Ahhh! By now, you mostly likely already know that Jonny and I are expecting our first baby! To be honest, when we found out, the best word that we could use to describe our feelings was “stunned” followed by excitement and disbelief. We had heard many stories of friends trying to get pregnant for years so we were very surprised to hear this exciting news happen right away.
When I first found out I was pregnant, I was immediately flooded by a feeling of being very overwhelmed. I thought about the zero research I had done on the subject (sure, I knew some things but after doing lots more research, I now know that I definitely didn’t know much) and immediately felt very overwhelmed. Plus, since most people don’t share pregnancy news until after their first trimester is complete, I felt like I knew nothing about the first trimester and what to expect past the general things like sore boobs and a missed period. It’s not that people don’t talk about it, I know they do. It’s more that I didn’t really think about this (getting pregnant) happening to me in both similar and different ways from others around me.
Over the last 12 weeks (aka the first trimester), I actually kept a log of everything that was happening to my body and beyond so that I could share this all with you. If you are newly pregnant, trying to get pregnant, or have already had kids and want to relive the glory that is the first trimester, THIS IS FOR YOU.
Week 3: I knew something was up. My body felt off but not off enough to think anything was wrong. Honestly, I was always the girl that was able to convince herself that she was pregnant. “OMG MY BOOBS ARE SORE” I would convince myself while death gripping my poor breasts, which was probably why they hurt. So, it was only fitting that before I knew I was actually pregnant I was convincing myself that I WASN’T. However, I am very in tune with my body. If anything is off, I feel it right away. Also, my period is very regular. Even after coming off of birth control (you can read more about that difficult journey here), it was very regular. The only thing that changed was that it would always come a few days earlier than expected. The only reason I knew this was because I had been charting my ovulation since January (the month I went off birth control) and tracking my period was a part of that as well. Anyway, when my period didn’t come early as expected, I knew something was definitely up so I took a test the day I missed my period and to my surprise, the First Response test said “YES +!” I took another test to make sure and sure enough, the Clear Blue test came with a big ol’ blue plus sign (meaning preggo). I should also mention, I was totally alone. Jonny was at the gym and I was waiting for a blog appointment at the house so it was kind of a weird moment. I just remember my heart racing super fast and literally staring at the clock waiting for Jonny to come home. Of course, my blog meeting came before Jonny (he came in the middle of it) so I ended up waiting to tell Jonny until right after. Normally, I would’ve thought to film his reaction but I was still so in shock that I wanted to be able to see his entire reaction without worrying about a camera (he would’ve known something was up anyway if he saw me with my phone…) and he was just as stunned as I was. I knew I wanted to tell my family right away (many people will tell you not to tell ANYONE until you are out of your first trimester but my parents and sister and I are very close and they would know something was up if I didn’t come clean. Jonny and I went and bought 3 more pregnancy tests, put them in a cup of my pee (all came back positive), and then we wrapped them up in little gift bags to present to my parents + sister. They had absolutely NO idea what was about to hit them (they have been wanting this for a LONG time), and it was so fun sharing the news with them. We chose not to tell anyone else because we wanted to make sure that the news remained a secret and some of our friends and family are very chatty 🙂 That weekend (I took the tests on Friday), I emailed my OBGYN to tell her the good news.
