End of Pregnancy & Birth Update!

Hey everyone! The end of pregnancy was an incredibly busy time for me and I was more and more exhausted each day leading up to birth, so I got behind on updates! I’ll start with the end of pregnancy, then go into Apollo’s Birth Day, and finish off with how the first few weeks of newborn life have been.

The final weeks of pregnancy… I ended up taking the last 4 weeks off work because I started to get pretty exhausted and uncomfortable. I was also studying for my real estate licensure exam (with heavy pregnancy brain 😂) and wanted to focus my energy on that and staying as healthy as possible. The last 4-6 weeks I would workout 3 days a week in the gym and walk a mile or hike on the other 4 days, and just be sure to get in healthy foods as much as possible. Some symptoms that got worse towards the end was acid reflux/heartburn after every meal and even drinking water, serious exhaustion (I have more energy with a newborn that never lets me get more than 3 hours of sleep.. than I did in the third trimester 😅) , and insane swelling in my hands, feet, face, and legs that didn’t happen until the last 3 weeks. That swelling caused new stretch marks on the front of my thighs and on my toosh, that I didn’t notice until after birth because I couldn’t see those spots well with the belly! Bathroom breaks increased, I had more cramping start to occur than normal, and heavier mood swings.

The day my water broke.. thankfully the day my water broke worked out perfectly. My mom had moved here almost exactly one week prior, so luckily I had her support when we needed someone to watch Penny for us to get to the hospital. The two days before we had hiked a combination of 6 miles and 80 floors! I didn’t really realize how close I was as my due date was 3 weeks later than the day I gave birth, so I was doing some heavy exercise! I’ve heard walking can induce labor, as well as cold front temperatures, and it so happened to start to snow the morning when my water broke. I woke up about 30 seconds before my water broke by no specific reason, and I wasn’t entirely sure if that’s what it was. Within 5 minutes, I started to feel contractions. We waited two hours until they were closer together, and then packed up and headed to the hospital. Once at the hospital they confirmed I lost amniotic fluid, and shortly after I noticed the loss of my mucus plug and some light bleeding, with slightly worsening contractions. We waited about 6 hours of contractions before we decided to go with a dose of Pitocin (induces labor and helps you dilate further) because I wasn’t making much change. I had only been 1cm dilated when I came in and didn’t have much change over the course of 6 hours. Along with the Pitocin I requested an epidural, and I’m SO glad I did for several reasons. Firstly, the anesthesiologist couldn’t come in at the exact time I got Pitocin and wow did those contractions kick in fast and hard. I was in extreme pain and it still took another 7 hours to dilate to 7cm, so I’m glad I took the epidural when I did, about 45 minutes after the Pitocin. I didn’t think the epidural was all that painful, I was distracted by contractions and didn’t mind too much. Once that kicked in I could hardly feel contractions and was much more relaxed. They said to sleep, which I highly recommend looking back, but I couldn’t do it myself, I was too excited. As we got to the 7cm dilation around 6-7pm, Apollo’s heart rate began decelerating, he wasn’t getting enough oxygen, and I had the choice to wait it out a little longer or have a c-section. They brought me to the operating room in quite a rush just in case, and it was honestly a little intense because I couldn’t move other than my arms and couldn’t feel a lot, plus I was worried for Apollo and myself at this point. I started crying a lot, mostly out of nerves and knowing that this big moment was finally about to happen. We made it to the operating room and she gave me both options, but my intuition was telling me to go for the C-Section. They brought Aaron in and we discussed the options and then started the surgery. It turned out at the end that because of his umbilical cord length, we likely would have needed to do an emergency C-section whether or not I had the choice anyways, so I’m glad I went with my gut feelings. The only thing I didn’t like about getting a C section was that I was really corded up to machines and IVs and couldn’t move well or hold Apollo much at all right away, but Aaron held him on my chest and it was a beautiful bonding experience as a family. 🙂 I felt no pain during the surgery, but I could feel tugging on my skin and some pressure, although that wasn’t a bother at all. Aaron got to see him as soon as they pulled him out of my uterus and also got to cut the cord! Shortly after they brought us into a post-surgery room and taught me how to breastfeed right away. I still couldn’t hold him well, so Aaron came through like the amazing dad and husband he is, and helped me hand express and hold Apollo/get him to latch properly and feed him. It was altogether a really cool experience to share with Aaron and I’m grateful he was such a big part of it, I couldn’t have done that without him!

The hospital stay.. first off, I had absolutely amazing care the entire time. The nurses and doctors were fantastic, helpful, informative, respectful, funny, and caring. They gave me everything I needed and more. The hospital itself was very nice and spacious and I enjoyed being there for all of that. That being said, I have never stayed in a hospital for that long (48 hours), and we had someone in our room every single hour out of the day for like two days straight. I couldn’t wait to get home and get some sleep. I’m not exaggerating that. Several people came in, to check my vitals or Apollo’s, to give us meds, to do newborn screen tests, to bring paperwork, to explain breastfeeding, to tell us information about discharge, etc. knowing this for the next time, I will likely request they don’t have paperwork come in for the first day and give us some time to sleep when the baby does. Apollo also cluster fed for the first two nights at the hospital so I was breastfeeding like every hour for the entire night, and he’d take a chunk of sleep from 6-9am. This continued at home for about 3-5 days after he was born and my milk fully came in. After about 24 hours after Apollo’s birth I got out of bed for the first time, had the catheter removed, and got to shower. I could not stand up straight or move around without help for about 1 day, and it took me at least 1 week for full walking around recovery and getting up from seated or lying positions without assistance from someone. 2 weeks postpartum I finally was able to walk about 1-2 miles. Basically they pulled my abdominal muscles apart during surgery and there’s an incision that needed to heal, so I needed a lot of help. I also needed help breastfeeding for the first few days because I couldn’t just simply get up and grab Apollo, someone had to hand him to me in the proper positioning. Aaron was a saint and did that a lot as well as all the diaper changes until I could walk around and stand up straight again.

The first days at home.. what a relief it was to get home! I will say the first 5-7 days at home we’re still very challenging specifically for me. I will touch on that first then Apollo. Not only did I need assistance moving around, I needed help showering and using the bathroom, it hurt/burned to use the bathroom because of the catheters and my abs healing. Breastfeeding was a bit of a nightmare at first too. My nipples were chapped and sore, but this got better after about 5 days total, and I had serious engorgement. Engorgement happens to everyone, but it is more severe if you’ve had a breast augmentation (I will talk about this more in a sec / scroll to the bottom). My boobs felt tender, hard as rocks, and bruised for about 3 days straight. I started pumping after every feed because I needed to get things moving out of my breasts. I also needed to massage and heat pad my breasts before and during feedings to help the milk release. I had a hand massager for labor and it worked really well for massaging the engorgement out (used instead of a vibrating toothbrush like some recommend!). I also would put ice packs on my breasts after each feed & pump to signal less production. After a few days they started to get to normal, but that was rough in the beginning. My incision needed no postnatal care, but I wore a tight stomach wrap and ice packs 24-7 for about two weeks postpartum to help with that pain. One thing I didn’t realize would happen to my body after birth is the contractions of the uterus for about 4 days postpartum. Everytime I would breastfeed, my body released oxytocin to help contract the uterus back to normal. These contractions were nearly as painful as the ones I had during labor and lasted the entire feed plus a few minutes after. Ouch. Also, if you have a C section you’re likely to have more gas (not sure why), so in the hospital I was having surgery recovery pain, gas, bladder pains and contractions all at once. It was definitely some of the most pain I’ve ever experienced haha. I didn’t take any narcotics during my hospital stay because they make me sick and I was worried I’d puke and hurt my stomach/abs/incision site even more. When I left to go home I was prescribed some so I ended up taking 1/2 doses of it because it helped a ton with the contraction pain. I was still very bloated and swollen for about 1 week postpartum. I lost a lot of water weight fast after Apollo was born and now I’m hanging out about 15 lbs above my normal bodyweight, which seems like a reasonable amount of bodyfat gain for a healthy pregnancy. Two more weeks and I can start lifting again so it should fly off quickly. As far as the first days with Apollo, they were great, he is an amazing little baby. Cluster feeds were hard on mama because I was so exhausted, but he did sleep relatively long stretches and it was easy to predict his needs. As he’s grown there’s been more crying for unknown causes and less certainty with what he needs. I was definitely so scared everytime I’d try to sleep when he slept because newborns make all sorts of noises and you can’t always tell if they’re breathing! But after about 1 week I really got comfortable with nights and sleeping while he does. I don’t always sleep while he sleeps, like that well known advice says, but sometimes the laundry or work or whatever else it is can wait. Some wonderful friends and family we have also helped out in the first few days by helping us care for our dog, watching the baby while we showered or ate, brought us premade foods and snacks (this meant so much! I couldn’t get up easily so cooking was out the window for me for a while. It’s still a challenge sometimes now!), letting us sleep while they held the baby, or changed a few diapers so we could rest. These were all lifesavers.

