I am so excited to share another one of my birth stories with you all! I shared Avri’s birth story after she was born and I am so glad I did. I will always have those words to remember and reflect on one of the best days of my life. Now, I get to put Ayden’s birth story down on paper to always remember yet another one of the best days of my life. You can read Avri’s birth story here. I can’t wait to let both my girls read their birth story some day!

Just like when sharing Avri’s birth story, I share Ayden’s birth story not only to always remember it, but also in hopes to inspire other women to educate and prepare themselves for a natural vaginal birth in hopes of having the delivery they imagine.

My labor was 8.5 hours and everything I could imagine with Avri and I thought that was fast for a first time mom. It was a perfect and special labor and delivery. I only hoped to have a similar experience with Ayden. I also mentally prepared myself to not expect things to go so smoothly because I didn’t want to be let down. I was mentally open to let things take its course when it came time for Ayden to come earth side. Well, I can confidently say that these two deliveries were very different, however, they were both perfect and magical in their own way. I thought my labor was fast with Avri, well, it didn’t even compare to how fast Ayden’s was.

So, let’s go back to my due date. I was due January 22nd and on that exact day I was informed that my OB was out for the next 10 days with COVID. My heart sank. I was an emotional wreck as she was the doctor that delivered Avri and she was again supposed to be part of the dream delivery team. After having a slight meltdown, I collected myself and immediately went into action to figure out who was going to deliver my baby. Luckily, my OB clinic has some amazing doctors and I was setup with another doctor right away. Nick and I met him the Monday after my due date and I felt instantly better and knew I was in good hands.

At this point, I was feeling good and didn’t mind being a few days late. Avri was three days late so I was hoping to have a similar experience with Ayden. But, that was not the case. At one week overdue I had a stress test to make sure baby was doing ok. Everything checked out with the stress test and my new doctor was on board with me of not inducing at this point. Here is when it started getting mentally tough. I was uncomfortable and not sleeping well. I had braxton hicks contractions very regularly throughout my entire third trimester. At about 40 weeks I started having very mild contractions where they were noticeable, but I could go about my day. I started getting discourage around 41 weeks because I was having contractions every day, but they would eventually stop. We were doing all the natural inducing tricks to encourage baby along and some would result in contractions, but they eventually faded. I experienced these contractions up to the day I gave birth.

I delivered Ayden on a Sunday. That Saturday we brought Avri to spend the night at my parents house so we could have a day to get a few things done and relax in anticipation baby would be arriving soon. Saturday I tried pumping to help induce labor. At this point, I was willing to try just about anything as the thought of going past 42 weeks and having to potentially have the discussion of induction really scared me. My OB and doula mentioned pumping could help move things along. I despise pumping and that is why I waited so long. My doula had me pump for 10 minutes every hour on the hour for four hours. I didn’t feel a single contraction from pumping and went to bed that night once again feel defeated.

I was annoyed waking up Sunday still pregnant and felt like she was never going to come. Sex is always mentioned as a natural labor inducer and I always swore that is what put me into labor with Avri. But, we tried that more times than I would have liked at that point in pregnancy, but we decided to try it one last time (like I said early, we were doing alllll the things to get baby out). Sex always resulted in the exact same thing for me. I would start having immediate contractions and they would last for quite a few hours, but eventually faded away. And sure enough, the exact same thing started happening Sunday morning. Even though I was having contractions I was able to go about my day not really noticing them at this point and figured they would eventually fade.

My parents brought Avri home Sunday afternoon and decided to stick around town for the rest of the day to do some shopping (they live about an hour and twenty minutes away). Luckily they did, because my mom wouldn’t have been able to make it to our house in time to watch Avri which was our initial plan assuming I’d be in labor for hours. My contractions never increased in intensity as the day went on and I felt the exact same as I did that morning, so I again expected to go to bed that night still pregnant. But, thankfully, I was wrong. Here is when the fun began.

