Okay guys, there are two things that you need to realize about me before reading this:
- I’m fashion-challenged when not pregnant, and being pregnant has not helped that at all. If you’re looking for a list of must-have outfits or pregnancy hacks to stay trendy, you’re not going to find them here.
- I’ve been blessed with really easy pregnancies both times that I’ve carried to term. I have no concept of why this is the case — maybe genetics– but I don’t have a lot of insight into how to help with some common pregnancy symptoms such as morning sickness. For this I am grateful, but for that reason I’m not really going to be very helpful to some people.
That said, pregnancy resources have changed since I was last pregnant 4.5 years ago. It doesn’t seem like that much time, but the maternity world has been growing and changing while I’ve been on hiatus.
First, while I had like 3-4 apps while pregnant with Jonathan, I didn’t have the Ovia Pregnancy app. I’m not sure if it was around back then, because I was pretty obsessive about having all the information so I probably would have if it existed. That said, it’s been a fun change from the apps I had last time. I do still have the Sprout Pregnancy App as well because I love the 3D baby view (and so does Jonathan).
Ovia has a few options of determining what “size” your baby is (Fruits & Vegetables, Parisian Bakery, Fun-and-Games, and Weird-But-Cute-Animals) so you can usually find a good one. I don’t use Parisian bakery often because honestly I don’t know what most of that stuff is, but the others have had some good ones. Fun-and-Games has likened our baby to a Lego Minifigure and Batman action figure so they’ve been speaking a language I’m familiar with! There are lots of updates in the feed about how baby is developing, tips for nutrition and fitness, and other information. I haven’t really used the tracking features but this second pregnancy has been a lot more relaxed than my first.
Next up is something I’m really excited about right now because I just found it this week. As many people know, the Affordable Care Act included a provision stating that insurance plans are required to help cover the cost of breastfeeding supplies. When I was pregnant with Jonathan, this program must have still been pretty new or not yet set up very well because trying to get my free breast pump was a lot of work. I went to multiple home health companies in the area to see which were participating, had to contact our insurance, get a prescription from my doctor and do all of that myself, while pregnant and working full-time.
Enter the beautiful humans over at Aeroflow Breastpumps. It’s this simple:
Did you see all the parts where I didn’t have to talk to people? It’s so beautiful and makes my introvert heart so happy. I filled out the qualification form online with my insurance info and within 24 hours got an email with approval and which pumps my insurance would cover (including reduced prices for upgrades). All I had to do was place my order from there and give them my doctor’s information. They’ll contact the doctor and once that’s set, my pump will ship. I haven’t received it yet since I just finished the process but this is SO. MUCH. EASIER. than it was when I was pregnant with Jonathan! It also looks like it will ship as soon as step 3 is complete. Last time, the place I found that actually participated couldn’t even file the paperwork until Jonathan was born, so we had to rent a pump when I left the hospital until everything was approved. This has led to my poor husband being on the Bosom Buddies email list for life because no matter how many times he has unsubscribed from their mailing list, they just won’t let him go.
Okay, so maybe this one is a little “fashion” related:
When we found out about this pregnancy back in November, one of the first things that I thought about was finding a floor-length formal dress for Matt & Victoria’s wedding in April. I used my Ovia app to see that I would be 26 weeks at the time, which means that I had literally no idea how big I would be, especially with a second pregnancy since people tend to show sooner with consecutive pregnancies.
My friend Nicole over at Embracing Chaos Blog had reviewed a lot of different clothes from Pink Blush while she was pregnant with her third son, so I thought I’d give them a try. I was able to score the above dress for $35. It’s a maternity dress, so it would be stretchy for whatever sized belly I would have by the wedding, and $35 for a formal dress whether pregnant or not is a deal! It was super comfortable to wear all day and surprisingly not ridiculously long on my 5’3″ frame. They email out coupons regularly, have sales, and carry maternity and maternity plus, as well as non-maternity women’s clothing. I found another great deal on a maternity dress that I might use for some photos while I’m in CA this month and that I can use for baby shower attire. Like I said, I’m not a fashionable person by nature, so it’s nice to not spend a ton of money while trying to pretend like I know what I’m doing.
That will likely conclude any talk of clothing as I make it a personal goal to buy as little maternity clothing as possible. Now that I stay home this is even easier, but I’m wearing the maternity jeans I bought when I was pregnant with Jonathan and the few maternity shirts I bought/was gifted the first time around while still wearing some of my normal tops as well. I also regularly wear leggings/workout pants and Stephen’s shirts when I don’t have anywhere to be. My mom gave me a black maxi skirt to borrow so that may be in full rotation as the summer goes on. Nobody is going to hashtag photos of me with #maternitystyle any time soon.
Our Purple Mattress – we’ve had it for just over a year and I’ve always liked it, but pregnancy adds new considerations for what constitutes a comfortable bed. The cool thing about this mattress is that it just kind of accepts you as its own when you lay down. Which isn’t to say that it’s super soft and you sink in. It supports where you need support. We’ve traveled quite a bit lately, and if there’s one thing sleeping away from home teaches you, it’s just how much you love your own bed. It’s been great for pregnancy because it supports my joints and my belly nicely. I sleep like a rock so far, with no additional pregnancy supports or pillows or whatever so that’s really nice. I have had a little round ligament pain this pregnancy and my right hip gets a little stiff occasionally but otherwise we’re still feeling good!
Lastly, because it has been this way for this entire pregnancy:
Sweets! Gimme ALL the chocolate chip cookies & brownies & chocolate croissants! Those who know me well know I’m all about that savory over sweet life. So when I literally texted my husband “if you want real food grab something on the way home from work because I’m making a giant skillet cookie for dinner tonight” you know it’s a pregnancy thing. Abigail seems to have inherited the Rabon sweet tooth from her dad. Hopefully this passes after she’s born so I can resume my regularly scheduled eating.
Quote the Rabon 