My first trimester of pregnancy favorites
Hi, friends! Based on conversations I’ve had with many other ladies, it’s clear to me that every single pregnancy is different. As of now, I’ve been pretty darn lucky with mine. It wasn’t the easiest first trimester in the world, due to the major exhaustion, mild nausea and a few other things, which you can read all about here in my first trimester recap, but overall, I tried to keep my routine as normal as I could. And I made it out the other side and am truly enjoying the second trimester thus far, with my increased energy levels.
Today, I wanted to put together all of the things that really helped to get me through those first 13 weeks, in which only a handful of people even knew that I was growing a human inside of me. And every single day is a learning experience, because I’m a newcomer to all of this pregnancy stuff.
My first trimester of pregnancy favorites
Lululemon All the Right Places leggings
Maybe two weeks before I got pregnant, I purchased these leggings. And even though they are totally not a maternity product, because of the fact that they have a high and very forgiving waist-band, these puppies have been my FAVORITE workout pants.
(Photo source: Lululemon)
While I don’t get to wear them to the gym every single day (that would be gross), I’m so much more comfortable in them than any of my other pants that all started to get tight around 10 weeks. They are my happy workout pants, and they have pockets. I think I’ll be able to wear them for at least a couple more months. And a word to the wise: If you think Lululemon pants cost too much, you have never experienced the quality of this product. They LAST and LAST and LAST even more. It’s totally worth the investment, because you can wear them so many times before they will even show an ounce of aging. (Although maybe my growing waist-line will prove to be the breaking point!)
“Belly Laughs” by Jenny McCarthy
I’ve done so much reading online about pregnancy (not quite ready to read anything about raising a child yet), but I knew that I also wanted to read some handheld paperbacks too. Upon recommendation from a friend, I ordered Jenny McCarthy’s “Belly Laughs,” and it was hilarious. It’s a super-quick read, and I finished it within a day. While it’s not the most educational book ever, McCarthy’s very candid account of what happened to her body during pregnancy was eye-opening.
She basically had all of the grossest things possible occur, and so it’s sort of like a worst-case scenario situation, infused with her humor. And this book has been around for 10 years, so people are loving it. I would definitely suggest this book to anyone who is hoping to be pregnant or is pregnant. So funny! Now that I’ve read this one, I need to move on to a few more weighty books, and I think the one by the Mayo Clinic is up next.
The Bump app
The day that I found out I was pregnant, I downloaded The Bump app. You can see the size of your baby, read about possible symptoms and even use a search function to find answers to all of your strange questions. Dave downloaded The Bump app to his phone as well, and sometimes he knows more than I do when it comes to what our little embryo-turned-fetus is doing inside me.
You can even do a 3-D view of the little creature. So cool! I also love when I get the countdown push notifications from The Bump telling how long I have left in pregnancy. And yes, I have a very long time left. But rumor has it that the second and third trimesters fly by, whereas the first trimester seemed to last forever and a day.
GapBody Modal Joggers
I spend an embarrassing amount of time in lounge clothes these days, now that I’m working from home. Outside of wearing workout wear, I basically get right back into pajamas when I shower after the gym. One of my first pregnancy purchases was a new pair of soft jammy pants, and I think I ordered the softest pants known to man. These are NOT maternity, and they are for everyone.
(Photo source: Gap)
In fact, these modal jogger beauties would make an excellent gift. They are SO freakin’ soft. It’s like wearing air. And I think I’ve got plenty more months of comfort in these. Modal is like my favorite fabric ever to put on my body, by the way (and when I was in college, I used to have modal sheets … I miss those). Perhaps I should order the grey joggers too? (P.S. Gap is having an AMAZING 40 percent off sale right now on everything, so act quickly.)
Sparkling waters
One of the worst things about my first trimester and pregnancy thus far is that I’ve had a strange aversion to drinking anything. I’m someone who is typically OVER-hydrated, so the fact that I’m not currently enjoying water is so weird to me. I can barely finish my one mug of green tea each morning (so don’t worry, not loading up on caffeine over here). But when I needed a kick-start to drink something, these various sparkling varieties came in for the win.
Dave found the flavored Perrier for me, and one of my lovely reader-friends pointed me in the direction of the Spindrift, which has a nice fruit flavor too, and I also like La Croix. I had at least one a day of these sparkling bevvies, which helped my hydration levels quite a bit.
Honorable mentions
A few other things that I loved during the first 13 weeks include …
- Fresh and chopped fruits like pineapple and mangoes. So refreshing! The best days would be when Dave would buy the perfect mango and cut up the WHOLE thing for me to eat in one sitting. Yes.
