First Trimester: Week By Week Breakdown
We are having a baby!! Like, WHAT?!
We are feeling so thankful words can barely express. However I have always been someone who has a LOT to say haha so here we go.. welcome to the inside of my mind the last few months as we learn we are pregnant, see our baby for the first time, experience all of the feelings/emotions, and learn so much about my body through the process! If you want to learn more about pre-pregnancy & where our hearts were at you can read more here.
Week 7: April 14 - 20
HOW I AM FEELING:
This is the week I found out I was pregnant! Overall I have been feeling very verrrryy lethargic & tired the past few weeks. That was one thing that sort of made me think huh maybe there is a possibility I am pregnant haha! Because I would just curl up and take naps every day feeling so lazy. I thought at first it was maybe just from being low key at home in quarantine, but it is definetly because there is a little baby growing inside! Not yet feeling nauseous enough to throw up. I did eat lasagna on easter though and about 1/2 way through I had to stop eating because all of a sudden it sounded so gross to me. This was before I knew I was pregnant, so it just felt almost like I was full and couldn’t eat anymore. That was the first nauseous feeling I remember.
WHAT I AM CRAVING:
Bread! We never buy bread so of course it is like the one thing we don’t have in our pantry haha! We went to Chick-Fil-A for the first time in a while (we may have gone two more times after that during the week lol) and the multigrain bread on my sandwich was everyyythinggg to me! Also loving anything spicy. This isn’t super new to me but I think my tolerance for spicy food has grown because I will add chili peppers into food & Matt is like what the heck did you put in this haha and I can barely taste it. So maybe my taste buds are changing!
BODY CHANGES:
I am not really noticing any changes other than my jeans felt a bit tighter last week & it was really bothering me because I felt like I had been eating healthy and was so confused! Once again haha this was the week before I knew I was pregnant. When I knew I was I thought ok that makes more sense lol. Slight breast tenderness starting, as well as what I would call light period cramps but my doctor said is actually the feeling of my uterus expanding!
HOW BABY IS DOING:
We got to see baby in the ultrasound for the first time this week!! He/she is right on track for their birth date and everything looked really good, which is just such a blessing. In the ultrasound baby looked like a little blob haha not really moving at this point in its life, BUT we did learn that even at a mere 7 weeks baby is already growing hundreds of brain cells my the MINUTE!!
PREP FOR BABY:
Had our first appointment with the OB three days after finding out we were pregnant! After the appointment (we got to see baby in an ultrasound) we made another appointment for two weeks out for another ultrasound. We even saw the heartbeat and it was beating at 143 BPM (beats per minute)!!
Week 8: April 21 - 27
HOW I AM FEELING:
I actually haven’t had any nausea this week which is pretty crazy! I expected that by now I would have morning sickness but I am so thankful I haven’t. Still have been feeling pretty tired, but getting LOTS of sleep haha like over 8 hours a night which I have been so thankful for. Lots of naps throughout the day. Also feeling slightly disconnected to being online to be honest. I still share as much as I can but a lot of days I just don’t really feel like posting or getting on and showing my face. Whether that be because I am exhausted, or don’t feel like I can really share what is going on, or that I just don’t have much to share, haha I am not sure maybe some combo of all three. Trying to remember it’s okay to take time for myself and step away for clarity & peace!
WHAT I AM CRAVING:
Last night (April 24th) at like midnight I had already brushed my teeth and was in bed and got up to check the fridge haha and Matt was like WHAT are you doing?? I was checking the fridge to see if we had eggs to make scrambled eggs, they sounded soo good at that time haha it was very random! Matt said you gotta write that down cause that is too weird!! “Cravings” are so odd lol. Other than that overwhelming feeling I needed eggs at midnight, I have been craving spicy. Sweet potato fries dipped in hot sauce or the Chick-Fil-A spicy sandwich are two of my cravings too!
BODY CHANGES:
My body this week actually doesn’t feel as bloated as it did the past week and a half! I do feel like my lower stomach is getting harder which is pretty wild, but my body overall looks very similar as it did before I got pregnant I think. Once again my jeans are all pretty tight HA! So there are some changes, I just might not be seeing them unless I try to squeeze into denim. No bump yet which I imagine is pretty normal this early on!
HOW BABY IS DOING:
Baby is now the size of a little raspberry! They are growing arms & legs and their taste buds are also forming (as mine seem to be going away haha). I believe that when we see baby in a week he/she will have doubled in size which is amazing! Growing so quickly!