Where we are now.. It has officially been 4 weeks since I gave birth to Apollo and we have settled in. He really doesn’t have much of a sleep schedule or eating schedule yet because he’s still so young, but mostly he wakes up, we change his diaper, he eats, burps, and goes back to sleep. We started tummy time right away and he’s really strong already! He can push off of our hands and crawl up our bodies or across the floor. He lifts his head well and the neck strength has improved a ton already (for those of you who don’t know babies kind of have bobble heads when they are born!), and today he learned to roll from his stomach to his back all by himself! My milk has come in well and breastfeeding is going better than I expected it to. He seems lately to have either developed a colic or reflux though, and he’s started crying a lot more than he used to. It’s definitely a learning curve for us! We also learned that sink baths are the best for him or showering with one of us. I get some sleep when he sleeps and about once or twice a week I’ll have someone watch him so I can get 3-4 hours in a row. Since he was born I’ve had one 5.5 hour stretch, and otherwise the most I get is about 2 with him close by. I also can’t really sleep more than 4-5 hours without needing to pump or feed because milk leaks out lol, but this will pass soon and I’ll be sleeping again one day 🙂 4 weeks postpartum and my stomach feels WAY better, just like a serious bruise. Sometimes there’s shooting pains from the nerves recovering, but it’s rare and few/far between. I’m ready to workout again so I’m looking forward to my appointment in two weeks to get cleared to lift! Right now I can only lift things as heavy as Apollo.

Breast augmentation & Breastfeeding: When I announced my pregnancy I had a lot of women ask me to share my experience with breastfeeding when I get there. The main concerns with getting a boob job before kids are 2 things: engorgement as explained above and what they will look like after having kids. For engorgement, it was uncomfortable, but I got through it. The nurses also told me that BAs under the muscle make it easier and are less likely to mess with your milk ducts, and I did mine under the muscle. So if you decide to get a BA, but plan to have kids later, go under the muscle. I am very happy I got mine done before kids, BUT I will be getting them redone in a few years and I think for some people it might be worth doing what I did. Others I’d recommend waiting. Here’s why! I had always struggled with hating my natural boobs because they were small and I didn’t like the way my proportions were. That being said, pregnancy made them even bigger than my augmentation, but of course my belly still grew farther out than my breasts and I think I would’ve hated them 10x more while pregnant if they were still my natural size. I ended up liking them bigger from pregnancy better, and when I redo them, I’ll go with the size they grew into. After pregnancy and engorgement, they dropped and lost a lot of their size and fullness. They dropped lower than they were before, they are slightly less perky and perfect looking, and breastfeeding changes the size and shape of your nipples (which I should clarify would happen even if you chose not to breastfeed. Pregnancy does this, not feeding). I am still BFing so I don’t know what they’ll look like when I stop, but I’m guessing they’ll sag and drop even more. They still look pretty fantastic for all of that though, so that’s part of why I’m so happy I got them done before having kids. I still love them and feel confident and beautiful with them! They just look more natural, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. So, if you don’t hate your boobs as much as I did, you could probably wait until after kids and save yourself some money too. But if you do hate them as much as I did, have the money for it, and plan on getting surgery a few years before you plan to have kids, I think you’d actually be happy you did. The only real downfall I experienced was insanely bad stretch marks. I didn’t get any from surgery, but I have SO many from pregnancy, all over my chest. But I got over it fast and they fade away so oh well! This decision is largely to each their own, but I figured I’d share my experience and feelings about it!

Hormones and Emotions: if you read one of my older pregnancy blogs, I touched on mental health during motherhood. This is something I want to talk about now because it’s important and doesn’t get enough attention. I had a high risk for postpartum depression because I have history of mental health disorders. During pregnancy, I had prenatal depression for several weeks, initially unnoticed until I found out I was pregnant. I cried a lot of the time, I spent a lot of time in moods like anger and sadness, and needed mental support from friends and family. Things got a lot better as the pregnancy progressed though, but I was increasingly afraid of what would happen after birth, when your hormones shift fast and hard. I had a few rough moments where I’ve cried postpartum, but it wasn’t depression or baby blues. It was, I’m fricken exhausted and hungry and haven’t slept in 72 hours, and I need deodorant and a toothbrush and how can he STILL be hungry after 5 hours of feeding? Hahaha. I can excitedly and proudly say that two weeks postpartum I scored all zeroes on the depression exam (for the first time ever) at the doctors office. Although raising a child is hard, I’ve never felt so happy and fulfilled in my life in general. My doctor did explain to me that having support was very helpful after I told her my mom was moving to be closer, and she said that she sees much less PPD in women who are living in close proximity to their mothers (or mother figures) who are there to help them through it. I cannot thank her enough for being close. I also think my incredibly supportive and loving husband made a huge difference in that too. He makes me feel loved and beautiful and important even when I don’t feel that way, and I think he’s always been a rock for me. Also, baby snuggles and beautiful eyes and baby scents and watching your partner become a parent to your child is an absolutely beautiful experience. I fall more in love with both of them everyday. Motherhood was something I never thought I’d join, and who would’ve known it’s exactly what I needed. This is the best and most beautiful chapter of my life. I’ve never known love like this before and wish that everyone who wants to experience children gets the chance, in one way or another. ♥️

Mental Health & Motherhood – Week 22-24 Update

Update 1: I’ve officially hit 22 weeks! I’m only two weeks away from already being in the third trimester, which feels so crazy. Baby has definitely had a growth spurt and LOVES to kick all day. I can feel his kicks at work, on a walk, sitting on the couch, and laying down for bed at night. I have an anterior placenta placement, meaning the egg implanted closer to my spine than my belly button, making kicks harder to feel especially in the early weeks and is also probably why I’m feeling some lower back pains. However, I’m far past when the first kicks can be felt, and it’s probably why I didn’t notice them right around when they typically start happening either. When Apollo first started kicking it kinda just felt like a gas bubble in my stomach or something, but now I can really differentiate when it’s him vs. digestion! It’s pretty cute to feel his kicks and I always talk to him and rub my belly when he nudges me. 🙂 Outside of the usual symptoms, not much has changed. Bump is still relatively small, I’m still pretty tired and naps are common, and back pain gets better and worse depending on the day. I’ve tried to stay on my feet and do more ab exercises (next weeks post will include workout tips for expecting mothers!) which have seemed to help with the pain. Every day I am getting more and more excited to meet our little baby. Aaron and I talk about how we just want to hang out with him, have tummy time, and go around town to the grocery store and all over basically and just bring him with us! We are excited to have a little buddy and get to know him, see him smile, and watch him learn how to grow and navigate life outside the womb.

Update 2: It’s officially 23 weeks! Things are normal and the only things I have to watch out for are making sure I’m eating consistently – otherwise I get sick and nauseous. This is mostly happening because I’m getting busier at work and gone from home longer. And making sure I sleep comfortably to avoid that back pain! Outside of that – we are going strong!