- Healthier carbs: Sprouted bread, rice cakes and lentil pasta every single day!
- Pasture-raised local eggs. Safer to eat in runny form for pregnant ladies and incredibly delicious!
- The Pregnant Chicken website. Good stuff!
- OPI and Essie nail polish. Painting my nails myself is a nice little self-care moment, and I read that both the OPI and Essie brands are free of the bad chemicals that pregnant women should avoid.
- The Bootybarre workout feels great. I teach it and do it a couple of times a week. And think I’ll be able to keep doing it much longer into the pregnancy than my other tougher workouts.
- Another honorable mention goes to the first pregnancy gift I received from my very sweet Momma. A silver spoon with the words “Eating for Two” engraved. She ordered this beauty from Etsy, and it’s SUCH a thoughtful and memorable gift.
There you have it, friends! Now that we’re basically caught up on my pregnancy, from the announcement, through what I experienced the first trimester before you knew I was pregnant, it’s just about time to get into my story of how I actually became pregnant. As I’ve said, it took a long time and was full of learning for both me and for Dave.
For those of you who have reached out to me anxious to know more … I swear it’s coming soon. In fact, I’m excited to tell you that I’ve written a whole ebook on it, and it will debut in just a couple of weeks! Stay tuned, and THANK YOU so much for reading and sharing this journey with me. 🙂
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Questions of the day
If you’ve been pregnant, what’s something you loved during your first trimester?
What’s the best book you’ve read lately?
What a fun list! I’m just still so happy for you. You are going to be the most stylish mommy ever 😀
Hi Susie! Stylish mommy? I sure hope so hehehe! But I mean, right now, it’s all pajamas and activewear. hahah! Happy Friday, my friend! 🙂
Loving the comfy clothes in this post, hah. I love me some cosy clothes. The joggers look super cute and I always love lulu’s, so those are a winner. There are so many apps now for pregnant women- I think it’s such a great idea and pretty cool! What a sweet gift- Etsy always has great gifts! Just bought a personalized candle there!
Hi Carrie! Happy Friday! I LOVE to get gifts for people off of Etsy, in fact, I often choose to do that if I can go off registry for weddings and showers and stuff. We also received a personalized onesie!! Hope you have a great weekend, lady!
1. Such a sweet gift from Momma P.
2. LOVE Lululemon #worthit
3. I am not pregnant, but I am a homebody who really enjoys loungewear so I need those Gap pants.
4. Xoxo
5. Can preggers have Greek yogurt? I found a healthy carrot cake recipe, but it has Greek yogurt so I hadn’t shared it with you yet because I wasn’t sure…
6. I enjoy lists.
OHHH yes we can have Greek yogurt, as long as it is pasteurized. I’ve been eating a lot of it! PLEASE share the recipe!! Because as you can imagine, my intake of sweets has increased slightly … 🙂 And loungewear and Lululemon for ALL stages of life hahah! Happy Friday, gal!
I’ll direct message you the recipe. Xox
Woohooooo!
Congratulations on your pregnancy! I’m just a few weeks ahead of you–I’m close to 18 weeks–so the first trimester doesn’t seem very long ago. (And I totally agree with you that the first trimester creeps by so slowly. I was worried about miscarriage, so waiting until the next new week was agony.)
Like you, I suffered only mild nausea but major aversions to vegetables and water (and meat too), which meant I was eating a lot of carbs just to have some food in my belly. I put spinach in breakfast smoothies so that I could sneak some vegetables into my diet. I also drank a lot of LaCroix to stay hydrated since plain water was so gross.
I highly recommend the Mayo Clinic book you mentioned. It’s really informative on pregnancy, but it also has a lot of info on childbirth and basic newborn care. I also like the app Ovia because it sends you a daily email with little tidbits of info, and I’ve been listening to the podcasts Pregnancy Confidential (outlines each week of pregnancy) and The Birth Hour (women tell their birth stories, and it doesn’t give preference to, for example, births without pain intervention; it’s really informative on different options within the birth experience). I have The Bump app too, and my husband and I love the 3D baby. We call it “the dancing baby” because of how my husband makes it spin around and around, and we look forward to seeing it every new week.
Because pregnant women are supposed to avoid beauty products with artificial fragrances, I’ve been using the Whole Foods brand mint (naturally scented) body wash and fragrance-free body lotion. I also like Burt’s Bees 99% natural face lotion for sensitive skin.
If I think of anything else, I’ll check back in!