Week 4: Doctor called me on Monday to schedule our first phone appointment. She also sent me five prenatal surveys to fill out that outlined family history. So far, I had no spotting, which is a common occurrence early on in pregnancy. I started to do some research right away. Most of you know I’m a huge matcha drinker (don’t drink coffee) and while most of my research said that caffeine up until 200 mg a day is okay, caffeine has been linked to higher risk of miscarriage in the first trimester. When Jonny learned this, he wanted me to cut out all caffeine until the second trimester. It’s been hard to not have my matcha boba (this is literally my favorite thing) but I have been also finding decaf options when the craving strikes. In addition to no caffeine, I needed to go through my skincare regime to eliminate anything with Retinol, Benzoyl Peroxide, Salicylic Acid, which are basically all the products I use to keep my hormonal acne in check. SO YEAH, that sucked. I also had to say goodbye to one of my favorite face masks (RIP Drunk Elephant Baby Facial) but all for the health of Baby Beeb, right? I ended up buying four new products (a few that Sherie from SkinSpirit Los Gatos recommended BEFORE she knew I was pregnant but are actually pregnancy safe as she knew we were trying to conceive). Funny story, I actually got Botox the week that I found out I was pregnant, but it’s okay. Usually, there is a two week period where women don’t know they are pregnant and do things that are not “good” to do while pregnant. I actually had a friend that had Botox before she found out she was pregnant and everything turned out fine. BUT, Sherie, who I trust implicitly, pointed out my melasma on my forehead and that it seemed more pronounced than usual. Melasma is a not so fun side affect of pregnancy hormones so I upgraded to a new product by Skin Better to help reduce the look of it WITHOUT the use of hydroquinone. Then I started researching my workouts. From everything I read, having an active pregnancy is actually GREAT for you and your baby. They just don’t recommend starting a new intensive routine, like a SoulCycle or a Barry’s Bootcamp, if you hadn’t already been doing it. In everything I read, most advice points toward not overdoing anything and never feeling breathless while exercising. I’m not going to lie, this was really hard for me because I LOVE pushing myself throughout my intense workouts. I did tell a select few instructors about my newfound condition so that they would be aware of this during class and so that they could give me pointers on what to avoid (on your back exercises and HARD sprinting)
Week 5: Okay, this is the week where my boobs really started to feel different. From friends, I had heard that it was your nipple that actually starts to feel sore when you are pregnant. However, for me, it’s the entire breast. I wouldn’t say my boobs HURT but they felt really full. I am small chested so I have no idea what it’s even like to have large breasts. Even Jonny commented that my boobs looked bigger and then definitely felt that way. I bought some more supportive sports bras but to be honest, no breast soreness has kept me from a workout, which I am really thankful for. My friend, Ashley from Two Peas in a Prada (she is only four weeks ahead of me and we workout at Barry’s together each week) also recommended some awesome things to buy for this first trimester. I bought the book Expecting Better (it’s AMAZING and debunks a lot of age old pregnancy myths with actual DATA), Mother’s Special Blend cocoa butter oil to help prevent stretch marks (I’ve never had stretch marks so I was very glad to get this recommendation!), and some anti nausea drops to help if/when nausea set in. So far, I have not had any food aversions or real bouts of nausea. There are times when my stomach feels funny but nothing crazy. I’ve heard that this usually hits a few weeks from now but I really hope I continue to get lucky. I may not have nausea but OMG, THE ITCHINESS!!!! My tummy, sides, and lower back have been so itchy and it’s because my uterus is growing. How crazy is that?! Also, the pee struggle is real my friends. Like, woah. I already was the type of person that had to pee all the time but now it’s 10 times worse and I have to pee even more than before. Apparently this is due to your kidneys moving as your uterus grows. Fun. Also, canceled my next two hair color appointments since they both fell within the first trimester. Every piece of research I read advised to wait until after the first trimester to get your hair colored so I will wait. Sorry, blonde hair. In other news, sleeping like a log. It’s actually been hard for me to get up in the morning but overall, no extreme bouts of exhaustion yet.
Week 6: Call from my OBGYN’s office to chat about my first sonogram appointment! SAY WHAT?! Two weeks from now, Jonny and I will be seeing Baby Beeb LIVE for the first time. Isn’t that insane? It’s weird to say this, but in the spirit of being 100% honest, it doesn’t quite yet feel like Baby Beeb is really yet. It feels more surreal, like the idea is there but like, how is there a baby growing inside of me? On the workout front, I’ve started making a few changes. It is REALLY hard for me to not go 100% and push myself past my limit with each workout. However, most instructors that I have talked to have recommended not doing this and not even to push yourself to the point where you feel breathless (gasping for air). This is not good for pregnant me or Baby Beeb. Sooooo, instead of sprinting at my max at Barry’s Bootcamp, I am “fast” running at a speed of 8 or walking up a very steep incline (think resistance of 13 or higher). Also, no twisting crunches or flat on your back exercises anymore. These can restrict blood flow to Baby Beeb so buh-bye bicycle crunches. At SoulCycle, I am taking more breaks when I need to. SoulCycle is a 45 minute intensive cardio workout where your heart rate is raised the entire time. I am trying to sit a bit more between sets to let me heart rate drop a bit and replacing oblique moves (a fav at SC) with standard handlebar pushups so I’m not twisting too much. I also find that sprinting while sitting down (instead of running up out of the saddle) during the final song is still a great push for me but doesn’t get my heart rate up too high. It’s all about the small changes but I’m not going to lie, it feels weird. I have been forcing myself to eat more (specifically more veggies) during the day as well. I make myself a spinach, blueberry, avocado, and coconut milk smoothie everyday before I work out. For lunch, I typically make some sort of veggie concoction with sweet potatoes, bell peppers, tomatoes, eggs, or whatever I’m feeling like. I’ve also been googling foods that are pregnancy safe every time we go to a restaurant and annoyingly asking “is this cheese pasteurized?!” One weird thing happened that I thought was interesting. Typically, I LOVE Tony’s Pizza. It’s my all time favorite pizza in SF and when we went, I honestly felt like I was forcing myself to eat it because it just did not seem appetizing. It didn’t make me sick but I didn’t like how I felt the rest of the evening, which was super weird because usually I can’t get enough of Tony’s. Also, I’ve been having the hardest time waking myself up in the mornings, which is weird because I am a morning person. PREGNANCY, MAN.
