constantly try to sit on my belly and attempt to curl up on my stomach in bed and on the couch even when it was giant!) The same sentiment rings true this time around. She has no idea and that’s probably for the best considering it took her a solid two years to embrace Chase.
Boy or Girl?: We don’t know and we won’t know until we get to meet our little one! I’m actually the driving force behind our decision to be surprised and no one is more shocked by this fact than me! I always joked that if I could’ve peed on the pregnancy test I took when I found out I was pregnant with Chase and found out whether we were having a boy or a girl, I would have… but this time is so much different.
To be 100 percent honest, I was kind of hoping for a baby girl when I was pregnant the first time. I wasn’t disappointed to find out we were having a boy – not at all! – but I was intimidated and a bit nervous since both of my parents have sisters, I have a sister and I feel like I’ve been surrounded by girls my entire life. But then we had Chase and he is the freaking BEST. I love our boy with every single ounce of my being and he changed my life in the best possible way. He’s my sunshine, my joy and everything to me. I could have a bazillion boys now and I would be 1,000 percent happy. Couple this feeling with the two losses we experienced and I when I say I just want a healthy baby, I mean it from the very bottom of my heart and soul. I just want a healthy baby.
Do We Have Any Names In Mind?: Not really! Oddly enough, the names we loved when I was pregnant with Chase have lost a little bit of their luster and we haven’t really discussed names for either sex much at all. Ryan actually suggested one name last week for a baby boy that started out as almost a joke but we both laughed when we started to really, really like it as time went on. We tend to like easy to say, easy to spell names, so I have a feeling we’ll select something that fits into that criteria. I actually have way more ideas for middle names than first names right now!
The First Trimester
When I went in for my first ultrasound at 7 weeks, Ryan and I were both overcome with nerves. The appointment went well which was an incredible blessing, but it didn’t dissolve our anxiety since our two losses were both preceded by healthy ultrasounds with strong heartbeats in the beginning. Though I typically rotate through doctors at my OB/GYN’s office, I began exclusively seeing one doctor, the amazing doctor I met because she was randomly the doctor who performed both of my D&Cs. She is beyond wonderful. She was also very proactive in administering various tests before Ryan and I tried to get pregnant again after our second loss. (All of our testing came back normal which was a tremendous blessing. My doctor believes we “got unlucky twice” and believes both of our losses were likely chromosomal.)
My doctor wanted to see me again at 9 weeks for another ultrasound and then again at 12 weeks. Everything seemed to be going well and I began feeling all of my “normal” pregnancy symptoms, including intense nausea (ALL DAY nausea which often culminated in the evenings which was new to me since I was mostly nauseated with Chase in the mornings), fatigue and horrible aversions. (I was on an all-carb diet for a solid two months and if I even smelled meat I wanted to puke.) All of these symptoms, though uncomfortable, felt incredibly reassuring. I felt nauseated all day but I just didn’t care. Every time I ran for the bathroom, I felt like it meant things were progressing and hormones were flowing. Even Ryan said, “I hate seeing you so sick, but I feel like it means things are moving in the right direction.” I started to breathe a bit easier… and then I got the flu.
The Second Trimester
The flu completely knocked me out for nearly 14 days (weeks 13 to 14 of my pregnancy) and I don’t think I have ever been that sick in my entire life. Couple the flu with pregnancy symptoms (nausea and the most debilitating headaches) and I was physically so sick but also mentally freaking out. (Side note: I had NO idea headaches were something many women experience during pregnancy but they were killer!) I worried non-stop about our baby and the medications I was told I should take to protect myself since I was apparently in a very vulnerable place as a pregnant woman with the flu. I simply felt scared for weeks.
I went back to the doctor at 16 weeks and while I didn’t have an ultrasound, they used the Doppler to check for the heartbeat. The first woman couldn’t find our baby’s heartbeat. I began sweating profusely. She mentioned something about “possibly not being low enough” and left the room to find another woman to try to find the heartbeat. Thankfully this whole process happened fast – within a couple of minutes – but I was a nervous wreck. Thank God the second woman found our baby’s heartbeat quickly but I was still a bundle of nerves. The nurse practitioner who saw me after the Doppler experience found our baby’s heartbeat again but I still left feeling anxious. I hadn’t physically seen our baby since 12 weeks so I still felt nervous as we went into our 18-week appointment last week.