6:45pm: We just got done eating dinner and cleaning up the kitchen. Nick was playing with Avri in the living room and I had a contraction that just felt different. I don’t know how else to explain it, other than it felt different than the contractions I was having throughout the day. I mentioned to Nick that is felt different and that I was going to do some breathing exercises. I had another contraction and it seemed to last forever and was more intense than the previous one. When I told Nick about that contraction he shot up and started racing around the house packing like a madman and saying, “this is it” we better get packed! I started laughing and told him to chill because I wasn’t sure yet if these were legit contractions. And plus, if they were legit contractions I assumed we would have hours before needing to go to the hospital.

7:05pm: Nick was still running around like a crazy person, so I decided to start packing a few last minute things I needed too just in case this was it. At this point, I still wasn’t convinced I was in labor. We took this picture at 7:08pm to document our (possibly) last night as a family of three.

7:20pm: Nick started getting Avri in the bath and ready for bed and I was needing to walk and focus on breathing through my contractions at this point. I was now convinced I was in labor. I knew my doctor was off quarantine at midnight that night and I texted her asking her if she wanted to deliver a baby that night assuming we still had hours until baby’s arrival. I was also texting my doula updates and how I was feeling. We decided together that she would come to our house sooner rather than later as we figured it would be a faster labor than Avri’s. Avri was so cute as I was laboring. As the contractions got more intense, I became more vocal through them and Avri kept asking me, “whatcha doing momma?” I kept telling her that her baby sister was ready to come meet her.

7:50pm: Nick was with Avri in her room putting her to bed. I went to the bathroom and realized I had my bloody show. I also started having body shakes which I couldn’t control or make stop. I knew my doula was on her way, but I texted her that I had my bloody show and for some reason couldn’t stop shaking. She called me immediately. She is the most calm person I know, which I love about her. In her very calm demeanor, she asks if anyone is at our house for Avri. I told her my mom was on her way. She then continued to tell me that she feels it would be best that Nick and I head to the hospital as soon as my mom gets there because what I described to her sounds like I may be in transition. I had her on speaker and Nick could hear the conversation. Nick comes running out of Avri’s room and immediately taking bags out to the car.

8:00pm: My mom arrived at our house and as she was walking in the house, Nick and I were walking out. We only live about 5 minutes from the hospital, but I remember telling Nick to drive faster because I was starting to feel some pressure.

8:12pm: We arrived at the hospital at the exact same time our doula did. Contractions were intense and very close together. From the emergency room entrance to our room, I had four contractions.

8:22pm: We arrived to our room and I wanted my birthing gown on. I got that on and the nurse wanted to check my cervix. Things were a blur at this point and I wasn’t able to pay attention much to what people were doing or saying. The nurse checked me and I remember hearing her say, “I feel no cervix whatsoever.” Meaning, I was fully dilated and effaced. At this point, my waters were what was keeping baby in.

8:29pm: I had another contraction and my waters broke, actually it exploded. The nurse told me to get onto the bed because baby was coming right now (my doctor hadn’t made it to my room yet). I couldn’t help but push, but I remember asking if I could because again, things were a blur and I wasn’t really sure what everyone was saying. I got the clear to push, so I did.

8:32pm: Ayden Maye Weiss was born.

Shock, happiness and joy overtook my body and mind. What in the hell just happened? After waiting nine days past her due date, Ayden came fast and furious into our lives and it was absolutely perfect. It was much much quicker than anticipated, neither one of my doctors made it to her delivery (props to nurse Amber delivering Ayden!), but I wouldn’t change a thing if I could.