Update 3: 6 months is here! I had a 6 month appt where we talked about labor, complications, and had some questions answered. I was happy to find out I am able to workout as soon as I feel comfortable enough post birth, and some of my symptoms are normal. Like weird things – itchy legs and arms, itchy ears, and if water birth is an option for me. Turns out my hospital doesn’t offer it, but they do have jacuzzis for labor before giving birth at the least. I’ve heard it helps with contractions and relaxing. I’m learning how to do birth pushes & practicing kegels every day. Also – I officially popped a baby belly bump! Took 6 months, but he’s showing more than ever! And still active as ever kicking around. Low back pain is persistent and frequent bathroom trips, but I’m used to it now. Tried on some clothes this week which was a little challenging body image wise. I love my bump when it’s out of clothes, but in clothes it’s a little different. I’ll get there mentally. Mental health has seen improvements from week 22-23 which has been a relief 🙂

Let’s talk about mental health and motherhood. Our bodies are going through a series of crazy changes right now both hormonally and physically which can have an impact on our emotions and moods. Being pregnant is typically a time where women are commonly happy and expected to be in a good mood, because of being pregnant. There’s not as much talk about the other moods we might experience during pregnancy and I’m here to shed some light on that. When I was younger, late teen years, I suffered from three different mental health issues. An eating disorder first, followed by anxiety a year later that turned into depression. It took me about two years to get out of my funk, and it’s taken a lot of personal growth and work to become happier. After moving to Colorado and having the ability to become more independent and make choices for myself, combined with self-studying therapy, neuroscience and psychology, as well as health & fitness, and some incredible people in my life who have always been supportive, I became the happiest I’ve ever been in my entire life, even through facing some of the greatest challenges I’ve experienced. I’ve continued to maintain my happiness even through hard moments, and focus largely on gratitude and healthy coping mechanisms I developed over the years. For me personally, pharmaceuticals were detrimental to my mental health improvement and I did better without them. I know for others that is not the case, and it’s important for me to iterate that it’s different for everyone. I’m telling you this background of my experience before pregnancy because I will never forget what my mental health felt like back then. During pregnancy, there have been 3-4 moments where my mood has dropped back to the moments of when I was younger, which shocked me. I haven’t felt like that in years and thankfully, being mentally stronger than I was a few years ago, I am able to look at my emotions from a detached standpoint, and realize that I might be just feeling a feeling, and allow to come and pass. I am able to realize that this is most likely from my hormones changing, but that doesn’t keep me from calling a friend and asking for some support. Perinatal depression can be very real and dangerous for mothers and it’s important to talk about.

When I go through these waves, they have lasted me a few days in a row. I get pent up about 3 things: fears, comparisons, and tears that largely stem from my fears.

  • My fears are normal and valid fears that I believe several mothers also think of and go through during pregnancy. I’m afraid of the physical pains of labor, of complications that could happen to both me and Apollo, I’m afraid of tearing/episiotomy/stitching (if that happens to occur), the “right way” to do birth (water birth vs regular birth vs c section and so on), what breastfeeding can do to my body and if it will hurt or be challenging, postpartum depression, and knowing what the baby needs when they can’t yet talk. But these are just fears, and focusing on them takes away from the present moment, that is surely more beautiful than my future anxieties.
  • Comparisons creep into my brain pretty rarely, but here and there they do. I think about what a baby bump should look like at certain points, about how old I am vs other mothers or life stages of pregnancy, and also how many kids I personally want vs. how many kids I see other people have. It’s sort of a feeling of, am I doing this right? am I normal? are my choices okay?, which the answer to every worried mom is yes. Of course you are doing this right, you were made for this. Every woman, baby, pregnancy, and family scenario is unique and we can all choose to do things our own way and that’s okay. We just have to remind ourselves of this as we go through the days and thoughts and conversations with others.
  • And then there come the tears, which is so common. Weepiness is such a normal thing during pregnancy, and our hormones are to blame for this. For me, they can come out of literally anywhere, but more likely than not something small sets me off being a little upset and in turn I want to cry immediately, which also makes me laugh! I’m not a big crier, and laughing always lightens my mood. Plus, half the time, I’m wondering what I’m even teary about, ha! The other half though, there are valid feelings behind the tears. Sometimes, realizing there are parts of my life that may never be the same again or parts of my life that I didn’t feel like I was ready to let go of yet gets me down, and other times my fears overtake my thoughts and I have some emotional overwhelm that causes them, but again this happens only during those 3 day waves of a bad mood.

How do I cope and get out of a funk?

The most important take away from all of this is how to continue on and not get stuck here.

  • First of all I remember how lucky I am to have a loving husband, supportive family, a great life situation to raise a child and a healthy baby. The bases are covered, and I have literally everything I need to create a wonderful life for my child and family. I am so blessed in knowing and having that, and reminding myself of that daily is helpful especially during a mood swing.
  • Taking responsibility and truly accepting what it means to have a family and be a mother created a more purposeful feeling in my life that was definitely missing before I was pregnant. My priorities and values have adjusted a bit, and surprisingly made me a lot happier and fulfilled even though I didn’t think before being pregnant that these things would make me happier.
  • I have a newfound motivation and drive to be successful in my career, in my personal goals, and at home. Not only do I want to be a great mom, but I want to show my son an example of an excellent relationship between his parents, and the importance of taking actions towards following your dreams and making things happen for your family, instead of just encouraging him to do the same when he gets older. I want to be an example for him of how to lead a fulfilling, fun, and enjoyable life. Knowing how much I want this for him, makes it easier for me to keep going and believe that I can do amazing things for our family.
  • Doing things for myself, and only myself. Getting my nails or hair done, taking a bath, getting a facial or talking to someone I love are all helpful. So is snuggling my dog or eating a comfort food meal now and then that I really enjoy! Placing a priority on what I want to do now and then gives me a little peace and I know that it’ll be a good habit to have later on when I will be actually parenting. It’s hard to prioritize yourself even without kids, so practicing early on will be good for your habits and good for your mental health.
  • Learning to be more playful was something I learned from quarantine, that I hadn’t quite mastered beforehand. I’m a bit of a go-go-go person who only takes breaks to eat and sleep. I learned to relax more, play, laugh, and stop taking life SO seriously for once. This was probably one of the best things for me mentally. I chase my dog around the house to play with her toys, I have more food freedom because I’m no longer competing, I watch silly shows on tv, spend time on pinterest building my dream home, jam to music or spend time in the sun, take Penny for more walks, and mess around with Aaron after he’s done with work (he secretly likes being bugged by me, I swear 🙂 ), and just in general take more time to slow down. Listening to comedy on Youtube instead of an educational podcast was another fun swap here and there.
  • Being vulnerable enough to talk to someone I can trust, that I know will meet me with love, compassion, listening, and advice if I need it. I have had a habit of keeping feelings to myself and working through them on my own because I value my privacy and don’t want others to feel like I am a burden. This has been a lifelong thing for me. But I have noticed that my funks tend to fade when I call someone close to me and express my feelings. My family and friends help me work through these feelings when I talk to them about it, and my fears dissipate in knowing that my support system is here for me, and that everything will be okay. Like Marie Forleo says, everything is figure-out-able. So if you’re feeling stuck or having hard day, try to verbalize. If you’re uncomfortable with telling people, try journaling. That has also helped me tons when I have feelings I don’t feel comfortable sharing.
  • Finding communities on social media or in real life that understand the feelings of motherhood and normalize them. Here are a few Instagram accounts I follow that are helpful & hyperlinked, @Postpartum, @mombrain.therapist, @raisegoodkids, @ourmamavillage, and @moomysmilk. I’ve found a few others, but these are the ones I have found the biggest value from following!

