Hi moms, mums & mamas of Nameberry!
I’m not planning on TTC for a few more years yet, but I’m wondering… In your opinion, when’s the best time of year to get pregnant? If you’ve been pregnant more than once in different seasons, what were the main differences you experienced?
Just curious! Thanks for sharing!!
I have a summer baby (born in a heat wave), a winter baby (born in a snowstorm), a late spring baby, and am hoping for another spring baby. [name_f]My[/name_f] opinion is to avoid the heat and the ice in the late months of pregnancy and aim for either spring ([name_f]April[/name_f], [name_f]May[/name_f], [name_u]June[/name_u]) or late fall ([name_f]October[/name_f], [name_u]November[/name_u], early [name_u]December[/name_u]). You don’t want to be slipping on ice 9 months pregnant and you will be SO HOT and swollen if you’re 9 months in the heat. So aim for middle ground, depending where you live of course.
My oldest son was born in [name_f]May[/name_f], my second son in [name_f]October[/name_f] (but was due early [name_u]November[/name_u]), and I’m now expecting twins in [name_u]January[/name_u].
If possible, I’d avoid being 7-9 months pregnant in the summer, at least if it’s warm where you live. I can tell you it’s not very pleasant. The summer before my second son was born was extremely hot, especially in [name_u]August[/name_u], and being pregnant wasn’t much fun then. I’m glad he was due in [name_u]November[/name_u] and I wasn’t 8-9 months pregnant, because that would have been hell.
I had one born at the beginning of [name_u]March[/name_u], one born at the end of [name_u]August[/name_u] and one born at the end of [name_u]June[/name_u].
Of these my preference is having a summer baby. In fact I tel hubby if by God’s [name_f]Grace[/name_f] we end up expecting again I want to plan for a [name_u]July[/name_u] baby!
With my [name_u]March[/name_u] baby (my second born) I was the heaviest pregnant during the times when it’s colder and ice on the ground. Colder means more need for maternity clothes. And post baby means it’s not as simple to do skin to skin. It means having to be careful around jce and snow. And my first baby appointment was booked around a snowstorm!
I love summer pregnancies because you easily have pools to cool off in. Less maternity clothes to worry about (heck you don’t even need shoes!). The sun is up earlier and down later making pregnancy insomnia less of noticeable issue. Skin to skin is simple because it’s already hot out …
For me personally, I prefer getting pregnant during the summer and giving birth in the spring. I have one born in [name_u]January[/name_u], one in [name_f]April[/name_f] and currently pregnant with one due in [name_f]October[/name_f] and being as pregnant as I am now (6 months) during the summer heat is miserable. Shaving my legs has become a chore at this many months pregnant and I can’t even see my bikini area due to my belly, so I just kinda had to shave blind before going to the pool yesterday and hope for the best. LOL. Also, at least in the States, [name_f]September[/name_f]-[name_u]December[/name_u] is always so busy (what with school starting back up and then three major holidays in a row) that I’ve always been glad that my older kids’ birthdays were in the second half of the school year.
My first son was born in [name_f]October[/name_f].
He had really bad colic and the fact that we were straight into winter was really tough as I was confined to the house and couldn’t get out on nice walks etc.
Second son was born in [name_u]July[/name_u], omg I don’t think I could ever carry over the summer ever again. I was so hot. Being pregnant is difficult anyway in the third trimester but being hot and swollen is no fun.
You also have the trouble of keeping baby cool in the heat.
Therefore [name_f]My[/name_f] conclusion is that a baby born any time feb-may is more favourable. They are also not too old or too young in the school year either. (If you live in the UK)
I’m going to come at this from a different angle from most and say that I would avoid going through the first trimester in the heat of summer 
I had good pregnancies and births overall but I felt absolutely rotten for the first 15-20 weeks of each of my pregnancies. The nausea, sickness, thirst, tiredness, food aversion, etc. all felt so much worse in the heat.
I have had it almost all possible ways (my children were born in [name_f]September[/name_f], [name_u]June[/name_u] and [name_f]February[/name_f]) and I far preferred being heavily pregnant during the height of summer than being newly pregnant with morning sickness and exhaustion in the heat.
