My Pregnancy: Updates by Trimester

When we found out I was pregnant, I was 7 weeks along and we were living in bush Alaska. Since we were so far from civilization and traveling once to see a doctor would cost over a thousand dollars (just to send me, not to send me and Ben), we opted to not see a doctor until we made it back to the lower 48. Because of this decision, Google became one of my BFFs and I fell in love with soon-to-be Mamas who blogged about their pregnancies. It was reassuring to know that I wasn’t the only one experiencing x, y, or z. Even learning mundane things was incredibly helpful- like one lady said that she had gotten a ton of bloody noses since she got pregnant. During my first trimester I did too, although I probably never would have attributed that to pregnancy without her seeing that connection.

Anyhow, the point is that I found these kinds of posts helpful, so I decided to do one too in case anyone’s curious or in case someone finds it beneficial.

Obviously, every woman is different and every pregnancy is different too. I’ve been really lucky to have a pretty easy and normal pregnancy and I am absolutely grateful for that.

So here’s a mega-super post chronicling each Trimester of my pregnancy since I didn’t post separately for each one:)

First Trimester (written at week 13)

Belly? Guys! I feel like I started showing at like week 10 😬! But truthfully, it’s not enough of a belly that anyone (besides me or Ben) would really notice. And, honestly, most the time I think it’s just gas (whomp, whomp).

Exercise? I’ve still been running and doing ab exercises. I have made the goal to get at least 30 minutes of exercise (not necessarily running) a day through this whole pregnancy so we’ll see how it goes. I’ve tried to be extra careful, especially since I haven’t seen a doctor yet. I take it pretty easy and, going against runner’s instinct, I walk if I feel the slightest need. I just don’t want anything to happen while we live in the middle of nowhere, you know? Ben and I will go for walks and I’ll (pathetically) have to stop at the top of a hill to catch my breath. I definitely don’t have the same amount of energy, but I do feel like staying active helps me to feel better overall.

Cravings? Ha! I live in the bush where grocery store/Taco Bell runs are non-existent, so I think pregnant or not I’d be craving something. So, while I don’t think my cravings are necessarily pregnancy related, at any given time these sound totally delicious: ice cold lemonade, watermelon, Chinese food, shrimp and this Thai Peanut Salad and dressing.

Food Aversions? Yes! Burgers, avocados and bacon! Right??? In fact, the day I took the pregnancy test, I walked into the house to Ben cooking bacon. I mentioned that the smell made me nauseous and Ben promptly said, “Kim, don’t bother taking the test. If bacon smells bad to you, you’re pregnant!” Truer words might never have been spoken…

Not-so-awesomeness: The Exhaustion! I feel like I wasn’t adequately warned about this one! But seriously, come 2:30 or 3pm and I feel like I could fall over and sleep wherever it is that I land. So so tired. The Nausea. I’ve tried to pay lots of attention to days where I feel sick versus days where I feel fine to see if there’s something that sets off the nausea and I’ve come to the conclusion that it is absolutely and totally random. There’s nothing that makes the nausea come on and nothing I can do to make things better. I mean, not letting myself get starving helps, but in the end, if my body wants to feel like I’m about to throw up, it will feel that way. On that note, I do feel extra lucky because I haven’t actually thrown up at all and I consider that to be a blessing. The Gas. Yes. Terrible. I know. The worst part is that the gas loves to just hang out in my stomach all day long until I feel like I could explode! It’s very uncomfortable and can get just straight up painful. I’ve found that ginger chews, peppermint tea and tums might help…but not always.

Awesomeness: There’s a baby in there. Obviously, this is the best things about being pregnant. And while some of the other stuff that comes along with pregnancy is lame, I can always come back to this. Ben. He’s been super supportive and kind. He’s optimistic and caring and I’m so grateful. The other day I was freaking out about how big I feel like I’m getting. Online says that women generally start showing at week 16 or so, so I was freaking out that I was showing way earlier when the baby was basically the size of a peanut! But Ben just said, “The baby might not be very big yet, but your body knows what it’s doing. It’s just making room.” I guess he can just be so logical that there’s not room to argue and that’s good. Not every day is bad. I don’t feel sick every day. I haven’t thrown up. I’ve been able to keep working without feeling like I need to tell the other teacher what’s up (meaning, I feel like I can act relatively normal despite feeling sick). I’ve been able to keep running. These are all things I’m super grateful for.

