I can hardly believe the first trimester came and went so quickly… and then again it also seemed to creep on by! I was super sick my first trimester, and well into my second. But that didn’t stop me from cherishing every single day I have with this babe!
I’m a natural-born list-maker, so I find it only appropriate that I make a list of “to dos” for each trimester. Without further ado, here’s my list of…
10 first trimester to dos!
1. CELEBRATE!
Tell your spouse, tell your family, tell your close friends. Take a moment to just relish in the miracle that is growing inside of you!
2. Buy some books.
I’m a learner. I love reading. My hubby gives me a hard time ’cause I find it hard to read for pleasure. But now is the time for sure to read to learn–if it’s your first pregnancy like me, at least! I bought What to Expect When You’re Expecting, Pushed, and Nurture. A friend let me borrow Mama Natural Week-by-Week Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth–which I love! And my sister sent me Jenny McCarthy’s somewhat edgy but inarguably hilarious Belly Laughs.
3. Download some apps.
It’s super fun tracking baby’s progress each week. My favorite two apps are The Bump and BabyCenter. They are both easy to read and super informative. And they both allow you to upload weekly bump photos… which brings me to…
4. Start taking weekly bump photos!
I debated whether or not to do this, but I read on Angela Lanter’s blog that this was one of the things she regretted not doing. So I thought, “Why not?” And I mean, I love photos a lot. I’m sure I won’t end up needing one from every single week, but it’s nice to have. My pregnancy journal even has a spot to print and paste them… which brings me to…
5. Order a pregnancy journal.
I’m a big journaler. (My spell check is telling me that isn’t a word, but I’m saying it is!) I got this cute journal pictured above on Etsy. There are so many different kinds, but I love that this one is so detailed. It has everything from weekly updates to doctor’s appointments to baby registry checklists to baby shower gift log lists and more!
6. Order a comfy bra to sleep in.
Okay, one of the first symptoms I had in pregnancy was really sore breasts! Like I had to sleep in a comfy bra or else I’d wake up in pain! This True&Co. bra literally saved my life. It could not be more comfortable.
7. Order ingredients to make your own stretch mark cream!
Or at least I wanted to make my own… It’s cheaper and I wanted to make sure I was putting only high quality, chemical-free goodness on my skin–as always, but especially while pregnant. I followed a recipe from Mama Natural listed here.
8. Take some meds if you need ’em!
I am so anti-medicine. I use essential oils for everything. But no essential oils could assist with my debilitating nausea. There were days in my sixth week of pregnancy (over Christmas with my family in Texas no less) that I couldn’t get out of bed until 4pm. I was in true survival mode. And well, Diclegus just about saved me. No, it didn’t take the nausea away completely, but it did amazing wonders to give me a bit of my life back! So cut yourself some slack if you need some meds. And just remember, this, too, shall pass. (For me it was at 19 weeks!)
9. Schedule + take announcement photos.
We took our announcement photos on the beach. We brought our sonogram photos and a sweet onesie a friend had given us to use as props. I love the photos we got from Sarah with Apple Rose Photography so much. I even framed one–which I rarely do!
10. Announce your growing family to the world!
I truly couldn’t wait to announce our good news! I wanted to share right away. After miscarrying and knowing that I would write about our journey regardless of what happened, I though why not share right away? But after talking through it with Clay, we decided to wait until about 12 weeks to announce. After all, there’s also something special about keeping the news just between you, your hubs, your family, closest friends and the Author of your family for a little while. To each their own on when and how to do this. Everyone’s story and circumstances are different. And I say–do you!
There you go–my list of first trimester to dos!
Now obviously there are SO many other things to do, or that you can do, or that you might want to do in the first trimester. But these are my top 10! I hope they are helpful to you. And CONGRATS, MAMA!
Until next trimester… :)
Photo: Apple Rose Photography
