It’s a………..
GIRL!!!
We are completely shocked that our sweet little baby is a girl.
We are so surprised! We only had boy names picked out and we were “sure” that we were having a boy.
We are so excited and so deeply grateful that we have a healthy little girl on the way.
This announcement is late not because of us but because of a paperwork thing. Late is better than never 🙂
Thank you so much for everyone who has been sending is love. This baby is so blessed already.
Below I have a full pregnancy update for you. You can also listen here (Healthy Rebel Radio Episode 73) for more details if you wish.
Here you can also read our first update, announcement and our initial gender guesses.
The second trimester has been so good. My energy levels are up. The bloating and digestion problems I was having are gone and I no longer feel queasy on a daily basis.
Also, I’m so thrilled that my food aversions are completely gone.
I am loving finally feeling like I look pregnant over feeling like I look “fluffy”. I am completely surprised at how much I am enjoying my shape being pregnant. I find it comical, powerful, beautiful and strong. I am just so grateful for my body on a whole other level that I never would have been able to understand before.
How far along:
21 Weeks
21 Week Photo Updates
Post workout this week (at 21 weeks):
Getting ready for the ultrasound last Friday:
Vegan Diet:
I am using the term diet to describe the collective whole of the foods I consume. My eating is back to normal from before I was pregnant. This means I am eating tons of veggies, fruits, beans, legumes, seeds, healthy carbohydrates and some healthy fats.
Most mornings I have been enjoying a ton of fruit along with my healthy carbs and protein.
For lunch I have been making super hearty vegetable and lentil soups. For snacks I have been having huge green smoothies or one of my fresh fruit smoothie ice creams and hummus/veggie platters.
Suppers have been mainly healthy protein and a salad I call the “kitchen sink” salad. This includes everything I basically having in my refrigerator that is a vegetable.
I am completely listening to my body and what it wants and making sure that my energy levels are consistent and I am well-fueled.
The treats I have had over the last few months I can count on one hand and consist of sweet potato chips, plantain chips, my mint oreo fudge slices, popcorn with olive oil and nutritional yeast and a coconut based ice cream.
Again, these treats were over the last 4 months. I am really not over-indulging in any way.
My focus is primarily on being healthy. That means providing the proper nutrients in the proper amounts on a consistent basis for myself and my baby.
Cravings:
Ice Cream – Every time I crave ice cream I make one of my healthy fruit based ice creams.
Bread – If I am craving bread at lunch I roast up chickpeas and put them on my salads. For me crunchy roasted chickpeas are better than any carb available.
Tomato Soup – I purchase an all-natural pre-made organic low sodium tomato soup and I make it with some quinoa and veggies. I love this at lunch.
Fresh fruit – I go crazy at the grocery store and I buy everything I want. This week it was all about melons. I basically begged David to go get me some. I currently have three varieties on my counter.
Hummus – I have been having hummus and veggie platter almost everyday. You can check out what my veggie and hummus platters look like here.
Workouts:
My energy is so much better that my workouts have increased in intensity and duration. I am currently still doing walking, hiking and have added the elliptical for cardio. I do about 1 hour of cardio per day on average.
My weight workouts have changed some but I am doing more of them now than in the first trimester. I am using light weights and my body weight with high reps.
I have made changes to try to prevent diastasis recti (or the ab separation phenomenon in pregnancy). What I am avoiding is overhead weighted exercise, any workouts where I would be parallel to the floor (ex: plank, pushups, etc), jumping and, of course, in the second trimester you cannot do any workouts on your back.
Aside from that I am doing all my regular Bikini Body Program workouts.
Supplements and products I am loving:
I am still loving my multivitamin by Thorne (Basic Prenatal) and protein powder from Sun Warrior.
Some things I am absolutely loving on a daily basis are my homemade body butter, sports bras, lightweight pyjamas, hydrating lip balm and workout pants.
More details below.
What I have bought for pregnancy and am loving:
Shifting from non-pregnancy workout pants to maternity workout pants was a game changer. I love the feeling of the over-the-waist tight workout tights. I bought a few varieties. I have spent a lot of money on some and others have been less expensive.
The best workout tights I have bought so far have been on the lower price end and are from Old Navy. I was completely surprised by this because I don’t shop at Old Navy and don’t like much of their stuff. Their compression maternity cropped workout tights fit like a dream. They are thicker so they are true workout material and they feel so good on.
The bonus is – they are around $30.
For lounging I have a pair of cropped tights from H&M that were super inexpensive. They are more light weight and not great for working out but are super comfortable.
I also splurged and got the Belly Bandit BDA tights. These are really smooth, soft and comfortable for everyday wear. Mine are still a bit big but I know I will love them come the next few months.
Sports Bras – My boobs go from sore to not-sore to just plain uncomfortable throughout the day. Having comfortable sports bras has been really important and I highly recommend it.
Lightweight pajamas – I picked up some really lightweight, comfortable pajamas and they make sleeping so much better.
I have purchased a few more inexpensive lightweight maxi dresses and v-neck t-shirts. These I find just really great for basic things to wear that don’t necessarily have to be maternity.
This summer I think I will be living in my maxi dresses and tight 3/4 length skirts.
The not so fun stuff:
I have been having consistent active dreams on a nightly basis. I sometimes wake up feeling unrested or upset about a bad dream.
For the last couple of weeks I have also felt a lot of pulling and stretching in my lower abdomen at night.
I am definitely more forgetful than usual and clumsy.
I find at night and in the morning I feel like I have nasal congestion.
The fun stuff:
I am loving feeling more pregnant. My energy is back up. Eating is fun again. My workouts are enjoyable again. I am also feeling a deep sense of calm and peace. I feel much more centered and healthy these last few weeks.
What have I bought for baby:
I wasn’t going to buy anything and try to play it cool until closer when the baby came until one day last week I kind of lost my mind and purchased basically all the clothing the baby needs. We are sticking with a all white, grey and black theme for the baby’s clothing and accessories.
We also purchased face cloths, hats, blankets, swaddling blankets, etc.
We have already received some beautiful gifts from friends and family including some of the bigger items that we will need. I will go into a post later about the brands that we chose and why.
Thoughts and feelings:
I am just feeling calm and grateful. Taking things one day at a time. I am shocked that I am enjoying being pregnant. That feels good too.