Anything else? Dreams. I have the weirdest and most vivid dreams. Like I wake up and can remember exactly what happened and exactly what was said. Pretty crazy. Heat Sensitivity. I used to be able to handle way hot things, no prob…but lately I’ve been a wimp to heat. Warm is fine, thank you very much. Bladder. Ha! I’ve always had a small bladder. Or I just drink a lot. Either way, I’m quite familiar with restrooms. But everything has multiplied and I go like all the time. It’s fun. Also, I have to go during the night. Every night. Very fun.

Second Trimester (written at 26 weeks)

Belly? Definitely have a belly, although, my opinion on the bigness of it seems to fluctuate. Sometimes I feel huge and sometimes I feel like people probably just think I’m chubby. Whatevs.

Exercise? I’m still running! I’ve slowed down plenty and I take it easy, but I run (okay, jog;)! I normally only go 3-4 miles at a slow pace and often I have to stop and walk. And, truth be told, I have more off days than on days with running. Most the time, I feel like I have to pee as soon as my feet hit pavement (even though I go right before I walk outside), and the feeling will sometimes go away, but often it stays for the whole run. A little over a week ago I had a miracle where I ran 5 miles without walking! But I have a feeling it’ll be a long time before I see those kinds of miles again.

Cravings? None that I can think of. Not sure if it’s a craving, but sushi always sounds good.

Food Aversions? I feel really lucky-I’ve overcome the burgers and the bacon aversions. But the avocado is kinda hit and miss. I avoid it, but if it’s served I’ll test it out. Half the time I can stomach it and half the time I have to scoop it off my plate 😝.

Not-so-awesomeness: Chloasma. Also called the mask of pregnancy. Around week 20, I started noticing my face had some splotchy patches. I didn’t know that could come on so early! After some research, I got some facial sunscreen (SPF 70, yo!) and have been putting it on diligently 2 times a day. Not only did it stop the chloasma from getting worse, but it reversed any splotchiness that I had! Sunscreen for the win!! Sleep. I sleep just fine. In fact, the need to go in the middle of the night has gone! But having to sleep on my side was doing a number on my hips! I was waking up with them sore and achy. That’s where the pregnancy pillow stepped in and changed my life. No more achiness! Dry skin. And only on my face! Seriously. Like I was putting facial lotion on like 3-4 times a day and my skin was still red and flaky. Yes, it came with zits, but for some reason that didn’t bother me so much as the dryness did! I got some goji berry face lotion and my skin is pretty much back to normal (although, I don’t know whether to attribute that to the lotion or to the changing hormones).

Awesomeness: Doctor appointments. Yes, we are in civilization! Which is good for lots of things, especially seeing a doctor! It’s just awesome to hear baby’s heartbeat and know she’s healthy. Gender reveal! Baby is a girl!!! The ultrasound was just so cool to be able to see a tiny human wiggling around in my tummy. For the record, I totally thought it’d be a boy (even the old wives’ string test revealed a boy;), but we are stoked to be getting a little girl. Feeling better. The second trimester has been kind to me and has removed (for the most part) all the yuckiness from the first trimester. I started feeling a little bit better around week 13 and I felt I was back to my regular self (as regular as a pregnant lady can get) by week 15. I rarely feel sick and I have much more energy. Movement! I felt baby move at week 22…and, in hindsight, I think I felt her move a lot sooner, I just didn’t know what I was feeling for. For me, the movement was like a butterfly was hanging out in my tummy-just the slightest flutter. It was also super fun to have Ben feel her move-especially because she gave him a full out soccer kick the first time.

