2nd Trimester Check In: Week of August 7th

LeFemmeViolette

Good morning!

This is a weekly check-in for those in their 2nd trimester: weeks 14 through the end of week 27.

Congrats to all the strong ladies who have made it this far! It's such a great feeling and we've all accomplished so much! We are now 1 week closer to the end of this especially long journey we call "infertility."

Please post below a little about yourself, how many beans you have growing inside, if you have found out the sex(es) and what your EDD is. Please also let us know how far you've made it on your journey and when your next appointment is and what for. If I'm missing anyone from this list, or you are new to the 2nd tri, please let me know and I will add you.

Please let us know when you have graduated to 3rd trimester so that I can update our list! 

Mommies to be:

@Joslynj11 EDD 10/26/17 with 1 girl!
@sasha92-2 EDD 11/08/17 with 1 boy!
@LeFemmeViolette EDD 11/16/17 with 1 girl!
@srh18  EDD 10/6 with triplet boys!
@hibiscus118  EDD 11/11 with 1 girl!

@Jeansis EDD 11/30 with 1 boy!

@PoeMasque EDD 12/8 with 1 boy!

@stella_700 EDD 12/17 with 1 boy and 1 girl!

@wabash15 EDD 12/25 with 1 bean!

@takethelongway EDD 12/28 with TWIN girls!

@mountainlady-2 EDD 12/8 with 1 girl!

@klake42 EDD 1/2 with TWINS!!

@ryannenikole EDD 1/8 with 1 boy!!

@caseyw8784 EDD 1/25 with 1 boy and 1 girl!

QOTW: What has been your biggest challenge with this pregnancy so far, and what has been your biggest joy?

caseyw8784

Hi ladies! I'm 15w4d with boy/girl twins. This past week has been good yet frustrating. Frustrating cause I'm still not allowed to really carry anything and told to "keep feet up as much as possible" and I'm still spotting...although my OB insists that it's normal and fine, it's still a mind-f&ck! Also, I'm not the best at just not doing anything, so having to rest is getting old already. I know it's for a good cause though, so it's not that bad. On the good side, my appetite is coming back and the nausea is better! Last night we went to a friend's house for a BBQ, and I was even able to keep down meat. Today's my birthday, so DH and I are going with some friends to the Olive Garden (we've had this $100 giftcard I got from work last year for meeting my monthly quota so i got that as a reward...lol) I'm really hoping that today is a good day cause I'm REALLY looking forward to allllllll the breadsticks, salad, and pasta!

Next appointment is on the 24th - the anatomy scan. My OB will be on vacation, so it gives me a chance to meet with another one of the doctors at the office. After 20 weeks they'll schedule me for appointments with all their doctors (i think they have 10 or 12) so when the time comes I will have have already met whoever is on call for delivery.

LeFemmeViolette

Happy birthday, @caseyw8784! Hope Olive Garden is nice and yummy!

AFM, I am 25w4d along with my lil' gal. Her kicks are getting stronger and she's found this one little place on my right side that almost tickles when she kicks it. Kinda weird! But it's nice to have reassurance that she's doing well. DH was able to feel her mighty lil kicks last night. It was pretty neat.

Also, this whole pregnancy I have been having the craziest dreams every night. Last night was VERY weird though. And realistic. I dreamed I had the baby early (at home) and we had to take her into the NICU. She was so tiny, and yet when I held her (before going to the NICU) she tried to nurse. Then there were lots of restrictions that kept me from visiting her. There's a lot more to the dream- but it was all very weird. When I woke up I actually had to double check I was still pregnant.

QOTW: My biggest challenge this pregnancy (so far) was the beginning of the first trimester. I have a very strong phobia around throwing up, so I was having frequent panic attacks early on whenever I felt *not quite right*. Luckilly, I never got sick, but that really did a number on me. I'm hoping that I'll be able to handle labor and delivery a bit better, but that's what my mind is obsessing over now. Pretty much everything else has been a joy- thank goodness. I've been uncomfortable here and there, but nothing too bad.

wabash15

@caseyw8784 Happy birthday!! I hope you can enjoy all the bread sticks!!! sorry about the spotting. it is a mind fuck and no matter how hard you try it messes with your head. I know its hard to take it easy but do what you can and listen to your body

AFM: i'm 20 weeks with a singleton. I have my anatomy scan this afternoon. Honestly for the last 2 weeks things have been pretty good so not much here. Just work, taking care of the twins, trying to get stuff done at home, sleep repeat! 
    This pregnancy so far was so much harder than the twins, way more nausea and fatigue plus this time I'm chasing after 2 year old twins. Thankfully things are getting better. I think the best part so far is asking the twins what's in mommy's belly and they respond "baby belly!" then DD lifts her shirt and points to her little Buddha belly and says baby belly. it just melts my heart every time

mountainlady

@caseyw8784 that must be so frustrating, but good for you for taking it slow! Have a lovely carb filled birthday!

