the long first trimester update

Well, where do I even begin? I haven’t posted in months, and definitely have some explaining to do! It all started when I found out I was pregnant about 10 weeks ago(which I will dive into in a few minutes) and had really bad morning (all-day) sickness that basically removed all things kitchen and food from my life for a while. Then, I decided that if I couldn’t cook or recipe-develop I would focus my time and energy on my nutrition thesis and finishing school and just take a brief hiatus from the blog and my weekly meal plans and emails. Well, the not-so-brief hiatus is over and I am back! Maybe not with a lot of recipes at first since I am still not myself when it comes to eating and cooking, but definitely with pregnancy-related things! For those that aren’t interested in that topic, I’m sorry! But I promise the recipes will be back. 

So without further ado, here is my take on my first trimester pregnant with TWINS. 

So twins. Kind of crazy, right? A lot of people have been asking me questions regarding the twin thing so I thought I would cover some of those first. 

Are these natural twins?
Yes, yes they are! Mitch and I feel super lucky that we conceived twins naturally, without any fertility treatments. I am “blaming” my diet rich in healthy fats, which are crucial for fertility 😉 With that said, neither of us ever, ever thought this would happen and were completely surprised when we went to our 8 week ultrasound and saw two babes (aka blobs). 

Do they run in yours or Mitch’s family?
Since getting pregnant with twins, I have learned quite a bit on this topic, and learned that it only matters if twins run in the girl’s family, not the guy’s. This makes complete sense, actually! A girl may ovulate two eggs instead of one, and that can produce twins if both are fertilized, but it has nothing to do with the guy! A girl’s egg may also split after conception, which will also produce twins, but again, nothing to do with the guy. And as it turns out twins actually do run in my family on my dad’s side, and it looks like I may have gotten that gene from him. Also, fraternal twins are the type of twins that are genetic (the kind where two eggs are ovulated), and identical twins (the type where an egg splits) are not genetic, they’re kinda just a fun fluke;) 

Are your twins identical, or fraternal?
At our first appointment, we were told fraternal because our twins are di/di twins. This means they each have their own amniotic sac and their own placenta. Our high-risk doctor said this is pretty much like each twin having their own room and their own kitchen, and it’s the best care scenario with twins. Sometimes, they share a sac and a placenta, meaning they have less room to move around, and one twin may hog all of the food from that one placenta, leaving one twin smaller, and less-nourished. I am SO thankful that ours are di/di. 70% of the time, same-sex di/di twins are fraternal, but 30% of the time, they turn out to be identical (meaning one egg split and formed two amniotic sacs and two placentas), but we will not know if this happened until birth and get them genetically tested, or until we find out their sex. If they are boy/girl, there is obviously no way they are identical. 

Are you finding out the sex? Do you know them yet?
Yes, we are finding out. I may want to keep it a secret for future pregnancies, but I am too much of a planner to not know this first time around. We know that at least one twin is a boy! We opted to do a genetic blood test (the mom’s blood, not the baby’s) at 10 weeks (the MaterniT 21 Test) that tests for chromosomal abnormalities like Downs Syndrome, and many others (side note – this would not have changed the outcome of our pregnancy, we just wanted to know so we could be prepared down the road). It also tests for a Y chromosome. If your test comes back positive for a Y chromosome, you know there is at least one boy in there, but if the Y is absent, you know both are girls. It’s confusing, but hopefully that makes sense. Well, we tested negative for any chromosomal abnormalities and positive for a Y chromosome, meaning there is at least one boy! We will probably find out at our next ultrasound on July 5th, what the other baby is. 

I think that pretty much covers the top questions I’ve been asked about the twins and how they came about. Now, onto how this first trimester has been treating me. These are mainly iPhone notes, but I will try to add more detail as I remember it. Also, I am definitely very at risk of sounding like the biggest complainer ever. I feel like all I say during these weekly updates is “I feel sick, dizzy, have no appetite, blah blah, etc.” so if you don’t want the nitty gritty details on that, you should skip past these. 

Week 4 – this was about 10 weeks ago (feels so much longer than 10 weeks!) and the week I found out I was pregnant. The only real indicator, or symptom, that I might be pregnant was that I had heartburn for almost an entire week, and that is very abnormal for me. I would go to the gym and bend down to stretch, and basically choke on stomach acid lol Granted, this happens to me if I eat fried foods, or have been eating really poorly for a couple days, but never ever happens when my diet is normal and very clean. So, that was really the only symptom until I took a pregnancy test and it was positive! Week 4 was relatively uneventful, and everything was pretty much the same minus some cramping which just felt like menstrual cramps (turns out this was probably the twin embryo’s implanting into my uterus – called implantation cramping). My appetite was the exact same (in fact, I think I made about 5 blog recipes this week) and I was working out every day and very energized. I was obviously nervous and excited and didn’t know what to expect or do, but everything physically was pretty much normal. 