I also agree with @Alix2016 about maternity clothes and skin to skin with a newborn – both way easier and more comfortable in the warmer months of the year. By full term wearing maternity jeans or leggings or dresses with tights is like being in a straightjacket! But in summer you can just live in maxi-dresses – soooo much more comfortable.
Being heavily expectant in the summer is so, so challenging. However, having a newborn in the summer is nice in that you don’t have to bundle her up wherever you go, and it’s easier to leave the house that way!
Delivering in the winter means a coat that usually doesn’t close 
But if hormones make you sweat bullets all the time, winter is a nice time to be at the end, since not much will make you too cold.
Being in early nausea etc. has been worse for me in the summer.
[name_f]Spring[/name_f] and fall are such pleasant times to do everything, and being pregnant during them is nice since there’s no extremes.
Having kids born mid-year is nice since they’re not the oldest or youngests in their class…
All in all, get pregnant when it happens! (We’re not as in control of these things as we’d like to think.) Be smart in whatever weather you’re expecting, and take care of yourself accordingly. You’ll do great.
I got pregnant late summer and will give birth end of spring/very start of summer. So far I’ve found the seasons working really well for me. It was slightly cool/start of autumn before the horrible first trimester pregnancy symptoms started to kick in and now it’s winter I’ve found it super easy to hide my bump. I have anxiety and a strong dislike of people trying to touch me/give me “advice” I haven’t asked for etc so I’m planning to keep my pregnancy a secret until 28weeks. On 23 weeks now so just 5 weeks to go till the third trimester!! Wearing lose dresses, scarves, long coats etc has been easy and now I’m starting to get a bit bigger we are slowly moving towards spring so by the time I’m massive I’ll be able to ditch the leggings and tights and just wear my floaty dresses again 
I had originally planned ahead like you’re doing. Several years before TTC I decided we would first start in late [name_u]June[/name_u] so I’d have good chances of having a [name_f]February[/name_f]/March/April baby. But when push came to shove we had all our preconception ducks lined up about 6 months early so we started TTC late [name_u]November[/name_u] and got pregnant on the first try and so H was born late [name_u]August[/name_u].
I actually REALLY liked that spread. I essentially hibernated all winter when I was super sick. I do agree with @katinka that being as sick as I got and dragging on for as long as it did, first trimester during the nice months of the year sounds awful. Full winter was actually pretty serendipitous, if dismal. It was [name_f]May[/name_f] by the time I started to feel better, but that was just when I really wanted to be outside anyway. And I had a fabulous third trimester all summer. I didn’t suffer from swelling or anything, wore big T shirts and my husband’s swim trunks and basketball shorts so I didn’t use our maternity clothing budget. We don’t have AC in our home and it does get pretty hot and gross during the summers here, but with fans I still look back on it as a wonderful time and I don’t think I suffered much in the heat despite my entire last trimester taking place during the super hot months. The one thing I was thankful for was that it got mild JUST in time (by a couple days) for H to be born. I had a homebirth and I did get antsy thinking of birth during a heatwave.
I didn’t physically carry A so it’s a different story but he was an early [name_f]April[/name_f] baby and this summer weather with a newborn has been really fun. That was, after all, my initial preference, and it does seem like a wonderful time to be born when all is new.
But I actually like the summer birth enough to try for it again. We plan on TTC in about 3 months and if we were to get pregnant right away it’d be a late [name_u]July[/name_u] baby, even doing home birth again and everything… But I have some new health concerns that might make it more difficult to conceive this time around, plus planning as I did last time with the idea in mind that it might take a few months of trying anyway… going into the Fall or [name_u]Winter[/name_u] months also feels doable.
Really I think anytime you conceive will be OK, but you can always initially try for one time and see if it works out how you would have liked it.