@LeFemmeViolette the mommas I've spoken to say they were too distracted by birth to think about any of the external things they thought would bother them... hopefully that's the way!

I have been absent for the last 2 weeks again, whilst DH is visitng his new niece - I've just been so exhausted after work & feeding myself That I get nothing else done! Thankfully he's back now and being a good carer!

I'm 22 weeks 4 days with this little girl - for the last week and a half she's been kicking, now so hard you can see my belly jump. I LOVE it! Ive spent hours watching her  ! Definitely my greatest joy this month!

One of the biggest challenges I've had so far is the sheer level of inactivity... I've never felt so lazy before! Our town has had the worst air quality rating in the Canadian scale for the last week, & as I'm pregnant+asthmatic I've had to stay indoors of wear a respirator to go outside. Combined with the fatigue, I've spent a lot of time sitting! I'm beginning to gain quite a bit of butt/thigh weight and not too stoked about it

sasha29-2

26+5 with my boy!  He's been kicking like crazy.  We had an amazing vacation, and now we're just cruising.  Baby's room is basically done except DH wants to put up one more shelf, and we're just waiting for the shower to fill in the rest.

QOTW: My biggest challenge has just been keeping peace with my body. I've always had a lot of body issues, and I'm gaining more weight than average, and it's just been really emotionally weird to go from the best shape of my life to feeling enormous in six months.  And it fluctuates, sometimes I feel like a whale, sometimes I feel like other than my boobs, which I obviously have zero control over, I'm doing ok, But it's just been rough that way.

My biggest joy, on the other hand, has been watching my husband. He wanted kids SO bad, he's wanted to be a father since his early 20's, and he's just so excited, especially since he gets to have a son.  It's so sweet.

PoeMasque

Happy bday @caseyw8784! I hope Olive Garden was great J

@LeFemmeViolette isn’t it great when your partner can start feeling kicks too?? My fiancé was so excited and I am glad he gets to be more a part of this pregnancy now too.

@wabash15 how was the anatomy scan?

@mountainlady-2 I FEEL you on the inactivity! Before IVF I was very active, but after so many months of pregnancy fatigue and not being able to run anymore I am realizing that I definitely took my body/health for granted before! We have had a bunch of wildfires in the area I live in and air quality is pretty dismal here too. Thankfully I don’t have asthma, but all the warnings here are saying to stay inside if you are old, little, or pregnant L

AFM: 22 + 4 today. I’ve definitely noticed that this little boy has a schedule! I’m still getting used to all the kicks/unexpected movement. It’s exciting and a bit weird. Haha.

Next appointment is the 14th for an echocardiogram, but I cheated and asked one of the ER doctors to do a quick scan while I was at work last night. I still can’t believe how big our little bean is getting!

We spent this last weekend clearing out the office and starting to get the nursery set up. I took a carload of stuff to our local donation center, which felt really good. We had a friend give us her old crib, so my next project is refinishing it, then painting the nursery. I’m out of town the rest of this week and weekend and my fiancé is supposed to go through all of his office items (which are covering both the kitchen and dining room tables right now) and shred, get rid of, or find new homes for everything…….I love him to death, but this kind of project just isn’t in his wheelhouse and I wish I was around this weekend to help him stay focused.

QOTW: The biggest challenge with pregnancy after IF for me has been waiting to actually have a baby in my arms. I feel like I probably would have enjoyed pregnancy much more if it hadn’t taken so long to get here. Now I’m just super impatient for baby’s arrival (probably doesn’t help that my job is to do home visits with families that have brand new babies!). The biggest joy has been how excited our friends and family are. We have a lot of friends who are also pregnant or who have just had babies, so our little guy is going to have a really great community when he arrives, which has been a great comfort to me since we have no family that live near us. 

stella_700

I'm @ 21+2 with the twins. I'm starting to really feel their movements lately. So cool.

I'm getting bigger for sure, as I'm plus sized, I'm just now starting to have people give me, "the look". So far no one has ventured to say anything or asked outright. There is no sucking anything in, and it won't be long before the innie becomes an outie.

DH continues to be super sweet and giggles like an excited kid when he sees the pregnant belly without clothes. I'm starting to feel anxious about getting the flooring in the nursery. Hoping that happens within the next three or four weeks, I need to feel like I'm making progress to satisfy the nesting urges. Otherwise I purchase...which isn't good. I need to wait until after my showers before I really go out and spend monies on tons of baby stuff.

@PoeMasque I'm in agreement, its been hard to enjoy the actual pregnancy cause we want them to be here yesterday.

@wabash15 I'm sorry this one is harder on you. Those that are here and on the December month board that have small children already make me tired just hearing about their day. I'm asleep by 8:30 with all the lights on in the bedroom. The lack of energy!

@LeFemmeViolette The pregnancy dreaming makes me side-eye my subconscious. Whacked out.

