|| Maternity Must Haves ||

Maternity Must Haves

Now that I am in my 38th week of pregnancy I think I am ready to write this post! I can't tell you how many blogs I have read, pinterest searches I have done, friends I have texted, books I have read about the things a women needs during pregnancy! My family actually laughs and makes fun of me about it. It is something I am interested in so I enjoy researching the things pregnant people need and also new born babies… so expect a post about that after the next few months and see how accurate I ended up being. I will be breaking this up into the 3 trimesters and I hope it will help someone out!

1st Trimester: 

Bump Nest Pregnancy Pillow: I had the worst hip and back pain right out of the gate. I researched and had lots of people say they loved their pregnancy pillows for their pain and they were right! The first few nights I had to get used to sleeping with it but now it is my best friend and I love it! 

Lululemon: In the 1st trimester I could still fit in my jeans but I was so sick that I just wanted to be comfy all. the. time. So I lived in my lulu bottoms! Everyone needs at least one pair of black lulus that are stretchy and go with anything.

Mother's Special Blend All Natural Skin Toning Oil: I started using this stuff as soon as I found out I was pregnant. I am prone to stretch marks so I knew oiling would be very important! I have loved this stuff and just ran out of it the other day. It smells pretty good and did the job. I just started getting a few on my hips the last week but I think it helped keep them at bay.

What to Expect App: I liked this app to help me track my progress! I liked how every week it told me what size my baby was according to a fruit or veggie!

Toast: I just thought I would give a shout out to toast for being my staple meal those first 12 weeks. I hated 99% of food so luckily I could stomach toast and green smoothies. 

2nd Trimester:

Target Maternity Jeans: My jeans started to get a little tight and this babe does not like anything constricting his dance parties so I popped over to Target and bought these and have loved them! You can spend all your $ on maternity jeans and I refused. 

ASOS Maternity Dresses: If you are pregnant go buy some of these RIGHT NOW. I have lived in these this summer. They are stylish and you can find good deals if you check a lot but the best thing is that they fit well and are so comfy! 

Tums: My heartburn and acid reflex has been awful. So so awful. I have a bottle by my bed, in the living room, in my purse, in my car, and in my pantry. I am dead serious! Luckily I got a prescription from my doctor after I couldn't do it anymore and it has helped a ton! If I miss taking those I can kiss sleeping goodbye.

FitBit: My wonderful mom gave me her old fitbit halfway through my second trimester and I have loved it. I have a polar watch that I love but being pregnant it was hard to wear the hear rate monitor so the fitbit was perfect. It gave me motivation to get my steps in each day which was huge! Sometimes it's hard to get off the couch…   

Caslon Vnecked Tshirts: These may not be "maternity" per say but they have been by far the most comfortable my whole pregnancy. I bought about 5 and have loved them all. Especially my plain black one. They are also really flattering and you can totally wear them when you aren't pregnant too. Bonus!  

SPANX Power Mama Maternity Power Panties: If you get one clothing item from this list this is it! I was worried about getting these because like I said this baby doesn't liked to be squished but they don't make me feel constricted at all! All they did was make me feel held together and more confident since they held my love handles in a bit! Get them, they are worth every penny.

BECCA Under Eye Brightening Corrector: I went to Sephora one day with my mom and mother in law and got my makeup all done for me and it was heaven! One item that they used that I bought and have loved is this BECCA under eye brightening corrector. I haven't slept much or really had great sleeps my whole pregnancy so this stuff has been a life saver! I have naturally puffy under eyes anyway but add the no sleep and they were bad so I was happy to find something that didn't make me look like a zombie!

Third Trimester:

So to be honest I really haven't bought much for myself or used any new products in the third trimester! I have been totally focused on baby boy's wardrobe, nursery, and other baby gadget things! I did buy another pair of stretchy pants from superstore that I have loved and a tunic shirt for $2.50 at Old Navy. Also a large exercise ball to bounce on in order to speed up labour but other than that… nothing! Oh and my gorgeous cousin Morgan did tell me about some sunless tanning lotion that I have liked! I couldn't lay out in the sun much this summer because I got hot so quickly and it made me sick to be on the boat so my tan really suffered! This has been nice to make my huge white tummy and legs not look quite so white. I also love st. tropez bronzing mousse but it is pricey so I only use that for special occasions.

There you have it! If I think of anymore I will add them! If you have any suggestions to add to the list let me know too, I love trying new products!

|| Bump Update: 15-36 Weeks ||

I know most people do this every week… well I obviously missed the boat on that one! So I am just going to do this little survey now! I'll be adding all my cravings, favourite moments, food aversions, and what not that I have experienced over the past almost 37 weeks! 

How far along are you: 36 weeks, 4 days

Baby is: The size of a large cantaloupe! Probably the biggest cantaloupe anyone has ever seen. Just saying, I'm getting very large.

Weight gain: Ugh… You don't need to know this and I wish I didn't.

Movement: He is a mover and shaker for sure! I have been able to feel him since about 17 weeks and other people have been able to since 18 weeks! The last week or so though I can tell he is getting more squished which makes moving a lot harder.