I think it depends where you live. I had my first early [name_f]October[/name_f] and my second end of [name_f]May[/name_f]. I preferred having a baby in [name_f]October[/name_f]. But I live in AZ and fall/winter is awesome. Whereas with my summer baby we’ve literally been inside since shes been born because it’s just too hot to go outside with a newborn. It’s been around 110 degrees and it’s horrible. I didn’t mind being pregnant in the summer because I just went swimming and wore dresses my whole pregnancy. Although I would not want a [name_u]November[/name_u], [name_u]December[/name_u] or [name_u]January[/name_u] baby because with the holidays it’s already so busy. I think if we were to have another one I’ll either try for a Feb/Mar babe or a [name_f]September[/name_f] babe.
It really depends on the climate where you live. [name_f]My[/name_f] first child is a [name_f]October[/name_f] baby and going through the dog days of summer when I was in third trimester in the southern U.S. was brutal. We we’re trying for a spring baby second go around, but now I am pregnant and due in [name_u]January[/name_u]. I’m kind of excited for a winter baby. More excuses to snuggle up and stay cozy while you recuperate. Thinking about it, spring time is when I personally am trying to get alot of home and garden projects done, so having a newborn during that time at be tougher. I don’t know, I think any time of year has pluses and minuses.
Two summer babies here. Well, technically my son is “autumn” but I can tell you the end of [name_u]March[/name_u] in Queensland is just as bad as the middle of [name_u]January[/name_u] (my daughter). I agree that the maternity clothes situation is nice, and the skin-to-skin, and being half naked all the time to breastfeed is easier. But uggghhh the heat while you are giant and swollen and miserable anyway! It was like carrying around my own oven while hobbling along the surface of the sun. After my [name_u]January[/name_u] baby I said never again. Best laid plans and all, and then I was due in [name_u]March[/name_u]. Haha! I think there are pros and cons to every season. If you are planning on a summer baby, do you work in air conditioning (my work is outside half the day so I couldn’t escape the heat)? [name_f]Do[/name_f] you have access to a pool? These things would help alleviate the problems with a summer baby.
THIS! A few people told me that being pregnant during the summer would be hard but I actually knew I would prefer it for this reason. I loved wearing maternity dresses with a light jean jacket and good walking sandals. Much cuter and comfier than what I would have to wear in winter.
[name_f]Bea[/name_f] was born at the end of [name_f]September[/name_f] so it was the PERFECT time for us with weather and being comfortable. Plus, I got to go on my first walks with her when all of the leaves were changing around us, it was so nice 
ETA: it does depend on where you live and if you have a/c! We live in the PNW of the US so we have beautiful summers with a few weeks of heat. You just sit in front of a fan and eat popsicles haha
I wouldn’t have given it much thought before, but I think it definitely depends where you live.
With my first 5, we lived along the US border, summers were hot, winters were snowy. [name_u]Four[/name_u] in spring, 1 in fall.
Once we moved, (next to [name_f]Alaska[/name_f] now) circumstances changed. We’re in a small community. I saw local nurses until about 2 weeks before my due date when I had to pack up and relocate to a hotel in the city to deliver in the hospital there. Hubby had to take time off work to stay home with the other kids. I’m always overdue, so that 2 weeks turned into 4. Hubby and the kids would visit once a week if we could swing it, but he wasn’t with me when I delivered. It’s a very lonely experience…
Anyway, too far into the winter months and the weather might be too bad, or the highway unplowed, to risk the trip into the city to visit me during that month or to bring us home. If we have any more, I’d aim for [name_f]September[/name_f] or [name_f]October[/name_f], or spring again. I never considered these things when we lived in the south.
I was talking to a pregnant friend of mine the other day and she brought up another point of considering with timing.
She had her first mid-[name_u]July[/name_u] and her second is due early [name_f]September[/name_f]. She said that now that we are past mid-[name_u]July[/name_u] but she is so pregnant, she can’t help but thinking “I was done having my baby by now.” The last few weeks have dragged, because she feels like she has already had a summer pregnancy and should be done with the heat already. I can see how having your second just slightly after your first on the calendar could be tricky. Seems far better to have your second due just slightly before the duedate of your first or offset entirely in a different season.
It makes me really hope all the more I get pregnant within the first two cycles we try this year all the more so my second won’t be due after the duedate of my first.