Week 7: Literally cannot suck in my tummy anymore. I mean, I can but it doesn’t feel very good so I’ve been trying to wear looser clothing more so that I can feel comfortable. Really, I just feel bloated all the time. Some food aversions have started beyond just the Tony’s pizza. Smelling my mom cook tomatoes smelled so gross, I have noticed I haven’t been eating as much meat lately, and if I let myself get really hungry (forget to eat regularly), I feel awful. I wouldn’t say that I’ve had any true nausea symptoms but I do feel uneasy sometimes, mostly in the early afternoon and sometimes when I wake up in the morning (probably because I need to eat). I have also been craving more carbs and boba does not sound super good to me. This could be the case because I can’t have my usual matcha, but still weird. Also, all I’ve been really wanting to eat is any and all Asian food. Something about the flavoring is really sitting well with me and Baby Beeb so I have been eating lots of veggie/cooked sushi (that’s been my favorite) and I had a transcendent experience with a Koja Kitchen meal (one of my favorite fusion places) and felt like I was in heaven. I also feel like right before I go to bed, I have to urge to eat something. I don’t, but the craving is definitely there. I have also been googling EVERY SINGLE THING when I have a question about whether or not something is pregnancy safe. “Is kimchi pregnancy safe?” “Can I keep using my Olaplex shampoo while pregnant?” It’s so overwhelming and there are so many different opinions that reading the all make my head spin. Luckily, I am pretty good with research so I think I’ve done a good job figuring out what I am comfortable with for my pregnancy. Jonny also bought his own books that are catered more toward men and how to be supportive to your pregnant wife. We also have our first prenatal appointment on Thursday and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit anxious for it. We have been coming up with lots of questions to ask my OBGYN so we can feel more on top of it.
Week 8: WE GOT TO SEE BABY BEEB FOR THE FIRST TIME!!!!!! We had out first ultrasound appointment with my OBGYN and it was the most surreal experience to see Baby Beeb’s little heart beating a healthy rate. My OBGYN told us that Baby Beeb is measuring RIGHT on schedule 98 weeks) and that everything was looking healthy and normal (phew!). Jonny and I were both in shock seeing something that we created living inside of me. We also scheduled our next few doctor’s appointments, which would include genetic testing/screenings, a second ultrasound that my OBGYN assured us would be absolutely incredible, and some other general paperwork. It was also great to sit down with my doctor and talk to her about questions we had, like can I have matcha. I LOVE my OBGYB because she is young and very down to earth. She assured me that one matcha a day is totally fine for me and the baby so you know what I did right after our appointment? Went to Boba Guys. She also recommended that I take a calcium supplement so I will be adding that to my prenatal vitamin as well. In other news, I literally cannot suck my stomach in anymore and that has been…interesting. Harder to find clothing that I feel good in so that has been challenging. I did order a few dresses and a lounge jumpsuit that I can easily throw on and hoping those will all work. Jeans are already feeling a little tight, which is a bummer because I loooove my jeans. This week, I felt like I was going to throw up when I caught a whiff of something rotten on my way to SoulCycle. I only ended up cough/gagging and once I nibbled a little bit of a RXBar, I felt okay and ended up making it through my class. My doctor did okay running/jogging but still trying to not push myself AS hard in Barry’s. Don’t worry, I’m still getting my sweat on.
