May 20th, 2010 
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Your body (and pregnancy) may not be the same as during your first pregnancy. Maybe you were able to work out like a madwoman the first time around, but maybe not this time. Listen to your body and your midwife (or doctor).
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Be aware of your own limitations, and don’t be afraid to make these clear to visitors. Especially visitors who want to show up late in the evening and linger far too long. Before you find yourself being absolutely, ungraciously rude, either pull your partner aside and ask him or her to clear out the guests — if you lack the energy or any last shred of niceness to do it yourself — or simply excuse yourself as ‘tired’ and leave the room.
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Think about what you need ahead of time, especially toward the end of the pregnancy. Additionally, plan to need a ton of help after the baby is born. Have it in place.
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A second pregnancy is the perfect time to relax your standards — so the kid watches some extra Curious George while mommy sits in the air-conditioned living room. So you order takeout instead of making quinoa salad and sitting down as a family. So you bag the water park and let the kid splash in the bathtub instead. It’s all OK. You will, believe it or not, be back to normal again and then you can have all those standards back, but those last few weeks of pregnancy are a really good time to ease up and slack a little.
