Mom Has Been Pregnant with 2 Babies at 2 Eras Tour Shows, Though Feared Going Into Labor 'at Any Moment' at First (Exclusive)
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10/26/2024 11:00 AM
The expecting mom tells PEOPLE she attended Taylor Swift's Eras Tour twice, was pregnant two separate times for each show and was "happy to be there"
Kate Green/Getty; Courtesy of Rachel Youde
Taylor Swift and Rachel YoudeRachel Youde's babies are born Swifties!
The Maine native, a new mom and a die-hard Taylor Swift fan, attended the pop superstar's Eras Tour twice — and was pregnant at each concert, sharing the unique tidbit in a now-viral TikTok.
Two major life milestones taking place within that timeline is a shocking reminder of just how long Swift has been on tour. The Eras Tour kicked off in Arizona on March 17, 2023, and is slated to wrap on Dec. 8, 2024, in Vancouver.
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Youde reflects on her two concert experiences and the mixed feelings she felt as both a pregnant concertgoer and a Swift fan who's "been a Swiftie ever since her first single came out in 2006."
The first show Youde attended was at Gillette Stadium night two on May 3 of last year. She was 37 weeks pregnant with her daughter at the time, having purchased a ticket one month into her pregnancy when sales began in November 2022.
Courtesy of Rachel Youde
Rachel Youde at 37 weeks pregnant during the Eras Tour show at Gillette Stadium in May 2023"I bought it knowing that I would be really close to the end of my pregnancy by the time the show came around, but I was fully planning to go," Youde, 30, tells PEOPLE exclusively. "I knew all along that I would be nine months pregnant at the show... unless something came up."
Months later, nothing came up and an "extremely sore" — yet "happy to be there" — Youde was on her way to the concert! However, it wasn't the easiest experience.
"It just kind of felt like carrying a bowling ball around in my pelvis, so very sore," she recalls of that phase of her pregnancy, also noting that the amount of walking that was done added to the soreness.
@rachcundiff I only go to the Eras tour when pregnant 😆
♬ Im having his baby announcement - Blakeley
Youde also remembers having "a lot of anxiety" at the first show she attended. "They tell you at the end of your pregnancy that you could literally go into labor at any moment," she says of what caused her worry while there.
While "soreness" and "anxiety" were "the two biggest feelings" she cited, Youde recalls two other elements out of her control that factored into her memorable Eras Tour experience. "It was also pouring rain and freezing cold that show, so I was also just soaking wet and cold," she says.
Still, the dedicated Swiftie didn't let those obstacles bother her. "I'm such a Taylor fan that I kind of pushed those feelings to the side and enjoyed the show," Youde says, noting that she "wasn't showing any signs of labor" and was cleared by her doctor a few days prior to attend.
"I felt pretty safe," she says, though adds, "But that fear was still in the back of my mind."
Related: Mom Starts Singing Taylor Swift Song to Her Baby — and Her Unexpected Reaction Goes Viral
Courtesy of Rachel Youde
Rachel Youde at 37 weeks pregnant gets ready to attend the Eras Tour in May 2023Youde ultimately gave birth to her firstborn, daughter Charlotte, at 41 weeks (nearly one month after the concert!). She also "tried" to give her a Swift-inspired name, though she jokes her husband "wouldn't go for that."
Regardless, Youde has already started to impart her love for the singer on her little one. "From the day she was born, I sung her lullabies from the Evermore album to get her to sleep every night," she says.
"The song that she always used to love is 'Cowboy Like Me' from the Evermore album," she explains. "There's actually a spin-off of the Evermore album called Eversnore. It's instrumental versions of the songs designed for babies."
Youde adds, "We would play that. I would play the instrumental version and sing the lyrics to her when she was probably 2 or 3 weeks old. It's one of the only ways that she would calm down and go to sleep at night. It's super cute."
The second concert Youde attended was night one of the Miami show on Oct. 18 this year. There, she was 18 weeks pregnant with her son, an experience the expecting mom tells PEOPLE was "much easier" this time around.
Courtesy of Rachel Youde
Rachel Youde attends the Eras Tour in Miami in October 2024"I'm at a point in my pregnancy right now where I'm really comfortable," Youde says about one week after the show. "I haven't gotten really large yet, I'm not very sore yet and all of the nausea and exhaustion from the first trimester is over, so I feel pretty normal."
She adds, "I wasn't as sore and exhausted. I didn't have any anxiety about anything happening with the pregnancy, so it was a lot less stressful and honestly more enjoyable."
The unique experience of having been pregnant for each Eras Tour concert she attended is special for Youde, who says her love of Swift began in middle school.
She explains, "I think she's amazing and her songs have gotten me through some of the best and worst times in my life. I find her lyrics very relatable and gotten me through very, lots of highs and lows."
Now that Youde is on a Swift streak of concerts and pregnancies, the soon-to-be mom of two has one request for the superstar: "If Taylor reads this or is watching any of my content, then she should have another tour so I can get pregnant again and go a third time."
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Read the original article on People.