Ayden was a healthy and thriving 7 pound 8 ounce and 20.5 inches long perfect bundle of joy. We marveled in all the newborn snuggles, smells and bonding and were lucky enough to go home the very next afternoon. Everything seemed so magical and perfect. Avri got to meet her little sister and it was love at first sight. Everything was absolutely amazing. Until…

Monday evening, remind you she was born Sunday. My mom made us dinner and my dad came to meet Ayden. Avri wanted to give Ayden a “check-up” (she is very much into playing doctor) so I was sitting with both girls on the couch. All of a sudden Ayden’s face turns bright red and she is drive heaving a bit like she was going to puke. Nothing was coming up and all of a sudden her face was purple. She wasn’t breathing. She was choking. Panic swept over me and I scooped her up yelling that she wasn’t breathing. Nick jumped into action and called 911 as I was trying to remember things from my infant CPR class (thank the lord for that). After what seemed like forever, she was finally able to catch her breath and her coloring started coming back.

We rushed her to the emergency room to try and get some answers of why our one day old infant just choked and stopped breathing. We ended up getting admitted for another night so they could monitor her breathing. The on-call pediatrician was amazing. I was a complete wreck, couldn’t talk without bursting into tears and was absolutely terrified. The pediatrician explained to us that because Ayden had such a short time in the birth canal, she still had a lot of amniotic fluid in her lungs that needed to come out. At home, she choked on a large amount of amniotic fluid that was trying to work its way out. Luckily, while we were in the emergency room and when we got to our room she had large spit ups of amniotic fluid. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much we could do about it as it just needed to take its course. Her breathing and oxygen levels were great all night long and we were able to go home the next day.

On top of that, we noticed that she would make these little squeaks and somewhat lose her breath randomly. At her first check-up we brought this up to her pediatrician and he said she most likely has a narrow airway which also lead to the choking. Again, nothing we can do about it except wait for it to expand as she gets older.

It’s safe to say I didn’t sleep the first few weeks of her life. Any little noise I heard when she was sleeping I sprung to my feet to make sure she was okay. I would lay awake just watching her to make sure she was breathing or gently put my hand on her chest to make sure it was moving. She still has her little squeaks, but she doesn’t ever seem to lose her breath much anymore. It was the scariest moment of my life and I still get emotional just thinking about it.

To end this on a high note, Ayden is completely healthy, already a fighter and fits perfectly into our family. Avri is an amazing big sister already, loves helping and is utterly obsessed with her. Ayden Maye, you are a true blessing to this family and I couldn’t imagine life without you. Love you so much baby girl! More below from Nick and our doula’s point of view.

Keep reading for Nick’s point of view:

Brooke and I had decided after Avri was born that we would for sure want a second child for Avri to play with and for us to love.  Two kids is still “man-to-man” coverage so do-able with our busy schedules.  We also wanted the kids to be close in age so that they could play together but also be there for each other and go through similar life events together.  Well as we found out, the whole process of a second child would be fast.  We didn’t have to try for very long before Brooke was pregnant again.  Nine months flew by and soon we were getting close to the due date for new baby to arrive.  Avri was excited to have a baby sister and we were loving the idea of having two little girls running around the house.  Then finally the due date came…and passed.

This was probably the slowest any of the process would go was waiting on the day little girl would decide to come out and meet everyone.  Finally on January 31^st, Brooke mentioned contractions but minor contractions had become a thing of the norm.  This evening, however, she mentioned they just felt “different”.  Being who I am, I began to go into birth mode.  I started packing my bag and gathering everything for the hospital.  Due to COVID-19, we wouldn’t have the luxury of coming and going from the hospital as we pleased like our last birth, so we had to make sure we had everything we needed for a few days.  As I was panic packing, I recall Brooke saying “calm down, we have time.  If these are labor contractions, then we would have plenty of time from contractions to birth”.  Please note this for later.

