I have officially made it through the first trimester! Woohoo! Supposedly the second trimester is going to be the best out of the three. I’ll see about that. One thing I have realized is that many of my ideas about pregnancy are wrong or things have happened that I had no clue about. I’m sure it would be different if I actually read the pregnancy books you are supposed to read, but who has time for that? So here’ what I have learned….I guess the hard way.

1. You can start having pregnancy symptoms very soon after conception. Mine started after only 5 days. I have even judged people (publicly) for having symptoms too early. I chalked it all up to being a drama queen. What did I know? NOTHING. So I’m apologizing to those I have judged wherever you may be now.
2. The main symptoms of pregnancy you hear about is the nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and breast tenderness. Oh but there are so MANY more (not that those don’t completely suck). The main few I have had are an awful metallic taste in my mouth, dehydration (I never seem to not be thirsty), and food aversion (something is wrong when you turn down a Reese’s peanut butter cup). There are even more symptoms than that. Those are just the ones I’ve faced this pregnancy. Oh and I almost forgot about the hormones. Let me go cry for a few minutes before I finish this post.
3. When you say, “I’m ____weeks pregnant” it is not how long the baby has been in you. It is from the date of your last period began. I was so proud to be able to jump from saying I was three weeks pregnant to five. It made me feel proud of my little one is some silly way. “You go baby! Look at you adding two more weeks to your life.” (please refer to the end of number #2 for rationale on that thinking)
4. Not all women will show at the same time (or even close to the same time). A coworker of mine is due the day after me. She has a cute little baby bump. I don’t. I have mixed feelings about this. Bodies are completely different in this respect and even from one pregnancy to the next it can be different.
5. Your first sonogram is such a joy (if you are prepared for it). You finally make it to the 8-10 weeks they make you wait before your first doctor’s visit. You go in expecting to get a glimpse of your sweet little one on the sonogram screen. You’ve seen in the movies what an amazing experience it is to raise up your shirt, have them squirt the sonogram gel on your tummy, and show you your baby. Unfortunately, that is not reality at this point.  As Ryan and I sat for over and hour and a half (part of why I’m seeing a new doctor) in the room waiting for the doctor, we had A LOT of time to look around. Then he points over at the sonogram machine. “Hey, that thing has a condom on. I bet I know where that’s going.” My thoughts were surely not. But, oh YES. Usually your first sonogram is an internal one (not the romanticized experience I had envisioned). Future first time preggos…. remember this! Apparently I wasn’t paying attention when I watched Knocked Up the first time.

All that aside, it has been a wonderful experience. Many days it does not seem real to me. I know that I am pregnant, but part of me thinks that I will not fully realize it until I feel the little one move. I’m looking forward to the second trimester, and I hope that there are fewer misconceptions over the next three months.