I share all of this with you because I want expecting mothers to know it’s so normal to not always feel like you’re at your 100%. It’s going to be okay, you can get through this with help and good habits. Most of the time, I am overjoyed, excited, and ready to be a mom and have a family with my husband that I love so much. I can’t believe how beautiful it is that we created a mini version of the two of us and I’m beyond excited to meet him. But I am still human, just like everyone else on the planet, and I still have feelings, off moments, and imperfect days. Other expecting mamas or already mamas, if you experience this and need someone to talk to, I’ve never understood mothers more than I do now, and I haven’t even gone through birth yet, but I’m here for you and want to be a support system to you too. Much love mamas!

Baby Registry Links Organized & Week 21 Update

Week 21 Update: This week has been mostly the same! Bump is looking a little bit bigger, and I’ve gained about 1lb in the last week. During second and third trimester is where your weight starts to change a little more often. I’ve heard it can be anywhere from 1-2lbs per week, and the range is often somewhere between 15-50 lbs depending on where your weight started at. I’ve gained probably a total of 10 lbs since January overall, we will see how that changes with the next 19 weeks! I did experience some lower back pain for the first time this week, but I think it’s stemming from an old injury in my tailbone that gets activated with weight bearing. The baby/uterus can push on the tailbone in later stages of pregnancy, so I think that’s where it’s coming from, but I’ll double check with my doctor on this if it’s still bothering me at my next appointment. Food wise – still no cravings or foods I won’t eat! I eat healthy most of the week and then allow myself a treat food 2-3 times a week. Yesterday was an ice cream cone! Haha. It also helps me get some extra calories in especially on days I exercise. Symptoms are about the same, abdominal ligament stretches has pretty much stopped unless a go for a long walk, no headaches, but I am consistently pretty tired all the time, makes sense why I’ve been so tired all year! Hair is looking thicker, skin is clear, and nails are strong so those are all positives! And I am occasionally feeling a kick or two from Apollo too. 🙂

I made this list initially for myself and then realized how overwhelming it was for me to think of everything, because I had literally no idea what I would need. I decided I’d make this list public and share it with other future mothers that might also be confused about what to get/what they need. I put this list together with hyperlinks for everything and quantity needed (for one child, so if you’re having twins you might want to double some of these things). I always try to find the nicest quality for the least expensive price for pretty much everything I use, I love a good deal on something that is functional and long lasting. There are some things I am more willing to splurge on than others, but what you see here will be everything you need with links attached to the items I found that I personally thought were reasonable price-wise and also excellent quality. 🙂 I will also continue to update it as I go if I find more things or realize I was missing something, and if you enjoy this list, I’ll continue making them as the baby grows for different ages!

Clothes List of What to Get

  • Undershirts or Onesies – Quantity 8, mix short and long sleeve, we got a lot of ours from friends, my mom ordered some from Gerber, and a lot of the brands we have are from Carter’s as well. This is for all the clothes on this list.
  • Nightgowns – Quantity 5 (for use until the cord falls off)
  • One-piece stretchy sleepers – Quantity 8, go for ones with zippers, not buttons.
  • Pants – Quantity 5 pairs
  • Socks – Quantity 1-2 packs (8 pairs)
  • Newborn Hats – Quantity 2
  • Scratch Mittens/Mittens, keeps baby from scratching face – Quantity 2 pairs
  • Cardigans/Jackets for winter areas – Quantity 2 (might need more in colder climates)
  • Bunting Bag/Snowsuit for winter babies

Furniture

Nursing & Feeding (some of this is specifically for breastfeeding)

Bed, Bedding, & Sleep

Bathing

Transportation & Travel

  • Stroller and Car Seat Set – Quantity 1, I chose a jogger set for hiking, running, and walking.
  • Stroller Accessory – Quantity 1, not necessary, but I saw a lot of complaints about not having room on the stroller for a phone, or other items for the parents to keep with them, in reviews.
  • Car Seat for when they grow out of their newborn seat (after a few months) – Quantity 2 for each car if you have two vehicles, 1 if not.
  • Car Seat Base if you order more than one seat for different vehicles. Apparently these car seats are harder to get in and out of vehicles so for convenience it is nice to have two.
  • Diaper Bag – Quantity 1
  • Travel Bassinet – Quantity 1

Convenience

Play Areas & Safety:

Babies Needs/As They Grow:

  • Teethers – Quantity 1
  • Pacifiers – Quantity 1 pack for 0-6 months, 1 pack 6-18 months

Books/Education for Parents

Health/Medicine Needs

Other things you’ll need

How I Set Up My Registry

I googled all the different options that you could use for a registry and settled on Amazon for three reasons. Amazon has a universal registry meaning you can add things from any website, like walmart, target, gerber etc., they also offer a diaper fund/gift cards, where you can request a gift into that fund instead of for a physical gift if you think that would be more helpful for you, and lastly prime shipping to your door (especially in COVID times where get togethers aren’t guaranteed!). My mother and my friends who are also mothers helped me out a ton with this list, so if that was you, THANK YOU for your help! 🙂

Pre-Baby Breast Augmentation FAQs

Hey friends! If you saw my IG post about the BA surgery I got last year, I’m here to answer all the common questions I’ve gotten and create a preface for later, as a ton of ladies have asked about breastfeeding with implants. Most of the women asking are curious because we have all been told time and time again to wait until after having kids to get implants. I can’t find much info online from women who’ve gone through this, so I’ll be one of the first to share my experience because I know I would want to know. Here’s why I didn’t wait until having kids: I wasn’t planning on getting pregnant for at least ten years after surgery. Every 10-20 years, it’s even suggested by some doctors to get them redone. I figured if I got them now, I’d get them redone right after having a child and it would be no biggie. Well, that changed faster than I expected, so now I can share with you what it’ll be like after, and if it’s really worth waiting until after or not. The blog today will be about all the questions from surgery, and nothing about pregnancy, since nothing has really changed much yet, except a few stretch marks that I’m combating with this.

How did I choose a doctor? – I asked friends who had the surgery done where they went and if they had a good experience, and I researched on RealSelf. I interviewed three different surgeons and ended up going with a doctor that several other women I knew went to and had a good experience with. It’s also to make sure they are board certified surgeons. If an augmentation is less than $5000, it’s probably not a good idea to go with that doctor. You get what you pay for, and this is a serious surgery.

How much did it cost? – My surgery total was $7,500. However, I got a discount of $500 for being a referral from my friends. This included all the pre-surgery and post-op visits, and surgery medications. Pain medications afterwards were not included in this. Paid for most of it upfront in cash and did a financing option through Care Credit for a small amount that remained. If you look into it you will see that they offer a lot of promo deals, but you HAVE TO pay it off by the promo period or else you get smacked with interest from the entire year/6 mos. I paid more than the minimum due each month to ensure this didn’t happen, and planned for it budget wise. However, I would recommend just saving up and paying cash in full if possible. I luckily paid off my balances before Coronavirus hit and the economy dropped, but you never know when something like that could happen, so best case scenario is paying for it right away or if you want to build credit then you could still save up, but pay it off the credit right after you use it.

How much time did I need off of work? – I took 7 days off. I got my surgery on a Thursday and planned only to take off through the weekend, but Monday I was still in a lot of pain and just getting back together. I think I could’ve managed by Tuesday, but I didn’t have any sessions scheduled just in case, and ended up going back the next Thursday. Being a personal trainer, I’m on my feet and moving around a lot. I think if you work a desk job you could go back after 3-4 days. I know some women go back right after, but you’re in a lot of pain and typically tired, especially if you use muscle relaxers or pain meds after surgery.

When could I workout again? – I started light cardio with the OK from my doctor after two weeks, and light legs after 4 weeks. Upper body couldn’t be touched until 6 weeks post-op, as well as jumping/running. They were still a little sore and certain movements felt weird for about 6 months. Back exercises, chest exercises, running, jumping, and planks are all a little weird right away. I don’t recommend training anything on chest other than upper chest after implants because it will push them apart and you will have a bigger gap between your breasts.