Marissa! You are a wealth of information! I will check out those Whole Foods skin products for sure. And I have NOT listened to any pregnancy specific podcasts, surprisingly. Thank you soooo much for the recommendations! And how funny that you also were averse to the same things as me. I hope you like water again! Have a great day, and PLEASE stay in touch. I will have questions hahah!
You are so welcome! Fortunately, I do love water again and am now drinking more of it (even plain water). It’s so important to stay hydrated to keep up with your body’s increased blood volume. You’ll get there!
I know! I need more of it! Glad to hear you are loving water again! 🙂
Can you eat ice? I know I wanted ice so bad in pregnancy, but not until the end. I work in a hospital and we have those small crunchy ice chunks and I craved the ice evvvveerrrryyy day. I think I went to Zaxby’s a few times and asked for a cup of ice because I was just needed it. Maybe it’d be better than trying to drink water.
Hi Liz hahah! That’s funny! I don’t love ice actually, but maybe that will change when the temps heat up for summer. 🙂 It is hydrating though! Hope you have a good weekend!
Exciting stuff! Congrats!!! I’m finishing up my first trimester now as well (for baby #2) – and naps are an absolute must… and lots of yummy food!! 😉
Hi Sarah!! Yay for you on your second pregnancy! I need more naps in my life right now! 🙂 Hope you have a great day and weekend, lady!
I’m 23 weeks today and have been blessed with an amazing pregnancy so far. No nausea, no morning sickness, and overall my energy levels have kept me going. I’ve been able to even run a half marathon when I was 9 weeks pregnant! Our little one is a miracle baby since we were told we couldn’t have children. We had failed everything (hormones, procedures, IUI, and IVF). So not a day goes bfor that I am not thankful for God granting us this wish.
Hi Daisy! WOW! I’m SO happy to hear that you are expecting, that it was a beautiful miracle, and that you’ve been feeling so great. You are truly blessed, lady! Thank you for reading and for saying hi! 🙂
Yes girl love this post! I have to say I kept wearing an older pair of lulu capris all through my pregnancy and STILL wear them now , amazing how they didn’t lose their shape because I got BIG!
I also really like Old Navy Compression leggings in case you want a cheaper version that are amazing and baby bump friendly!
I am all on board with the sparkling water, if you can’t drink alcohol you might as well feel fancy when drinking water right????
I would HIGHLY recommend not really reading anything about pregnancy lol….what you need is books on lack of sleep, feeding and crying babies..legit, nothing prepares you for the post hospital time with baby and reading now you’ll forget it anyway 🙂 You’re doing awesome xo
Hi Fiona! I will check out the Old Navy leggings, so thanks for that rec. And I’m terrified of the lack of sleep and what to do with a crying baby when you come home from the hospital. 🙂 Ahhhh!!
I know people that rocked their lulus ALL through their pregnancy and right back again to their normal size – the quality really is incredible.
I LOVE La Croix, but I have tested out some other sparkling waters too. Check Target for sales. I liked the Aquafina, but the Dasani wasn’t my fave (not bad, just not my fave – I don’t like Dasani in general though, so….).
I just started reading Hidden Figures and I think I’m going to devour it. Best book I finished recently though would be The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler.
Hi Breanne! I want to see the Hidden Figures movie too! And I’ve never heard of The Book of Speculation. I definitely love to find the sparkling waters on sale. And YAY for Lulu! Hope you have a great weekend, lady! 🙂
Ooh I’m going into Lulu this weekend to do some birthday (mine!) scouting for things to ask for in a couple of weeks so I defeinitely want to try on those leggings. I have a pair I bought for myself around Christmas with the pockets on the sides that I wear more when not working on than when running and get lots of compliments on them.
Hi Lauren! Yayyyyy for birthday shopping! Hope you find some great things, which I’m sure will! And totally, you can wear the Lulu leggings ANYTIME! 🙂
Girlfriend’s Guide to Pregnancy was a great book. I highly recommend it.
Ohhh thanks for that, Meghan! I haven’t heard of that one. I’ll check it out! 🙂
That spoon is so cute!! 🙂 I loved and still love sparkling waters, maternity pants, and nursing bras. As soon as your chest feels uncomfortable, I’d recommend trying a nursing bra. I know you aren’t nursing yet but they are so much more comfortable and I wish I had gotten one earlier!
I really enjoyed “Expecting Better” by Emily Oster!
Interesting! I haven’t even ever seen a nursing bra hahah! I will investigate. Thank you for the tip, Heather!! 🙂