Our 18-week appointment was incredible. I saw the fluttering heart beating immediately and our baby was active the entire time. I cried, but then again I have yet to make my way through a doctor’s appointment without crying during this pregnancy.
As for how I’m feeling in the second trimester, I am still quite nauseated, but it comes and goes and isn’t all day long like it was in weeks 7 to 17 of my pregnancy. (Like my experience with Chase, my nausea definitely didn’t dissipate after the first trimester.) I’ve also felt wayyy more tired during this pregnancy than I did with Chase which I attribute partly to the fact that I have a toddler to care for all day but also to the fact that this pregnancy has physically (and emotionally) been more challenging. But again, I just don’t care. I’ll take it all and then some just to have a healthy baby at the end of all of this journey. Pregnancy – even in its hard moments (and there are plenty of hard moments) – is such a freaking blessing and I feel more acutely aware of this fact than ever before.
Food (Aversions, Cravings)
As I mentioned above, aversions have been INTENSE during this pregnancy. Most meats – especially the smell of meat cooking – made me want to run for the bathroom for weeks. If I so much as saw a picture of chili, I started heaving. (Instagram and food blogs were not my friends for a few weeks there!) I think cheese and yogurt were the only way I got any kind of protein into my diet for well over a month and a half. And this probably sounds like a total cop out, but the thought of cooking/preparing most hot meals made my stomach turn for a while, too. Too many smells, textures, etc. for my weak stomach, I guess!?
As far as foods I’ve loved during pregnancy, from a healthy standpoint, fruit – primarily CITRUS – is my BFF. Oranges and grapefruits always sound appealing, as do bananas, watermelon, berries and grapes. I also embraced what I jokingly call an “all carb diet” for what felt like two solid months and ate my bodyweight in mashed potatoes (being pregnant over Thanksgiving has its perks), pasta (mac and cheese, I love you), cereal, bagels, oatmeal, toast (SO MUCH TOAST with butter and jelly) and crackers. One night Ryan woke up at 3 a.m. and rolled over and said, “Are you eating crackers right now?” Yep. At 3 a.m. Bring on the Saltines, baby!
(That plate of toast is exactly what dinner looked like for me many, many nights.)
I’ve also had some really intense and random cravings during this pregnancy including the fried rice and sauce typically served with hibachi meals. We ordered takeout from a local hibachi restaurant numerous times and I would just get the fried rice with veggies and LOAD it up with shrimp sauce. I chalked it up to a win because at least I was finally getting some vegetables in my diet, right!?
Now, at 19 weeks, I’m able to eat most foods again. Though my all-carb diet continues some days, certain foods that didn’t call to me for months sound good again, including salads, vegetables (I prefer raw veggies over cooked at the moment), eggs, seafood and soups.
Fitness
My workouts have been ALL over the place this pregnancy. From the moment I found out I was pregnant again, I instantly began dialing things back, modifying exercises and taking care not to push myself too hard. I avoided most cardio other than walking and some very light jogging just because my anxiety was at an all-time high, though through my personal training and education (as well as conversations with my doctors), I know it’s typically safe to continue exercising close to your normal level in the beginning of pregnancy. I dialed things back mostly for my own peace of mind.
I’ve loved strength workouts throughout my pregnancy and still do! Pre-pregnancy I typically made it to the gym five(ish) times a week, but right now it’s more like three or four. I took a solid two weeks completely off during the flu and after that really eased back into fitness with maybe two workouts a week for a couple of weeks until I felt stronger. I’m back to feeling really good in the gym which is SO nice!!!
Since I’m feeling better all around, my workouts have become more consistent though they typically include more strength and circuit-style workouts and barre-based workouts than cardio. As for cardio other than walking, I’ve fallen in love with rowing because it feels good and is such a great low-impact cardio option.
I had to cut out running around 14 or 15 weeks when I was pregnant with Chase due to some serious discomfort down there and have accepted I’m just not a good pregnant runner. I’m completely okay with that and simply stick with workouts that feel good. I’ve been picking and choosing what days to attend Burn Boot Camp based on the schedule and supplement with at home workouts and gym workouts. Barre workouts have been a staple for me during my home workouts and I am always on the lookout for new barre-based workouts to try on YouTube. (If you have any you love, please let me know!)