How much pain was I in? – I was SO nervous for the pain. But it was surprisingly not that bad at all. It felt tight and sore more than painful. Here and there would be a twinge of pain, but it isn’t all that bad. The worst thing for me was nauseousness from anesthetics and pain meds. I got off all of that after two days because it kept making me sick and I could barely eat. You definitely feel pain, and it’s worst the first 3 days, each day getting better and better, and within 4-6 days you’ll feel pretty normal again for having just had such a big surgery. Arms overhead and opening doors can be challenging for a little while, just don’t push it if you feel any pain and have someone with you for several days after.

Did I need help from anyone? – Yes x9024801971039. You cannot do this surgery alone. They will put you under for the surgery and you’ll be very loopy after. You need someone to drive you home, feed you, help you use the bathroom (seriously haha), eat, drink, get up and out of bed, adjust pillows, make sure you take your meds every few hours, etc. You will also need someone to help you shower because you can’t put your arms over your head. I think the first shower I had was like the worst shower I’ve ever taken haha. I was really uncomfortable and everything was tender. They get better after that first one, but you’ll need help showering for about a week or so.

How long does the surgery take? – I was in and out of the facility in 4-6 hours. Surgery probably took 1 hour, but there was pre-op things to do, and they wait until you wake up and walk around to let you leave.

What about breast implant illness? I studied breast implant illness heavily before I considered such a big and invasive surgery. My understanding of it is that each individual person has a threshold of toxicity in their body before they were go over the edge and into this illness. For some women, it happens right away, some 10 years later, and some never have anything happen. It’s highly dependent on your toxic threshold. If you are relatively healthy and use non-toxic products, that can lower your risk as well. I took the chance, because it’s something I wanted to do forever, and if that ends up happening in my future, then so be it. I’m very happy with my decision and I’ve felt amazing since, no issues at all. To each their own!

What size did I get/how to choose a size? – You can’t just choose a cup size. Everything is measured in CCs. 300 CCs on a taller or wider frame would likely come out to a smaller cup size than a shorter or narrower body. It is different for everyone. They will measure your body to see what range will look best on your specific body type. Most doctors will recommend you stay within a certain range. Heads up – if you want them to be big, many doctors will conservatively give you a range that might not be as big as you want. My doctor said the biggest I should go is 400CC, I jumped up to 425CC two weeks before my surgery because I didn’t want to regret going too small (a common regret women say after), and it was worth the jump. He said they would be a little big, but to me they are actually perfect for what I wanted, and they fit my body very well. So just check around with a few doctors to see who is more or less conservative about it and maybe check with other girls with similar frames to you as well. I personally jumped up about 4 cup sizes, but was super flat beforehand. Also sometimes women will need different sizes in each breast – this is SO normal so don’t feel weird about it if that’s you. Pretty much everyone has a bigger and smaller breast, some people it’s not noticeable and some people it is, your doctor will be able to even that out if you wanted. Mine were close together so I did the same size, but one was noticeably tighter and more sore after (the smaller one naturally.) Another thing I forgot to add is that you can choose between Saline and Silicone (and gummy bear), and where they are placed (over or under the muscle). I would suggest researching these things yourself to see what you personally like best, but I did Silicone/Under the muscle. I personally liked the silicone ones better because of the sturdiness aspect (they can’t leak if they tear) and under the muscle because it looks more natural, especially when you’re really lean!

Did I need a bunch of new clothes? – Actually no. Most things still fit. Tighter tops needed to be replaced and sports bras/real bras did as well.

Do you need to wear a bra all the time? – You should, especially right away. You’ll want to wear your surgical bra for 2-6 weeks, depending on what your doc says. I found it the most comfortable though and wore it for like several months. It’s very supportive. You’ll want to keep supportive bras on all the time to keep them in quality shape, even at night. Occasionally I take it off for comfort, and when the nerve pain was worse it was hard to have a bra on 24/7, so listen to your body when you need it!

Do you still have scars? – Yes, eventually your breasts “drop” and cover up the scars, however being that I am really lightskinned, my scars are pretty dark, kind blue/purple colored. I haven’t tried much to lighten them because they’re so covered up, but I’ve heard of people getting good results from ScarAway Strips and Bio Oil. I used them both for a few months and they helped, just got out of the habit now.

How long do scars take to heal? – I can’t remember exactly when they fully healed, but I had to leave tape on them for at least 3-4 weeks. No swimming or anything during this time. I think around 4-6 weeks I started swimming again and could take the tape off, I replaced the tape with Scar Away strips for a could months and by month 3 they were pretty normal. You also want to massage your scars with bio oil or lotion to help break up the scar tissues afterwards. It feels weird, kinda like a rope under your skin, and sounds crunchy haha! But it gets better and eventually the skin will feel normal again.

How long does the pain take to heal/go away? – Physical pain took about 1 month to fully subside, nerve pain got better after 2 months, but hung around for about 6 months. My doctor said it can take up to a year for nerve pain to come back fully. Your breasts are kind of numb right away too, so if you have an itch you really can’t scratch it until the nerves come back… such a weird feeling!

Is it normal for them to look weird right away? – YES! They can look square or like “torpedos” for a few days. The first week or two, they really won’t look “normal”. Give them time! They’ll look amazing after 4 weeks, and they’ll drop after that. Around 4-6 months is when they’ll settle to what they really will look like forever.

Questions? – Did I miss anything? If I did, reach out. I’ll add it onto this!

Thanks for reading! 😊

Supplements – What’s really worth it?

  1. Multivitamins (Recommended) – Everyone should take a multivitamin every day. You can take multivitamins year round. They are important because no matter how perfectly you eat, you will most likely never get all the nutrients you need in one single day from food alone. Multivitamins help fill those gaps in our diet. I truly don’t have a specific multivitamin that I recommend, except using a capsule formula because it’s hard for our body to breakdown and digest tablets that are heat pressed together. Tablets are less bio-available to our bodies, so we actually get more nutrients out of a capsule (even if they say they are the same on the label!). If you want a recommendation, this is the one I use.

2. Fish oil (Recommended) – Fish oils are made up of our Omega-3 Fatty Acids, DHA, and EPA. You’ll want a fish oil with a high EPA/DHA (900 mg EPA/600 mg DHA/300 mg additional FAs) ratio like this one, or this one, to make sure you’re getting the proper amount of omega-3s absorbed. Unless you are consuming fatty fish 3-5 times per week, which is pretty rare, you definitely aren’t getting enough of your healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are important for regulating blood pressure, liver function, and immune system/inflammatory responses. They are also important for proper hormone production and balance via our thyroid and adrenal glands. Proper hormone function is imperative for fat loss and muscle gain. My personal favorite benefit from omega-3s is improved joint health, as the fatty acids help lubricate the joints and keep them functioning well. Omega-3s are necessary to balance out inflammation from Omega-6s. Omega-6s come from foods that include sugar, processed meat, alcohol, refined carbohydrates (i.e. white breads), high fructose corn syrup, and partially hydrogenated oils. These all cause major inflammation in the body and can be found in several foods we all love to enjoy. Getting a healthy balance of Omega-3s will help decrease that inflammation, so supplementing with fish oil or eating more servings of fatty fish will help.