The in-laws had come to visit for the day and had just left to go to dinner in EC.  We began to get Avri ready for bed when the contractions started to gain momentum.  Following Brookes direction that “we have time” I gave Avri a bath and took our time. However, things escalated quickly.  Brooke was soon on the phone with her mother and our Doula, Rhonda.  Rhonda advised that we go to the hospital ASAP as she knew that things would move along much quicker this time.  I hurriedly finished Avri’s bath and we read books and put Avri down for bed.  I grabbed our bags and scrambled to the car, slipping on the ice covered driveway in the process.  At that time, with perfect timing, Brooke’s mom, Anne, was just arriving to stay with Avri so we could go to the hospital.  We walked Brooke to the car and rushed to the hospital.  Luckily, the hospital is only 8 minutes from our house, traffic lights depending.  Even with such a short trip, Brooke grabbed my hand half way and said “you need to drive faster”.

Things were happening much faster.  We got there just in time to meet Rhonda at the entrance.  I parked the car and grabbed the bag.  It was 8:12pm.  By 8:22pm they had us up in the room.  As I was putting our bags away and getting Brooke’s birthing gown out, she stopped me.  She needed my support to hold on to as she had another contraction.  Once it passed, she put on her gown and had another contraction. This would be the shotgun start to the sprint.  Within a second, her water broke and the nurse advised us she had to get onto the bed because the baby was already coming out.  Brooke’s water was the only thing keeping the little girl inside the entire time.  Around 8:29pm Brooke started pushing. I assumed my position I knew well from Avri’s birth and was seated right by Brooke’s head with her hand in mine so I could cheer/motivate her throughout the birthing process.  She was on all fours, just like he ideal position from Avri’s birth.  At 8:30pm, Rhonda asked if I wanted to see the birth. Thinking in my head that last time, I had time to bounce back and forth a couple times from birth side to cheering side of Brooke, I said that I would just stay by Brooke’s head and help her out.  Well that was the last chance I got as Ayden was sliding out and into the world not 2 minutes later.  At 8:32pm Ayden was out, in Brooke’s arms.  Healthy, happy, and already loved by so many.

She reminded me so much of Avri in that moment but yet had her own already identifiable differences in their looks.  I was so proud of Brooke.  It was clear she was made to be a mom.  She handled both pregnancies and labors with so much poise and apparent ease that it seemed as though this was what she was made to do.  Her goals were no stretch marks or tearing for both labors, and she crushed her goals, but to me; just giving birth how she did to two perfect little girls was the only goal she needed to; and did crush.  I thought our first labor was perfect.  Natural, easy, fast (from what I knew), and healthy; but this birth was even more perfect.  And now we had two perfect little girls.  My only regret was that Avri was not able to come see us in that moment.  Our moment together as a new family of four would have to wait until we were ready to go home.  Which also would be sooner than we thought.  I couldn’t be prouder to be the husband to such an amazing woman and mother and daddy to the most amazing and perfect little girls in the world.  I can’t wait to watch all my girls grow up together and experience all the highs and lows of our perfect family of four.  Welcome to the family Ayden Maye Weiss.

Keep reading for your Doula’s, Rhonda’s, point of view:

Avri on the other hand, was born with a dairy intolerance and will most likely have this intolerance her whole life. I don’t want her to miss out on flavorful foods, fun “kid” meals or ever feel restricted. So, I try to create and make fun dairy free alternatives from my childhood. And that is where I got the inspiration for this recipe! My mac and cheese never had broccoli or any type of vegetable in it, but vegetables are important! And hey, maybe you have a toddler that doesn’t like broccoli but won’t even notice it in the recipe because the cheese sauce hides the taste! I used venison hot dogs in this recipe because they are our favorite and what we had. Otherwise, Applegate has grass-fed beef and even turkey hot dogs that would be a good option.

Feel free to use any dairy free alternatives you like. I made sure to note what I specifically used in this recipe. You could also change up the broccoli and add chopped green beans, peas, spinach, cauliflower or kale. Or, just keep it even more simple with just the macaroni and cheese. Enjoy!