Physical Changes
Physically things didn’t change a ton for me for a few weeks other than some intense bloating. I gained a few pounds seemingly right away and began to notice my pants and leggings fitting tighter around 10 weeks. My belly felt bigger and much more noticeable to me right around Christmas (15-ish weeks).
(15 Week Bump)
Since very few people other than our families and a handful of my best friends knew about my pregnancy up until last week, I’ve been wearing a lot of black and super-flowy workout tops mainly because I just didn’t want any questions because I wasn’t sure I had the mental strength to share another loss publicly if it happened to us again. (I probably would have shared in the long run, but I truly didn’t want to talk about my pregnancy too much for a while – I think it was a self-preservation thing.) Last week I began telling more people at my gym and I had one woman I workout with tell me she knew I was pregnant because, in addition to my thickening waist, my face looked rounder which I’ve noticed a bit as well. I’ve also noticed a definite loss in muscle definition and simply feel softer all over. My arms feel bigger, my hips feel wider and I’ve noticed weight gain all over, not just in my stomach.
As far as significant belly changes, I think something happened last week because my belly now feels noticeably rounder and all-around bigger, especially at the end of the day.
(19 Week Bump)
The difference between the size of my belly when I wake up in the morning and the size of my belly before bed at night looks like several months of pregnancy progression. Phew! I don’t weigh myself regularly when I’m not pregnant and also don’t weigh myself much during pregnancy, but if I had to guess, I’d say I’m up about 15-18 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight. I definitely feel like I gained weight and noticed belly changes faster this time around! Also, my breasts started to grow like crazy the minute I hit the second trimester.
If you followed my pregnancy with Chase, you may remember I had some horrible skin issues during my pregnancy with him. I struggled big-time with zits all over my face and even my upper back. Thankfully that hasn’t been an issue during this pregnancy and, if anything, I feel like I’ve been very lucky and noticed clearer skin than usual over the course of the past few weeks (with a few exceptions.) One not-so-fun thing I’ve noticed with this pregnancy is that I feel stinkier. I always sweat more when I’m pregnant but this time I’m way more aware of the need to swipe on deodorant or I pay the price and feel incredibly self-conscious when I sniff my armpits!
I haven’t felt certain I’ve felt our baby move yet because nearly every time I think I feel something, it’s usually accompanied by gas (TMI!?). No movements have been strong and obvious enough for me to feel confident that they’re our baby and not some digestive bubbles but for the past two nights I’ve felt bubbles with no gas, so I hope that feeling regular movement is not far off. I cannot wait to FEEL and SEE our baby moving!!!
Aaand 3,600+ words later, I think we’re all caught up. Phew! Thank you again for following our journey and please let me know if you have any specific questions you’d like to see addressed in my follow up Q&A post!
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Julie, I am so excited for you. I’m actually due just 5 days before you, so I’m in a similar place. I have a daughter who will be 2 around the same time our new baby is born. I’ve also been incredibly tired this time, whether it’s the toddler or something else, fatigue is real
We did not find out gender with our first and it was an amazing experience. The excitement when my daughter was born and hearing she was a girl is something I will always remember.
Big congrats to you!! And the fatigue is REAL. It’s thankfully getting a bit better but two days ago, I was completely wiped by 4 p.m. again. Phew! It seems to come in waves and can totally knock me out this time around.
So, so incredibly happy for you and Ryan, Julie! Enjoy every moment and looking forward to future pregnancy updates 🙂
I love this post and am so happy for you and your family!!!! That little baby is so loved already 🙂 🙂 🙂 Praying for a fantastic remainder of your pregnancy and a healthy baby and mama!!
-Sarah http://www.thefrugalmillionaireblog.com
Love this post! Will miss weekly updates but I totally get where you are coming from. Looking forward to reading more about what you do decide to share!!
So glad you are feeling a little better and have been able to eat more! I remember the all-carb-pregnant days well (and with fondness 😉 ).
I think I smiled through this entire post. I am so happy for you and your family and will absolutely continue to pray for a healthy little one for you. Thank you for sharing this update – I love reading them. You should check out the Tone It Up youtube channel – they have a ton of workout video options (including barre!) and they are simple to do at home or at the gym 🙂
I’ve done a few of their workouts and have loved them in the past! I haven’t tried any of their barre-specific workouts though and will look into them. Thanks, Allison!
