Pregnancy Diaries: My First Trimester

Artwork by Kimberlee.

Hello there friends! It’s been a while since I’ve had time to sit down and write a more personal post… we are currently traveling through the British Isles but Blake and I have nestled into a cozy coffeehouse in Inverness, Scotland and are taking a break from the hustle and bustle to soak up quality time with our computers…ha! Not going to lie, it always feels therapeutic to sit and calmly get in some writing or jot down my thoughts for future posts. That said – my sister just sent over THE cutest illustration so I can document my first trimester of pregnancy on my blog… she totally hit the nail on the head with ALL of these…Blake and I just had a good laugh looking through the “cravings” section…that is a very real reality!!

I am currently 17 weeks (baby is the size of a pomegranate this week and his/her feet are the size of gummy bears! We find out the sex on Sept. 12th…omg we can hardly contain our excitement!) and thus, am already into the second trimester. However, given that this is my very first pregnancy, I am excited to document everything for both myself (hopefully we’ll have more kiddos and I can reference this post ha!) and also share what it’s been like for those of you who may not know…which was exactly me just a few months ago.

For starters, I didn’t know that extreme exhaustion was a sign of pregnancy….I always thought “morning sickness” was the one thing that hits every woman. Thankfully…I only had to endure one of the two and was very fortunate to experience zero sickness or nausea – apparently not everyone goes through this. Instead, I essentially spent the entire month of July asleep, ha! And if I wasn’t asleep…my body was SO tired that I couldn’t get out of bed. (You know when you’re in such a deep sleep that your body feels like it sinks into the bed? Yep, that was me 24/7). Blake would leave for work in the morning and I’d be in bed…he’d call me at lunch to see how I was feeling and I wouldn’t have moved…and then he’d get home and I’d be right back in that same spot. Fear not, I fed myself and showered…but then it was right back into sweatpants! You may have noticed I barely posted to my blog and Instagram in July…and that’s because I was too tired to “get ready” or leave the house half the time! …So now you know… 😉

Given the whole “constantly exhausted” thing, working out took a major backseat. Just when I thought I was getting into great shape (I was working out four times a week prior to getting pregnant and my endurance was stronger than ever!), suddenly I was too tired to even go on a simple stroll around the block. My OBGYN said to get out and walk at least 20 minutes per day…but most days during those first three months it was a struggle to find the energy – and to be honest it still is! Not to mention the fact that you have to limit caffeine intake to one cup of coffee per day (…I drank a minimum of three per day prior to pregnancy!), so that was a major change to my daily stamina, too.

As for my body changes in the first trimester – my boobs came first (omg! I have boobs, it’s a miracle!) but then suddenly I couldn’t fit into most of my tops, dresses or rompers…literally buttons busted on one of my favorite jumpsuits…ha! (…Laughing now…at the time I was traumatized hahah!). Then my hips grew about an inch – I went up a full pant size before I was even showing a baby bump…I think naturally my body went into “grow a baby” mode and expanded before my eyes…my hips widened, my butt and thighs grew…you name it, there was suddenly more of it than ever before. At first I was quite alarmed and worried I was gaining too much weight too quickly, but then I realized that you give up your body image to create the healthiest home for your baby to grow and of course your body would change all over (hormones are raging…and you’re growing a HUMAN!)…and after that mindset switched on, it was time to go maternity shopping and embrace this new bod of mine! Although it was strange at first to box up all my jeans before I even had a bump to show…it was simply how my body was naturally changing. And you know what? If there’s any time to give yourself grace and self love, it is most certainly during pregnancy! I have a new appreciation for pregnant women and the mental struggle that can take place as your body drastically changes. I feel ya, ladies!

Ohh the cravings…this part is SO REAL. I have never been one for sweets (always been pretty conscious of my sugar intake), but suddenly, all I wanted in a moments notice was sugar…and I neeeeeeded it right that second. One time Blake and I were driving home from dinner when we drove alongside the UT campus area. Immediately, I had him drive to the closest bakery so I could get key lime pie (…like, what?! lolz!!). He countered with “let’s just get fro-yo near our house…”, to which I replied it had to be the pie and it had to be within the next five minutes…! I am laughing to myself thinking about this because I always felt like pregnancy cravings were more of a cliche than a reality, and I couldn’t have been more wrong. From pie to ice cream to snow cones (which I never do!), to a sudden urge to order a caramel latte (I have always hated sugary coffee drinks!)…the cravings were very, very real. Even into the second trimester, the cravings will hit me pretty hard – they’re just a more rare occurrence. (Although yesterday I was on a mission to get a donut and that was exactly what our itinerary revolved around until it was checked off the list…ha!).

Aside from the typical pregnancy happenings, I had a very smooth first trimester. Although the first two months are extremely vulnerable (you don’t visit a doctor until you’re eight weeks along…so basically you’re just in your own head hoping and praying everything is going according to plan until you get to hear that first heartbeat and see a sonogram!), I did my best to stay low stress (…but honestly it’s hard to get any work done when you’re too tired to get out of bed haha) and Blake and I were overjoyed to share this experience with our families and keep this happy secret to ourselves for a bit. I had always wondered what it would feel like to grow a baby inside my body (just writing that is still mind blowing to me!) and I used to lay in the bathtub and rub my stomach pre-pregnancy and try to imagine it. Although now my baths have to be luke-warm (you’re not allowed to take a hot bath so your body temperature doesn’t rise), it has been so incredible to rub my stomach and know there’s a mini Blake & Olivia in there. It’s been such a wonderful, surreal experience and I am so thankful for it.

We’re nearly halfway there – 23 weeks to go before we meet our little Aquarius baby!