Dairy Free Macaroni and Cheese

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

25 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Entree

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp ghee*
• ¼ cup gluten free flour
• 1½ cups dairy free milk, I used Oat Milk
• ¼ cup plain dairy free yogurt, I used Forge Cashew Yogurt
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 7 ounce package dairy free cheddar cheese shreds I used VioLife
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 8 ounce box noodle of choice, I used chickpea noodles
• 6 hotdogs, I used venison hot dogs
• 3-4 cups broccoli florets, chopped and steamed, I used frozen broccoli cuts

Instructions

1. Start cooking the noodles according to the directions on the box. Drain and rinse and set aside. While noodles cook, start boiling the hot dogs. You only need to boil the hot dogs for 5-10 minutes or until they are hot all the way through. Set hot dogs aside. Once cool, cut hot dogs into pieces.
2. In the pot the noodles were in (large pot) over medium heat, add the ghee. When melted, whisk the flour in until thickened. Add milk, yogurt and nutritional yeast. Whisk until smooth. Cook, whisking often until mixture thickens (3-5 minutes).
3. Add the cheddar cheese shreds whisking until fully melted and combined.
4. Add the noodles, broccoli and hot dogs to the cheese mixture. Mix until fully combined.
5. Enjoy!

Notes

*If you can tolerate butter, feel free making this recipe with grass fed butter instead of ghee

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These crockpot meatballs are incredibly easy to make and are the perfect appetizer for any New Year’s party, football party or gathering you have coming up. Set some toothpicks out with them and before you know it, they will be gone!

Pro tip, once the meatballs are gone save the leftover sauce and use as a condiment!

Now, I have to go. My house is in shambles as we finally decided it is probably time to get ready for baby girl. I mean, I am over 36 weeks pregnant; it is time… baby could literally arrive any day!

Crockpot Meatballs

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

2 hours

Total time

2 hours 5 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Appetizer

Ingredients

• 2-3lbs grass fed meatballs
• 2 cups Noble Made Classic BBQ Sauce*
• 1 cup Crofter's Organic Raspberry Jam**
• ¼ cup honey

Instructions

1. Place a small saucepan on the stove over medium heat and add the BBQ sauce, jam and honey. Stir occasionally until all ingredients are well combined.
2. Add the meatballs to a crockpot and pour the sauce over the meatballs. Mix so all meatballs are fully covered. Place the cover on the crockpot and cook on high for 2 hours.
3. Serve immediately or turn crockpot to "keep warm" if you are serving at a gathering/party.

Notes

*Feel free to use any BBQ sauce you like. Primal Kitchen has a great BBQ sauce, but is a bit more spicy than Noble Made.
**Feel free to use any jam. Homemade would work as well. Grape or apple are great alternative flavors.

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I got my chili started first thing in the morning and cooked it in the crockpot for 6 hours on low. You could also cook it on high for 3-4 hours. When the chili had about 30-45 minutes left, I got to work on making the fries. Making the fries while the chili is still cooking will save you time, but isn’t essential. If you aren’t able to do that, no worries! The recipe will still turn out great and be scrumptious.

I made this recipe dairy free because Avri and I are dairy intolerant, but feel free to use your cheese of choice. If you want to throw dairy cheese on top, go for it. You do you!

This recipe would be a great appetizer at a football party, easy, fun and quick weeknight meal or a way to use up leftover chili.

Don’t forget to grab the Easy No Bean Chili Recipe here before getting started!

Dairy Free Chili Cheese Fries

 

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Cook time

6 hours

Total time

6 hours

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Ingredients

• FOR THE CHILI
• 1 batch of my Easy No Bean Chili
• FOR THE FRIES
• 2 russet potatoes
• 2 tbsp avocado or coconut oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp onion powder
• ⅓-1/2 cup dairy free shredded cheese
• ½ avocado, diced
• 1 green onion, diced

Instructions

1. Get the Easy No Bean Chili started in the crockpot.
2. When the chili has 45 minutes left start prepping the fries. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Cut the potatoes into fries and toss them in a bowl with oil and seasoning. Spread evenly (do not overlap) onto the baking sheet and place in the oven for 30 minutes. Flip half way through.
4. Remove fries from the oven and place the oven rack on the second to top rack. Gather the potatoes into a mound and added chili on top. Use as much chili as you wish (you will have leftovers). Add cheese on top.
5. Place in oven and broil on high for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and top with green onion and avocado.
6. Enjoy!