Maternity clothes: I love maternity clothes. Every pair of pants should have a total elastic waist band! I love it and will surely miss them a little. Also I have lived in dresses. Stretchy and comfy maternity dresses! Asos maternity is my BF.

Stretch marks: Unfortunately as of 35 weeks, despite my constant oiling, a few stretch marks started appearing on my hips :( Dang it.

Sleep: Thanks to my maternity pillow the first 30 weeks of sleeping weren't half bad! I mean I woke up a lot to pee but otherwise I slept good! The last 6 weeks though.. oh man so uncomfortable. My heartburn has been so bad! No matter what I take it just flares up! Tums can be found in every room in our house! I think my body is just prepping me for the sleepless nights I have ahead!

Belly Button Or Out: In still! I doubt it will go out just keep getting flatter.

Favorite moment of the week: My favourite things have been telling our families, ultrasounds, baby hiccups, Brett feeling the baby move, thinking about baby names, putting together his nursery, buying baby clothes, and more baby clothes!

Feeling: I have felt pretty good actually! I mean I was super sick for the first 13 weeks, but my second trimester was great! I worked out most days and felt really good! I was lucky. Every since about 32 weeks though, I feel tired and uncomfortable… but what can you do! It's all part of the process! Also like I mentioned before my heartburn is bad, so this baby better have lots of hair!

Labour Signs: I have been having some Braxton Hicks for the last 2 weeks but nothing more than that!

Wedding Ring: Still wearing it! Lucky for me my hands haven't gotten to swollen. Just after I work out mostly! I have to take it off before I do my daily walk but otherwise it's on.

Working on: Finishing his nursery! It is almost done just need a few more things. Lets just say I really miss living in the states when it comes to shopping! Finding a nice comfy glider/recliner chair has proved to be extremely difficult! 

Currently craving:  Since day one I have craved the same two things, black liquorice and anything grape flavoured, especially ice cream and sluprees! The last few weeks I have also been craving mnm blizzards and smartie mcfurries! I have to limit myself to 1 a week.

Wishing: I could know exactly when he was coming! The unknown is killing me. I mostly just keep wishing an hoping that he is healthy! I also can't wait to see if he is dark like me or a light like his dad! To see if he has my nose or his dad's skinny legs! So many things to look forward too :)

|| Bouncing Baby Boy ||

I figured that maybe I should do a blog post about our newest little addition to the family before he is already here! I can't believe he could be here anytime… Like I am almost 37 weeks. Talk about a blogging/journaling failure.

How We Found Out:
Okay before I write this out I have some stuff to say. I have debated how to say this all for a long time now. I am a pretty open person about some stuff but pretty closed off about other stuff and it's hard for me to get real personal when everyone and their dog can read it. Especially when it's not just my trial to share. So after much debate all I am going to say is that this baby is our little miracle. He is an answer to a lot of prayers and we feel so unbelievably blessed to get to be his parents!

Okay here we go then! So it's January and I had been trying not to count down the days until... well you know the "special womanly" day that month but lets be serious I knew exactly when it was and it was finally here. I didn't want to get my hopes up so I tried to pretend like it was just a normal day. I did this same routine for the next 4 days, almost having mild panic attacks every time I had to pee. Finally I told Brett as we went to bed that I was 5 days late. He said well did you take a test? I explained that no I hadn't and that I couldn't do it and see a negative sign again. So we made up a game plan, I would take the test in the morning and he would go check it and tell me the results. Is this how I had once planned on telling my husband I was pregnant? No, not even close but nothing had gone according to plan so far so why would this right? So the morning came and as soon as I woke up I had instant mammoth size butterflies in my stomach. We said a quick prayer together and I headed off to take the test. I hurried back into bed and we waited a few mins and then Brett went to see the results. I swear he took an hour in there. I thought for sure it was negative and he was too nervous and sad to come tell me. But soon he emerged with this little grin and said "Hey Honey, it says positive!" I obviously started bawling and smiling and laughing and all sorts of other things! I was so excited and couldn't believe it! I knew I wasn't out of the woods. The next weeks leading up to week 11 and our first ultrasound were the longest of my life. The relief we felt when we were told everything looked great and healthy was huge! He (we didn't know he was a he then) looked so cute already!

5 weeks late while my mom and Jocelyn were visiting us in AZ we decided to get a gender reveal ultrasound done! I wish they had these in Canada for our next babies. We might have to make trip to to the states just to get one ;) It took the ultrasound tech all on 10 seconds to be able to tell us the we were having a bouncing baby boy! We were all so excited! I wasn't shocked at all because that had been my guess from day one. So happy!

We got to see our little boy again at our 21 week ultrasound! Sam was our ultrasound tech and she did an amazing job! Unfortunately Brett couldn't be there, silly school, so Joc and my mom got to sit in again! She confirmed he was still a boy and that he was a healthy little fella!

Due to the fact that my husband was born with a head in the 97% and that my mom was induced 2 weeks early after Mitch was huge, my doctor thought it would be smart to get a size ultrasound done. Lucky for me it looks like he is at 50% across the board! So hopefully they are right… Only time will tell! Also check out his little lips! Blowing his mommy a little kiss and melting her hear!

So there you have it! A little update on our baby boy who we cannot wait to meet! Hopefully sooner rather than later :)