Pregnancy | Things that I have not enjoyed about being pregnant

While yes - this post may seem a little contradictory from my 'things I have enjoyed about pregnancy' where I preached about how pregnancy doesn't have to be 'that bad' it's not all doom and gloom and f course don't get me wrong I do still feel this way. That being said it ain't all sunshine and rainbows either - pregnancy can have it's tough moments - not necessarily in terms of symptoms and ailments but even psychologically, mentally an shockingly socially (you mean people DON'T love hanging out with the preggo who can't drink?! Shocking!)

Rude comments from everybody!
These unfortunately are not few and far between. In fact as soon as you mention the P word to pretty much anyone, suddenly EVERYONE has an opinion. Ranging from 'you should breastfeed' to 'are you sure there's a baby in there?' and my personal favourite 'you shouldn't be going back to work!' the world knows no bounds when it comes to weighing in on a pregnant persons choices. Feel free to have a read of my previous post 'S**t people say to pregnant women,' to continue the hilarity.

Feeling isolated from your friend group
It's difficult enough when your friends live in many and varying places in the UK but add pregnancy into the mix and it's a recipe for isolation. Being one of the first of my friend group to have a baby is very exciting and when we do get together for our chats it's lovely and supportive but it can feel like being stuck in limbo much of the time when you're the first and only pregnant friend - a bit like all of your friends going to the same school and you living outside of the catchment area and having to start a fresh.

The stretch marks

With my weight fluctuating throughout the years I'm no stranger to some stretch marks here and there, mainly confined to my thighs - but for me pregnancy has meant these unsightly purple looking tears are everywhere! I'm not one of the ladies who will be calling their stretch marks 'tiger stripes' because if it were a choice to have them there I certainly wouldn't. Of course I'm kitted out with all of the lotions, oils and bump butters you could imagine - do they work? I'm skeptical but only time I suppose will tell.

The wardrobe clear out

This certainly was a dark day in my house indeed, only worsened by the fact I found a pair of my favourite Topshop jeans, never before worn with the tags still on in a size 12. Regardless of pregnancy I was due a wardrobe clear out and tidy - but when you're packing away pairs of your favourite jeans, skirts that you'll miss and dresses you hadn't even had an opportunity to wear - I'm not going to lie it stings a bit. 

Feeling super unfit
Don't get me wrong before this pregnancy I was by no means at the peak of my physical fitness - but I'm not saying I miss high intensity spin classes by any means - what I really miss though is being able to go for a lunchtime walk and not have a stitch in my side, or being able to walk along the beach on a hot day and not have cankles weighing me down. I'm looking forward to getting back into doing a bit more exercise once the baby is born and get my body back to feeling more 'myself' again.

Sorry if this post seemed like a rant, but I'm generally quite a ranty person so what else did you really expect from me with a post of this title? Hopefully you have enjoyed having a bit more of an insight into my pregnancy in general - as I said previously I am aware many people have gone through far worse during their pregnancy and being pregnant in itself is a blessing this is just my experience because really who elses experience would I be writing about?!

Until next time,

H.Elizabeth x

Pregnancy | Things I have enjoyed about being pregnant

Pregnancy is not all doom and gloom - to be quite honest I feel as though I may have got off pretty lightly when it comes to symptoms. There have so far been no major aches, pains, trips to the hospital and no odd cravings at 2am which has really been a blessing, though my affinity for ice cream recently could be put down to pregnancy, or the nicer weather, who knows?

Today in light of my relatively good fortune I wanted to share some of the little things I have  really enjoyed about being pregnant because some of these things I don't feel are spoken about enough. When we were trying for a baby I read a tonne of pregnancy blogs and watched hundreds of You Tube videos revolving around the pregnancy experience, signs and symptoms and essentially what I could be in for and I'll be honest, most of those posts were damn scary! But it doesn't have to be, at least it doesn't have to be all of the time, so here are my top 5 things I have so far enjoyed about being pregnant.

That glow though 

I never in a million years expected that the 'pregnancy glow' would be real. I had images of nine months of having, dull, dry skin and feeling quite miserable with my appearance simply because of morning sickness (which I had convinced myself I'd have forever - I didn't by the way!) After my first trimester I had a surge in hormones that helped clear up my skin and give me a nice, healthy glow which I have never had before. My skin has quite literally never been better, it feels more plump, hydrated and glowy - long may it continue!

Hair envy
Not only has my skin taken a turn for the better but my hair has too. Gone are the days of rubbing oils, lotions and potions on to my scalp to encourage hair growth, I can't seem to get it to stop! While Nick now says living with me is much akin to living with a werewolf I'm just so happy that it's growing that I don't mind a bit of shedding...or, more accurately plunging the shower drain on a weekly basis - grim, but worth it.

Comfy clothes all day everydayMaternity clothes really aren't that bad. With stores like Topshop, New Look, ASOS and Boohoo killing it with their range of flattering maternity clothes I haven't found getting clothes I like to be a struggle and seriously though - where have maternity jeans been all of my life?! I don't think I'll ever give up my comfy stretchy paneled clothes now - pregnancy or no pregnancy it's comfy clothes all the way.

Kicks and fluttersThough I didn't start feeling my baby until much later than others due to my anterior placenta cushioning her every move, when I did it was pretty special. It's an odd and surreal feeling of course considering the only movement I'd been used to in there previously would be a dodgy burger, but it's nice to know she's in there communicating thorough her movements to let me know she's doing just fine.

Closer as a couple
Most women say they feel quite isolated from their partners during pregnancy, I understand why, it is of course the woman who goes through the carrying of the baby, the lifestyle changes and of course the physical changes and it can be tough. But I feel as though since being pregnant Nick and I are closer than ever, from spending time talking about important future decisions to the more fun aspects like baby clothes and nursery shopping I feel as though we're more in sync than ever as a result.

So you see ladies and gents? It's not all doom and gloom. Of course I'm not by any means saying pregnancy is a breeze and it can definitely be difficult at times (when you have to say goodbye to your fave outfit for example!) but it doesn't have to be scary.

Thank you so much for having a read of yet another pregnancy post I'll be back with my second trimester update pretty soon and I may share some of the things I haven't enjoyed quite so much about pregnancy if you're interested in reading that too. Until then though you can catch me on the usual channels, Twitter, Instagram and Bloglovin.

Until next time,

H.Elizabeth x

What bits does our growing human have? | We're having a....

I thought long and hard about how I ought to write this post. In a world where social media reigns supreme and the way in which you announce that you're having a baby, or their gender or indeed what your cat ate that day has never been more important, announcing which bits your growing human has currently stands as one of the biggest things you COULD share online. Needless to say I felt the pressure.

But to hell with pressure. Growing a human is such a special enough experience, and I don't need bells and whistles. Who needs a fancy pants way of announcing it to a bunch of strangers you've never really met or gotten to know? (sorry guys but it's true) So today we're not slicing open a cake which has taken hours, a witches curse and the blood of a lamb to make, we're not bursting confetti filled balloons (and making an almighty mess I may add) and we're certainly not doing a cutesy video (because growing a person is an effort enough without all of the editing!) instead we're simply going to say....

We're having a GIRL!

Until next time,

H.Elizabeth x