Here we are already! Approaching the end of my Second trimester, the first few weeks dragged but now time seems to be speeding up! And as I write this I can feel my little love kicking away in my belly. This is such a miracle, such a privilege to grow and carry a baby.

You know your for sure showing when people ask when your due. This second trimester has been amazing! We found out the gender, my belly has grown so I look pregnant now, I feel him move so much, we have started to slowly buy a few things, and have started to make lists and think about my birth plan. I always thought that when I was pregnant I would be on a shopping spree everyday buying all the things we ‘need’ early on. But only now as I head into the end of the second trimester have I felt the ‘nesting’ feeling everyone talks about. Before that I liked to look at things and make list, but mostly just connect, do yoga and read about pregnancy and birth.

We have received some gorgeous gifts already, new and preloved goods. Pre loved are my favorite, when a friend or family member gives you pieces of clothing that are special to them and their baby wore. Imagining him in some of those outfits is so surreal at times, well a lot of the time.

I am so excited for the birth and to meet this gorgeous little man! As I now approach the third trimester my mind is definitely being pulled to focusing on the birth. I will talk about some books I have been reading and have purchased below. This month we start out hypno-birthing class too , this is happening!

Nutrition

My eating has pretty much gone back to normal. I am managing to eat all my greens and grains again! So happy about that, I was starting to run out of things to eat! It was a slow process but my meals are more creative and exciting now. I can eat more things and I have more energy to cook them. Some of my staple meals have been:

• Red bean chilli with baked potatoes
• Homemade spelt pizza
• Brown Lentil cottage pie
• Wraps
• Homemade veggie burgers
• Brown rice vermicelli and veg soup
• Chick pea crepes with mushroom and kale

Some nutrition points to focus on during this trimester is healthy fats for omegas as baby’s brain is growing rapidly, getting your greens in for iron and protein,  calcium , magnesium and vitamin D for bone development.

Healthy Fats – chia seeds, nuts, green leafy vegetables, olives, avocado, flaxseed oil. 

Reducing Calcium Loss

A number of factors affect calcium loss from the body:

• Diets that are high in protein cause more calcium to be lost through the urine. Protein from animal products is much more likely to cause calcium loss than protein from plant foods. This may be one reason that vegetarians tend to have stronger bones than meat-eaters.
• Diets high in sodium increase calcium losses in the urine.
• Caffeine increases the rate at which calcium is lost through urine.
• Smoking increases the loss of calcium from the body.

A number of factors increase bone building in the body:

• Exercise is one of the most important factors in maintaining bone health.
• Exposure to sunlight allows the body to make the bone-building hormone vitamin D.
• Eating a plentiful amount of fruits and vegetables helps to keep calcium in bone.
• Consuming calcium from plant-based sources, especially green vegetables and beans, provides one of the building blocks for bone building.

Exercise and a diet moderate in protein will help to protect your bones. People who eat plant-based diets and are active probably have lower calcium needs. However, it is still important to eat calcium-rich foods every day.

*Information on Calcium taken from PCRM Website.

 

Red bean chilli with Baked potatoe

1 Tblspn coconut oil (for frying)- or water

Half a Medium onion

1 clove of garlic

1 tsp dried coriander

sprinkle of dried chilli (depending on how hot you like your food)

2 Roma Tomatoes chopped

1 Tin red kidney or black beans

1 Cup mushrooms sliced

1/2 Red Pepper

3/4 Cup Tomato Puree

2 Tblspn Coconut Sugar

Directions

Melt oil, add in onion and fry until starting to brown, then add garlic, coriander and chilli. Stir and simmer for 3 minutes. Add in your tomatoes, mushrooms pepper and sugar.  Allow to sit for 5 minutes, once it has softened add in your beans and tomato puree and allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes turning down the heat.

Serve with Baked potatoes, fresh coriander and avocado if you have (;

 

Yoga

My Yoga practice has been my saviour, it has eased any aches and pains I have, as well as any mental turbulence and anxiety. Pregnancy has many changes, and a lot of things to think about from – birth,  to how you plan to raise your child. Yoga helps bring me back to my centre and breath. It will all be ok!

I have had a stronger practice this trimester as my energy levels have been better. I have found ways to adjust flows and postures to make space for baby. I have really been enjoying all the hip openers I can get (deep squats!)  as well as strengthening my arms and legs.

I am busy working on editing 2 videos I have made for the 1st and 2nd trimester to follow during your pregnancy. Hoping to upload them in the next few weeks 🙂

Emotional well being

This Trimester has been good in this department. Im finding more time and energy to connect and rebalance life a bit. I have more energy so am able to do more in my days and within my Yoga practice, but to still be aware of my pace and take it easy as I need. I am growing a human after all and a lot of my energy is directed at him . I have been loving the books I have put below. Finding new information all the time, ways to cope with different fears and anxieties about pregnancy and birth. They are real friends! It has been so beneficial to do my research and remember our bodies were made to birth and that we got this. Removing fear from birth! More about this in my next post 🙂  Take each day as it comes, and know its all going to be ok.

On the down side, we have had some awful smells with our local dump. This has created a lot of stress for me as it gets into our home. We luckily have 2 rooms downstairs it doesn’t get into so we hide in there with the air purifiers when it does come. Doing what we can to stay away as much as possible. Blocking all our nooks around the house with newspaper to keep it out! There seems to be progress with sorting the problem . Please do spread awareness and visit Upper highway NPO for more information.

I do hope this post are helpful and informative. I love being pregnant! it is such a blessing. There are many things you can do to help your pregnancy to be more comfortable and enjoyable. Lots of natural way to ease aches and pains. Please comment down below with any question. Remember you are creating life, building a new little miracle, that is huge , that is magic!

My husbands idea of baby shopping 😉

Helpful Books

Ina Mays Guide to breastfeeding

The kind Mama Alicia Silverstone

Beyond the Sling- Mayim Bialik

Conscious Parenting- Shefali tsabary

Healthy Kids – Mary Ann Shearer

Websites for great information

Mama Natural

Oh she glows

Dr Sears

Sources

PCRM