I’ve been meaning to do this post for so long, so I figured 7 months pregnant is as good a time as any! I’ve compiled the most popular questions I’ve been asked during this pregnancy into this post. If you have any more, just leave them in a comment and I will answer here!
When are you due?
December 30th, 2018! Yeah I did not plan that out very well… as long as she doesn’t come on Christmas Eve, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve then we’re good! 🙂
How long did it take you to get pregnant? Was it planned?
Haha yes, it was very planned. On the 2nd month we actually “tried”, I was pregnant! I feel very blessed, especially nowadays with so many of my friends having struggles getting pregnant. By “tried” I mean we got an ovulation kit and calendar out, and actually did the planning because it is a process. Turns out you can really only get pregnant a few days a month, so I researched all of that and that’s what I consider actually “trying”.
What were your early pregnancy symptoms?
I didn’t actually have any symptoms other than missing my period. It wasn’t like in the movies when you suddenly throw up in the bathroom at work and go “I think I’m pregnant!” Nope, not me. I actually had missed my period and taken 2 pregnancy tests that came back negative, but I STILL felt like I needed to take another one just to be sure. I waited about 4 or 5 days after the negative tests and then said OK ONE MORE TIME (husband at this point thought I might be losing it) and BOOM, positive. I just had a feeling!
P.S. I learned from my expert mama friend Shannon Bird to always use dollar store pregnancy tests - they have the exact same accuracy but they are only $1! Especially if you are trying to get pregnant, because you will probably go through quite a few. The little test strip is from the ovulation kit I got, it comes with ovulation tests and a few pregnancy test strips as well.
Any advice for morning sickness?
I wish I had more! I actually didn’t get typical “morning” sickness - I would get a little queasy in the first trimester but it was only for about 2 weeks, and I never actually threw up. When I did feel queasy I just made sure to eat whatever sounded good at all, or crackers and ginger ale to at least have something in my stomach. After that 2 weeks though I wasn’t queasy again!
Gender?
It’s a girl! I couldn’t wait to do some kind of gender reveal, we were way too impatient so we found out right at 15 weeks as soon as we could. I was convinced it was a boy. I don’t really know why, I just thought so but husband said girl. He was right!
How long were you married before getting pregnant?
9 years! We didn’t really mean to wait so long, we just kept thinking, “Hmm, not quite yet…” and then all of a sudden this year it hit me, and husband was on board too so we decided to go for it! My advice would be not to let anyone pressure you or tell you when you should start a family. It’s entirely up to you and your spouse. Having said that, now that we finally made the plunge I wonder if maybe we should have started sooner? ? Hindsight is 20/20 though, of course since I’ve had such an easy pregnancy so far, if I had known it would be like this then maybe I would have started sooner - but it is what it is and we’re excited!
Do you have a name yet?
I’m weird about this question! I don’t want to tell anyone our options, I think because I don’t want anyone to take them and I know people won’t actually tell me what they really think, it’s always, “Oh I love that!” even if it’s the most terrible name, so I guess I don’t see the point. We do have a list of names that we can’t really agree on at this point, so when we see her hopefully something feels right! I love classic names.
Why did you wait so long to announce?
We didn’t intentionally wait - it just took SO long to to tell everyone in our families! (Most people announce around 12 weeks.) We announced when I was 18 weeks along in THIS post.
How did you tell your parents?
For my mom and my mother-in-law we did the same thing - we put the ultrasound on the fridge with magnets and then invited them over (on different days when they were available) and waited to see how long it would take them to notice. My mom noticed just about the second she walked into our apartment, it was like she had ultrasound vision or something! My mother-in-law came over with my brother-in-law and they both didn’t notice for SO long! My husband was leaning on the fridge trying to get them to notice them, and then finally it clicked. They were both SO excited obviously and it was so much fun, we were sneaky and hid a camera every time we told one of our parents so we can remember their reactions. My dad’s birthday was close to the day we wanted to tell him, so we got him a birthday card and told him we were coming over for an early birthday visit. We gave him the card and inside it said, “We figured this is the best birthday gift we could give you!” And it WAS. We had to tell my husband’s dad over the phone because he lives in Alaska, but he was equally thrilled. Telling our families was one of the most fun parts of the entire experience! (Like I said, we’ve been married 9 years, so they’ve been very patient…) ?
How are you feeling?
