How My Third Pregnancy Has Been Different

No two pregnancies are alike, right? But my pregnancies with my oldest two were a lot more alike…and then this third baby has been a game changer! So today I’m sharing how this third pregnancy has been different from my others!

Let me start off by saying that this is actually my fourth pregnancy. I had an early miscarriage with my very first, but this is my third baby and it’s always confusing, so I just wanted to clear that up.

I have had some people tell me that if this pregnancy feels that different, then maybe it’s a girl this time. Ha! I don’t know yet, but it’s not so much that this pregnancy feels different as it’s just been an all-around different experience than with my first two kiddos.

HOW MY THIRD PREGNANCY HAS BEEN DIFFERENT

I Started Showing Super Early

I’m not kidding. With Mr. Four, I didn’t really start showing in earnest until I was around 18 weeks pregnant. And even then, if I hadn’t been trying to show off my bump, no one really would have noticed for several more weeks!

With Mr. Two, I started to show a bit earlier. I think by 13 weeks people were glancing at my tummy, and I could tell they were suspicious before we made the announcement.

This time around, however, I was legit showing by 10 weeks. I was actually in maternity pants (also known as Stretchy Heaven) at 8 or 9 weeks, and by 10 weeks there was no denying the baby bump!

Y’all, my abs have given up!

I am So Much More Exhausted

There’s no denying that the first trimester pregnancy exhaustion lays you out flat, and this time around was no exception. There were days when I stayed on the couch for majority of the day, rising only to change diapers, prepare food, and help out on the potty. Otherwise, we watched a lot more TV than I like and I begged them to play in the living room where I could keep an eye on them.

The second Blaise would walk in the door in the evenings, I’d fall asleep. Noise, being jumped on…none of it mattered. I slept through the evenings, and even ate several suppers lying down on the couch. I had to stop teaching online at around 7 weeks, because getting up so early and then teaching with so much energy exhausted me to the point of tears.

I was a hot mess, y’all!

I could tell that my energy was starting to pick back up around 12 weeks, but I still haven’t made a full comeback. I can get through the whole day without a nap now – at 17 weeks – and I’m going to slowly start opening my online teaching schedule back up.

But man, that first trimester was ROUGH.

And what I’ve noticed is that really, if we have a “busy” day, I’m wiped out by the end of it. I don’t know if it’s still lingering exhaustion, if it’s because I’m in my mid-30s and not as young as I once was, or maybe a combination of the two. But I am feeling it a lot more than in pregnancies past!

My Pregnancy Nausea Has Been So Much Worse

I’m not even going to call it morning sickness, because for me, it’s an all-day-long experience. Lucky me! It seems to have gotten progressively worse with each pregnancy. It started a bit later this time, probably around 7 weeks, but it slammed hard. I didn’t vomit often, but I definitely felt nauseous and super sensitive to the sight and smell of foods.

Strangely enough, Week 13 was actually the very worst week this time around. Just when I thought it would start to get better, I started vomiting…and that was even while I was already on anti-nausea medicines.

I was so discouraged that at one point I laid on the couch and just cried and prayed throughout the boys’ nap time.

It has only been in the last couple of weeks that I feel like I’ve finally turned a corner. I still have to eat a protein-heavy breakfast as soon as I get up, or I start dry heaving. Fun stuff. But instead of absolutely needing to eat every hour, I’m finally down to eating just my regular meals, plus a couple of light snacks. And for this I am seriously praising the Lord!

My Boys are So Excited for This Baby

When I was pregnant with Mr. Two, Mr. Four was still not even 2 years old. He didn’t understand what was happening until much closer to my due date, and even then, he had no idea how a new baby was going to rock his world.

This time around, Mr. Four has been so excited! He likes to look at my baby app each week to find out how big the baby is, and we bought an at-home doppler so we could all listen to the baby’s heartbeat. The boys love that!

Mr. Two still doesn’t quite understand. He knows a baby is my belly and he LOVES babies, so he’s excited about getting one of his own. 🙂

It has been so much fun this time around to talk about it with them, and it has opened the door for loads of conversations about when life begins and how God knits us together and knows us intimately when we’re still in the womb. It’s precious!

We Were Not So Tight-lipped about Announcing This Pregnancy

Since I started showing so early, we announced our pregnancy to friends and family super early. We always tell those closest to use early, like 6 or 7 weeks, but this time we were telling people at church, people at the store, our neighbors.

We planned for several weeks the cutesy way we would tell our families with Mr. Four. With Mr. Two, we involved Mr. Four in our announcement, but it was still way more casual. This time, we just told people. And some people we didn’t even actually announce it to, we just started talking about it like they already knew.

Poor third baby! 😜

I’m Not as Rigid about Things Like Caffeine

When I was pregnant with Mr. Four, I completely cut out caffeine from my life. It was the saddest thing, because there was no decaf substitute in Africa. But I had previously miscarried and I wanted to do everything as perfectly as possible. So I just drank water all day long.

With Mr. Two, I had a small bit of coffee each morning, and then no more caffeine the rest of the day. This time around, my doctor told me how much coffee I could have, and I definitely drink to the limit. And some days I throw in a Dr. Pepper or a hot cup of tea. I’m not going overboard, but I’m much less concerned than I was before.

And I may have licked the brownie batter spoon. #justkeepingitreal

I Don’t Have a Clue Where Any of My Pregnancy Books Are

And I’m not going to look for them. Mr. Four and I look at my baby app together each week, and other than that, if I have a question I either ask my doctor, my friends, or my doula. I’ve done this twice before, and though every pregnancy is different and each pregnancy is exciting, there’s very little mystery about what is going to happen and when.

I’m Enjoying It More

It’s actually been a really laid-back pregnancy. I have been far less anxious than my previous pregnancies. And so far, I have had fewer issues, even this early. It has definitely been different, but it’s a really good feeling to not be the worried first-time mom this time around!

I’m also trying to really enjoy it (and now that the nausea is fading, I can), because we think this might be our last biological child. We have hearts for adoption, and with the blood pressure issues I have each pregnancy, it feels riskier each time. We feel fairly confident that unless God has a surprise for us later, this will be our last pregnancy.

We are excited to see how God might continue to grow our family in the future, if that’s His will, but it means we’re savoring this pregnancy as if it’s our last.

How have your pregnancies been different?