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treatnationapp · 6 years

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Baby Prepping - Essential Gifts

Having a baby is one of the most exciting and terrifying times in a person’s life. There are so many decisions to be made, do we find out the sex? What should we name the baby? Do we have a gender reveal party? What baby items should I purchase? The questions are endless. While all of your friends and family mean we, they can be a source of endless frustration with their helpful suggestions and advice. It’s easy to become overwhelmed throughout a pregnancy, especially when it’s your first child. This blog post describes and links to some of the items we found to be most useful as we prepared to welcome our baby girl and after she arrived. These items would make perfect gifts for your friends and family members. Are you expecting a little one? Add them to your baby registry and thank us later. Happy reading!

Pregnancy Essentials

Preggie Pop Drops. All things considered, I had a smooth pregnancy. I didn’t get sick, have major pregnancy acne, or gain a lot of weight. I did, however, have long-lasting queasiness. I tried mints, ginger candies, tea, saltines, etc. in search of relief. None of them worked for more than a few minutes. Fortunately, a friend told me about Preggie Pop Drops, and they did the trick. They’re natural, citrus-flavored candies that taste great and provide decent nausea relief.

Maternity Leggings. Man, oh man, maternity leggings are a lifesaver. They’re comfortable and pair well with almost anything. I highly recommend getting maternity leggings as early as possible since you can grow into them. They’re super convenient early in pregnancy when your clothes fit but aren’t as comfortable as they once were.

Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow. I am totally a stomach sleeper, which is a pregnancy no no. I used the snoogle to find a comfortable position in the latter months of my pregnancy.

Maternity Shapewear. I have thick thighs when I’m not pregnant. I had super thick thighs during my pregnancy and these things helped prevent the wildfire caused by chafing.

Folgers Simply Smooth, Decaf, Low Acid Coffee. Coffee lovers rejoice! While I know it’s acceptable to drink one cup of coffee each day, I didn’t want to risk it. The days were long and exhausting until I found this coffee. I had reflux issues throughout my pregnancy so I had to reduce my acid consumption. This stuff was amazing. It tastes great and didn’t bother my stomach.

Postpartum Essentials

Depends. Oh my gosh, I used to think these were only for older people. Boy was I wrong! Those first few days postpartum are interesting, to say the least. Thank goodness for the mesh panties and seemingly industrial strength pads the hospital gives women. I had a c-section and needed to keep fabric away from my incision. Enter Depends. They were surprisingly comfortable and obviously disposable. The convenience of not worrying about washing my undergarments in those early days was amazing.

High Waisted Panties. Yes, I’m still talking about undergarments. These were a godsend when the nastiness subsided but my incision was still healing.

Disposable Ice Packs and Heating Pads. These were amazing as I healed up. Just crack, shake and apply. The hospital gave them to us, make sure you ask your nurses for extra heat and ice packs.

Fig Bars. These were clutch in the days immediately postpartum. I was always hungry but not willing or able to go to the kitchen and make food. These bars are yummy and not terrible for you.

Disposable Nursing Pads. I love these things. They saved me from many embarrassing moments once my milk came in. They’re super absorbent and easy to place in your nursing bra.

New Baby Essentials

My Brestfriend Nursing Pillow. I am definitely of the “fed is best” mindset, but I personally chose to breastfeed my daughter. Those first few days are extremely awkward as you adjust to the baby. Each of you is figuring out how to connect the beautiful (seemingly fragile) tiny human to a swollen and probably painful nipple. Understandably, it’s hard to remember how all the holds and tips they share with you at the hospital. Enter the My Brestfriend. It helps create a solid and supportive platform to help you get your little one into the right position. It was well worth the money.

Hands-Free Pumping Bra. This is the last breastfeeding related “essential” I’ll discuss for now. This bra is amazing if you pump. It helped me get more milk than I did just holding the pump bottles against myself and freed up my hands so I could occupy my time online shopping, reading, searching for tv shows and movies… whatever I wanted. This bra is fairly comfortable and adjustable so it’s good for women of all sizes.