As of writing this post I am 29 weeks pregnant (7 months and 1 week) so as of this point I feel pretty great! I do have to say the 2nd trimester was the best - I wasn’t as tired, tummy wasn’t as big, and I really felt so good. Since hitting the 3rd trimester though I do have some normal pregnancy symptoms:
- Acid reflux: I’ve never had this in my life before getting pregnant, so at first I had to describe it to my husband and he was like yep - that’s heartburn! There was only one night where it was SO bad, I think I had eaten way too much and it was just killing me so I took an over-the-counter pregnancy safe heartburn pill. Other than that I just take Tums every day (well the generic ones, smooth dissolve assorted fruit flavor to be specific!) and no more than 6 a day, and that seems to manage it just fine. I still feel it at night sometimes, especially if I eat a little too much, but not too much to get a prescription or take anything stronger than Tums.
- Aching ribs: Every once in awhile I think baby girl will shift just right or my uterus gets a little too high, and it feels like my ribs might break. Usually it’s an issue at night when I lay down and things move around, and then I have to sit up while husband rubs my back, or walk around a bit and massage my ribs and it’ll eventually go away. This is totally normal and you can even do yoga to make things move around if it’s a real issue.
- Back ache: A few years ago I tweaked my lower back lifting something so now every once in awhile it flares up and hurts, like when I sit or stand for too long. Being pregnant has made it worse so now I sit on a yoga ball when I have to work at a desk, and try to get up and walk around to take breaks. I also see a chiropractor and that really helps loosen it up too!
- Hips aching: If I don’t make sure to have a pillow between my knees when I sleep, I wake up with such sore hips. I sleep with THIS pillow every night, but I think I wish I had got one like THIS instead, so I could switch sides easily when needed.
- Small stomach capacity: This one started SO early on - like 16 weeks or so. I tried to eat my normal capacity (I’m a big eater - I’m talking I eat as much as my husband and sometimes more) and I was SO uncomfortable, walking around outside to try to digest faster - ugh it was the worst. I learned quickly that I just don’t have the capacity I used to. I have to eat MUCH smaller portions now, but more often because I do get hungry quickly. It has been a big adjustment and I still overeat sometimes out of habit, but it is so incredibly uncomfortable when that happens that I’m getting better and better. When I DO overeat, I make sure to take DigestZen which I get from my friend Chanelle. It is a supplement containing digestive enzymes and she explains it so much better than me - but in a nutshell it makes me digest faster so I can feel comfortable sooner. ?
- Occasional baby blues: I had to research this a little bit and then my friend Amber talked about her experience with it and I realized what was happening. It started in the first trimester and I would just feel devoid of emotion. Almost completely neutral, like I didn’t care about anything. I knew in my mind that this is one of the happiest times in my life, and I’m so excited to be pregnant, but then some days I’d just wake up totally numb. It was so frustrating! My husband really noticed it and would ask me what was wrong, and I had to really take a step back and say ok, is this some weird hormone stuff going on with my body? Because it is SO unlike me to feel like that. Luckily I did the research and it’s VERY common - our bodies just have so much going on that the hormones get a little out of whack. I didn’t do anything for it specifically, I probably should have taken some extra B12 vitamins or exercised or something, but I just tried to be very conscious of it and aware that it was just a phase. I was also SO tired during the first trimester so I would just take naps when I needed and baths, and tried to relax and not stress out about it. Now that I’m in my third trimester it’s mostly gone, but I still have little moments sometimes where I feel it, or I feel extra emotional and I just try to stay aware of what my body is doing and going through. It’s completely normal and just know that it’s just a phase while your body focuses on building a baby! Dang hormones haha.
What are your pregnancy must-haves?
About 6 months before we even started trying to get pregnant, I got on a daily routine of taking prenatal vitamins and a DHA supplement (fish oil). I like THIS one-a-day prenatal, and THIS prenatal DHA (they go together, if you take a prenatal that doesn’t contain DHA you should also find a DHA supplement you like.) I have heard rumors that the earlier you start taking prenatals, the less morning sickness you might have when you actually get pregnant, but that could just be an old wives tale. Either way you need to be taking them if you are at all interested or planning on getting pregnant!
After I got pregnant and really started to show, my skin would get SO itchy - so I got THIS body oil that I saw recommended a few places. It is AMAZING. I slather myself in it most nights, or at least my chest and tummy and it keeps itching at bay. I also don’t have any stretch marks on my tummy so far, but that could totally be genetic… not sure but either way, get this oil. I plan to continue using it even when I’m not pregnant. It just smells so good and keeps me so moisturized! I also pair it with THIS moisturizer sometimes, if I don’t want to do just purely oil.