Anything else? Telling family. We were going to wait to tell family until we got back to the lower 48…but we were worried I’d be showing too much to keep it a secret until the whole family was around. Sooooo we told everyone around week 15. And good thing. I might’ve been able to hide my belly…but I never would’ve been able to hide my painfully slow running pace from my running buddy/sister.

Third Trimester (written at 37 weeks)

Belly? Ha! Please, it’s huge. I feel like I skipped the cute pregnant phase. You know, where the lady has this cute little bump so perfectly formed and the rest of her’s so tiny that you know she’s got a baby in there? Skipped it. But that’s fine. I also have stretch marks. I thought I might get away without them (because my sister did)…but week 33 rolled around and they showed up. I was a little sad when I got them…but now they are just there. I don’t love them and I don’t hate them. The end.

Exercise? I stopped running! I said I was going to stop for a long time before I actually did. By week 31 I was only running a mile or 2…and hating every second of it! One morning I finally just said, “This sucks. I’m done!” Not to worry, I still do a workout every morning and I usually go on 2 walks a day. And truthfully, I feel really good (most days). I’ve been loving the YouTube videos by Body Fit by Amy. She has a handful of prenatal workout videos and they’re awesome! I feel like a lot of other pregnancy workout videos are kinda wimpy but these ones are great. They get my heart rate up comfortably and make me feel like I actually got a workout in, thank heavens.

Cravings? Not really. Sometimes someone will mention a certain food and it will be all I want to eat until I get it. But usually almost everything sounds yummy. Like one time we were watching The Office and Michael Scott mentioned cup-o-noodle soup and I thought, “Yum!” And that was when I knew I was pregnant 😉.

Food Aversions? Avocados are still hit and miss, but that’s it!

Not-so-awesomeness: Tiredness. It’s not the same as the first trimester where I wanted naps every day. It’s just kind of a general fatigue. Like I’ll get tired if I’m on my feet for too long and need to sit down. Or lay down. Not sleep-just temporarily ease the pressure on my back. And some days are worse than others. Phantom bladder. It’s real. Acid reflux. I know heartburn is a normal symptom of pregnancy, and I haven’t had to deal with that. But acid reflux is something I’ve had to deal with. I woke up one night at 3 in the morning with bile coming up my throat. Not pleasant. Now, if I eat within a couple hours of bedtime, I take a couple Tums and I haven’t had any issues since then.

Awesomeness: Baby shower. My family and Ben’s family each threw us a baby shower. Everyone was so sweet and generous and it was just fun to see how much Baby Girl Brown is loved. Wiggly Joe. And by Joe I mean Baby. The movement is definitely different than it was at first, but it never ceases to amaze me. Child birth class. I took a child birth class (Ben had school right during it, so he couldn’t come with) and I really liked it. It was a short class-4 hours split over 2 nights-but I felt like it just gave me a bit more information and explained some of the things I wasn’t entirely sure on (like, am I the only person who had no clue was being effaced meant???). Not life changing, but definitely beneficial. Less than 3 weeks (supposedly;) till we meet our Chiquita. Ready or not, baby will be here pretty soon (interesting fact: in some places they’ll sometimes allow a woman to go 2 weeks over her due date before they induce, but in Flagstaff they’ll induce at 1 week over because of elevation. Don’t ask me why that makes a difference. I just thought it was interesting:). To put it mildly: we’re really really really outrageously excited (and maybe a teensy bit nervous too…Just me. Ben’s got a very level head).

Anything else? I don’t know that I can claim full on nesting yet (baby’s room is currently cluttered with a huge stack of fabric and the ironing board), but there is definitely always a running list in my head of things I still need to do and get before she gets here. A week or so ago, I felt on the edge of panic because Baby doesn’t have enough bows!! I had to take a deep breath and tell myself that it was okay to accumulate/make bows after she was born; she doesn’t need the entire color spectrum of bows immediately after she emerges from the womb. And that’s true for most things. Right now, our baby will have food, clothes, a place to sleep and lots of love…and that’s all she really needs, right??