Week 5 – Cramps started going away and I was a little bit more tired. I started having some food aversions and cravings and would have to make or buy the meal I was craving, then I would want to die if I thought about that same food the next day. For instance, one day at the mall I could not get green curry off my mind, so I ordered some and went to pick it up for dinner. It hit the spot, but then the next day I could not even think about the curry and had to throw out all leftovers. The same thing started happening when I would make a dinner that sounded good (BLTs, lamb burgers, these roasted potatoes I couldn’t live without, popsicles etc). Little did I know, this was the beginning of the morning sickness. 

Week 6 – Nausea, dizziness, slight headaches, major food aversions, nothing sounds good, mainly want carbs and comfort foods, but like last week, after I eat what I want, I can’t think about it again. The exception this week is toast, especially cinnamon raisin. I remember this was the beginning of me discovering that bread and toast were my saving grace. I am someone that doesn’t eat bread often, hardly ever, so this was a major change for me and I definitely tried to fight it. Until I started giving in just to feel better. I also remember I would nap a lot this week because it seemed to help the nausea pass. This was also the week I started my thesis and I would prop my computer on the couch and type while laying down haha

Week 7 – Bad nausea, dizziness, can’t eat much other than cereal and bananas. Not able to drink much either which was definitely making everything worse (I normally drink about 100oz of water a day, but water made me feel like I would throw up). Terrible heartburn at night. My mom actually came to visit this week and I was very worried I would be the worst host ever. I had a few rough moments, but all in all I actually started to feel a little better the weekend she was here. We even went out for Meixcan and I got shrimp fajitas and felt amazing after. 

Week 8 – This is the week we went in to “confirm” the pregnancy with an ultrasound to hear the heartbeat – it was our first appointment. I was nervous about it because I am very aware how real and prevalent miscarriages are, but was actually less nervous because of how terrible I was feeling and I knew something had to be making me feel that way. This is the appointment we found out we were having not one, but two babies! The craziest morning ever! We were definitely really excited, but in a little bit of shock too. Like I said, we never thought twins would be on that screen. In terms of symptoms this week, I started to feel better. I was able to eat some chicken (before this, protein was not my friend), with mayo on toast. An odd combo, but bland is what worked. I started making myself drink green smoothies this week, but they had to have pineapple. Cold things sound the best, nothing hot. Kombucha and coconut water seemed to help the nausea and give me energy too, but I was very tired this week. By the time night rolled around, or even around noon, I felt like I could sleep just about anywhere. I also started eating eggs and toast this week which made me so happy because eggs are one of the best foods for growing a baby. This week I also stopped eating only cereal and bananas, and started drinking chocolate almond milk in the mornings which seemed to help. I worked out once this week (I remember I did lunges, arm weights, squats, etc) and was so tired that night that I decided not to workout anymore for a while. I made a note that I could hardly floss my teeth… dramatic but true. 

Week 9 – Feeling better this week! I’ve been waking up around 8:30 (pre-pregnancy I would wake up at 7 at the latest) and then have to take a nap around 11:30. I am just so tired. Eggs and gluten free toast are my breakfast and a green smoothie is my goal every day. This week we went to one of my best friend’s weddings in Florida and it went well. Being outside was very helpful and moving around a lot. I was so tired both nights we were there but managed to hide the pregnancy with lots and lots of sparkling water and lime:)

Week 10 – got a cold while we were in Florida, or maybe from the airplane, so feeling a little less energized this week than normal. I haven’t had coffee since week 5 because it didn’t sound good, and went into Starbucks this week daily to work on my thesis. The first day I couldn’t stomach the coffee, but it got better each day and I was able to get so much more work done. The nausea is better, but gets worse at night. I don’t really have an appetite for dinner, and I go to bed early to avoid the nausea getting too bad. It’s almost like the heartburn causes the nausea. I am still very tired and nap each day. I started craving cottage cheese this week, and any type of melon. Watermelon and cold oranges are the best. Lemon water is also the only type of water I drink and I love it. Still trying to drink a green smoothie each day. 

Week 11 – a lot nausea and heartburn at night, but able to eat chicken and things with a bit more flavor. We went to Italy this week and I felt great! I think it had a lot to do with constant snacking on delicious foods, walking around a lot and generally keeping my mind off of things. I was TERRIFIED in Italy of listeria, a bacteria that can be deadly to an unborn baby, and is found on soft cheeses and deli meats (which is why pregnant women aren’t supposed to consume them). Well, that’s pretty much Italy, and I was nervous towards the last half of our trip since their food handling is so very different than the US’s. One weird aversion I had in Italy – pasta. Of all things. Which might be for the best because I might have eaten a lot more had it sounded good. I also didn’t want gelato like I thought I would. I was mainly still into the comforting carbs, and didn’t really want sugar (again, probably a blessing!). 

