Millennial Baby (Mama): The Second Trimester

We’re excited to partner with writer Amy Roth, age 28, as she documents her thoughts and emotions throughout her first pregnancy as an expectant “Millennial” mom. This is her second post in the series. You can find her post on the first trimester here!

The Millennial baby mama has made it through the second trimester! I would like to thank my healthcare providers for fielding my three-minute long voicemails as I tried to figure out if my urine was too dark (it wasn’t), my fellow gym-goers who politely averted their eyes while I struggled to get off my floor mat after doing ab work, and Chipotle, for making such tasty chips and guacamole for me to eat after the gym.

I’ve gotten a lot of joy from commiserating with fellow pregos and moms throughout this journey, so please enjoy with me some of the more challenging moments of the second trimester:

1. Huffing and puffing up one flight of stairs in my home, or God forbid, in public. Stairs have become my Everest.
2. Ripping off my coat in the middle of Home Goods because the heat was trying to kill me. Realizing my bump is actually a space heater.
3. Excitedly sending my mom videos of the baby kicking my belly, and her not being able to see anything.
4. Prioritizing shopping for baby stuff over placing orders for my favorite makeup and skincare products on the Sephora app. Who have I become?

Overall, though, the second trimester proved to be the shining gem of pregnancy that everyone promised it would be—my energy has been generally up, my sleep has been more regular and restful, and if you didn’t know I was pregnant, you may not have guessed it by looking at me. Let’s take a look at some of the second trimester highlights: 

1. We made it through the phase of frantically Googling “EXACTLY how long does morning sickness last???”
2. My mood has remained steadily positive, thanks in large part to Jesus and Zoloft.
3. My bump is starting to look more and more like a real baby bump, and less like an undigested burrito!
4. We had a baby shower and got lots of wonderful gifts, and the nursery is finally coming together.
5. Something bittersweet has turned out to be a joy: We found out baby Roth is a boy, after my “mother’s intuition” and even my OB guessed it would be a girl. So much for that intuition. Growing up with only sisters, I always assumed I would have a girl, and it threw me for a loop to think about raising a son. The more time I’ve spent with this little baby bump, though, I’ve gotten really excited thinking about holding him, snuggling him, and raising him to be just like his dad (my all-time favorite person). 

Stay tuned for what the third trimester will bring! Spoiler alert: The heartburn is real.