Optional supplements 

  • CLA (Safflower Oil) helps us maintain muscle mass in a caloric deficit and burn more calories, you can find the one I buy on amazon here.
  • Fat burners if you’re trying for weight loss. These have stimulants in them like caffeine and are sometimes thermogenic so they can warm up your body temperature (this results in sweating for me haha). I use them sometimes during prep. They aren’t vital, but they help suppress your appetite and give you more energy. I would usually take them in the morning and/or pre-workout. These are cycled so you don’t build a tolerance either like 4 weeks on 2 weeks off or 8 weeks on 4 weeks off. 1-DB Goddess from 1st Phorm is a great one, and I have also used Lipocide by Evogen which I found to be a good product as well, but I would get sweatier with this one. 
  • Certain people have more specific needs so if you’re considering taking something else (joint pain, magnesium, turmeric, etc.), but you’re unsure if it is right for you, let me know and I will look into it and recommend what I think is best for you! I studied pharmacology & supplements in the body for about 3 years in college and have a pretty solid understanding of how everything works. There are also a few others I recommend to competitors. Also greens supplements are one that I like to use occasionally if I cannot get in my fruit and veggie servings for the day, but I much prefer to eat the real thing and encourage others to do so as well.  
  • Protein Powder & Bars – You can use protein powders to replace any protein in a meal if you are on the go OR protein bars to replace a meal throughout the day. Whole foods are best, but these supplements are great for those who are on the go, busy parents, stay long hours at work, or simply need more convenience. My personal favorite bars to eat are Level-1 Bars, followed by Oh Yeah! One Bars (slightly less expensive, but quality/flavor is also not as good as the level-1s, I linked a variety pack, but it’s cheaper to buy all of one flavor). Post-Workout Nutrition What I recommend for post workout nutrition for women is 1-1.5 scoops whey protein and for males 2-2.5 scoops of whey protein. Along with this you should consume a high glycemic index carbohydrate like rice cakes or cereal. The reason for both of these is: when you are working out you are breaking down muscle tissue. This eventually puts your body into a catabolic state which means breaking down muscle and storing fat. Once you consume a high glycemic index carbohydrate post workout, it will spike your insulin levels and shuffle nutrients to your depleted muscles and glycogen stores. You will want to consume the protein with this to get that into your body as well. Protein puts your body into an anabolic state, which means building muscle and burning fat. That’s also why it is important to have protein with every meal and snack. A common question I have received is what type of protein to use. I’ve tried dozens of brands over the last 5 years and you may have noticed that I post about a brand called 1st phorm on Instagram, they are my personal favorite quality wise and flavor wise. I’m a picky eater and I’ve enjoyed all of their protein powder flavors, but by no means do you have to use that protein. You can use whatever you like! I mainly recommend 1st phorm because it is low temperature processed which is much easier on your stomach than many other protein powders that can make you feel gassy or bloated. I do have a link for free shipping (saves about $10) for this specific protein if you choose you want to try it, just click this link and it’ll automatically apply to your order. If you go with a different brand, make sure to find something with at least 20 grams of protein per scoop, less than 5g carbs and less than 5g sugar. I also try to have at least one whole food meal about an hour or so after consuming the post workout meal because your body will burn through it quickly. So if you work out in the evening try to save your dinner for after you workout. If you workout late and only have time for your post-workout though, that’s totally fine! On days you don’t do resistance training or intense cardio, so any rest days or active recovery days, skip the carbohydrates and just have the protein shake with fruit or veggies as a snack. You could replace this with a protein bar or a meal of choice with protein and veggies. 

Pregnancy Supplements – What do I need? What’s safe for me to take? – What’s safe for you to take should always be cleared with your OBGYN before you decide. Although a product typically is safe for pregnancy, make sure your doctor is okay with it, especially if you have any particular health conditions or a high-risk pregnancy. You should also double check to make sure the dosage you use is OK for pregnancy. Some of these can also be supplemented by changing your diet to include foods with higher amounts of these micronutrients, if you don’t want to use supplements.

  • Prenatal Vitamin (recommended) – your nutritional needs increase during pregnancy, and prenatals give you the extra nutrition, as well as provide other nutrients that help the baby develop that you might not normally get.
  • Folic Acid (recommended) – helps prevent birth defects. Also found in leafy greens, oranges, and beans/peas.
  • Vitamin D (optional) – helps build baby’s bones and teeth, and helps maintain a good balance of calcium and phosphorous. Calcium is helpful in the physical development of the baby as well, and lowers birth risks. I have been drinking a glass of almond milk each day to get more calcium in.
  • Fish Oil (recommended) – can help increase birth weight (for strong and healthy babies, not overweight), decreases mother’s risk of depression, and can lower risk of both preterm labor and preeclampsia. Can get this from fatty fish, but I have been using a supplement as well.
  • Zinc (optional) – important for physical fetal development especially because of how rapid the growth is. Also found in seeds, beans, beef, shrimp, garlic, and spinach.
  • Vitamin C (optional) – helps body absorb iron, boosts immune system, and protects cells from damage. A variety of fruit and vegetables will provide plenty of Vitamin C. Shoot for 3-6 servings per day. I have been snacking of tons of fruit and making vegetable soup at night.
  • Iron (optional) – prevents against anemia, helps you produce more blood and move oxygen well for both you and baby. Foods include red meat, seafood, and beans.
  • Magnesium (optional) – can alleviate pregnancy symptoms like morning sickness, pain, headaches, and preeclampsia. It also helps build strong bones and teeth in your baby! Foods include, eggs, low-fat yogurt, fish, avocado, banana, and dark-chocolate.

Mommy Diaries: Pregnancy – Up to Week 20

As many of you who follow me on Instagram or Facebook already have heard, my husband and I are expecting a baby boy, Apollo James Green, on September 28th, 2020! In todays blog, I’m going to talk about everything I have been going through physically and emotionally since finding out I was pregnant, and some of the things I noticed beforehand. These “Mommy Diaries” blogs will last through my entire pregnancy, with updates each week, and I’m sure they’ll continue once I’ve given birth and had some time to heal and get used to a new life as a mom. I want to share all of my details with you, so that you know what’s normal if you experience these things too during pregnancy. I always value the opinion and experience of someone I know, especially now that I’m pregnant, so I want to be a person others can talk to as well. I have gotten so many questions from how I am feeling, to if I’m ready, if I can update some of you on how it goes after having breast implants. I’m going to address it all in this blog. 🙂 Let’s jump in!

If you took the time to watch the video I posted on Instagram, you might already have all the deets and will want to skip this part, but for those of you who missed it, I’ll briefly explain how we found out about my pregnancy and what a miracle it was. I did not have a clue I was pregnant until 4-5 months along. In short, here is why: I had no typical signs of pregnancy. I was not experiencing any morning sickness, I was not growing a baby bump (I still barely have one and I’m 21 weeks today – I just look bloated all the time), and I didn’t notice the breast tenderness for what it was. About year ago I got breast implants and what I now realize the breast tenderness in the first trimester was, I was mistaking for nerve pain and healing from surgery as it can take up to a year for full recovery. The only hallmark sign I really had of being pregnant was no period, but it didn’t concern me because I have had a hormone imbalance for several years. I often will lose my period for several months at a time, or have a very very light period for a few days and then it goes away. I had also recently started dieting for a bodybuilding competition, which often causes me to lose it as well. All of those things combined, and being pregnant really didn’t cross my mind. Especially because my hormone imbalance was one that made me think I couldn’t get pregnant, even if I wanted to. I was irrationally hungry when I was trying to diet for my show, and I think that has been the only real symptom of pregnancy I’ve had that was noticeable at all. Now that I’ve been paying closer attention, I have several others I’ll tell you about shortly. What made me decide to check if I was pregnant was a few things. Firstly, I was getting really uncomfortable and crampy during a few exercises at the gym (hip thrusts were the biggest one). I always felt like I was bloated or overate when I was working out, and I wasn’t sure what it was, but continuously blamed it on food. I had a moment where I was at home where I put my hands on my stomach, and something about it felt like I was pregnant, but I just didn’t think it could be possible, so I ignored it. 24 hours after that moment, I got a call from my mother who had a funny dream. In short, she dreamt she found out she was pregnant with a baby girl (I consider this to be a sign since I’m her daughter) with blue eyes (and my husband has amazing & beautiful blue eyes). This was weird, as I had felt like it was possible I could be pregnant, so I went out and got a test. I took two, and twice it came back positive.

