So you found out you’re pregnant? Congrats! There is officially a little baby beginning to grow and develop inside you.
But not only is the first trimester really tough to get through with all the awful symptoms, but it’s hard to connect with this tiny baby that you can’t even see growing yet!
After all, by the end of your first trimester, baby is just about the size of a lemon. Which seems big compared to that initial poppy seed, but still is tiny!
Connecting with your baby, even from the start is important and a beautiful experience. So let’s dig into how you can connect with your baby in the first trimester.
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During those first few months, it is hard to really enjoy your pregnancy. There are so many things battling against that true enjoyment and excitement. Things like morning sickness, fatigue, having to keep it a secret, fear of something going wrong, etc.
I know for me, the fear of something going wrong was crippling at first. I write more about that in my post on anxiety during pregnancy.
All of these reasons and your baby is still teeny-tiny! But pregnancy is a beautiful time. And even in those first months, it is powerful to be able to connect with your Little One.
So how can you connect with your baby during the first trimester? Let’s get started!
Keep a Pregnancy Journal
This was a huge way that I started to connect with my growing baby. At first, I was just recording symptoms and the experience, but slowly I found myself writing little things to my Little One.
I began to see how this little baby inside me was already teaching me so much! My friend gifted me this beautiful pregnancy journal and some fun stickers and I loved writing down my thoughts and feelings through each week of the first trimester.
At the end, there is a section to recap and I ended up writing a letter to my growing baby. It was through writing these little things that I began to see a bond forming.
I highly recommend a pregnancy journal, not only as a way to remember your pregnancy, but as a powerful way to connect with your Little One before birth!
Start Dreaming
Dreaming about our baby was really hard for me at first with all the anxiety and fear that I had. I was afraid to start getting excited and for so long, I held back.
But a good friend reminded me that it is OKAY to get attached to this Little One - no matter what. And so it was then that I started dreaming about the day I would hold him (or her) in my arms.
You can dream about holding your baby, about your nursery, about names and about sharing your Little One with the world. But as you do, you deepen the bond between you and your growing baby!
I’d love to hear what you dream about most with your baby!
Talk to Your Little One
I felt crazy talking to my baby at first because, after all, they can’t hear you that early on. But I cannot explain the connection I felt in those moments where I would place my hand on my belly and say a few words.
Of course, as time goes on, your baby will begin to hear you and that bond begins to form on both ends. So why not start now?
Share your thoughts and your joys with your growing baby. This is a powerful way to connect you.
Pray Over Your Little One
Later in my pregnancy, I got the book, The Power of a Praying Parent. I love these books because they help me to pray specifically for areas of my life (or in this case, the life of my baby) in ways that I would not think of on my own.
I wish I had gotten it sooner, but this did not stop me for praying for this little baby as soon as we found out.
I wrote out prayers in my prayer journal, praying not only for my pregnancy but for the little baby growing inside me.
I remember one time I was afraid of things going wrong with breastfeeding and was sharing these thoughts with a friend. She said she prayed every single day that breastfeeding would go smoothly because it was one of the most important things to her. And God answered that prayer for her.
It got me thinking, I need to start praying for very specific areas of my Little One’s life! I wish they had a book specifically for the “Power of a Praying Pregnant Mama” but for now, I just had to write my own.
I suggest coming up with specific things that are important to you about your baby’s life and your bond and asking God to give you further topics to pray for. This prayer bond will be one of the most powerful ways to connect you to your baby!
Although your baby is little, it is still powerful to begin connecting with him or her. You can do this right from the day you find out about this little one growing inside you.
Love this! I wish I would have had a journal, but I definitely remembered to always pray over my babies.
After I lost my daughter, my mom bought me a doppler for peace of mind…I was so excited to find the heartbeat of my next daughter at just under 9 weeks. Even though parts of me were afraid to connect with that baby, I would listen to that heart beating away and pray over her! Praying over your baby is such a great way to connect with that baby…and replace that anxiety with peace!