HAve you tried bump at the barre on YouTube? LOVED those when I was pregnant and postpartum!
I haven’t but thank you for this recommendation!! Sounds right up my alley!
So excited for you! And I love reading pregnancy updates and understand your caution with wanting to write them. And I love how Chase thinks it’s a boy and will name him Thomas the train, that’s adorable!
So thrilled for you! I experienced loss and had similar feelings once I was pregnant. But somehow it makes my babes that much sweeter – such a gift and blessing that I don’t take for granted.
I was so excited to read your update today because I LOVED them from your firs pregnancy! Praying for you throughout this one 🙂
Thank you, Morgan! <3
Loved reading every single one of these 3,600 words. So happy for you sweet friend. xoxoxoxo
Thank you, Jen! <3 Your joy is so evident in all of your pregnancy posts and I am so incredibly thrilled for you guys!!!
Congratulations Julie! I’m happy for you and your family. 🙂
I wanted to share that I had awful awful headaches with my second pregnancy and I also had not known that was a thing. One thing that helped me was one of those wrap things that you can put in the microwave to warm up and then lay across your eyes. Like an eye mask, but weighted. Something like this, though I had a different one. https://www.amazon.com/Heating-Headache-Earache-Migraine-Microwaveable/dp/B074ZNBZ42
The other thing was addressing what was probably pretty intense dehydration…I thought I was drinking plenty but apparently not. Later in pregnancy I had a few blackout experiences that turned out to be connected to both the headache issue and also low blood pressure – so be careful and drink even more than you do now!
Also I existed primarily on wheat thins and sharp cheddar for almost the whole 9 months and my daughter (now 5) is ok. Though she does really enjoy cheese and crackers to this day.
Thank you for sharing this, Alex! I felt so helpless with the headaches when they were at their peak — a hot wash cloth over my eyes helped the most (as did zoning out to the Calm app) but I love the idea of a weighted (and heated!) eye mask since my hot wash cloths got really cold really fast. Thank you for the tips!
Best news ever! I lost my first baby and funnily enough had my second 3 days after you had Chase! I followed your pregnancy and was comforted by your ability to really enjoy it and perhaps helped distract me at times from being a bag of nerves! I was so worried all the time and I think in terms of stress it was the most it’s ever been for a 9 month period. I entirely feel your internal struggle in what to share, when to share… it must be a thousand times harder with a blog. When I was pregnant the first time round I told everyone by 8 weeks I was so excited and when I lost the baby at 16 weeks I felt destroyed and sad and just broken. I felt foolish for having been so overwhelmingly happy for that brief time and because I had shared my news I felt like people were watching me come apart. So the second time round I didn’t tell anyone! I only confirmed if asked (and lets face it, by 25 weeks I was a house!) but that’s the only way I could cope.
You’re very brave to share as I know how concerned you must feel all the time (I’m sure there is no need but I know you will be!) The pain of loss never goes away. Even now… 3 years later and with a gorgeous healthy little boy I am reduced to tears just reliving that loss. I’m so happy for your little family and touched greatly by your inclusion of care and concern for all other mothers out there who are going through similar experiences.
much love.x
Goldie, I was the EXACT same way with our first pregnancy after Chase. I told everyone right away — like you by 8 weeks! The loss was devastating and only compounded by the fact that I had to say we lost the baby over and over again in the weeks following our loss. It was so hard and definitely caused me to want to be much more private with my subsequent pregnancies. I am so sorry for your loss. <3 Thank you for taking the time to leave this comment!
So happy for you and your family! I will tell you I referred back to your pregnancy posts and monthly update posts after your son was born once my son came along. It helped ease my mind of the struggles (sleep ugh!) and everything going on was normal! That is the one thing I just love about your blog, complete openness and honesty through all the good and bad. Its refreshing in a world that seems to be constantly filtered to only show to good.
Again, so happy for you all!
Thank you so much, Amber. I appreciate this so much and am so glad you found the pregnancy and baby posts helpful! <3
Love this!! I am sooooo excited for you and your growing family! Can’t wait to see how your pregnancy progresses! That picture of Chase and Sadie cracks me up!
