I have been having minor panic attacks this month realizing that I’m rapidly approaching the third trimester (one week away!) Even though I’m very much visibly pregnant and this little lady is just as much a party animal as P was when she was in my belly, being so focused on daily life with Prim here in Amsterdam has made this pregnancy seem like an afterthought much of the time. Also, with the second baby you don’t have to do all the reading and research like the first — I know how to breastfeed, what to expect when labor rolls around, and I don’t need to scrutinize Consumer Reports to determine what carseat or crib we’re going to be buying. All of this means I mostly just don’t have to think about this pregnancy so much, which makes the realization that we’re going to have another person in our family (soon!) seem sort of weird and overwhelming at times. But then I think of that moment right after you give birth when you hold your new baby for the very first time and I can’t help but think, yeah, probably like 100 more babies.
weeks: 27
baby’s size: cauliflower
i’m feeling: pretty good still, but I’m definitely getting more tired and daily tasks are taking up more and more energy. Biking up any sort of hill with Prim on my bike feels like what I imagine the end of an Ironman race to be (and I’m just going to go on ignoring those swift Dutch bikers who pass me by while I’m desperately trying to catch my breath, since this little one is impeding my lung space more and more each day.)
food love: ice cream. Ben and Jerry are my BFFs right now.
food hate: scrambled eggs are a total turn-off, which is super weird because I was OBSESSED with eggs while pregnant with Prim — I seriously could not get enough.
3 pros for november: 1. KC and I are finally using our babysitter here in the Netherlands and going out on a date this week for Thanksgiving. I’m super excited for some one-on-one time with him. 2. We’re heading out on a little vacation to visit some Christmas markets in Germany and Belgium this weekend — it’s going to be magical. 3. The events of this month have made me very thankful to be living abroad. (And yes I voted alllll the way from Amsterdam, so if you didn’t vote — I honestly don’t know what your problem is.)
3 cons for november: 1. KC had some hellish weeks at work this month. It was straight-up US busy season style hours. No bueno. 2. My insomnia is so ridiculous these days. I won’t fall asleep until after midnight and then will be SUPER WIDE AWAKE for hours at 4am. It’s like jet lag all the time. 3. There’s a hormonal shift around the beginning of the third trimester, and just like when I was pregnant with Prim, it means I’m super annoyed about things that normally wouldn’t bother me much. (And then I get more annoyed that something so minor is annoying me so much and it’s like this catch 22 where I’m in a bad mood and hate everything but also feel bad about feeling that way. So fun.)
currently living in: H&M maternity jeans and my Old Navy maternity jacket — which was like the best $35 I’ve ever spent — gotta love those Gap/Old Navy sales! Oh yeah, and those maternity overalls in the picture above, which KC totally hates but make all my pregnancy dreams come true.
looking forward to: our very first vacation without Prim. We will be celebrating this baby-to-be + 5 years of marriage (and 12 years together!) in Paris. C’est romantique!
dreaming about: sushi and beer. (And oysters and champagne and…)