Confessions of the 2nd Trimester - Oh the Bliss!

Hello all!  I am now 29 weeks pregnant, which means I just started my 3rd trimester.  So, I wanted to wrap up my 2nd trimester, as a part 2 to my Coming in February... a.k.a Confessions of the 1st Trimester.

These are some of the things that I've learned.  Some of them are tips, some are observations, and some are just little notes.  Please remember, I am in no way an expert, and this is my first pregnancy, but if anything I've learned can help someone, I would be thrilled!

1. They're not kidding when they call the 2nd trimester the "Honeymoon Trimester".  Most of the pesky 1st trimester symptoms are gone (like food aversions, morning sickness, etc.), and you feel way more like yourself!  Woohoo!

2. You're finally showing!!!  Now this is actually a tricky one.  (I tried to explain this to Dan, who was sweet, but didn't really get it.)  Because you want to show so bad, you're excited that your belly is finally big enough to get "that smile" from a stranger, or someone asking "when are you due?".  HOWEVER when someone tells you "Wow!  You're getting huge!", that's the kind of comment that is not quite as appreciated (although not usually - in my experience - intended as malicious).

3.  This one goes along with number 2.  Women have different body shapes, and so they will naturally carry differently.  I've been very lucky in my pregnancy.  I had a parent of one of my kindergartners say to me in my 25th week of pregnancy, "SO!  When were you going to tell us you were pregnant?"  It took a while for me to "look pregnant".  I talked to my doctor, as I was worried maybe Baby Blair wasn't growing fast enough, and he reassured me that I was right on target.  He told me that I am tall, and have a long torso, so the baby has much more room to grow, before he goes "outward".  So, take every comment with a smile and grain of salt.  And the only opinion that matters is your doctor's.

4.  Feeling your baby move.  There is nothing like it!  It feels like giant gas bubbles, and butterflies, and honestly, an alien moving around.  (It makes me think of that scene in the Matrix, when they put that thing in Neo's belly button- haha!)  I felt Baby Blair for the first time on a Wednesday night, at church, while Dan was preaching.  That was very, very special for me. :)

5.  During your 2nd trimester is when you can find out your baby's gender, if you so choose.  We couldn't wait to find out!  There are so many cute gender reveal ideas out there, from balloons, to opening a present, to pinatas and confetti, silly string, and cake.  We have the greatest friends, who put together the cutest "Reveal Party" for us.  If you are unfamiliar with the idea, here's how we did it.

- Go to the doctor for your 17-20 week sonogram.  (Ours was at 20 weeks.)  When the sonographer gets to "that part" of your baby, you look away.  No cheating!

- We had our party the same day, so the sonographer then called our friend, Cathy, to tell her if it was "blue" or "pink".  Another option would be, to have the sonographer write it down, or put that ultrasound in a sealed envelope.

- Your friend then bakes a cake, where the cake (or inside frosting) is pink or blue, then they cover the outside with a gender neutral colored frosting, invite special people over, and you cut the cake - voila! :)

Here's how ours went down:

IT'S A BOY!!!!!!

I had felt like Baby Blair was a boy from the beginning, and Dan has always hoped his first baby would be a boy.  His brother has 2 daughters, and his cousin has a girl... so his family has been due for a boy! :)  WE ARE SO EXCITED!!!  We plan on naming him Aidan Judson Blair. :)

Here's a video clip of how it went down:

Baby Blair Video

And here's our 20 week old Baby Boy:

6.  Your appetite will grow, just as your baby is doing!  Remember, you're NOT ACTUALLY EATING FOR TWO!!!  You only really need an extra 200 calories a day.  So, yes, indulge, but don't go overboard.

7.  Your boobs finally grow!  'Nuf said. :)

8.  If you've been holding off on the caffeine, like I had been doing, once you're in the second trimester it really is perfectly safe.  Oh, thank God!