PREP FOR BABY:
To be honest this all still seems pretty surreal! We haven’t yet done anything to prep for baby coming but I know we have plenty of time. We do have another appointment on Friday, so looking forward to seeing Baby Shepp in just about 6 more days!
Week 9: April 28 - may 4
HOW I AM FEELING:
This past week I have been feeling once again extremely tired! Matt and I were trying to do the math and I think I have slept at least 12 of the 24 hours in each day. He has been amazingly encouraging and thoughtful with letting me nap and leaving me be when I fall asleep, only waking me up to eat or to make sure I am feeling okay. I am so grateful for no morning sickness thus far. At our appointment on Friday the 1st with our OB I asked if that was normal/okay. She assured me that each pregnancy is very different and that I should just be super thankful haha!
WHAT I AM CRAVING:
Food habits have become really strange honestly! Spicy and salty food still sounds delicious. I made breakfast burritos Sunday, added chile peppers and hot sauce.. still barely tasted the spice! Matt made a comment how he thinks that my taste buds are probably changing (maybe due to shifting hormones?). I also usually love sweets/coffee but have seemed to lose my taste for them recently! I had coffee for the first time in maybe two weeks the other day and could not sleep that night. We couldn’t decide if it was because of the coffee or because of the 4 hour nap I had earlier that day LOL we got a good laugh from that :)
BODY CHANGES:
Pregnancy bodies are quite incredible - I think I always knew this but when it is your own body you sort of think dang this is all really a miracle & pretty amazing! At our second ultrasound this week (9 week appointment + physical) I had to have the vaginal ultrasound again since baby is too small to hear through my belly. Before the nurse is even looking at the baby through the ultrasound, she is measuring my ovaries, cervix, etc. She is checking the size, taking note of growth and movement, how things look. I couldn’t help but ask her SO many questions as she looked around the literal INSIDE of my body, simply because I was just in awe that a woman’s body knows what to do when a baby begins to grow inside of it. I learned that every month your left and right ovaries trade off in dropping an egg. Our ultrasound tech informed us that Baby Shepp’s egg came from my right ovary (you go right ovary!!). I can begin to feel little tugs/cramps where my uterus is expanding. I feel bloated & keep asking Matt when I am going to see a baby bump haha!! He agrees that the skin under my bellybutton feels super tight and hard like it is growing for sure! MY JEANS DO NOT FIT, I REPEAT, MY JEANS DO NOT FIT haha oh I am sure every woman who has been pregnant before can relate but woah I am going to have to order a few sizes and just see if I can get away with wearing them a bit longer - after all I am still trying to hide all of this from you guys haha!
HOW BABY IS DOING:
Baby is the size of a tater tot (I liked that better than cherry haha) this week & that got us laughing for sure! I downloaded The Bump app on my phone and love to look at the growth of baby Shepp each week as they keep progressing. This week the app let us know that baby is no longer an embryo but a fetus! They have also doubled in size since just 2 weeks ago when we saw them last. The app says we are measuring at about .9in at 9 weeks but the doctor who measured baby in the ultrasound measured he/she as just over an inch! Perfectly on track with their December 1, 2020 due date!
PREP FOR BABY:
At our 7wk first appointment I had blood work done as well as a typical urine test, filled out family history and health details. At the 9wk appointment this past Friday I got a full pap/physical (yay for being a lady haha), but actually felt really thankful and prepared doing all of that. We were THRILLED that everything came back normal/looked really good with both blood work + my health. December seems really far away, yet at the same time right around the corner?? Not yet feeling the stress of having to buy anything or get really “prepped” for baby which is nice. We haven’t told families yet, but once we do I have a feeling it might all start to feel a bit more real!
Week 10: may 5 - 11
HOW I AM FEELING:
Overall I have been feeling really good I think! It is hard to compare when I haven’t felt any of these changes before, but I am not as tired as I was two/three weeks ago and that feels good! Feeling like I can finally catch up on emails + work and not feel quite as exhausted. I am hoping to start doing some at home simple workouts now that I am feeling more energy. My mind for the most part has been at ease lately, even with all the COVID-related headlines taking over the news. Trying to be positive and thankful since there is so much to be grateful for! I have been in my head a little bit thinking about baby showers & baby-moon, and things that honesty girls dream of when they think of being pregnant. I am trying not to be too hard on myself for thinking about these things and giving myself grace for being frustrated at this current situation. It is hard not to be! Matt has been able to come to both ultrasounds and as far as I know will be able to come into the next one at 12 weeks as well, so that I am so grateful for. Hoping that when baby comes in November/December he will also be able to be in the delivery room.
