Halfway There! And Goals.

I'm 21 weeks 2 days as of today.  That mean's I'm officially over halfway there. I'm due in 4 months and 10 days.  I'm not counting down or anything.  The first half of this pregnancy (before 20 weeks) was very rough.  I was nauseated the entire first trimester.  And while the nausea got better after 14 weeks, it didn't go away entirely and I was still generally weak, lightheaded, dizzy, and just felt bad.  And in the evenings, especially before bed, the nausea would often return.  I'm blaming it on this being a girl... but she's SO worth it!  Thankfully, in the past week or so, I have been feeling a lot better.  When I was pregnant with James and Luke, I called the time from 14 weeks to 24 weeks the "Second Trimester Bliss" because I had energy to nest, I felt good, and I wasn't uncomfortable yet.  Those were the good days. And so I'm finally entering the Second Trimester Bliss right now.  And I really hope it lasts for more than a couple of more weeks!

In other news, about a week after my 18 week anatnomy ultrasound that showed that we were having a girl, I started to doubt it.  I have two friends who were told last year that they were having girls based on their ultrasounds and they were surprised with boys at birth.  Would I be ok with a boy?  Of course!  But I don't want to buy pink clothes, decorate a room with pink, and have a girl name picked out just to find out that I'm having a boy.  So I decided to go get another ultrasound at a freestanding clinic when I was 20 weeks.  I felt like an IDIOT because who does this?!?  According to the place I went, apparently a lot of moms do.  But I was clearly able to see in that appointment from the very beginning that she is a she. No doubt about it.  So now I'm not crazy anxious anymore.

Now let's talk goals.  I gained 45 pounds when I was pregnant with James and I lost all of it after he was born.  I was gluten free and dairy free from his birth until he was about 8 months old.  I also walked almost daily with him.  I'd wear him and we'd go walking on the trails close to the house.  By the time he was 10 months old, I was back to my before pregnancy weight.  I wasn't really in shape, although I did walk quite a bit.  When I was pregnant with Luke, I gained 50 pounds and I felt it.  I was miserable!  After he was born, I didn't go on a diet, butnI didn't eat poorly... I've always eaten a mostly whole foods diet with almost nothing processed.  But anyone who has breastfed for an extended amount of time can tell you that you are very hungry while nursing.  So even though I ate good foods, I ate a lot.  When Luke was 7 months old, I still had 20 pounds that needed to go.  I couldn't find a way to exercise with the boys because Luke hated a stroller (until he turned a year old) and he didn't really like me wearing him for long periods of time (like on a walk).  My boys have always napped at the same time, so I could have exercised while they slept, but at that point in the day, I usually took a nap too or at least needed to rest.  So I decided to join a great gym in Greensboro - The Club.  They have a wonderful facility that includes a pool and excellent childcare.  Part of the reason I was interested in joining The Club is because my Aunt Marcia and Uncle Ben joined a gym and used personal trainers a couple of years earlier and I saw a huge transformation in their health.  As I was contemplating the decision to join, I was talking to them about it and they strongly encouraged me and gave us a gift to help get us started at the gym!  It was such a blessing. So I joined The Club in May of 2015 and started working with a trainer three times a week.  My kids loved the childcare and I went at least 3-4 days a week the entire summer.  By the time September rolled around, I had lost 15 of the 20 pounds I wanted gone and we decided to have another baby.  I had never felt as strong as I did over the summer.  I have back problems, so when my whole body got stronger, my back benefited and I just felt better.

We found out I was pregnant the day after Luke turned one and I was so glad that I was in shape and only 5 pounds from my goal weight to begin the pregnancy.  I continued to work out at the club (modified what I was doing) until I was 8 weeks pregnant.  And then the nausea was just too much and I couldn't do it.  So I gave myself grace and decided to take a break.  I still tried to eat healthy through the first trimester which was so hard because I never knew what I would be craving and so it was difficult to always have something healthy ready to eat.  During the first trimester, I gained 5 pounds.  You should gain between 1-5 pounds in the first trimester.  I just gained a lot because the only way for me to keep my nausea under control is by constantly having something on my stomach.

Fast forward to the second trimester.  I started working out again around 14 weeks.  I had to start slow because I still wasn't feeling great and I had lost a lot of muscle in the 6 weeks I took off.  I started back swimming which was wonderful.  But then at 15 weeks pregnant, I got a cold that turned into a sinus infection.  That was miserable.  I still tried to at least walk most days during that time, but it was hard.  Finally, around 18 weeks, I was over the cold / sinus infection and I started working consistently again doing a modified version of the exercises I did with my trainer over the summer.  I'm going at least 3 times a week now and I'm feeling so much better overall.  I try to walk on the days I don't get to the gym.  As of right now, I've gained 8 pounds total this pregnancy.  With Luke at this point in pregnancy, I had gained 17 pounds.

So why do I have these goals?  A few reasons.  

- I want to feel GOOD this time around.  I don't want to be struggling to get up and down off the floor for the last ten weeks of my pregnancy.

- I want to be in shape for labor.  Labor is no joke. In order to be able to move around and get it the best positions possible for me and baby girl, I need to be in shape.

- I am *hoping* that by eating healthier (I basically don't eat refined sugar at all - I've had dessert about 5 times since October) and staying in shape and not gaining as much weight that I'll have a smaller baby.  There is no research to prove this.  People gain 75 pounds in pregnancy and have 5 pound babies.  And others gain 20 pounds total and have a 10 pound baby.  But I promise you that I will do everything in my power to avoid having another 11 pound 8 ounce baby.

- If I don't gain the weight, I don't have to work so hard to get rid of the weight.  If I only gain 25 pounds in pregnancy, I'll probably come home from the hospital 20 pounds lighter and that means I only have 5 pounds to get rid of after baby.  That would be awesome!  I will continue to exercise.  I love it.  But it would be nice not to carry around lots of extra baby weight for several months.

So here we are. Over halfway there!  I took this picture in the gym tonight to prove that I was there and trying to work hard.  Ray really encourages me in this area. We both want a smaller baby and smooth birth.  Because I had other things going on earlier today, Ray took the kids to Costco while I went to the gym. One of my prayers this pregnancy is to have a smaller baby.  I REALLY want a tiny 8 pound girl.  That would be awesome

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