I initially was a huge mixture of emotions. I am young myself, so I was genuinely scared. I was excited, but nervous. And I would go back and forth on being happy and fearful for hours. I wasn’t ready for this, but maybe I was. I didn’t want to be a mom – at least not yet, but maybe I’m meant to be. For some beautiful and miraculous reason, although I didn’t think I could pregnant, I did. I believe everything in this life happens for a reason, and so it did. Eventually, my fears subsided, and excitement took over. Sure, sometimes I still get nervous, but how lucky am I that I get to create another life with my most favorite human on the planet? I feel extremely blessed. So, I told Aaron and we started to get things together. I was under the impression that we were having a quarantine baby – ha! Was I wrong about that. I truly thought I was in the first trimester, being that I didn’t look or feel pregnant at all. My first ultrasound picked up that I was about 18.5 weeks pregnant, and when I finally got into the OBGYN for a legitimate ultrasound, he determined that I was about 20 weeks, putting me well into the second trimester, and pretty close to the third. I was shocked and once again became nervous about the health of the baby. I had not known for this long, wasn’t taking prenatal vitamins and had been sick twice. But after blood work and ultrasounds and everything was set and done, he is a happy, healthy little boy who also loves to show off on ultrasounds. He kicks and somersaults and occasionally likes to flash the ultrasound techs. It’s been fun going in there and seeing him on the screen, he seems so playful and adorable already.

So, let’s talk about everything I’m experiencing now that I’m aware of pregnancy. First off, let’s start with the physical side effects of the First Trimester – these are things I now realized I missed that were some signs of pregnancy. Extreme fatigue, I slept a ton during this time, but being that fatigue was very normal with my hormone problems, I didn’t think twice about and just upped the caffeine consumption (which I have since cutout). Constipation, which I consistently blamed on food. Breast tenderness, which I mistook for my nerve pain from implants. & lastly, occasional cramping, that was never really too bad and happens to me now and then for no apparent reason anyways. Emotionally, I also noticed a greater fear of abandonment in my relationship with Aaron, which I’m generally super secure in, and that was strange. I wasn’t sure where it was coming from.

As for the Second Trimester, this is when I found out and began to notice more particular things. Physical symptoms included, abdominal ligament stretching (which feels kinda cramp-like and is totally normal), cravings specifically for fruit, and indigestion if I eat too much in one meal – which then causes me to feel nauseous so I’ve made my meals much smaller since. Constipation has subsided – but I am gassier than ever, tooting and burps happen more often than I want them to. Lastly I’ve noticed some heart palpitations if I go for a walk or stay on my feet for too long, but these are pretty rare. I also noticed longer hair, healthier skin (glowing skin) and faster nail growth. My first stretch marks also appeared on my chest. I have been using Bio-Oil to combat any further stretch marks on both my stomach and breasts. I also have dry patches on my arms and face that are red and itchy, which is a normal part of being pregnant and are only slightly annoying. Other emotional symptoms include extra weepiness, I’ve cried a lot more than normal since the beginning of the second trimester (without knowing what was going on), I’ve been more protective of my husband and our relationship, which I think was the extension of my fear of abandonment, that I now discovered is SUPER normal when you’re pregnant (thank goodness, I was feeling a little crazy! Haha). Also, my husband is the literal best human ever, and always makes me feel so loved and special no matter what, so I realize that this feeling is coming from all my surging hormones. Lastly, emotionally I have been having an extreme insecurity of what is going to happen to my body after I found out I was pregnant. The female body goes through so much during pregnancy, and many people say you will never be physically the same the again, which was a hard pill for me to swallow as a young woman who competes in Bikini competitions and has valued working hard for her body for years. I think that outward physical appearance doesn’t have to change too much, especially if you are healthy from pre-pregnancy and throughout. However, internal things can change, you can need stitches or C-sections, have tearing occur, stretch marks, incontinence, breastfeeding, and weight gain in general can apparently all change things for our bodies. I will be honest and open with all of you wonderful women who read my posts and blogs because I think there isn’t enough transparency around what really happens to our bodies and what is normal. This is still a fear of mine, but one that I’m willing to face because the magic of bringing our baby into the world is far more special and important than the superficiality of what I look like. As you also know, I’m not opposed to cosmetic enhancements, and if that’s something I later feel like I want because of anything that happens, I’ll more than likely do it, because why not? I don’t do cosmetic enhancements for anyone else, but me, and the few things I have done have made me feel happier and more confident. 🙂 To each their own.

A few more topics I will save for another blog will include how to exercise while pregnant (what’s okay and what isn’t), what Kegels are and why they are important, and there will be a whole blog on breast implants and breast feeding once the baby is born and I go through all of that, but for now – they’re still in great shape, just getting a few stretch marks from growth.

As this is the start of week 21, I will keep notes about what I’m going through, if anything has changed, how I’m feeling and more, and report back to you guys in a week! One of the things I have mostly accomplished for baby this past week and I’m still working on a little bit is our baby registry. I’m linking it here through my Amazon Lists, so future mom’s can have an idea of what they’ll need. I’m not finished yet, but will be soon. There are a few things I don’t have because some wonderful friends of mine have offered theirs to me, so I’ll make a specific blog about everything you need in full detail later, but for now, this is a bulk of it and I researched all the products I added for probably way too long, so I can promise you they’re good if you’re also unsure of what to get.

Can’t wait to hear your baby stories and share more with you, thanks for all of the love and support so many of you have given us already! We love you!

My Basic Breakfast Smoothie recipe!

To start, I am going to list the ingredients and then go into directions. First, you’ll need a healthy protein source, to ensure you stay full and get more of a meal than just juice! Protein also helps you stay in a fat burning and muscle building state. These are my 3 go to protein sources for smoothies.. 8 oz liquid & pasteurized egg whites, 1 cup triple zero oikos greek vanilla yogurt, or 1-2 scoops vanilla whey protein! These serving sizes all yield at least 20 grams of protein, and are around 125-200 calories. You could definitely use flavored protein or yogurt too, I’m just sticking to the basics right now.

Second you’ll need a micronutrient source, your vitamins and minerals (think fruits & veggies!). Micronutrients are essential for several processes in the body and help us digest food and produce energy! You’ll want to choose at least one serving of fruits and/or veggies to add. I use 1-3 cups total. My best recommendation would be to have 1 fruit & 1 green veggie 🙂 fresh is always best, but for convenience I tend to use frozen produce, and then I don’t any ice!

Third part is liquids! If you are using egg whites, you might not need to add any, but if you use protein powder or Greek yogurt, a liquid will help the frozen or whole parts blend better, as well as mixing up any powder. I usually add water, because for a dieting bikini competitor, that means less calories. But the second option I’ll use is almond milk, which gives a creamier consistency and boosts the flavors!

Almost to the end! Part four.. Ice is necessary to keep the ingredients chilled and thicken your smoothie, but only if you are using fresh fruits and veggies. If not, you can get away with using frozen product and not adding any additional ice!

Lastly, sweeteners are sometimes nice additions especially if you’re not used to eating fruits and veggies or don’t particularly like the flavor of them, because not everyone does. If it helps you eat a healthier meal, than by all means, you can use it now and then. I personally use Stevia as an sweetener because it’s actually derived from leaves of a plant. On top of that it doesn’t add any calories, it doesn’t cause affect insulin or blood sugar, and it doesn’t contribute to dental cavities like regular sugar would.

How to blend it best? Taking your mixer (whatever you might use, we have a NutriBullet my mom got me when I was a freshman in college like 5 years ago, and it still works great!), add the liquids first, then the frozen items or produce, then the protein source (if yogurt or powder), and lastly sweetener if being used. Blend until ready and enjoy! 😋

My 5 tips for glowing skin!

⁃ Stop sleeping with other skincare 😉Find a skincare routine that works for you without changing your products every two weeks! I know I’m not alone when I say I used to shop around all the time for the next skincare product to try. and everytime the results were usually average, right? Well partially it’s because you might not have been patient enough. It takes on average, 4 weeks for your skin to regenerate and get used to or show results from a new skincare regimen. Your skincare regimen isn’t just the moisturizer and cleanser you use. Let’s dive in!

