An overview of my second trimester of pregnancy! I'm sharing my week by week symptoms, all about our babymoon, and answering your most asked questions.
It's true, time is flying by! I'm currently in the third trimester but wanted to reflect on my second trimester experience. Read about my first trimester here!
Products I've been loving
Here are the top 3 new pregnancy products I've been using and enjoying so far! You can also browse my must-have items.
Compression socks: These are a necessity, especially if you plan on traveling throughout your pregnancy. I wear them on the airplane, while working at my desk, and even sometimes when I'm watching tv on the couch.
Silicone rings: I can't even remember the last time I wore my engagement ring and wedding band. I think I switched over to these silicone rings right before our babymoon, around week 20.
Cribsheet: I mentioned this book in my first trimester recap. Now that we've finished it, I can confidently say that it provides such great information and resources! I've taken a handful of online courses to prepare for birth and postpartum, but this book contained a majority of the information already.
Travel during the second trimester
We did a lot of traveling during the second trimester! During week 20, we took our Hawaii Babymoon on the beautiful island of Oahu. I documented where we ate, what we did, and more. I highly recommend planning a getaway if you can.
We debated visiting Sedona, Arizona or 30A, Florida, but ultimately ended up traveling to Hawaii. Rather than staying in Waikiki, we opted for the leeward side of the island. It was a mix of relaxing and exploring, truly a dream.
A few weeks later, 24 weeks to be exact, I traveled out to northern California to visit my grandparents. Thankfully, I was feeling good and was able to enjoy time with both of them and my mom! While we didn't do our typical wine tasting, I am so thankful for the quality time we spent together, as well as indulging in some of my favorite food.
The following week, at 25 weeks, Zack and I took our final vacation as the two of us to Universal Orlando Resort. (Check out my Ultimate Universal Orlando Travel Guide!) We went for 5 days and stayed at Loews Sapphire Falls. I spent a majority of the time at the resort pool and met Zack in the parks for lunch and dinner.
We also enjoyed catching the shows that we typically don't make a priority. It actually worked out nicely, as he would head into the parks when I was still sleeping in the morning, we would meet for lunch, hang out in the parks, hit the pool, then wander back over for dinner.
Second trimester meal ideas
As a food blogger, I've been fortunate to be feeling well enough to continue working. During the second trimester of pregnancy, I wanted to be really mindful of eating a balance of protein and carbs.
I've also been focusing on incorporating more fruit into my diet. I love roasted vegetables, so veggies typically aren't an issue for me, but it's always good to be mindful of what you're fueling your body with.
Breakfast
For breakfast, I've been on a big cereal and oatmeal kick! But some weeks I would switch it up with peanut butter and banana toast, avocado toast, or my vegan banana bread.
Lunch
We've been doing dinner leftovers a lot or big salads with leafy greens, a protein, plenty of veggies, and a simple homemade dressing.
Dinner
When dinner time rolls around, the last thing I want to be doing is spending hours chopping and sauteing. I've always been for quick and easy dinners, but even more so now. Lately, we've been loving dairy free beef stroganoff, dairy free lasagna, baked beef chimichangas, and gnocchi bolognese.
Snacks
With an increased appetite, I've made it a point to have healthy snacks stocked up! In addition to apples and watermelon, I can't get enough of my vegan protein balls with dates, mango habanero salsa, and cucumber salad.
Dessert
Last but not least, dessert! I've had a sweet craving throughout my pregnancy but I think some of my best baking happened during the second and third trimesters. For a fun afternoon treat, I've been stirring up a homemade dirty dr pepper. And for a late night treat, we've been enjoying dairy free oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, olive oil cake, and vegan lemon loaf cake.
Week by week pregnancy symptoms
I was inspired by YouTube videos and other bloggers to keep a log of my symptoms from week to week. I've continued doing this into the third trimester but wish I would have taken note of the positive experiences, rather than just the negative symptoms. Also, the weeks are pretty repetitive but I still found them interesting. TLDR: Round ligament pain, acne, and heartburn.
- Week 13: Heard heartbeat and movement on the doppler, possibly felt baby move for the first time, round ligament pain, waking up to go to the bathroom, acne still persistent.
- Week 14: Experienced lightheadedness and clamminess when out running errands. This was the first scary experience I had, but a good reminder to stay well hydrated and have snacks on hand. Now I don't leave the house without a bag of almonds and protein bar.
- Week 15: Round ligament pain, jawline acne.
- Week 16: Minor nosebleed... Apparently this is common!
- Week 17: Another minor nosebleed, heartburn, round ligament pain.
- Week 18: Yet another minor nosebleed, indigestions, round ligament pain.
- Week 19: Found out I have a low lying placenta.
- Week 20: Cystic acne and heartburn.
- Week 21: Cold sore and started feeling kicks and punches!!
- Week 22: Nothing notable.
- Week 23: Experienced clamminess and near passing out while running errands.
- Week 24: Good news of no longer having a low lying placenta! Feeling movement throughout the day, heartburn.
- Week 25: Nothing notable.
- Week 26: Feeling large with lower stomach pressure.
Pregnancy Q&A
How are you feeling? Overall, I've felt pretty great during pregnancy! I never really got morning sickness and the majority of my pregnancy symptoms have been mild. The big discomforts I've been dealing with are acne, round ligament pain, and heartburn. For acne, I've been using a more gentle washcloth. For round ligament pain, I've started wearing a belly band. And for heartburn, I've started taking tums as needed.
Any recommendations for better sleep? I haven't been sleeping all that great, but taking a magnesium supplement and using a pregnancy pillow have helped me a bit.
Are you taking any additional supplements? In addition to my prenatal vitamin, I take vitamin d and slow release iron daily. I recently learned that becoming anemic during pregnancy (specifically the second trimester) is incredibly common, but can be remedied. I wish I would have learned this sooner, but here we are. Chat with your doc if you think you're low on iron.
Which stroller and car seat do you have? We were generously gifted the Nuna Tavo Stroller and Pipa Car Seat Travel System. I love it!
Where are you shopping for maternity clothes? I've been trying to avoid buying maternity specific clothing and just sizing up instead. However, I've been loving PinkBlush Maternity and Aerie.
When did your belly pop? I think my bump became somewhat noticeable around week 16, however I noted feeling large in the last week of the second trimester. I really popped in the third trimester.
How was the gestational diabetes test? Y'all, the gestational diabetes test was a breeze. I was stressing out over nothing and it's not like there's anything you can do to prepare or influence the results. My advice to you, don't stress!
Is your registry complete? Yes!! Although it took me a while to compile our wish list and register for specific items, I was able to complete it before our baby shower. You can have a look at the products I included on our baby registry here.
Are you having a baby shower? Yes, we had a joint couples shower with Zack's sister. I'll share all about the theme and more in my next bumpdate.
Have you started on the nursery? Nope, that'll be an update for the third trimester!
If you’re also pregnant, congratulations! If you're still trying or healing from loss, I'm sending so much love your way. And if you’re not in this season of life but continue to support me, thank you.
Chat soon! -Jenna
Leave a Reply