Hey guys! If you haven’t already heard the big news from Saturday’s post on social media… I AM PREGNANT! I can’t even tell you how excited we are and how difficult it has been to keep this amazing news a secret. I’ve been wanting to shout it from the rooftops, and at times… I did. Since I couldn’t tell everyone that I personally knew, I would tell random people…. waiters, grocery clerk, even a  guy at my car dealership got the news. I had to tell someone!

Let’s dial it back to when we first found out.

January is a dry month for this girl, which means no alcoholic beverages for 31 days. I tend to do this every year as its a great kick start for a healthy New Year and a detox from all the holiday treats and wine. Although it doesn’t actually matter if you had a glass or two of wine a night before or during the beginning stages of pregnancy, I kind of love the fact that I was at my healthiest when we got pregnant (which was at the end of January).  February 14th aka Valentine’s Day came along and we definitely indulged in a cocktail or three. When I found out I was pregnant a couple days later, I couldn’t help but think back on that margarita and bottle of wine we consumed a few days prior. I was devastated. After further investigation, I learned the baby does not grasp your bad habits (alcohol, drugs, smoking, etc.) until weeks later in your pregnancy. This made me feel a lot better. Still, if you’re trying to get pregnant… it’s time to quit smoking, taking drugs, and overly partying.

I didn’t find out any other way other than the fact that I missed my period. Normally, I am regular and if I wasn’t regular… I was early. When I missed the first day of my period, I thought it was a little strange but I wouldn’t get my hopes up. Day two and no “friend” coming to town… means this girl is rushing to CVS on her lunch break. The first test showed a very faint line that had me going to google for questions. Everyone was saying if there is a faint line, it means you are pregnant. I took out test #2, defective! Perfect! Questions unanswered. This leaves me spinning for the rest of my work day. 5pm came and I made my way back to CVS to purchase yet another two pack pregnancy test. This time, I got the best one they had… giving it to me straight: PREGNANT OR NOT PREGNANT (with a bonus of how many weeks along you are). I get home, silently waved to my sister, and made my way to the bathroom. After what feels like a million minutes, the stick read PREGNANT (2-3 weeks). First of all, I’M PREGNANT and second, wait.. 2-3 weeks? Eek, the margarita moment starts to come to mind. Take a breathe. Unfortunately, for a person who loves to plan things and make a big to-do over these life moments, JJ was driving himself to a golf tournament in Brawley, California at this very moment. He left that Tuesday and wouldn’t get home until Sunday. There was NO way I could wait until Sunday. I had to tell someone in front of me! Lexie was sitting on the couch listening to the TV while looking down at her phone when I put the stick in front of her. She gasped and jumped up and hugged me! We were so excited! Alright, now I have to call JJ before I spill it to anyone else. I FaceTimed him while he was just getting to Danny and Julianne’s, having drinks and catching up. Although I love those two a lot, I really wanted to tell JJ in private. I convinced him that I had a comment/news about the house renovation and I needed to talk to him quietly about it. He moved to the other side of the room and I put up the stick. He looked a little confused and asked what it was. “I’m pregnant!” He immediately was like, “What! No way! YES!!!” We were both beaming with excitement yet so sad that we couldn’t be together to share this amazing moment. So there you have it… I told my husband through FaceTime. Thank goodness for Apple.

We spent the evening calling our parents and siblings (3 way calling) to tell them the great news. This is the first grandbaby for both of our families so they all couldn’t be more excited!

The last 13.6 weeks has been intense to say the least but we got through it. Pregnant, filming for a reality show, and beginning a month and a half long renovation on our house all began at the same time. JJ was living in Tampa for a month and I was living at my mother-in-laws with my sister and 3 dogs while he was away. Yet it’s in the past, we got through it, and it was all for good reason.

