17 Weeks with Baby 2 + Must-have Pregnancy Skincare Products

This has been a super smooth pregnancy and there's really not a ton to update. My belly looks undeniably pregnant (to me anyway). Still no comments from strangers though. As a little side note - you can get a glimpse into the giant clover that has taken over our yard in the above photo. We bought this house back in August and were pretty certain the yard was completely dead. Everything was dirt and there was no greenery. A few days of rain and boom! Our yard is a jungle. I kinda like it. And Ez loves it. Every now and then he falls down and gets completely lost in it. Super cute.

But I've gone a little off topic. As far as symptoms go, it's still the same ol' itchy skin, and my rapidly growing belly, of course. I said I wouldn't talk too much about weight this time around, but to give a little comparison, I weighed as much this time around at 15 weeks that I did when I was 21 weeks with Ez. Thankfully I haven't gained any weight since 15 weeks, and I'm gonna call that a holiday fluke. My bump is definitely much bigger this time around though:

17 Weeks Pregnancy #1

Bonus that the above pic gave you a little info about the baby that I've been too lazy to look up this time around ;)  Kinda cool that the baby gets to listen in on our storytime with Ez. This kid's gonna be born loving cars and animals, since the current rotation includes a touch-and-feel car book and Eric Carle's Baby Bear, Baby Bear What Do You See? Funny story: I took Ez to the library and the first book he pulled off a shelf in the kid's section was all about bringing home a new baby to the family. I took that as a really good sign, and settled down to read it to him. He took one look at the first page and went off in search of a better book (ie - that book about cars). Sigh. I was telling Amanda at Plum Tickled Pink that I'm pretty sure Ez is going to be completely shocked when we bring the new baby home from the hospital. I don't think he currently has a clue what a sibling is, let alone that he's going to have/be one. Any tips on how to break the news to an under-2 year old would be greatly appreciated!

My eating habits have been pretty normal lately. I've been making green smoothies for myself and Ez daily (cause New Year's resolutions...) and we both love them. Half the time Ez gulps his down and whines to finish mine. Little booger. I'm still loving Mexican food, but I haven't been eating Taco Bell quite as consistently as I was before. Fish is high up on my craving list too. I've been eating it about 3-4 times a week lately. No real aversions. I'll probably never eat shrimp again (an aversion from my pregnancy with Ez), but coffee is back on the menu, and veggies don't gross me out like they did in the first trimester. I'd love a glass of wine, but that will have to wait at least 6 months. Other than that I'm not missing too much.

As I already mentioned, my biggest preggo symptom is my skin. It's so sensitive and so itchy. And my face will break out in an instant if I use a product it doesn't like. So I've put together a little list of what I've been using regularly since I've been pregnant:

1. Neutrogena's Ultra Gentle Daily Cleanser - Pregnancy or not, I usually switch cleansers in winter. My skin is oily during the summertime, but drier during winter, so I like something extra gentle. I've already gone through a whole bottle of this stuff without any breakouts or dry patches. 
2. Gold Bond Ultimate Healing with Aloe Lotion - Post-shower I slather this stuff on my legs otherwise I'll be itching like crazy. Sometimes I use it twice a day. Part of the whole pregnancy thing for me is that strong scents are no good, so I like that this one just smells like lotion, not flowers or food.
3. La Roche-Posay Anthelios 60 Ultra Light Sunscreen Fluid for Face - At about $30 at Target this one is definitely a little more expensive than what I'd usually buy for facial sunscreen, but most of my sunscreens sit unused because I feel like I have to choose between breaking out or protecting my skin from sun damage, and I usually opt for clear skin over the sun protection. Whoops. Another New Year's resolution is to get serious about sun protection, so I bought this after reading lots of great reviews and I love it. My skin feels better after I put it on than before. It's so matte and it soaks in right away. Absolutely no breakouts since I started using it, which means that I've actually been using it daily. Win/win.
4. Blistex with SPF 30 - There are surprisingly few chapsticks with SPF on the shelves at Target (my go-to shopping spot). This was the one with the highest SPF, and since I've been trying to protect the rest of my face, I figured I shouldn't neglect my lips. Again, no fancy scents, but it gets the job done.
5. Bio Oil - This one's all for my belly. I use this post-shower, and then I slather on lotion afterward. I can't really say if this works at preventing stretch marks since I used it pretty sporadically during my pregnancy with Ez. But I didn't get any stretch marks that time and I figure it can't hurt to be more diligent this time around. I happened to buy a 3 pack at Costco during my last pregnancy, so I had it sitting around anyway.
6. Clinique Turnaround Overnight Radiance Moisturizer - Again, at over $40 for the full-size version, this probably wouldn't be something I'd run out to buy for myself, but my mom gives me all the free gifts that come with her Clinique purchases so I've been using this post-shower. I linked to the small travel-size version, which is what I have, and that's only $10. I pretty much just use this on my forehead, the tops of my cheeks, and above my lips - the driest parts of my face, so it will probably last me awhile. I skip my nose and chin cause that's where most breakouts tend to happen.
7. Queen Helene Mint Julep Mask - I'm pretty sure I've been using this since high school. It's great for acne prone skin, and it also claims to help with wrinkles. Whenever I have a breakout I use this. The trick is to use it several times in a row on the broken out area, because it pulls all the gunk out of your skin, which can make things look worse before they look better. (Gross, but also kinda cool at the same time). Otherwise I try to use this once a week pre-shower because it leaves a kinda gross after-scent unless I'm able to actually soak it off for awhile in the shower.
8. Arbonne RE9 Advanced Corrective Eye Cream - I really wanted to love this whole line, because it's organic and natural, but most of the creams and the sunscreens were way too greasy for my skin type. The one product that I do love is this eye cream. A lot of eye creams will seep into my eyes and cause irritation, so I'll wind up wiping off all the cream and probably doing more damage than just not putting anything on in the first place. This never bothers my sensitive eyes and I've already gone through a whole bottle. Again, it's kind of expensive, but I got it as a package deal with a discount. If I found it on a good deal again, I'd definitely repurchase. Otherwise I'd love to hear feedback from anyone else with super sensitive eyes/skin about a cheaper eye cream that you love!

So that's my skincare routine as of late. Any other must-try products that I'm missing here? I'd love to hear what other pregnant mamas or women with sensitive skin rely on, especially in the colder winter months.

Other pregnancy #2 updates:

Pregnancy Announcement, 13 Weeks with Baby #2, 15 Weeks with Baby #2