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With fall and apple season in full swing, these overnight oats are a must make. It is like having apple pie first thing in the morning. You can even heat them up if you want to enjoy them warm. You will feel extra festive this fall with these overnight oats on your breakfast meal plan!

You can easily double or even triple this recipe so you have breakfast on the go for a few days. Oats are generally an addition to my breakfast. Since these oats are loaded with yogurt and collagen powder, I simply pair them with a couple eggs to get in a bit more protein. If you have time in the morning you can scramble or fry a couple eggs. If you need more of an on the go option, hard boil some eggs when you make your oats and you will be fully prepped and ready for your breakfast the next day.

Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

8 hours

Total time

8 hours 5 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Breakfast

Serves: 1 serving

Ingredients

• ½ cups gluten free rolled oats
• ⅓ cup plain yogurt*
• ½ cup dairy free milk
• ½ medium apple, diced
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tsp honey
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 scoop vanilla collagen powder**
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• dash of salt

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix well. Cover and let sit in refrigerator overnight.
2. Enjoy!

Notes

*feel free to use any yogurt you like. I usually use a dairy free cashew based yogurt.
**Any vanilla collagen or protein powder will work.

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To kick things off, I am bringing you the recipe for these Pumpkin Zucchini Oat Muffins. Labor Day is over so I say it is officially pumpkin season! Zucchini is still in full bloom this season and such an easy way to sneak in some veggies in baked goods. To add a bit of sweet to this recipe I added enjoylife chocolate chips. Feel free to skip these or add in blueberries instead!

These muffins are perfect for a quick and light snack, add something sweet to your eggs at breakfast or a little sweet treat after dinner. If you are looking for some more fall inspired muffin recipes, check these out below!

• Pumpkin Blueberry Muffins
• Paleo Cinnamon Apple Muffins
• Carrot Cake Muffins

Pumpkin Zucchini Oat Muffins

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

18 mins

Total time

33 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Muffins

Serves: 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 3 cups gluten free rolled oats
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• ¼ cup coconut sugar
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup dairy free milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• dash of salt
• 1 cup zucchini, shredded and squeezed of all juice
• ⅓ cup enjoy life mini chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with parchment paper muffin cups or spray with oil.
2. Add the dry ingredients to a large bowl and sift until well combined. Set aside. Add the wet ingredients to a small bowl and whisk until well combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
3. Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips. Fill each muffin cup full.
4. Place in oven and bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

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I will be 20 weeks this Friday, so I am a little late on the ball and going off of memory. Hopefully I don’t miss anything! When I was pregnant with Avri I made notes about everything! Not this time around… #secondchildproblems

Anyways, lets get to it!

How we found out:

So many people assumed this pregnancy was a result of quarantine, which is fair. But, we were actually trying to conceive. Whenever we chatted about possibly adding to our family we said we wanted about a 2.5 to 3 year age gap so yes, we were trying! It took us 5 months to conceive with Avri, so that was about the time frame we were thinking with this one. Boy, were we wrong! I got pregnant the first month of trying! We were both shocked! Nick was a bit disappointed that it only took one month, haha I think a couple things helped with getting pregnant so soon. For one, my period was very regular once it came back which I was tracking since getting it back just for curiosity reasons. Because of my regularly and tracking I knew I had a longer cycle which told me that I ovulated later than normal. Any two,I didn’t put any pressure on myself because I was prepared for it to take a little while. I think that was a biggie.

