The Second Trimester

Between our visitors and travel, the second trimester flew by! I felt great throughout, which was appreciated as we were busy.  We've started researching hospitals and birthing classes and are now overwhelmed by all of the things we have to do before Baby Maximus comes, but we're excited and anxious to meet our little guy.  I'm 27 weeks today, which, depending on who you ask, is the start of the third trimester, so here's a little recap of how the second trimester went.

Began the second trimester looking like this.  I miss those pants....

Week Fifteen: Other than my emotions and hormones being out of control and having a few nights of not so great sleep, I've felt great.  I can definitely tell a difference between the first and second trimester.

Week Sixteen:  Sleep has seemed to returned to it's normal state (hallelujah!), even though I'm still waking up to go to the bathroom at least twice a night.  I'm sure this is short lived, so I'm trying to embrace it and rest up. This was the week we found out we were having a boy!  Cue adding all the baby boys clothes to my Amazon registry and making a few purchases around the interwebs! We are so excited!  We also traveled this week and for the first time, I had to ask Mike to help carry my bag.  Running through an airport and carrying a bag left me a little dizzy and winded, so Mike gladly offered to carry my bags from here on out. I'm not the most fit person, but I like to think I can run through an airport while lugging a suitcase with the best of them, so this is just another sign of all of the changes going on.

Week Seventeen: Nothing too exciting or eventful.  I've been able to feel him move a little more regularly, which is exciting!



Week Eighteen: Uncle Mike and Aunt Anna came to visit!! Along with their visit came some serious back pain, but luckily it didn't prevent me from sight seeing.  It just made sleeping and sitting a little more difficult. It seemed to get better as the week progressed and by the end of the week, it was pretty much gone.



Week Nineteen: I've determined that Baby Maximus is taking after his cousin J.P. and is going to be a soccer player due to all of his moving and shaking!! I went to the doctor and everything looked good.  He was so much bigger than the last time we were there! His arms and legs are proportionate to the rest of his body, so he looks so much bigger! It would also explain why I no longer fit into any of my normal pants and maternity clothes are generally feeling so much more comfortable than my regular ones.  I had some serious pregnancy brain going on, which resulted in Mike getting hit on the head with the trunk of the car and me almost losing my wallet.  Luckily, Mike is a forgiving guy and we're both hoping that this pregnancy brain disappears with the arrival of Baby Maximus.

Look at those legs!

As our future president would say, he's yuuuuge!! Such a big boy!

Week Twenty:  Halfway!! Wow! I can't believe it! I feel like the first half flew by and the second half is super busy, so hopefully it will go by just as quickly.  I'm still feeling great and my baby bump is definitely making an appearance.  I found out that there is another Olmsted baby coming shortly after Baby Maximus, so it was fun to get to do some baby talk with a fellow mom-to-be this week.

Week Twenty One: Another week, another doctors appointment.  Luckily, Baby Maximus is growing right on schedule and there aren't any issues.  My doctor is a little worried since my sugar levels in my urine tests have been a little high a few times, but I'll do the Gestational Diabetes test the next time I go to the doctor.



Week Twenty Two: The week started out on a very exciting note because Mike was FINALLY able to feel Baby Maximus kick!  He said it just felt like I was flexing my (non-existent) abs, but a huge smile spread across his face and I was so happy that he could finally feel what I have been experiencing All. The. Time. for the past few weeks.  We headed to Sweden where we went dog sledding, played with reindeer and slept in bunk beds. I'm still feeling great, which Mike and I have both agreed is a huge blessing.  We've been able to do almost everything we did travel-wise pre-pregnancy.  Thanks Baby Maximus!   My pregnancy hormones mixed with missing the holidays have led to quite a few tears on my part, but I think that was to be expected.  Here's to being a grinch and just kind of wishing Christmas would come and go so hopefully the tears will stop and I can resume being my normal, overly emotional pregnant self.



Week Twenty Three: We spent Christmas weekend exploring the Baltics, which was a good way to "skip Christmas."  We also had our second big ultrasound, which showed a healthy baby boy to much of our relief.  He's growing on schedule and everything seems to be developing as it should.  We were able to see some 4D scans which led us to believe he may have a big nose, but we think he's the cutest baby in Berlin.  We may or may not be a little biased.  I woke up one night with a Charley Horse in both of my legs, which was not fun, but other than that, I've felt pretty good. I've slept great and been able to work out, although it's not quite as easy as it used to be.



Week Twenty Four: Happy New Year little guy! All three of us rung in the new year in Berlin! We had lots of fun experiencing a true Berlin New Years. I've felt pretty good besides one dizzy spell late on New Years where I think I was just tired.  I went to my doctor for my monthly checkup and for the gestational diabetes test.  Whoever said that stuff didn't taste good was wrong! I thought it tasted delicious!  Baby Maximus is looking great and we're still waiting on the results of the diabetes test.

Look who popped overnight! I feel like just this week I've gotten so much bigger! I'm definitely not complaining though.  I'm enjoying this stage of being pregnant for sure.

Week Twenty Five: No news is good news when it comes to the diabetes test and we've made it over a week with no phone call! Hooray! I'm celebrating by continuing to eat anything and everything remotely sweet.   It also became quite apparent that my ability to travel and keep up like I used to be able to is no longer possible.  I found myself huffing and puffing up the hills of Lisbon and needing a siesta around 4:00 every day.  I definitely have "popped" and Mike just keeps saying "You're so pregnant! I love it!" 

Week Twenty Six: The week started off with a cancelled trip and a very sick Mike. While Mike was sleeping, I was googling "mono while pregnant" and "tonsillitis while pregnant," neither of which resulted in me being very happy, all while eating clementines and drinking orange juice (which proceeded to give me minor heart burn).  Luckily, I've managed to fend off any major illness and only ever developed a common cold.  We've spent a lot of time hanging around on the couch, which Baby Maximus has taken advantage of and has been kicking up a storm.

LuLaRoe Tall and Curvy leggings make the best maternity leggings! So soft!

Weight Gain: 12 pounds total.  A true miracle considering how much (sweets) I eat!


Food aversions and cravings: Sweets. I want them all.  Hahaha.  It's more just that I have a sweet tooth already and have let myself indulge a little bit more than usual.  Peanut butter by the spoonful has also been added to my almost daily diet.  I just opened my last jar of peanut butter and had a minor panic attack realizing this had to last me 14 weeks through this pregnancy. I haven't had any of those "run out to the store in the middle of the night" cravings, though.  And no food aversions! Hooray!

Gender guesses:  Our guess was right! It's a boy!

Baby Related Purchases: Black Friday was all about Baby Maximus! We bought clothes, bibs, and hats galore.  The biggest purchase from myself is the Wildbird Sling, which I am so excited to use.  Next trimester, I'm having my baby shower and then we'll make a few purchases of anything not purchased off our Amazon registry.  We've already been showered with lots of gifts for the little guy from grandparents and friends, so there's really no reason to do a lot of buying yet, but it's just so fun!


Overall, I feel great. I definitely get tired more easily, which is to be expected.  When we're traveling, I can pretty much count on being done by around 4:00pm. I've definitely also had some emotional moments where I've let out the exclamation of "I don't even know why I'm crying!" but nothing was as extreme or as terrible as the horror stories I've read online.   While I never felt terrible during my first trimester, the second has definitely been much more enjoyable.

"I'm not going to lie, you being pregnant is pretty cool." -Mike one night after feeling Baby Maximus give a nice big double kick.  What a guy!