20 weeks in review

This Thursday marks the official 20 week mark of being pregnant. If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been writing on Tuesdays about something pregnancy related, and then on Thursdays about the previous week. So today, I wanted to write about the first half or pregnancy.

(picture above–about 5 weeks pregnant, no one knew but us)

Picture above: 19 weeks.

Honestly, I have been very lucky, and the first half was just not that bad. My appetite made a major change, and my food choices were very different, I was very tired and light headed in the mornings, but I never got “sick,” and I generally felt well enough for normal activities.

August was the worst of the weeks, Weeks 8-12 for me, where I peaked at feeling not so great. While looking back, it seemed kind of miserable to feel so blah for so many days, it really wasn’t that bad while I was going through it! We did a lot of travel over the summer and I was lucky to not really be affected by sickness.

Starting to look more like a baby and less like a lazy gut maybe? 19 weeks side shot.

When the first trimester ended, I started to feel much better. After Week 12, we went public with our news, and I started to cook again. Ahhh things were improving. Around Week 14, I started to feel more normal in the mornings and even took some early morning walks outside. Within the last few weeks, I have felt GREAT in the mornings and during the day, and my exercise has returned to 4-5 days/week, which makes me happy. I am completely over the dizziness and nausea and feel pretty normal.

I am not sure when exactly I started to feel like I was getting bigger and really popping out,  but I think it’s pretty obvious in most clothes now. However, some clothes make me look much bigger, and some can still disguise it well. I feel most popped out at the end of the day.

I am starting to feel some bubbles more frequently, and I’m sure those are movements. Can’t wait until they are more pronounced, but it’s just kind of like thumps right now.

I am luckily still sleeping really good, going to bed very early, and spending a lot of time researching and asking questions to friends. There is so much to learn!

Knocking on wood that the next 20 weeks are just as good as the first!

Some random facts about the first 20 weeks:

• Total pounds gained: 6*
• Estimated peanut butter crackers eaten: few hundred (I keep them in my purse and desk at all times)
• Number of maternity clothes purchased: A lot, we have so many events–work clothes, high holidays, family holidays, weddings, parties, etc.
• Number of regular pants that still fit: Only stretchy ones
• Random foods that sound gross that used to not: Dill, frozen yogurt, quinoa, baked chicken
• Major purchases completed: Crib and bedding

I think I lost 3 and gained 9 = +6, very happy with this but know it will increase rapidly!

Always happy to hear questions if you have any!