We conceived in April, but didn’t find out until May. The only indicator that I was possibly pregnant was my missed period. I was in a bit of denial because I didn’t think there was any way we could conceive so quickly. I finally decided to take a test, but it came back negative. I wasn’t discouraged because that is exactly what happened the month we found out we were pregnant with Avri and the fact that it has only been one month. I waited another few days and took another test. They always say to take a pregnancy test first thing in the morning because that is when your HCG levels are the highest, so that is what I did. I was still half asleep and I didn’t put my glasses on. I peed on the stick, so I thought I did. I looked at it and it literally did nothing and I even touched it and it seemed dry to me. So, I was like well, I’m a dummy and just totally missed the stick! I put it back in the closet to try again the next morning. A couple hours went by (I completely forgot about the test) and I went into the same closet for something and there it was, the two pink lines indicating I was pregnant! I actually laughed at myself because I truly was a dummy! Nick wasn’t home so I showed Avri the test and explained to her what it meant. I took a little video of her holding it and saying baby and that is what we sent to Nick to tell him the news. Like me, he was shocked it happened so soon, but very happy with the news!

Weeks 4-8

At my first 8 week prenatal visit with Avri we found out I was actually only 6 weeks pregnant. So this time around I was very confident with the date range we conceived because I knew I ovulated late. Well, I was wrong again. The exact same thing happened! I went to my first 8 week prenatal visit and my doctor told me I was measuring at 6 weeks. Like, what? I was so thrown off and confused of when and how we actually conceived this baby. Even though this happened with Avri and everything turned out completely fine, I still got my worried thoughts that maybe everything wasn’t okay.

I did have a reason to worry, though. At my first visit my doctor found a large cyst on my ovary. Cyst aren’t usually too concerning, however, it was so big that my doctor would consider removing it surgically if it didn’t shrink on its own. At this point of the pregnancy, the cyst was feeding my pregnancy since the placenta doesn’t take over until week 10. The most concerning part was if the cyst was to flip which could have cut off blood supply to baby and would have been excruciatingly painful. Until my next visit, my doctor had me take out all jumping exercises and sex. At that point of my pregnancy I was happy to oblige. I went back to the doctor two weeks later (week 8) and baby was growing and thriving and my cyst shrunk a tad. During pregnancy cyst usually go away on their own around 20 weeks, so my doctor said we can re-evaluate the cyst then.

During these weeks I was extremely bloated, felt nauseous always and extremely exhausted. I’d wake up bloated and nauseous and it would continually get worse as the day went on. I tried all sorts of things and nothing seemed to give me relief. I was home every day with Avri at this point which didn’t make things easier. I cherished her nap time and when my husband would get home from work! There were days, too many to count, I would pass out by 6pm. I had bloat and nausea with Avri, but nothing like this. At 8 weeks pregnant, by the end of the day I would look 6 months pregnant from all of the bloat. Cysts contribute to bloat, so I can’t help but think things would be different if I didn’t have the cyst.

My workouts stayed pretty consistent during these weeks despite my nausea and tiredness. It was better for me to get them in first thing in the morning, otherwise it wasn’t going to happen. Since it was the height of quarantine I did a lot of home workouts in our garage gym, core work and attended 1-2 F45 classes per week. Besides having to take jumping out for a couple weeks in the very begging, workouts felt pretty normal at this point.

Some fun things that happened during these weeks was celebrating Mother’s Day, my birthday, teaching Avri that there is a baby in momma’s tummy and just the overall excitement of adding another little to our family!

Weeks 9 – 13

These weeks were a blur. My bloating, nausea and exhaustion didn’t start wearing off until 12-13 weeks. My bloat is still an annoyance even at this stage of pregnancy (almost 20 weeks).