So happy for you and Ryan (and Chase), Julie! Thank you for sharing, and I completely understand your hesitation. I was all carb for the first trimester and a half. Fortunately my eating all seems normal now! Wishing you a healthy 2nd half of pregnancy! I hope to join some of the LKN mom groups once baby comes so maybe I’ll run into you!
I didn’t find out w my daughter bc even though I’m type a, I knew I wanted to be surprised. I was convinced she was a girl the entire time, though! Even as a planner, you will love the surprise!! Can’t wait To follow along this time!
This was my absolute favorite workout when I was pregnant:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utINxvh-h9Q
If the link doesn’t work it is “Pregnancy Yoga: Strength and Stability”. I also loved all of the pregnancy workouts by that channel “Tonic”.
Congratulations!!!
I am just newly pregnant, but am on the prowl for a good Magnesium supplement to help with regulating…#2 (TMI!?) I was curious if you have taken any during your pregnancy?
Also, I have heard the B6 is great for nausea, have you tried that at all?
My sister took this when she was pregnant: https://www.amazon.com/Natural-Vitality-Magnesium-Bottles-Ounce/dp/B00HEZ9PVE/ref=sr_1_10_a_it?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1516887577&sr=8-10&keywords=natural+vitality&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011
Obviously check with your doctor as well but that is what hers recommended.
I loved this post! Thank you for sharing! I’m currently battling with infertility but your post made me so happy. Please continue to share your journey!!
Also..a question for the Q & A. How did you deal with anxiety and staying positive after getting pregnant after miscarriages? I just suffered one and am excited to get pregnant again (hopefully) but am so terrified!
My heart is filled with so much warmth and love right now. This was so wonderful to read and I found myself holding back tears throughout it! I absolutely love reading your experience (especially now) since, for the first time, the possibility of pregnancy actually seems to be in my near future. I’m so excited for your family and can’t wait to hear about Chase’s reactions! Sending you all the love, comfort and peace of mind in the world!
When I was pregnant with my 2nd (my daughter) I had worse nausea than with my son, and I also had an intense craving for citrus mainly cuties. I swore my kid was going to come out orange. I also was more tired but I think it was dealing with a toddler and being pregnant.
I just wanted to say how happy I am for you! I’ve been silently following your blog since Gymboree posted in on Facebook. Asher and Chase were actually in the same little group for a while until life had other plans, and Gymboree was put on hiatus. I was a quiet observer mama then, since we had just relocated and I was going through the trauma of miscarriage and d&c, as well. You were always so happy and social that I never for a second thought you were going through the same thing. I am finally pregnant again – 27 weeks. I don’t take pictures, I cry at each appointment, I hold my breath each morning until I feel the first few kicks. Anyway, I felt compelled to let you know I’ve been thinking of your story and wish the best for you and your adorable growing family! Jen
Thank you so much for sharing this with me, Jen. I am so sorry for your loss and only wish I would’ve known what you were going through at the time — sometimes Gymboree was a really hard place for me to be because it seemed like everyone with a child nearing two was pregnant again. I am so happy to hear you are expecting and wish you the very, very best for a healthy pregnancy and delivery. <3
I am so happy for you! I had two miscarriages in between my kids as well, so I understand the mix of emotions and caution you felt upon finding out. Our son was so convinced he was getting a baby sister, that we decided to find out the sex of the baby so we could prepare him if it wasn’t going to be a baby sister. But guess what, he was right! He got a baby sister! And we were thrilled to get a healthy baby regardless of the sex! Enjoy this special time!
You have been in my prayers. I pray for a healthy baby for you and your family. I had been away from your blog a few weeks and when I was nursing my son the other night had this thought that you were pregnant and sure enough I log in and see your announcement. So happy for your family! Take care when there is more than one time flies!!!!!! Chase will be so excited for his new best friend. My boys absolutely adore each other.
I had crazy headaches in my second trimester! They have been way worse this pregnancy then they were with my son. I am 24 weeks now and they have gotten so much better. I had a miscarriage last Feb and telling people and letting them know was so hard. I didn’t want to tell anyone. You are incredibly strong and your kiddos will see that through out their life!