Baby Kimonos. I was absolutely terrified to put my little one’s head through the opening of onesies for her first three months. Yes, I realize this is irrational. These baby kimonos were easy to put on and easy to remove when she spit up and needed to be changed.

Swaddle Blankets. This is obviously a no-brainer. We loved these blankets because they were large and super stretchy, which came in handy once we actually learned how to swaddle her. Their larger size allowed us to use them longer as she grew.

Disposable Changing Pad Covers. These are really a game changer when you use any surface like a changing table. We initially used puppy training pads, but those are loaded with chemicals and irritated our daughter’s skin. These pads are ridiculously absorbing and a great investment. I can’t tell you how many times these things prevented us from having a wet couch, bed, or floor.

Infant and Beyond

Graco Aire3 Click Connect System. Everyone has their preferred brand of baby product. We happen to be Graco people. We loved the click connect system because it’s super lightweight and easy to install. The baby stroller breaks down with the pull of a strap. There are no awkward buttons or levers which cause inevitable embarrassment as you struggle to put the stroller away at the grocery store.

Brica Firefly Baby-In-Sight Car Mirror. When I say this thing is a lifesaver, I am SO not exaggerating. We love this mirror. It is battery operated and has a remote control. The mirror has two settings, awake and asleep, and plays music that can soothe a crying baby. This has come in handy so many times.

Baby Einstein Music Player. This is probably our daughter’s favorite toy. It plays classical music. Our daughter is instantly captivated by its simple light up display and often tries to eat the little rings on the handle. This is a must pack in our diaper bag.

The Nose Frida. Our daughter has some of the strongest boogers on the planet. They laugh in the face of traditional nasal aspirators. While it is slightly difficult to use with a wiggling baby, this thing has superior suction abilities and will definitely clear out those congested little nasal passages. We often paired it with saline Boogie Wipes or Boogie Mist.

All Free and Clear Laundry Detergent. We LOVE this stuff. Why should you spend 100s of dollars on baby specific laundry detergent when you can just buy this and use it on everyone’s laundry?

Fisher Price Rock n Play. Oh my goodness, this was a lifesaver when our daughter was smaller and sick. We couldn’t get her to sleep flat on her back when she was extra congested. This allowed her to feel snug and secure and sleep at an angle. Our pediatrician said the angle helped her mucus drain and made her more comfortable.

That’s it. What are some of your favorite baby items?

#babyprepping #babyitems #pregnancypreparation #babyregistry #babyshowergifts #babyshower

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carebear1784 · 11 years

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More About Change(s) . . . Part 2

One of my recent therapy h/w assignments was to make a list of all of the changes I've recently (within the last 6 months) experienced. This is a continuation of Part 1, that I posted a couple of days ago.

(4) I changed therapists - - - The status of this change is yet to be determined. I like my new therapist but she’s new to me and she’s not any of my previous therapists. I do like that she reminds me of bits and pieces of two of my previous therapists that I really liked. She challenges me but sometimes I feel like she’s prying or pushing too hard for me to open up. I don’t trust easily, not at all. It takes me awhile to open up and figure out if I can trust someone. The more she pushes/pries, the less I want to talk/share. I understand the whole assessment process and whatnot, however, if I don’t feel ready to divulge specifics/details concerning something and express that verbally and non-verbally, I expect it to be dropped and noted as something to come back to. I will/do eventually open up about things and share details/specifics but not until I know I can trust you.

(5) I went through/am going through medication changes - - - My husband and I want to have kids, not just yet, but perhaps we will start trying next spring/summer. We’d really prefer to have a pregnancy free of psychiatric medications, if at all possible. So I’m trying to go off of my meds, with the help of my psychiatrist, in the hopes of being med free by February or March. Around this time last year, I was on 6 different psychiatric medications (5 daily and 1 PRN). Now I’m on 3 (all daily). I will admit that the transition of getting off the meds has been somewhat difficult (physically, mentally and/or emotionally), depending on the medication that was being discontinued and how long it took to get off it. The status of this change is also to be determined. I believe that if I keep the end goal in mind, it will be ok. Hopefully I’m right.

To be continued . . .

#personal #change #therapy #medications #pregnancypreparation

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