9.  Maternity clothes!  You don't really need a ton, and with the cuts of clothes now-a-days, you can really use regular clothes for a long while.  But, it is a really great excuse to get some shopping done!  I suggest getting some basics, and then enhancing and accessorizing with things you already have - a bold scarf, necklace, blazer, cardigan... you get the picture! :)

10.  Speaking of pictures, schedule your maternity pictures for the end of your second trimester.  You feel/look your best, and you have a bona fide bump!  We did ours, and the pictures turned out fabulous!  I'll do a post on that once we get them all back, on what to wear, what to be prepared for... so be on the lookout! :)

11.  On a serious note, be aware of what's going on in your body, but also try not to always jump to the worst conclusions.  I had some very, very light spotting the other day, but it was scary for me.  Everyone was great, my boss sent me home right away, Dan came home from work, and drove me to the doctor.  We were naturally very nervous, but it all turned out just fine.  I had a slight vaginal infection, but it was not harming Aidan.  

12.  Go around, and get your registering done.  Target and BabiesRUs are some of the classics, and they have huge varieties.  We also really liked Restoration Hardware Baby and Child.  It's a little pricey, but they have really unique items, which will really make your nursery stand out.

13.  This one is exciting.  In the last couple weeks of your second trimester is when you can get your 3D ultrasound, if you want.  They're not cheap, but with all our family living so far away, we really wanted a way to share the pregnancy with them in a tangible way, so we wanted to do it.  It is truly amazing what technology can do!  Here's what our Baby Aidan looks like:

I can't get over his sweet face, his nose, and that SMILE!

That's what I have so far! :)  It has been such a fun ride, I can honestly say this has been the best experience, and I cannot wait to see 

10 Minute, DIY, No-Sew Maternity Tunic!

Ahhh... maternity-wear.  Such a sticky, touchy subject.  You wanna wear it, and you kinda want people to know you're finally wearing it, but you also want to look cute, and like "you".

So you buy some, refashion some things you already have, and you can... DIY!

I found this adorable, and super simple DIY maternity tunic at abeautifulmess.com.  Their instructions are really easy to follow, but I'll give you my instructions here as well.  The more the merrier! :)

You will need:

2 yards of jersey knit fabric

Bust, or someone to stand still for a couple minutes, who is approx. your size

Scissors

Exacto knife

Belt/ribbon

So, the first thing you'll want to do, is go to a fabric store, and pick out a jersey knit you like, and buy 2 yards of it.  Jersey isn't expensive, the one I bought was 6.99 a yard.  

I chose gray, because it's an elegant color that goes with a lot, and it's very versatile.

I happen to have a bust, because my fabulous mother-in-law gave me one.  Having a sweet friend, or a helpful husband works just as well.  

The first step is, to find the middle of the fabric.  The same thing that makes jersey so scrumptious also makes it hard to deal with.  it's hard to find a definite "middle".  

Once you find it, line that up with the middle of the back of the neck of the bust, and drape it to the front, to how you want it to eventually lay.

Pull out the edges, to ensure that your material is as centered as possible.

Tie a belt, or ribbon under the bust line, so it'll be as accurate as possible.

I used an exacto knife to start the arm holes.  The original instructions say to cut a 5 inch slit, I say make it 6 inches.  We don't all have spaghetti arms, plus, I think it's more comfortable.

Basically, you're done!  All that's left is evening out the bottom.  and then...

Wear it!!!

Baby Aidan is the size of a papaya!!!

I really liked it with the black leggings, black belt, sweater, boots and chunky necklace.  I kept it simple with the monochromatic colors, but you could and SHOULD mix it up with some color!

I plan on wearing this for our Blair family pictures in a month or so, and I'm going to mix it with navy, yellow and brown, so I'll let you know how that goes! :)

Here's some extra ideas:

- You can leave the tails long, or cut them shorter, whichever suits you best!

- This is a really quick and easy way to look pulled together, even on days when you feel as big as a house.

- Try a patterned jersey!  Be adventurous!  

- This is a super easy and inexpensive gift for a friend who is pregnant!