So happy for you! And I can’t help but notice how similar the timing of your pregnancy is with mine in 2015-16 with my daughter. She was due June 14, born June 16, and I clearly remember finding out that first week in October. I am close to sure it was the morning of October 5, and I also told my husband after the work day with the fancy digital test. 🙂 Best wishes for you and baby!
Julie I love your blog and have been following you for years! As someone who has been struggling with infertility for a few years I actually love to hear your stories and see that things can get better and come in HIS time! You actually give me hope, not make me feel sad or jealous as you think. I’m so happy for you and your little family! Please keep sharing as you see fit!
You’re description of this pregnancy and Chase’s were mine exactly…I will avoid disclosing my children’s gender(s) just in case you’d rather not hear guesses!?
I’m so happy for you! I was on the all carb diet too for the first 5 months. The only way I could eat meat or veggies was in the form of tacos (from a place called Rubio’s to be specific)!
I’m also glad you found an OB to be comfortable with after everything. It is so important. I’ll be thinking about you guys and I hope everything continues to go well. I had those pregnancy headaches also and they are miserable. I would drink one regular coke and that seemed to help and helped my nausea.
Your heart is so kind and tender! I was try for a few years during your first pregnancy and at times while it wasn’t easy… your personality and gentle spirit never hurt me.
Also!! I’m 26 weeks with our first via IVF! And it’s only starting to feel real this past month with so much baby movement!
The all carb diet and migraines were REAL! I loved peppermint oil rubbed anywhere on my head for the headaches… felt like an amazing cool cloth!
I’m so so so happy for you!!
I absolutely love hearing your updates, as I have a little one due on August 5th! So happy for you! Just curious, what types of treatments did you use for your acne while pregnant with Chase? I’m having that battle this time around!
I love that you aren’t finding out! We didn’t find out with our son and to hear my husband excitedly announce the baby was a boy was amazing! We currently are expecting twins and we aren’t finding out again. Although, this time it’s taking sheer will power to not found out. Congratulations!!! So exciting!!!
So excited for you!! I originally began reading your blog while training for my first half marathon years ago. I followed your pregnancy with chase and looked back often (and still do!!) to follow pregnancy and baby milestones with my baby girl- who is almost one!! As a new mom, following your journey has been exciting but also filled with tears and prayers for your family. What is it about becoming a mom that makes you so darn emotional?! I can’t wait to follow you through this journey and watch your growing family!
I am looking forward to ready your updates of baby #2 because we will soon start TTC for #2 and to be honest, I am a little intimidated about being pregnant with a little one! Maybe you will put me more at ease!
Also, I was the TOAST QUEEN during my pregnancy. I swear I had like 6 difference kinds of jam/jelly in the fridge that I would rotate everyday. First semester I was the dinosaur chicken nugget queen (don’t ask… no idea). Literally all I could eat besides tamales for breakfast (again… no idea.)
You just keep doing your thang!
Question: Have you thought about buying your own fetal doppler to use at home? I bought one to help ease my sometimes crippling anxiety and it was really helpful.
So so so thrilled for you and your family ❤
I’m so happy for you & your family!! <3
You look awesome! And your thoughtfulness about posting less is very sweet. Being a loss mom myself, I know what it’s like to see pregnant people and see pictures or posts, it sucks. The anxiety is so, so real too…my loss was a late 2nd trimester loss, and my anxiety didn’t go away until my rainbow baby was…about 6 months old lol (I wish I was kidding). In all honest, the anxiety was so crippling I don’t know if I could go through it again. Hugs to you, you can do this!
I’m due exactly two months after you and just started reading your blogs from your first pregnancy! I’ve been a fan for awhile but it dawned on me the other week you probably documented your first pregnancy years ago! It’s been great to hear of another healthy eater who can’t stand the sign of vegetables and poultry! Thank you for sharing your story and I’m so happy for you that you have a healthy baby on the way. I’m a bundle of nerves every time something new happens and it means more than you know to hear other people’s experiences, especially when they end with a very happy ending. Continued prayers and best wishes to you 🙂
I’m so happy for you, Ryan and Chase. I’ve followed your blog for a long time and my heart broke for you when you lost your 2 little miracles. Sharing those struggles is something I admire and is so helpful to those who also have also lost miracles. I have been waiting for your post earlier this week and your update to hear how things are going, and even though like you said your maybe not feeling 100% fantastic, everything you go through is worth it in the end and means your growing a healthy little one! I wish you nothing but the best for the remainder of your pregnancy and can’t wait to hear updates, I haven’t been pregnant yet but I find it fascinating all the changes that happen to people and how different they are! Keep doing you and growing that little person, can’t wait to “meet” him or her!
