Pregnancy Must-Haves so Far...

Everyone’s pregnancy experience is different and I’m sure we all have found the things we need to survive all that accompanies pregnancy, especially in the first trimester.  I have been super lucky to have no morning sickness whatsoever, but I have faced some challenges.  Here are some of the things that I’ve found to help me survive these first weeks:

Fruit2o

So of course you should (even when you’re not pregnant) drink a lot of water every day.  There are lots of different recommendations out there, for me I don’t really count how many ounces, I just make sure that I’m constantly drinking water for the majority of the day.  I drink it all day at work (about 3 bottles) and then at home I usually want something with some flavor.  These Fruit2o’s have been a great way to change up plain old water.  So far I’ve tried lemon, strawberry, and raspberry and all have been yummy.  I also enjoy a LaCroix for that carbonation that I sometimes crave in a soda.

Tubby Todd Body Wash & Lotion

I’ve been really lucky to not have hardly any break outs or dry skin; however I still like to use lotion regularly and searched for an “all natural” product for a while.  There are lots of them out there, but I also wanted a body wash.  I used to use Neutrogena that had salicylic acid in it for breakouts, but that is not safe during pregnancy.  I came across Tubby Todd on Instagram while searching for & following any and all things baby.  I think these products are geared more towards baby, but if it’s safe for baby then it’s safe for me while pregnant.   They also have a ton of other products; some for mama’s that I’m looking forward to trying when baby is here, particularly this nursing salve.

Essential Oils

I really started ramping up my EO use since they’re natural & safer than so many products that are out there.  I have a cousin who I get all my oils from and she is so helpful when it comes to this stuff and seriously lives and breathes oils so she is a great resource.  She suggested that I get the Family Physician Kit so that I’d have a plentiful amount of oils for practically any ailment that comes my way during this pregnancy.  It comes with 10 different oils, all of which have several benefits & uses.   Allergies have been kicking my ass and since I can’t take anything, I’ve been using the heck out of lavender, lemon, peppermint, Breath, and melaleuca.  

A show to binge

Let’s be honest, in the first trimester the energy level in a day hovers pretty much around ZERO at all times.  I’m slowly starting to gain some of it back, but most days as soon as I’m off work I’m on the couch in my pjs with the dog binging on Netflix.  I just started watching Penny Dreadful which I love so far.  I’ve also watched Aquarius, Bloodline, How I Met Your Mother, and Joe and I are watching Shameless.  Having something to go home & relax and watch is a definite must!

A fitness routine

Fitness has not been a top priority in any way whatsoever this first trimester but I've been really trying to do something and now that I'm getting closer to my second trimester and feeling much more energetic, I've finally incorporated some exercise back into my life.  I've been doing prenatal yoga every couple days and it's been amazing.  Low impact, relaxing, and easy on the baby and the body, is exactly what I wanted.  

13 Weeks

How far along?  13w1d

Total weight gain?  About 115 pounds, not much weight gain yet.

Maternity Clothes?  None yet

Stretch Marks?  Nope

Sleep?  Sleep is getting better, energy is getting better, constant hunger is subsiding.

Best Moment this Week?  Finally entering into the last week of my first trimester!  I missed my first OB appointment on Friday which is so unlike me!  Had to reschedule for about 2 weeks from now.

Have you told your friends?  Yes of course!  

Miss Anything?  Not really, being able to take medicine I guess.  I really could've used a decongestant this week!

Movement?  Nothing yet.

Food Cravings?  Anything chocolate!

Anything make you queasy or sick?  Not a thing!  

Have you started to show?  Just a tiny bit.

Gender prediction?  Still going with boy!  We find out Saturday!

Labor Signs?  No

Belly button in or Out?  In

Wedding rings on or off?  On

Happy or moody?  Moodiness is decreasing, finally!  I think everyone will be happy to see this symptom finally go away.

Looking forward to?  Our gender reveal is this coming weekend and I cannot wait!  Let the planning being!  

12 weeks!!

How far along:  12w4d.  It feels awesome to finally make it to that “safe zone” of 3 months of pregnancy!  At 12 weeks the chance of miscarriage decreases drastically.  I am finally starting to feel a little less worried.  I can’t believe how quickly these weeks are flying by. 

Total Weight Gain:  Ok so my mom, the peach that she is, surprised me with my very own Fitbit scale this past weekend!  Now I can actually track daily if I wanted to.  I’ve never owned a scale so I’m pretty excited to have such a nice one.  Thanks so much mom.  I weighed myself Sunday and was at 116.  I’m not sure that I actually gained 2 pounds in a week or if I might’ve weighted a little on the lighter side when I used my mom’s scale the week before.  Either way, I’m happy with my weight gain.

Maternity Clothes?  None yet, although I did use the hair tie trick with a pair of higher rise jeans, worked wonders.

Stretch Marks?  Nope.

Sleep?  Sleep continues to be hit or miss.  It takes me FOREVER to fall asleep, but once I do I feel like I’m getting decent sleep.  I’m up several times a night to pee.

Best Moment this Week?  Interviewing doulas!  It’s still obviously very early, but I not really knowing too much about doulas and how their services work I wanted to start looking early.  I’ll dedicate an entire post with more information about doulas and why we chose the one we did.  We also go the results of our NxGen testing and everything is negative.  That means our gender results are in too & being sent off to our friend for our gender reveal!

Have you told your friends?  Of course!

Miss anything?  Not much.  I mentioned last week that I started reintroducing caffeine back in my life, but honestly it doesn’t seem like it’s having much of an effect on my yet.  I do miss my wine, but not nearly as much as I thought I might.

Movement?  Nothing yet.

Food Cravings?  I craved a donut the other night with pizza.  I’ve been eating apples with peanut butter & lots of strawberries.  Nothing too crazy yet, still lots of candy.

Anything make you queasy or sick?  Nothing!  All I’ve experienced as far as illness goes is allergies.  I never have allergy issues but these last few days I’ve been so congested!  I am using peppermint, lavender, lemon, & melaleuca EO’s to help since I can’t take a decongestant. 

Have you started to show?  Everyone swears there is a little bump but I swear it’s from the food still. 

Gender prediction?  Still guessing boy, but we will find out next weekend for sure!!

Labor signs?  No

Belly button in or out?  In

Wedding rings on or off?  On

Happy of moody?  I am starting to finally feel less moody.  I am also gaining some energy back too!

Looking forward to?  Finally having my first appointment with one of the midwives this week.  They won’t be doing an ultrasound on me again until 22 weeks, but I am excited to finally meet with my regular doctor.