Week 9: All I want are grilled cheese sandwiches dipped in tomato soup. I have actually been eating pretty healthy since we found out we were pregnant but man those grilled cheeses are calling my NAME. In other news, the itchy skin prevails. Might look into another moisturizer to help with this because man, I feel like I’m constantly itching. Exhaustion is still pretty prevalent. Even if I slept for 11 hours, it feels like I can sleep for 5 more. Guess I better get that sleep while I can! I also switched to Curie natural deodorant since I didn’t want to chance my usual Secret Clinical Strength deodorant chalk full of aluminum. The switch has actually been better than I thought it would be so that’s been great. Speaking of deodorant, I have noticed that I am a bit more sweaty in general and this week in SoulCycle, I realized that my armpits smelled like BO, something that I’ve never experienced before. I used to be able to get away with not even putting deodorant on in the AM before my class but today, I realized that my crazy hormones are no longer letting that be a possibility. It’s so weird! Speaking of crazy, my dreams are OFF THE CHARTS weird. Like, every night I’m having crazy vivid dreams where so many people from different phases of my life are making very random appearances. I heard that crazy dreams are definitely something that happens during pregnancy but wow.
Week 10: During this week, Jonny and I traveled to Arizona to visit our friends, Sarah and Robbie. This was the first time I was on a plane since I found out I was pregnant and it was a breeze. I feel like pregnancy makes you question so many things you never even though about, like is it okay to go through the X-ray scanners at the airport? The answer was yes, it’s perfectly safe but still, you really start to think more about your surroundings when you are pregnant, which has been interesting. The trip itself was fine but I definitely felt much more sensitive to the high heat of Arizona being pregnant and overall, I felt more tired from the heat. I was just much more aware of not being out in the heat for too long. It was really fun to tell Robbie and Sarah that we were pregnant since Sarah and I could technically share our pregnancies together until she’s due in October. No weird symptoms or cravings during the trip even though something that has been hitting the spot every time has been Shake Shack’s chicken sandwich with extra pickles and cheese.
Week 11: I am really happy to say that the insane itchiness has mostly gone away at this point, which is a huge relief. Another thing that I had heard about and is definitely happening to me are extremely vivid dreams EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. It’s the weirdest thing. However, no dreams about the baby yet and no hunches about the gender even though I am starting to feel impatient about wanting to find out. I am feeling that my bump is definitely starting to pop ESPECIALLY after I eat. By the end of the day I feel like I’m already looking like I’m 5 months pregnant. Starting to think that’s it’s time to invest in some maternity jeans because after Jonny and I went out to dinner last week, I had to unbutton my jeans because I felt so big. Two consistent cravings that I have been having this pregnancy are Mexican food and any Asian food (cooked/vegetable sushi and my favorite Korean Japanese fusion place, Koja Kitchen). I have also been trying to stay up on my fruit and veggie intake, too. One thing I find annoying is consistently having the eat throughout the day. I wouldn’t say that I am starving all the time but when I do get hungry, I get REALLY hungry and feel like I need to eat immediately.
Week 12: Well, my belly has definitely popped. Even a friend commented on an Instastory video of my and said “is it me or do you have a little bump?!” So at this point, I have to be super careful about hiding the bump since we haven’t made our pregnancy known to the entire world yet. So far, everything is still feeling pretty good. I haven’t noticed that I’m less tired (this is supposed to happen as you enter the second trimester) and have been still craving savory foods and nothing sweet beyond fruit. It’s so weird to feel your body changing every week and The Bump app has really helped me understand what’s actually going on in my body, which has been super helpful. Jonny and I read each new week’s feature together every Wednesday and I always look forward to seeing how big Baby Beeb has grown. Jonny and I also opted for genetic/chromosomal testing so that we could have piece of mind as we continue to move through this pregnancy. My OB recommend that we do the CVS testing, which is non-invasive since I am not an age where chromosomal issues have more likelihood of popping up and we don’t have any genetic disorders in our families. This testing consists of two simple blood test (one done at 11 weeks and one at 15 weeks) and includes a 12 week ultra sound to measure the baby’s spinal fluid. I was much more nervous that I thought I was going to be going into this 12 week ultra sound because of course we want Baby Beeb to be as healthy as possible. Luckily, we screened negative on this first round of testing and our sonogram technician said that she feels like everything will most likely be healthy moving forward, which was a huge relief. We also got to see Baby Beeb for the first time in four-five weeks and it was CRAZY how much change there was. We were looking at an actual baby instead of just a blob like we were at 8 weeks. We saw Baby’s Beeb’s nose, little hands and feet, and belly and it was an amazing experience. Jonny and I could’ve looked at that sonogram all day long because Baby Beeb kept moving around and looked so cute and little!!!
I hope you enjoyed my little 12 week recap!