Thank you for your kind and compassionate note at the beginning of today’s post.
Your new’s is very exciting!!! Congrats to you and Ryan.
Julie,
I LOVE this post! I hope you’ll share your pregnancy updates as much as you’re comfortable doing so. Your pregnancy brings so much hope to me. I have a 2 year old (via IVF) and around Christmas, we tried another round of IVF and it didn’t stick. It’s not a miscarriage but I felt such loss and sadness. We’re trying again now and I hope it works out. Your post about your feelings have helped me so much. I know it’s not the same as a miscarriage but I felt the feeling you felt.
You are so spot on that our babies are a true miracle. I felt this when our second IVF didn’t work. The first time I think I was in a cloud and everything worked out as it should… the failed IVF hit me that my daughter was such a miracle and how blessed we were to have her.
Thank you for such honest posts. I’ve followed you for so long that reading about this pregnancy made me jump for joy for you. It was like finding out my friend was pregnant!
Looking forward to reading all you will share on this bundle of joy!
I was so excited to see your post and completely understand and respect you being quieter on this pregnancy it is completely understood, but will tell you when you do feel comfortable and willing to share I will be very excited for those posts. I have been referring to your prior posts on your first which I have found extremely helpful. I do have one question for Q&A, would you be willing to share any new pregnancy favorite items you had for your first trimester that may be different from the first time around. I LOVED those posts and found them super helpful so curious to hear if you have any new items you loved you wouldn’t mind sharing 🙂
Oh Julie, I am soooo happy for you!! You look so adorable with your baby bump! I can relate to soooo much of what you wrote. I too will always feel so grateful that I had a “normal” happy, pretty stress free first pregnancy…with my rainbow pregnancy (third pregnancy following a miscarriage) I felt the exact same way – anxious at every appointment. But every time I saw my baby or heard their heartbeat, it was the biggest relief. I had some spotting at 17 weeks (and 7 weeks) and both times I freaked out that I was miscarrying again, but he was fine.
I love what you said about having a boy or a girl and just wanting a healthy baby. And that you’d be happy with 1,000 boys! I can’t tell you how much this means to me. I used to follow a few bloggers who were desperate to have a girl, then they had a girl, and their posts were way too much for me to handle (like bawling, needed to talk it through counseling sessions – for real) When I was pregnant the second time and lost my baby, someone said, “It was probably a girl and you can’t carry girls. You’ll just have boys.” It was such a horrible thing to say to me (she also said maybe I miscarried due to eating processed food – WHO says that to someone?!!!) I now have two boys and my family is complete. And I know my boys are meant to be. But certain blogs where people write about how having a girl (usually after they’ve had 2-3 boys) is the best thing on earth, make me feel bad. I finally just had to stop following them. You are SO right – having a healthy baby is the biggest blessing. Whether you have a boy or a girl, your family is going to be perfect and meant to be. I couldn’t be happier for you all!!!!!
Congratulations!!! So happy and excited for y’all! So random crazy–i am due on June 18th and we too found out on my husbands birthday October 7th!! This is baby #3 for us and the gender will be a surprise as well??
Love this!!! <3 Congratulations to you!!
Such great news! Praying for a healthy pregnancy! We’re not pregnant yet, but trying for a second and my 3 yr old son will randomly rub my belly and say baby. I wonder if he knows something I don’t? haha Looking forward to see how pregnancy and having a toddler works out!
I got the flu when I was pregnant with my second. It was the worse! I am so happy for you!! I wish you a healthy pregnancy. I’m thinking girl this time, since you are craving sweet and fruity. (that was me too;) )
Definitely teared up more than once while reading this. I’m SO happy for you Julie.
Ooh you’re having a girl!! 🙂 When I was pregnant with my second (a girl), I had intense headaches up until the middle of my second trimester. I never had them when I was pregnant with my boy. That’s my prediction, and I’m sticking to it. Love the updates!