Hello second trimester! I’m so very glad to see you today! My mom has always used the phrase “first trimester dreary, second trimester cheery, third trimester weary” to describe pregnancy, and I totally believe it! Today I’m feeling more like myself than I have in a couple months and am really looking forward to everything the second trimester typically brings, such as feeling kicks and finding out the gender.
Today I want to rewind a bit and look back at what the first trimester held.
FOOD CRAVINGS/AVERSIONS
Similar to my pregnancy with Hadley, I had a major craving for cheeseburgers for about three days. I remember laying on the couch after church around six weeks pregnant (after already eating lunch) and trying to take a nap, but I couldn’t fall asleep because all I could think about was cheeseburgers! It was absolutely the weirdest thing. Jamie thought it was hilarious and ran to grab me one from Wendy’s, and it totally hit the spot. That craving went away quickly and I haven’t had an ounce of interest in a cheeseburger since!
My aversion toward food was really intense from weeks 6-9. For nearly the entire three weeks nothing sounded appetizing, but I was so hungry all the time because I wasn’t eating as much as I needed to when I did eat. It was such a double-edged sword because I was miserable that I was so hungry all the time, but I was also miserable because everything tasted terrible. Such a bizarre phase that I’m really glad is gone!
SICKNESS
I thankfully never experienced any morning sickness with Hadley, so I wasn’t sure what to expect this time around. At 5w2d Hadley and I walked out the front door to play with chalk while Jamie mowed the grass, and the second I walked into the fresh air I felt nauseous. I motioned to Jamie to run over so that he could watch Hadley, and I ran to the bathroom. If I didn’t know before then that I was pregnant, I definitely knew now!
The nausea has been subtle and nothing I can really complain about. It’s reared its nasty head at the most random times, including while Jamie and I were hanging out in the ocean in Cozumel on our cruise. We had just climbed up onto an inflatable floating obstacle course when the nausea hit me completely out of nowhere and I lost my stomach in front of a few other people right there in the ocean. Super embarrassing! Jamie just kept telling the concerned people around us “She’s pregnant! It’s okay!”. Fun times indeed.
My major first trimester setback was the debilitating headaches I experienced for about four weeks. From sun up to sun down the headache was there, and laying down/resting only made me feel ten times worse. The only thing that gave me relief was sitting outside in the fresh air. This was a huge blessing because I ended up sitting outside in the backyard with Hadley almost all day every day, and she obviously loved that. I remember one night putting Hadley to bed, making a sandwich, and sitting out on my front porch in the rocking chair for over two hours. Jamie was away for the night in the field training, and sitting outside rocking in the fresh air offered so much relief. I’m so glad those headaches are few and far between these days.
HIGHLIGHT
We decided to pay $75 for an elective ultrasound at my doctor’s office right at the 12 week mark so that Jamie could experience an ultrasound with me before he deployed. Up until this point we had not heard the heartbeat or obviously seen the baby, so I was very excited and anxious in the hours leading up to the appointment. I prayed so hard that a heartbeat would be there. The very second the tech put the wand on my belly our baby popped up on the screen wiggling and flipping around like crazy. We didn’t need the tech to point out our baby’s basic exterior body parts (head, nose, arms, hands, legs, feet, etc.) because they were all there so clearly! The heartbeat was a strong 173, and Jamie and I both looked at each other with massive tears in our eyes and smirks on our faces. Tears of relief, tears of joy, tears of thankfulness.
I did an elective ultrasound with Hadley at 10w2d just for fun and out of curiosity, and again I’m so thankful that we did an ultrasound with this baby too around the same time. Seeing our babies each pop up on the screens flipping around for the first time are memories that are frozen in my memory. 2.5 years later I’ll never forget seeing Hadley for the first time, and I know I’ll never forget seeing this precious baby for the first time either.
Let’s chat!
- What about your first trimester of pregnancy surprised you?
- Would you ever pay for an early elective ultrasound?
Hi! I’m Erica, and I absolutely adore sharing my life on this website with you! I come here almost daily to blab about all of the things related to being a regular wife and mother in today’s ever-evolving society. I share about our new home, what’s on our kitchen table, what we’re hanging in our closets, where we’re traveling to next, my crazy 5 a.m. work outs, how I make time for girlfriends, our faith, and much more. We always have a lot of balls in the air and somewhat thrive on the chaos. I believe in the power of story-telling as a form of inspiration and entertainment, so I’m here to do both! I was born and raised in north Alabama and recently re-planted roots here again after my husband transitioned out of the Army (he is now in the Reserve and it’s going so well!) I’m a super proud mom to three little girls (ages 7, 4, and 1) who seem to be the stars of the show around here (for good reason – they’re pretty great!) I’m so glad you found me and are here reading! I hope we can get to know each other here on the blog as well as Facebook and/or Instagram. xoxo