I cannot believe I am now past my second trimester! There seems like nine million things to do each trimester of pregnancy, but here’s my short and sweet list of the things that really stand out as important to me for the second trimester.
second trimester to dos:
Plan + have gender reveal party!
We did this right around the end of my first trimester/beginning of my second. We had some close friends and family to our backyard, had some snacks and super cute cookies, and Clay and I broke open a white heart-shaped pinata to find out… it’s a girl! You can read more about it here and see some photos!
Create registry.
This gave me flashbacks from wedding planning! Registering can feel a bit overwhelming, but my advice? Do it in stages. Start with the essentials. Add in the fun stuff. Shop and add along the way. I created my registry through Babylist and loved that any time I saw something I wanted online, I could click the nifty “add to babylist” button at the top of my computer screen! I also used my friends from Branch Basics’ non-toxic baby registry as a helpful guide.
Buy maternity sleeping pillow.
Truth be told I bought this pillow when I was eight weeks since I was experiencing some early back pain and thought it would help. But I really didn’t need it until my second trimester. I love that it helps me sleep easily on either side as well as my back–which, of course, I only do slightly propped up.
Maternity shop!
Take my advice, and do this before you really need maternity clothes! Clay and I had been trying not to spend money, so I had held off on maternity shopping. But right around 20 weeks it all crept up on me and suddenly nothing fit! And I mean not one pair of my workout shorts! Save yourself from the emotional meltdown I had, and hit up Old Navy online (they have surprisingly cute and cheap stuff) and of course my absolute fave for nicer dresses and all sorts of goodness, Pink Blush!
Furnish nursery.
I was already starting to get a bit uncomfortable bending over and taking measurements in my second trimester. I’m so glad we got our furniture ordered and set up when we did! Plus, adding the cute decor stuff takes time, so I am happy we got the big items–our crib, dresser, rocker and rug–square away.
Tour hospital or birthing center.
As much as I wanted a home birth or looked into birthing centers, at the end of the day we decided to deliver at the hospital where my doctor delivers. Living in Los Angeles with crazy, unpredictable traffic I just didn’t want to take any risks of not getting the care we needed if, God forbid, something go wrong. I actually felt much better about delivering at the hospital after taking the tour and hearing more about the staff. They seem to be surprisingly natural-minded!
Take some classes.
In addition to the hospital tour, we also took a “preparing for childbirth” class, a “babycare basics” class, and a breastfeeding class at the hospital. I felt better having taken the classes and knowing Clay was right there with me getting the info, too. We also signed up for the Mama Natural birth course and purchased an AHA infant CPR training video.
Choose a pediatrician.
We got a recommendation from a friend and ended up loving the first pediatrician we met. I did some research on other pediatricians/practices, but ended up feeling best about the one we had met. Unfortunately, our pediatrician can’t come to the specific hospital where we are delivering for that hospital check, so we got a recommendation from a nearby pediatrician from my doctor who is going to that that visit.
Order the Fresh Test for your glucose test!
Don’t want to drink that nasty glucola drink the doctor gives you? Me neither! I was so grateful a friend of mine told me about thefreshtest.com! (Not an ad, just really happy I found this!) It’s an all-natural version of the glucose drink for your glucose test. I asked my doctor if I could drink this instead, and she did not hesitate. It has exactly 50 grams of glucose, tastes delicious, and is free of harmful chemical ingredients to you and your baby.
Decide on baby shower details.
Help your hostess(es) decide on a date and time for your shower, theme and anything else that’s important to you! Send them a guest list with contact info for invites. And then relax and enjoy having the party being planned for you this time!
Plan + take babymoon!
We took our babymoon at 23 weeks. It was the perfect time in hindsight. I had about 4 weeks that were really great after my nausea finally subsided at 20 weeks and before the pelvic pain kicked in at 24 weeks. Clay and I did a little two-night getaway to sunny Palm Springs, CA. We hung out by the pool, ate yummy food (including breakfast in bed thanks to a sweet friend of mine!) and even got in a workout at the gym!
There you go! My list of second trimester to dos! And in case you missed it, here’s my list of 10 first trimester to dos! Only one more to go!
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PS my dress is on sale right now from Old Navy! Grab one here!