- This doesn't only have to be a maternity look!  I'm totally wearing this after Aidan arrives!

Hope you enjoy this tutorial, that your project brightens your day, and makes you feel as beautiful, pulled together and rockin' as you are!

Coming February of 2014... a.k.a. Confessions of the 1st Trimester

Well, hello there!

I apologize for my recent absence, the reason is that there has been a slightly all-consuming change going on, however I have not been at liberty to say.  But I can now!

Dan and I are thrilled to be expecting a baby in February!

So, just to give you kind of an overview, this is how it went down (don't worry, it's all PG).

So, Dan and I had been talking about starting to try having a baby, and decided to start in May, giving us time to ease into it, hopefully get pregnant by the end of the summer, so that the baby would be due at the beginning of the summer, right at the end of the school year.

But the thing about plans are, that they rarely go our way.

First, Bella ate my pills.  Yep.  Ate all the placebo ones, and about 3 hormone ones.  So, I went off a little prematurely.  Nothing life-altering (yeah right), but makes for a good story! :)

A few weeks later, I started to have these awful, and I mean AWFUL cramps in my lower abdomen.  I had the idea of getting a pregnancy test, since for the first time in my life, that was an actual possibility, and the whole notion was very exciting to me!

So, we got one on a Sunday, on the way home from church, and when we got home, I took it!  It was all very unceremonious, because we both figured I wasn't pregnant, but wanted to rule it out before I bought any medicine, or anything like that.

Well, apparently we're a lot more "talented" than we thought, because lo and behold, the little screen came up "pregnant".

So, we hugged, and kissed, and cried, and stood with our mouths open for a while... could this be for real!?  Are we for real pregnant!?

Dan set up a doctor's appointment for me that Monday with my regular GP.  We went in, they confirmed the pregnancy, and then also told me that I had a UTI.  The doctor prescribed me Amoxicillin, because he knew that that was okay for me to take.

Long story short, the UTI was what was causing the excruciating pain.  It was the worst pain I'd ever experienced.  It would last anywhere from 20 minutes to 90 minutes, and the only thing that helped was a warm water bottle (Dan wouldn't let it be hot, he said I was cooking the baby), or laying under a warm shower (because you can't take hot baths, because it gets too hot for the baby, and it can't cool off).  So, an E.R. visit, and a new, terrible antibiotic later, I was finally feeling better.  

And by better, I mean I only had normal pregnancy side effects.  Like nausea, and morning sickness, and food aversions.

Now, at 10 weeks however, I am doing so much better!  Honestly!  But I'd like to share what I've already learned about pregnancy.

1. Even though your breasts growing may be the only pregnancy side effect you're looking forward to, it may not happen for you.  You get everything else.  Just not that one.  Of course.

2. Bad breath is a pregnancy side effect.  Yes it is.  (Apparently your baby is sucking the calcium out of your teeth.)

3. You may have a hard time keeping down prenatal vitamins.

4. Morning sickness does not know what time zone you live in.  You know the saying "it's 5 o'clock somewhere"?  Well, it's morning somewhere! Morning sickness can be all day.  For me, it was worst at night.

5. Constipation.  Need I elaborate?

6. Food tastes funny.  Like, I swear root beer has a chocolatey undertone.

7.  You have the only super power you're ever going to get.  The super sniffer.  Good, bad, you smell it all (mostly bad).

8.  Even though your husband loves you more than anything, and can handle most bodily fluid issues, he may have sympathy-morning sickness, and tell you, after you get out of the car to be sick, "honey, you stink, you have to sit in the back".  

9. You may actually lose weight.  See, all this time, all I needed to do, to drop a few, was get pregnant.  Oh, the irony.

10. You may feel sick while singing in the choir, requiring you to make a swift exit off stage, and therefore alerting the entire soprano as to your "state".  

These are the new and wonderful things my body is doing!

Here's the best part my body is "doing":

Our 10 week sonogram!!!

Baby Blair waving at you!