Good morning! I hope you are having a lovely Friday. I hope my last post didn’t come off as too whiny. Everything is actually going great over here. I think it was just a couple “life hiccups” happening at the same time, ya know? My dad is out of the hospital and resting comfortably. Reggie is at the tail end of his project and he is so much less stressed lately. Besides missing him a lot, I hate seeing him so frantic. It is not in his nature to be like that so I know the situation had to be really bad. He may even have the whole weekend off from work. I am really looking forward to finish the nursery with him, touring the birth center (finally), and figuring out how to use some our baby gear like our car seat! Good times! 🙂

As I am currently in my 36th week, I have definitely started to slow down my normal routine. I am more uncomfortable each day. My workout routine is now down to 3 days a week and much less intense. I am completely happy with how active I have been up until this point and I think listening to my body and resting when needed is exactly what I should be doing. I am now spending my time doing the usual nesting activities of organizing the nursery and washing all of his little baby clothes. Reggie did suggest we hire a cleaning service for next week because I find that keeping up with my usual cleaning routine is pretty much impossible at this point. I can’t wait to have a sparkling house without feeling exhausted. 

Lately, I have also been thinking about what has really helped me during this pregnancy. I know I made a list a couple months ago of things I was loving but this is much more accurate. You won’t find things like the overpriced Snoogle on this list. Side note: I swear that pillow made my already mind-numbingly bad sciatica ten times worse. You will however find things that worked for me and helped me mentally and physically throughout the last 9 months. 

Comfy Clothes:

I am still obsessed with these Gap Maternity leggings. They are so soft, comfortable, and lightweight. Plus, they fit me throughout my entire pregnancy which, I have learned, is very unusual. The same can not be said for most of my maternity jeans.

I know that whether or not you have stretch marks is determined more by genetics than fancy lotions but this stuff is amazing. Everyone else in my family has stretch marks from pregnancy and I do not have any on my belly so far. I have some from when I lost weight years ago so I know that my body gets them. So I am attributing my lack of belly stretch marks to using this butter religiously. Plus, it smells dreamy and my hubs loves the scent.

I am also still in love with these super soft and extra long maternity tank tops from Old Navy. I have this style in several colors and I wear one almost every day. I bet they will work well post baby as well. Paired with a a lightweight cardigan and my beloved leggings, these have made dressing while pregnant quick and easy. Let’s hope my labor goes the same way. 😉

Truthfully, other than the leggings, tank tops, and a couple pair of jeans, I have not bought many actual maternity clothes. I find most of them to be unflattering and overpriced. Once the weather became warm, I have relied heavily on maxi dresses. Sometimes I have to buy them a size larger but I usually just add a belt to give myself a bit more shape. My favorite is the striped maxi seen above. Even though the stripes are horizontal and would usually make me appear larger, this dress is actually quite flattering because of the way the stripes angle down. In fact, my sister bought the dress too for her own non-maternity needs. 

Good Reads:

Months ago I asked my doctor whether or not she thought taking a breastfeeding class was worth the time and money. I was surprised when she didn’t recommend taking a class because she felt that those classes are more theory based and breastfeeding is something where you learn the most while “on the job,” not in a classroom. Still, I wanted to find out a little more about something that I was determined to try. My aunt gave me this great book on breastfeeding that proved to be very eye-opening, informative, and easy to understand. I know that I will most likely run into difficulties once my little guy arrives and I feel like I have a great resource on my hands when I run into any problems.

Epidural, no epidural? Home or hospital? Childbirth is such a touchy subject in the world of mamas. I tend to avoid these arguments because at the end of the day I think it is good to be informed and choose what works best for you and your baby and no one else. So I wanted to be informed. At first, I was completely overwhelmed by all of the information out there on childbirth. Luckily, my aunt also handed me this book and I absolutely loved it. The author has a great agenda-free perspective and breaks down the pros and cons of every type of birth plan. No pressure, just information. After finishing this book, my husband and I did take a childbirth class where we learned all about natural childbirth and optional interventions. When I do go into labor, I am going in with an open mind and no pressure to have a specific kind of birth. After all, this is my first baby and I have no idea what is going to happen. My goal is to have a healthy baby. Even if that means having a C-section. 

Baby Bargains was a pregnancy lifesaver for me. The authors also offer a no nonsense perspective but this time it is on baby gear. I relied heavily on their grading system when selecting our nursery furniture, stroller, car seat, and other essential baby gear. I will be doing a full post in the future reviewing all of the items, but I will wait until the little guy actually arrives. 

Until then, I hope you have a beautiful, relaxing weekend. 

xo