Finding the right skincare for you: there are TONS of different acne products out there. I’ve used like everything from salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, pro-activ, tretinoin gel, neutrogena, and on and on. I think we all have different skin so there’s no one size fits all, but the things I’ve personally discovered the best is a gentle cleanser, a moisturizer, and using proper SPF. Those of you who follow me on Instagram know I promote a brand called FRÉ Skincare, I’ve used it since July of 2018 and have gotten compliments on my skin since! I use several of their products on a daily basis (most commonly a cleanser and night time moisturizer), combined with some of my prescription meds, and a zinc oxide sunscreen (I use zinc oxide because it reflects the sun well!). I made sure to try these products all for at least a month before deciding if they worked for me, and turns out they worked great! My skin only faults me these days when I eat improperly. For you, your skincare routine might look different, but I’m going to share here what I’ve learned over the years on improving my acne and hopefully you can take away some good tips too!

Healthy living: We hear about a healthy diet and drinking enough water all the time. But why should it matter to you? Sure, there are tons of benefits, but a specific one is actually better skin! Being dehydrated is really tough on your skin, as well as eating high sugar, excess calories, and overly processed foods. Each person might have certain food items or drinks that make it worse. For me – I don’t have any known intolerances, but everytime I eat cheese or lots of sugar I break out like CRAZY! Certain foods can cause us to breakout, and they are typically the more processed foods. I try to eat a balanced diet of high protein, fresh fruits & veggies, complex carbs and healthy fats. Plus about 1/2-1 whole gallon of water a day to support healthy skin. Of course when I say balanced, I still have cheese & sugar here and there, but my skin is significantly better from an improved diet.

Another thing to watch out for is the sun, I’m a sun baby and you definitely can’t take me out of it, but I did quit tanning in fake bake beds and started using spray tanner instead. It’s much healthier for your skin and doesn’t damage it. As mentioned above, I wear SPF daily to combat being outdoors or even driving in sunlight!

Hormones: our hormones can affect our skin way more than we realize! I’ve had estrogen imbalances that caused my entire back to breakout like a colony of bacteria on a Petri dish. It was disgusting! And I was definitely alarmed. Sometimes not just your diet alone can help. I got checked out for a hormone imbalance and that was when I realized there were underlying issues, once I was treated properly, it cleared up beautifully. I was prescribed two different medications (to assist the hormone therapy) that I still find helpful to this day. I used clindamycin topical cream/gel and adapalene topical cream/gel. Clindamycin is prescription only, but adapalene recently became an over the counter medication, you can find it at your local pharmacy and it works well on stubborn spots. Clindamycin was especially helpful for dark spots and acne scars. I’m no doctor, so consult your own if you’re dealing with these issues too, I’m just sharing my personal experience!

Cosmetic Enhancements: this is the last part of beautiful skin that is definitely not a necessity, but can be helpful. There are a few things I do to maintain young & fresh skin. Botox of certain parts of my face helps prevent wrinkles, or prevents them from worsening. I noticed my first wrinkle when I was 21, and it bothered me so much I started getting a mere 4 units of Botox put in, but now that I started early enough, I haven’t developed any more wrinkles and the one I had is barely visible. That’s something I’ll continue to do my whole life. If you don’t mind wrinkles, then ignore that, it’s just a personal preference for me 🙂 also, microneedling is another awesome way to improve your skin. It regenerates collagen and makes your skin look silky & smooth, and helps reduce visibility of wrinkles. There are several other kinds of cosmetic enhancements to improve skin, especially as we age more, but these are two small things that I personally do myself as part of my skincare routine. They can sometimes be spendy enhancements (especially the older you get) so that’s something to consider if you’re a frugal person as well. I started at a young age to avoid heavier expenses as I get older! If you prevent them earlier on, your appointments stay less expensive throughout your life because you started more preventatively.

That’s it! Those are my few simple tips and things I’ve learned to keep my skin healthy & glowing. My skin has gotten so much better over the last few years, and these are all the things I’ve learned to get it that way. If you have tips, let all the readers know in the comments, we love to hear your advice too! 😘

Something to do if you’re bored pt. 2: Find out your sun, rising, & moon signs with astrology!

I’m sure you’ve all heard about your zodiac sign at some point in your life, but do you ever feel like you don’t really relate to your horoscopes? Same. The reason why (according to astrologists) is that we are made up of so much more than just our sun sign. We have three dominant traits that reflect who we are, which is our Sun Sign(our core identity/surface level self/authentic self), Rising Sign(The Mask we wear in public/how we want or try to get people to perceive us/our first impressions), and Moon Sign(our emotional needs, how we act behind closed doors, our innermost self that we hide from most others). We also have signs in different houses/placements – I’m not going to get into all that, but for an example it’s what sign is in your Venus (how you may express love), so that might also make you feel different from your basics Sun Sign horoscope.

How do I determine my signs? Here’s a link I have used before. (https://astro.cafeastrology.com/natal.php) You have to know your birth place and time to get your rising sign. It also gives you all of your planetary placements and some explanations (but I think some from this website specifically might be a little bogus 😂, but hey, we’re here because we are bored right?) If you find your signs and want to know more about them, you can always google it, but I have two Instagram pages that are typically pretty humorous and fun to follow. @costarastrology is more humor and @sanctuarywrld is also funny, but probably a little more educational!

I’ll share mine! According to Instagram pages, I’m apparently one of most hated zodiac signs, lol. I’m a Gemini Sun, Virgo Rising, & Sagittarius Moon. Each of them make perfect sense to me, especially once I learned the difference because I didn’t always fully relate to Gemini alone. It’s also fun to learn your friend’s and family’s signs, because you can see how compatible you are or learn more about each other 🤪 hope you have a little fun with it and if you decide to do it let me know what you get!

Enneagram Personality Test (something to do while you’re stuck inside!)

Hey guys! I don’t know about you, but I love taking all the silly personality tests out there. I figured since I mentioned it in my recent Instagram post, I’d share what the enneagram personality test is all about and where to take a quiz!

What is it? Its a personality test based on how you perceive the world/others & yourself and manage your emotions. There’s 9 different points you can relate to and we usually relate to all of them a little bit. Some tests will tell you how much of a match you are to each enneagram number.

What does each number mean? The number shared information about you, and you can be anywhere from a 1 to a 9. Here’s some quick information about each number. 1s are usually perfectionists, 2s are caretakers, 3s are achievers or performers, 4s are individualists/romantics, 5s are thinker/observers, 6s are loyalists and questioners, 7s are enthusiasts, 8s are leaders and challengers, and 9s are peacemakers/mediators.

Where can I take the test? This is the website I used and shared with my friends and family first (https://www.crystalknows.com/enneagram-test) it also has a DISC personality test and Myers-Briggs. It creates an entire profile for you with explanations about who you are and how you function best, but it can take a little while. It’s really interesting! The other website I used to determine what side I was a wing to was the instinctual variant test on this page (https://www.eclecticenergies.com/enneagram/test). There’s also an Instagram page I follow called @enneagramandcoffee that shares a ton of interesting info on each number. So there’s a rabbit hole for you to enter! 🤪

There’s some other personality tests I’ve enjoyed taking. One more that’s kind of fun is the test from Gretchen Rubin about the four tendencies of how we respond to expectations of us. It determines whether you are an upholder, obliger, questioner, or rebel. The link for that is here (https://quiz.gretchenrubin.com)

Here are my personality test answers! I am a 3, 5, and 7 dominant on the enneagram. I have a DISC test of the encourager. Myers-Briggs I’m an INFJ, but I am like 51% on each, so I’m also equally the opposite 🤪. Lastly, my tendency is the questioner. If you end up taking these I’d love to know what yours are as well! Comment below or shoot me a message 😊

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