Pregnancy #2- 18 Weeks

 

 

I haven't really shared too much about this second pregnancy yet and I definitely want to document it so might as well start now. I am currently 18 weeks pregnant and later this week we get to find out the gender! We will be having a little gender reveal party for our family and I will share pics after that. I am pretty excited to know the gender because we have two names so I can't wait to know which one it will be. Also, I can't wait to be able to tell Everly what the baby is. Currently, whenever we ask her if it is a brother or a sister she always says sister. We really don't care either way, we just want to know. I am feeling pretty good right now. I have been able to stay active 5-6 days a week which is something I did not do with my first pregnancy (I quit soccer at 9 weeks and would occasionally hike and go on walks, but that was it). I had some nausea in the beginning along with heartburn, but I never actually threw up, so that's good. It also didn't happen in the morning, which is when I workout, so it didn't interrupt that either. I have recently started to feel more pressure and back soreness, but nothing crazy. I probably just need to get a maternity support belt for running. I do feel movement, but nothing on the outside yet. My skin did not respond well to pregnancy last time and it has started back up again this time. Good thing is, it completely cleared up a few months after delivery so if crappy skin means I get a healthy baby, then I guess it is all worth it. I am not sure if that means I am going to have another girl or not but we will find out soon. I have been much better with my hydration this pregnancy and hopefully that prevents the swelling I got in my third trimester last time! I am trying to enjoy being pregnant, but sometimes it hits me and I am like, wait a minute, I am going to get really big and uncomfortable so that stinks. Also, I haven't decided yet whether or not I want to attempt a drug-free childbirth and so that is a little scary. I just feel like I have so much research to do because I didn't even consider it as an option with my first pregnancy. I think that no matter how you deliver, carrying and delivering a baby is a pretty crazy thing that any women should be proud of but for some reason I feel like exploring a more natural route this time. We will see what I decide as I research more!