WHAT I AM CRAVING:
Still mostly craving salty foods over anything sweet, which is a big change from what I normally like. I am such an ice cream girl haha it is odd that I am not really feeling like anything sweet! We have not had it very much, but the few times I have had stovetop instant Ramen it was so delicious and salty lol :)
BODY CHANGES:
My belly is continuing to feel harder and more pressure each day. It currently feels (and looks haha) like I maybe am just bloated if you didn’t know I was pregnant! By the end of the day it feels so tight. I am usually a stomach sleeper but am noticing that it is already pretty uncomfortable & feels so different to lay on my stomach, so learning to sleep on my side when I can. Breasts are continuing to grow and from what I understand they will continue to change up until baby is here, and then will continue to change while breastfeeding (hoping that I will be able to, but understand that is not an option or dream for everyone). It is so wild that even though baby is still so small my body is going through so many changes already. Yesterday Matt and I were joking around and he tossed a piece of candy at me playfully; it hit my nose and I literally freaked out and started crying. He was soo shocked like wait what just happened this went from 0 to 100 too quick HA I believe that is pregnancy hormones.. yikes! It is sort of strange to feel such a range of emotions when I do think I am typically pretty level-headed. I feel emotional about random things that sort of hit me from nowhere (couldn’t stop crying while watching a movie I didn’t even think I was going to like the other night), but then other times I don’t have emotional reactions to things I think I should. Learning to navigate new emotions, and also learning not to blame my pregnancy on my attitude but trying to take control of it and think before I speak/comment or make something a bigger deal than it is! I would love to have a peace and calmness within myself during this time, and I am praying for that.
HOW BABY IS DOING:
According to The Bump app this week baby is the size of a strawberry and just over 1 inch long! Their vital organs are also fully developed (what!!!!) and bones are forming too. We haven’t seen baby this week an ultrasound but are super excited for the next 12 week appointment in just under two weeks now to see him/her again!
PREP FOR BABY:
This week we got to tell our families about baby Shepp! With everything going on in the world right now we were both hoping that the isolation/social distancing rules would be lifted at some point so we could tell our families about baby in person.. after all we have known now for almost a month and it is so hard to keep something like that to ourselves! We just prayed that we would be able to tell the most important people in our lives in person, which is something I never even imagined when I thought about being pregnant someday that I would have to worry about. So for Mother’s Day we made plans with both families to hang in the backyard/social distance (first part of the day we were with Matt’s fam and second half we went to my parents house) and got to hang with them & share our news in person! Both families were SO chocked and excited - I was so happy because Matt ended up getting both reactions on video so we will have those to remember forever.
Week 11: may 11 - 18
HOW I AM FEELING:
This week I have started to feel nauseas, but instead of more typical “morning” sickness I have been feeling it at night. I do not know if that is common or what causes it, but it is throwing off my sleep schedule even more than normal haha. I will have to ask my OB when we see her a week from Friday for the 12 week checkup if that is normal & what I can do to try to calm my stomach at night. Last night I actually laid in bed from 1am until 3am and was on Pinterest pinning baby things because I was so nauseous every time I tried to close my eyes and sleep I felt like I was going to throw up! Ended up coming out to the living room to watch a show and fell asleep around 4:30am. When I woke up I felt fine and the nausea was gone.
WHAT I AM CRAVING:
Because we eat a lot of food at home and I often make turkey or chicken, we really don’t eat red meat unless we go out to eat. So because of this we have ordered.. Red Robin burgers haha several times in the past few weeks! We have done both pickup and also Postmates once at literally 10pm before they closed we were craving it so badly. Other than that there has been nothing super random/weird that I have dreamt up. ONE thing I notice though is I will make apples & peanut butter, or popcorn, or some snack that sounds soo good at the moment, but when I get a few bites in all the sudden it’s like nahh I don’t really feel like eating it anymore. Isn’t that strange?! I am not a super picky eater either it is just like my mind all the sudden turns the opposite direction and is NOT about it haha
BODY CHANGES:
My stomach is continuing to feel more “hard” to the touch when you press on it! Although there isn’t any shape yet to the bump you can actually feel where the uterus is starting to grow and push against the skin more. I haven’t gained any weight yet which I believe is fairly normal since I am only 11 weeks along at this point, and usually my weight fluctuates around the same 3 pounds. I think I read somewhere that you will start to see more body growth + changes in shape and weight too when you hit the 2nd trimester and the baby starts to grow much faster.