Week 12 – Still in Italy this week and feeling okay all around. I had one migraine while we were there, and the nausea and heartburn definitely put us to bed early most nights (sorry Mitch!) but all in all I was starting to feel better and didn’t have to eat the first second I got out of bed. Big improvement in my eyes! We got home towards the end of week 12 and I had a hard time getting back on track with the time change. My nausea seemed to reverse because my body seemed to confuse days and nights, and my nightly heartburn and nausea turned into all-day heartburn and nausea. Not fun, and it totally felt like I regressed. We went to the doctor this week too, for our first high risk (Materal Fetal Medicine Doctor) appointment and had an in-depth ultrasound. So fun! The babies actually looked like babies instead of baby blobs and it was amazing. Baby A is blurry because this baby loves to move around a lot and they couldn’t get a clear pic. Baby B is a little less rambunctious. 

And here we are now! Week 13 was pretty much a mirror (ugh) of week 12, and now I am 14 weeks 2 days, and actually feel great today. I had a pregnancy low on Sunday, and I hope it’s the end of lows. I got a pretty bad migraine (which have become more frequent lately, thanks to the hormones and change in diet I think) and they tend to make me very nauseous (and I can’t take Excedrin migraine while prego). Well, I tried to go to the grocery store with Mitch and on our second stop at Whole Foods I couldn’t handle the pain and just ran to the bathroom and threw up green smoothie everywhere. And my sunglasses went right into the toilet. After that I went home and slept for 3 hours and then called it a day. This no Excedrin business is awful, but I am finding DoTerra Essential oils to be helpful – peppermint and lavender. 

But, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and the past week I have been able to wake up at 7, which is great because I love mornings and was sad I was sleeping in so much. I have also been able to eat my morning eggs without toast and without feeling sick afterwards which is another big win (I really don’t want to live on toast my entire pregnancy, even though I think some is okay). I also don’t feel the need to nap and feel all around more energized. Last night I ate a good dinner, which hasn’t been happening for the past couple of weeks, and went to bed without feeling super nauseas. I am crossing my fingers this lasts because I would love to get back to some recipe-developing and some sort of workout routine without feeling like I need 5 naps throughout the day. I also would love to get to a point (it’s starting!) where I don’t have to force feed myself from the hours of 3-8pm. I love food, eating, and cooking, and it’s been a weird 10 weeks for me for sure. 

I’ll be writing a post each week throughout the pregnancy, so here goes my first. 

Week 14

The twins: the size of large lemons. 

Craving: peaches! I have been eating two/day and love them. Also starting to crave salads again. Whole milk (I am drinking about 3-4 glasses/day), whole milk greek yogurt, Graeter’s mint chip;) cheeseburgers (horray for wanting red meat!)

Wearing: all of my same clothes. No where close to needing maternity clothes yet. It’s way too hot in Texas for jeans, so I don’t think I’ll have to go that route which is nice. I’m thinking h&m and old navy dresses, and I’ve heard asos has great things too. 

Sleeping: Sleeping has been great this week…I maybe wake up once, but that’s normal for me. 

Names: We don’t know yet! We have a couple in mind, but it will depend on the gender. 

The Bump: Seems to be getting a littttle bigger, especially at night. It’s almost like I am not pregnant when I wake up in the mornings because the bump has gone down significantly. I’ve heard this from numerous moms, and it’s interesting! Sorry for my unmade bed. 

Exercise: I haven’t worked out at all this week, mainly because I’ve been working on finishing my thesis presentation that’s due on Sunday. We belong to a great gym with a lot of classes and my goal is to start doing a 30 minute spin class, yoga, PiYo and barre 3-4 times/week, but it hasn’t happened yet. Along with treadmill walking and free weights. 

Baby Purchases: None yet, just a few onesies and cute books from friends. I started an amazon.com registry last week, but haven’t visited it since. My showers have to be early (before 24ish weeks) because they require flying (Denver and Ohio) so I need to get on it! 

Supplements: I take Vital Nutrient’s Prenatals, fish oil, cod liver oil, probiotic, b-complex, vitamin d (thanks to our lack of sunshine lately) and vitamin k2 

What’s Next(appointments, etc):  I go to two doctors, my regular OBGYN for monthly checkups (blood pressure, weight, urine sample, baby’s heart beats etc), and then I see the Maternal Fetal Specialist every month (roughly) for ultrasounds. My next MFS appointment is July 5th for a 2 hour! anatomy scan, so that should be a fun one. 

Weight Gain: According to my scale, I’ve gained 2 lbs. Woohoo! According to a lot of research on twin pregnancies, you actually want to gain most of the weight in the first and second trimesters to increase your chances of going “full term”, which with twins is 36 weeks. With my weird appetite in the first trimester I didn’t gain any weight, so I need to pack it on in the next few months;) 

Any Worries? Zika. What a weird time to be pregnant with so many unknowns. I read a great article the other day about Houston and the mosquitos that carry the Zika virus. They have yet to find and confirm that any of the Aedes Mosquitos in Houston carry the virus, and this article explains it. Good read! Right now I am just avoiding being outside to be honest. I tried to go on a walk last week and mosquitos galore, so I am not risking it anymore!