Get a 4D Ultrasound
The safety of this has been called into question and I know some people are completely against unnecessary ultrasounds. We went to get a 4d ultrasound with our first son and felt obligated to do it with our second baby too.
Please do your research before deciding whether or not a 4d ultrasound session is right for you. We really cherished the pictures and videos we got and felt like it helped us to bond with our little one even more.
Go on a Babymoon
I wrote all about going on a babymoon in my post about the one thing you must do before having your baby. We went on a babymoon with our second baby too and took our son with us. I fully expect us to go on a special trip before each of our little ones arrive.
Our first babymoon was easily one of my favorite trips that I’ve ever been on. There are lots of ways to have an awesome babymoon on any budget. Please make sure you make time to have one last trip without your baby, even if the trip is just to a tent in the backyard!
Read to Your Baby
This was one of the ways my husband Scotty bonded with our first baby before he was born. We bought a book full of stories and he read them to my belly. It made him feel more included and we hoped it would help the baby to recognize his voice when it was born.
It’s a fun habit to get into, if nothing else. You’ll want to keep reading to your baby for years to come – why not start now?
Take Maternity Pictures
You don’t have to splurge on a photographer to have maternity pictures to remember your pregnancy! Have a friend or family member take some artsy pictures. Need ideas for poses? Here are the maternity picture ideas I liked from Pinterest. I saved these when we were preparing for our maternity session during my second pregnancy.
Definitely include your other children in the pictures if you already have kids. We didn’t get all of the pictures I wanted just because we were trying to accommodate a squirmy toddler, but the pictures of our growing family with my big belly are ones I’ll cherish forever.
Embrace Your Big Belly
It’s natural to feel self-conscious when you’re pregnant. I felt like a whale when I was pregnant no matter how much Scotty told me otherwise.
Finally, I started to embrace my new figure when I stopped looking like I’d left an Asian buffet and was delivered to the land of a basketball belly.
Don’t wait as long as I did to really embrace your new body. It’s doing an amazing thing, growing a tiny human being. That’s quite a feat and it should be celebrated! Appreciate your body for all of the hard work it’s doing.
Take Weekly Pictures
We were great about this during my first pregnancy. During my second – not so much.
Still, I highly recommend taking pictures every week so you can look back and see just how much your baby has grown. I really regret not being better about that during my second pregnancy. It takes 2 seconds. Take weekly pictures!
Include Your Husband
Your husband’s life is changing in some pretty incredible ways, but the focus is almost entirely on the mama to be. It’s so important to include your husband in your pregnancy and to help him feel included in the new little one’s arrival.
Here are my ideas for including your husband in your pregnancy.
Include Your Older Children
I have a lot of ideas about how to include your toddler in your pregnancy. You can read all about them here. A pregnancy is exciting for the whole family – especially the little ones who are about to get a brand new playmate.
Go Shopping
I truly encourage simple living and avoiding spending money whenever possible. The thing is, pregnancy is just so exciting and it’s almost impossible to not get excited when you see those cute tiny little outfits and toys.
Before we even got pregnant with our first son, we bought a ton of clothes and toys for our babies at yard sales. We just shopped for both boy and girl things. We spent about 25 cents per item and even hit the jackpot at one sale and spent about 13 cents each. You can’t beat that!
My advice? Take $20, go to a thrift store or yard sale, and spend some time shopping for your new baby and getting excited.
Determine Traditions
These will obviously develop in time, but we had a lot of fun planning things we’d do with our kids before they were even here. Sticky buns for breakfast on Christmas morning, going to see the festival of lights in our favorite town…
These are the things your kids will look forward to while they’re young and remember with fondness when they’re older and raising babies of their own. Make plans to make special memories while they’re little!
When you’re in the thick of it, pregnancy can feel like it’s lasting forever. As soon as the baby comes, you’ll realize just how fast your pregnancy went. Try your best to enjoy every second – your little one will be here before you know it!
Do you have any other ideas to make the most of your pregnancy? What tips do you have for other expecting parents looking to enjoy their pregnancy to the fullest? Let me know in the comments!
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8 Ways Your 2nd Pregnancy Will be Different Than Your First