I have always had low iron levels and because of that I hemorrhaged after delivering Avri. A focus of mine this pregnancy has been to up my iron levels, so I started taking an iron supplement in compound with eating foods rich in iron. The iron supplement is not panning out! I started taking one during these weeks and it made me so constipated. I was already bloated, then add in constipation and it made for some very uncomfortable days. I tried taking it every other day and even every couple days and still no relief. I finally just stopped for awhile because I couldn’t take it anymore. I even tried a different brand that is supposed to be “non-constipating”, but it still backed me up. So, I am thinking I will focus on even denser iron rich foods like liver, which I am not thrilled about… So, if you have any good recipes of ways to hide liver send them my way!

Workouts were staying consistent at this point and still feeling good! I was still doing the same things I mentioned above.

During these weeks we told immediate family of the news and they were over the moon excited! Like I mentioned, these weeks were a blur! Some days felt never ending and other days I couldn’t believe how quickly this pregnancy was flying by.

That was my first trimester recap with baby 2 in a nut shell! Overall, my first pregnancy experience was better because I didn’t have the extent of bloat of nausea. But, I am extremely grateful and blessed to be fortunate to do this again. The second trimester has been treating me much better and I am excited to share that with you in a couple months!

This smoothie was a new concoction and she absolutely loved it, as did I! I will definitely be making this again! It’s the perfect refreshing smoothie for these 85 degree days we have been having. Enjoy!

Creamy Peach Blueberry Smoothie

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Total time

5 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Smoothie

Serves: 1 smoothie

Ingredients

• 1 peach, halved and core removed
• ⅓ cup fresh blueberries
• ¼ avocado
• ½ tsp honey
• 1 scoop Vanilla Coconut Collagen Protein
• 1 cup dairy free milk of choice
• 1-2 handfuls ice

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
2. Enjoy!

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Protein balls aren’t just great for kids! I will grab one for a little treat after dinner or if I need just a little something to get me to my next meal.

I used Further Foods Chocolate Collagen in these protein balls. Don’t worry, though. If you don’t have any you can use any chocolate collagen or protein powder. I love this collagen because it is made with reishi mushroom which is a mood-booster! If you want to try it, you can order right from their website and with promo code kissbybrooke you can save 5 percent on your entire order!

Coconut Chocolate Energy Balls

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Total time

15 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Snack

Serves: 12 balls

Ingredients

• ½ cup packed pitted dates, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• ½ cup peanut butter
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• 2 scoops Further Foods Chocolate Collagen*
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients into a food processor and pulse until fully combined. Stop and scrape down the sides as needed.
2. Using a cookie scoop, form into balls and place on a baking sheet. Let chill in the refrigerator before serving. Keep refrigerated.
3. Enjoy!

Notes

*any chocolate collagen or protein powder will work

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After cooking your rice this way, there is no going back. It is hands down the best and only way to make rice! The broth gives it such a savory flavor and the butter adds a whole new dimension to the texture. Feel free to use other broths as well. Quick tip, save the broth rendered from and meat you cook in the crockpot and use that to cook your rice. You will be thanking me later. I have even seen rice cooked with coconut milk. That is next on my list to try! But for now, I will be enjoying every last bite of this rice!

Now, there is a lot of disagreeing and misinformation out there about rice and if you are wondering about any of it, I highly recommend checking out this researched article by Fed & Fit. Mainly, it goes into the differences of brown and white rice, are either of them healthy, what are the carb contents of both, difference between whole and refined grains, and more! I choose to eat white rice because it is what works best for me and makes me feel my best.

White rice, brown rice, quinoa, whatever have you. Use this cooking method!

The Best And Only Way To Make Rice

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Author: Brooke Weiss

Recipe type: Side Dish

Serves: 3 cups cooked rice

Ingredients

• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 1½ cup chicken broth
• 1 tbsp grass-fed butter
• dash of salt

Instructions

1. Place a small pot on the stove over high heat and add the butter, broth and salt. Bring to a boil.
2. Once boiling add the rice and bring back to a boil. Once boiling again reduce the heat to low, cover and let simmer for 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally until fully cooked and fluffy.

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