The first trimester. I didn’t have it half as bad as some of the women that I’ve read about, being sick 24/7 and constantly throwing up. For me, I was exhausted, had TERRIBLE skin, and was hangry all the time. Maybe three to four days tops of feeling nauseous. Yet hangry I was. If I ate a large meal, it felt like 15 minutes later I would be starving again. Vegetables (which most people know I adore)  grossed me out and I even found myself gagging at the smell of onions in the morning. No vegetables for me, please! At the beginning, I was too scared to exercise. I attempted go for a run one day and could feel up and down movement in my stomach, which freaked me out. From feeling so exhausted all the time, I probably didn’t go to the gym for weeks… maybe even a month. The worst of it all, my skin was absolutely terrible. You didn’t find me posting selfies on social media or snap chat as there was no filter that would hide my whole face. Breakouts, breakouts, breakouts. I hate wearing makeup all the time, so if you saw me out and about in the daylight, I’m sorry… that wasn’t me, that was my hormones on my face. I wish I could have talked more about it when I was going through it, but during the 1st trimester you have quite a big secret to keep.

For anyone that is going through the same symptoms that I was. You’re in luck. It gets better! By week 10-11,  I felt less tired and less hangry and started to feel a lot more like myself again. By week 12 my skin was really starting to clear. Unfortunately for us pregnant people, scarring is yet another issue and I’m a picker. For all its worth, try not to pick!

Tomorrow is week 14 and I’m starting to get the hang of eating my vegetables again and not depriving myself of certain things “you can’t eat.” I believe if you are too strict on yourself, you won’t enjoy this time. Nine to ten months is a very long time. So these are my thoughts.

1. Runny Eggs: For the first trimester, I didn’t have runny eggs. It’s a no in the books and I was devastated by this loss. I decided for myself (and by a little encouragement from another pregnant friend) that I’m going to start eating them again. I purchase really good (organic, caged free) eggs that I trust and it’s something that I love to eat in the morning.
2. Alcohol. This is a very controversial topic as a lot of people have strong feelings about drinking alcohol while pregnant. I just had my first couple of sips of red wine at our anniversary dinner (followed by lots of water). I don’t plan to drink much or even anymore at all but I can’t say I wont drink either. I think you should be able to decide what you are most comfortable with.
3. Hair color and eyelash extensions. No color and removed my eyelash extensions when I found out I was pregnant. Talk about an ugly couple of months. When I took my eyelashes off, I felt BALDERLY than BALD. I am actually planning to have them put back in next week. I need to feel girly again. The other week I got my hair done for the first time since January and boy was that needed as well.
4. Soft cheeses. I stayed away from all soft cheeses during the first trimester. I wish I listened to the people around me when they would say you can have soft cheese but you just have to make sure it is pasteurized.  I took it originally as soft cheese are out.
5. Deli meat. Cold cuts are a no no unless you want to microwave the shit out of it before make it a sandwich for lunch. No, thank you. I’m not a big cold cut person to begin with so this hasn’t been that bad for me. I have stayed away from highly processed things such as bacon, sausage, prosciutto, etc. that has been the most difficult.
6. Fish. You can have a lot more fish than you think. No, you can’t indulge in your normal ahi tuna steak salad or weekly sushi dates for raw fish anymore but fully cooked fish like salmon is really good for you and your growing baby. You should just try to have it 2-3 times a week vs. daily. (Fish to avoid: Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish and any other fish with high levels of mercury)
7. Caffeine. You can have up to 200mg of caffeine a day while pregnant. Since I am also a chocolate lover, I decided to pick and choose what caffeine I would have throughout my day. To me, chocolate was more worth it. Since the beginning, I’ve been drinking decaf coffee and no caffeinated beverages(although I never drank soda before). The only time this was really tough for me was when I was feeling extra tired during the first trimester. Why only 200mg of caffeine? If you consume a lot of caffeine (like a lot) than you are at a highly risk of a miscarriage in your pregnancy. I stick to decaf and I’m fine with it.
8. Raw Meat. Normally when I have a steak, I like mine medium rare.  I make sure the meat I eat is thoroughly cooked before eating while pregnant.

Although some are up for discussion, I try not to stress so much about what I can or can not eat while pregnant. I’m safe and that’s all that matters. I was very specific throughout the first trimester and have taken a small step back on certain things that make me happy (runny eggs for example). I think everyone should talk to their doctor, and be personally comfortable with the decisions they make.

In the next couple of posts I will be sharing when JJ and I found out about the gender as well as the long overdue house renovation reveal!

Thank you to everyone who has sent their well wishes and congratulations! We really appreciate the kind words and support.

Be Kind,
Lola