HOW BABY IS DOING:
Baby is the size of a small lime now, and will be doubling in size in the next week!
PREP FOR BABY:
We got to drive up to Bellingham this week for the evening and tell my best friend Jaclyn and her husband about baby Shepp & it was so special! With everything going on we realized that we probably would not be able to tell everyone we hoped to in person, and that is fine we fully understood that. I ended up asking Jac if we could drive up for the evening and just sit outside around the bonfire & chill together for a few hours.We had all been self quarantining and been especially careful since finding out we were pregnant, and I was thankful for a night to sit outside and get fresh air and have good company. They were so excited! And so special to see reactions in person for me, for a friend I have known so long. We got to talking about cute baby clothes & all the little baby things haha! One thing I was thinking about is that we haven’t bought baby any clothes yet (or anything!) which is fine, but I think it’s A) because we don’t know the gender & B) because stores are closed so normally we would just drive somewhere and look around & buy something random we thought was cute but we just haven’t don’t that online yet! Maybe we will have to look online this week and buy baby something :)
Week 12: may 19 - 25
HOW I AM FEELING:
This week has been really fun for us because we have started to share with friends and family! Everyone is super excited & supportive like we imagined they would be, but nonetheless it feels great to have amazing people surrounding us and baby! I have been sleeping better the past few days than I have in the previous weeks. My lower back is starting to hurt a bit more when I am going to sleep at night, and sometimes it is hard to find a comfortable spot. Not that there’s a belly in the way (hello still waiting on that haha) but more just feeling my uterus expanding + legs feeling slightly crampy which the doctor said is normal + occasional headaches. ALL common feelings in the first trimester, and I imagine beyond 1st tri too. I guess because so much blood is flowing to baby that also makes my body temperature higher than average, so I constantly feel super warm. It is kind of hilarious because Matt always jokes that my body already runs super warm — haha I am always so warm. So poor Matt has to deal with the window being wide open at night cause I love the cool air lol!
WHAT I AM CRAVING:
Nothing changing here really; still mostly craving salty and spicy! Oh one thing tho that is super embarrassing.. haha woww even thinking about it I am like so embarrassed for myself (sorry Matt I know I am a lil crazy mama haha!!!). So we ordered Chick-Fil-A the other night pretty late, I think we were coming home from hanging in my parents backyard for my dad’s birthday and we saw it was open so swung by for a chicken burger. Sidenote: I hate pickles like I have never and will never like dill pickles end of story. So we get home and I am putting the sauce on my chicken burger and I see two pickles & I literally started to CRY.. what?! Matt was staring at me I think in shock like is she joking or is she actually this worked up over pickles haha I was so sassy + upset by pickles!! Good thing Matt is lighthearted & I realized a moment later that I should chill out a bit and just took that bun off. So funny! Like I have said in the past, I feel overall whenever I had my period (you know when they say hormones can cause you to act different) I never really felt like my attitude or emotions changed much. But I do think with pregnancy it sort of has effected my emotions a bit, I definitely feel more heavy emotions toward some very random things! It isn’t a bad thing. I imagine part of it is maybe working on my heart & opening up new emotions I will feel for baby eventually.
BODY CHANGES:
Although I don’t have a bump yet, I do still feel and see my body changing in many ways. Obviously my breasts are growing a lot and will continue to grow throughout pregnancy. It is wild to me what our bodies go through & how they change to prep and then feed baby.
HOW BABY IS DOING:
Baby is growing! The app we use says they are the size of a small plum right now, so still leeettle but growing every day. Fingers and toes have started to form (we are wondering if when we get the ultrasound this week we will see fingers/toes or if they will still look sort of gummy bear-ish like they did at 9 weeks haha) & I believe that the vital organs are also fully developed and will now just continue to grow with baby. I also read that if baby is a girl then her ovaries are already starting to develop this week! Isn’t that wild? When you start reading more about pregnancy & babies even just 12 weeks old in your uterus, it really is AMAZING how developed they are. Even week to week, or day by day, there are organs + fingernails + hair follicles + and brain cells developing. It is sort of strange when from the outside I might not look different, but inside there’s a human with ALL the body parts growing right now!! Isn’t that really cool? Babies are such little miracles!
PREP FOR BABY:
We are announcing this week & are SO thrilled!!!! You are so loved baby Shepp! :)