@caseyw8784 I hope that the bleeding stops soon. So stressful on top of what we've already been through. Olive Garden actually sounds pretty good to me also. I hope that your birthday meal was great.

wabash15

@PoeMasque thanks for asking! it went well other than they only did the basic anatomy scan not the more detailed "your mom is an old lady scan" so twist my elbow we get another scan next month to get the measurements they missed this time. We are still team green. It was so nice to see this pistachio and know that he/she is doing well. 
@stella_700 thankfully I have gotten to the good feeling portion of the pregnancy so the last 2 weeks have been so much better. 
@sasha29-2 I think we all struggle with body image issues when pregnant. So far despite trying to eat healthy (with the occasional splurges) I've gained ~20lbs and am only half way through. I worry about how much I'll end up gaining in the end. I gained 60lbs with my twins but still kept 15lbs of that on after birth.  It took a while (and to be honest 2+ years after their birth I'm still working on adjusting/accepting my new body) hugs

Jeansis

Hi Ladies! Checking in a little late this week. My little guy is due 11/30 and I am 24 weeks pregnant as of today. Feeling him kick and move regularly, especially after I eat or when I am relaxing. @LeFemmeViolette I can totally relate to the tickling sensation. I get that in my lower stomach sometimes when he is kicking. It is a strange sensation for sure!

My biggest challenge during pregnancy has probably been managing my anxiety. I chronically overthink things, even very insignificant things, and I have gotten myself worked up into several tizzies doing that. I have also still had some trouble with jealousy of other pregnant women and women with babies even though I am pregnant. Struggling a bit right now actually because someone close to me recently told me she is pregnant and she has said for years that she NEVER wanted kids. She said her and her partner changed their minds, went for it, and blammo she's pregnant!  I am happy for her of course, but it's still hard not to feel jealous of her and of other people's ability to control their fertility like that when it has been such a struggle for me and my partner. Anyone else dealt with this even though you are pregnant now?

My biggest joy has been every little thing that I dreamed about doing for years before becoming pregnant that I am finally getting to do! Being pregnant was such a long, distant dream and all the little things I always wanted to do are just amazing! I loved telling people (anyone and everyone) that I'm pregnant. I loved the sonograms and getting to see my little guy's heart beating. I love working on my baby's nursery and making little things for him, like hats and booties (which I have been crocheting lately). I love talking to my family and friends about being pregnant and plans for after the baby is born. I love planning my baby shower with my mom. And I especially love all the little kicks and movements that I am feeling now! I am just loving the entire experience and it makes me happy every day. With that said though, I'm still human and I still have my bad days. 

LeFemmeViolette

@Jeansis I hear you on the anxiety. Most of my panic attacks are brought on by fear of vomiting, but not always. The very beginning of the first tri was HELL for me. On a daily basis I had wondered what I got myself into. I'm happy to say I am in a MUCH better place now. I'm also enjoying all the things that come with preparing for a baby- sometimes just in awe that I finally get to do this!

PoeMasque

@Jeansis you're not alone, I think I will forever feel like women who get pregnant right away haven't "earned" it or don't appreciathe it enough. I've just come to terms with that being my headspace, maybe it will change, maybe it won't. 

I have a coworker who has been TTC for 9mos, there have been lots of tears between the two of us in her office and it's been hard for me to talk to her about my pregnancy because I know how it feels to be the one who isn't pregnant, but wants to be. She got her BFP on Sunday and I think I was happier for her than I was for me! 

clovelyone

Hi ladies! I'm new to this board, but I was on the March IVF board and now in the Dec BMB do I know a few of you. I'm 22 weeks with di/di boy/girl twins and an EDD of 12/16. My biggest challenge so far has been morning sickness (just threw up this morning ). It looks like I will be taking Diclegis for this entire pregnancy, although it wasn't working so well this morning. Hopefully, I will feel better soon because I've got a lot to do today. I'd have to say early on, my biggest joy was confirming my pregnancy on the first ultrasound after the beta, but now the twins are starting to get stronger and I feel more forceful kicks and I love it. It's such a weird feeling, but I'm so happy to have it. 

@caseyw8784 I hope that your spotting goes away soon to ease your mind. My doc told me it's very common with twins, but to call if I had cramping as well or bright red blood. I'm sure you've heard that 100 times, but the couple of times I spotted, I still totally freaked out. It really sucks being in that position, but I'll be thinking positive thoughts for you and your little ones. Happy belated birthday! I hope you had a great day. 

@LeFemmeViolette @mountainlady-2 Yay for kicks! 

@wabash15 I'm happy to hear your anatomy scan went well and you get to see your pistachio again. 

@sasha29-2 I'm definitely freaking out about how big my belly is and the babies aren't even a pound each yet. I can only imagine what it will be in a few months. 

@PoeMasque I feel like I haven't seen you post in a while, but maybe just not on the same threads. I'm happy to see you here. How was your trip? 

@stella700 I'm so behind on the whole nesting thing. We've done absolutely nothing. 

@jeansis I love telling everyone I'm pregnant too. It was so hard to keep it a secret when I just wanted to yell from the mountaintops.