For the first 6 months (ok going on 7) of my pregnancy I pretty much exclusively wore dresses. You can see from my blog posts that’s pretty much it! I just didn’t want ANYTHING on my stomach or anything constricting at all, it was SO uncomfortable so I would highly recommend bodycon dresses that are comfortable and easy to pair with accessories, jackets/sweaters, etc. so you can mix it up but still feel comfortable. I also splurged (well they were like $43, that’s a lot for leggings) on the Zella Mamasana Live In Maternity leggings from Nordstrom. Unfortunately they aren’t available anymore, but if you can find them anywhere online or if they re-stock them I HIGHLY recommend them! I tried cheaper brands and they were uncomfortable or just fell down. These ones actually stay put, and I’ve worn them hiking, doing chores, and with long tops and sweaters as the weather gets cooler. Worth it 100%.
THESE undies from Amazon have been great, I have about 10 pairs of them now because they are comfortable and easy.
THESE Old Navy jeans and THESE AG Skinny Jeans have been my go-to maternity jeans, and the only pairs that actually fit and work well for me. (And I have tried A LOT.) I actually scored the AG jeans on Poshmark for like $25, and they’re pretty much brand new and somehow the size I got fit me, so if the price is scary on those you can look around for deals. Maternity jeans are something women get rid of after baby because you just don’t wear them again, so finding designer ones on Poshmark or eBay and places like that isn’t too difficult.
WATER is key - you have to drink more than you normally did before pregnancy which is a cruel joke because you also have a growing baby on your bladder - but anyways I make sure to have bottled water on hand at all times, or my 30 oz RTIC tumbler that keeps ice cold ALL day. I don’t love hauling that one around all day so I actually have one at my desk at work and one at home, and I just keep them there and it’s much easier to make sure I’m drinking constantly throughout the day.
What baby essentials have you purchased/received so far?
I purchased THIS journal early on - it is SO beautiful and is going to be such an amazing keepsake for each of my kids. You document each trimester with the question prompts and photo areas they give you, and then you have an entry for each year of their life until they are 18. I absolutely love it and might even stock up on a few more colors for my next babies, in case they sell out or change the style in the meantime!
Other than that I have the Puj Tub which was highly recommended, I’m excited to test that out and see how it goes. I’ve also received adorable Aden & Anais swaddle blankets, I’m told they’re the best! Tons of adorable outfits obviously, and I’ve already stocked up on lots of Baby Bling bows, I love how wide they are and they come in so many colors!
Still working on a crib, stroller, and a few other essentials so those will be covered in future posts.
Will you do a natural birth or have an epidural?
I have posted about this a few times on my Instagram stories so this is a question we talked about a lot over there… Where I’m at right now is that I’m not against an epidural, but I’d like to TRY to see how far I can get without it. If labor goes on too long or I’m in too much pain, I will totally be okay with getting the epidural and going that route. BUT if I can handle it and do it without, I’d like to try. This may change as I do more research and really nail down my birth plan, but for now that is where my mind is. ?
What have been your favorite places to shop for maternity clothes?
ASOS, Old Navy, Target, Boohoo (very hit or miss, but when you find something that works it’s great because it’s so cheap), Shop Pink Blush, and H&M.
My advice would be not to go too crazy with maternity clothes though. Honestly I didn’t really even need any until 6 months in because I just wore dresses, and pretty much most of my dresses worked just fine. Jeans you may want to get earlier on for comfort. I tried the BellaBand and I know it’s SO popular and so many women love it because you can wear your normal jeans, but I just couldn’t figure it out. It was uncomfortable to me and the bottom of my jeans zipper would stick out at the bottom, which is weird and embarrassing? It wasn’t for me so I went with maternity jeans (specifically the full panel ones too, not the small elastic waistband ones, those were uncomfortable to me.) I also haven’t really bought much actual maternity clothing, just the Zella leggings I mentioned, and basics like a couple pairs of good jeans, and some good basic long-sleeve tops from Old Navy that I’ll need in the winter. You really don’t wear them long so don’t go nuts. Opt for clothing that can work now and later after baby. I’ve got 2 of these Free People January tees now because they work great currently 7-months pregnant, and I think they’ll be great for hiding my tummy after baby too.
This dress is from ASOS! Photos by Paige Nicolle. Also wearing my Barefoot Blonde Classic clip-in extensions in ‘Sweet Cola’.
If you have any more questions, please leave them in a comment below and I will answer them in this post! I am so grateful for this little girl and can’t wait to meet her! I linked everything I talked about in this post in the widget below.
xoxo
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