Birth Preferences Round 2

So I made a birth preferences infographic for my son's birth, but never ended up using it since we arrived at the hospital only half an hour before he was born! Some things on my first set of birth preferences are no longer a big deal to me though, so I decided to make another one, and found a set of icons that I really liked. I recolored them and added a preface, and I hope that I actually get to use it this time and hand it to the nurses at the hospital when I arrive!

You may have heard both the terms "birth plan" and "birth preferences" used when talking about what the mom/parents want for their baby's birth. But I do not like the term "birth plan" cause you really can't plan everything. You WON'T get everything you "plan" for. Life is messy. Birth is messy! ;) So I use "birth preferences" to show that these are things I'd prefer to have happen, but I make sure to add in a preface statement saying that I want my baby's health and my health to take precedence above all, and that these are my preferences for a NORMAL birth. If major complications arise, everything will probably go out the window because the medical team will be focusing on bringing baby into the world safely. And I am okay with that! 

Please feel free to use my birth preferences as inspiration to create your own! You can also find fill-in-the-blank birth preferences sheets online. Like this one at Pregnancy and Baby or this one at EarthMamaAngelBaby. They also have a customizable icon birth preferences sheet, or you can download their icon birth plan as a PDF.

If there's interest, I can make the icons that I recolored available for download. :)

Hospital Essentials: What to Pack When You're Having a Baby

A friend recently asked for my packing list for going to the hospital (to have a baby). So I decided to make it a little cuter than a plain old list.

I had a crazy long packing list when I was pregnant. I searched tons of blogs and websites for the ultimate list. Since my husband was going to be deployed when I gave birth, I didn't want to forget a single thing!

What I Didn't Need:
But it turned out that I brought a lot of really unneeded things. Of course, everybody is different and has their own preferences... Though I have always loved makeup and playing around with it and getting dolled up, during the last few months of my pregnancy I hardly wore it. So I thought for sure I would do the whole shebang after my boy was born when I was getting ready to come home. False. I was breastfeeding practically every hour, and sleeping a lot. I did a little bit of makeup - tinted chapstick and mascara.

After You Give Birth... Recovery Essentials

 Postpartum Recovery Essentials

1.     Dermoplast- (I got this at the hospital) or  New Mama Bottom Spray (which I used when I ran out of Dermoplast. Frankly, I preferred the Dermoplast)

2.     Tucks Medicated Witch Hazel Pads- These round little pads were amazing! Used two full tubs (layered 3 pads on top of a maxi pad every few hours)

3.     Perineal Irrigation Bottle- I got to take this home from hospital as well. (You can’t wipe for the first few days, can only rinse clean)

4.     Maxi Pads- I used the Always Overnight (super heavy duty) pads for the first 2 weeks, then moved to smaller ones so I didn't feel like I was wearing a diaper all the time.

5.     Cheap, big Underwear- I bought Hanes and Fruit of the Loom briefs, but I wish I’d been able to snag more of the giant mesh briefs they had me wear at the hospital. Those were surprisingly comfy!

6.     Postpartum Bath Herbs or regular Epsom Salt. Sitz baths were so helpful.

7.     Nursing tanks. I lived in them. Still do. Motherhood Maternity and Lamaze make nice ones. Motherhood Maternity often has good sales, and the flash sale site Zulily has the Lamaze tanks (and sleep bras, which I also love) frequently, for super cheap.

8.     Nursing Pillow- My Brest Friend or Boppy. Check out my post on the other way to use a Boppy for recovery!

9.     Earth Mama Angel Baby Booby Tubes-  Like a beanbag for your breasts. You can use them warm or cold – I microwaved mine and rested them on my breasts for 15 minutes or so - they're a donut shape, but not a complete circle. If that makes any sense at all. Beware - my dog thought they smelled delicious and destroyed my first pair. :(

10.   Lanolin- I tried another nipple cream (Motherlove), but preferred the lanolin.  Your nipples will be sore the first few days. (Side note: if you experience pain past those first few days, see a lactation consultant. Extended nipple pain due to breastfeeding is not normal)

11.   Lots of pillows. I was so glad I’d bought more pillows for our couch and bed while pregnant, so I could be completely cushy no matter where I sat/lay/lounged. Not being able to get up and walk around much was sooo annoying - and I'd get so uncomfortable after sitting in one spot for hours, so a multitude of pillows was incredibly helpful in making myself more comfortable.

12.   Bamboobies (or other nipple pads). I like the Bamboobies for those first few weeks because they are soft and not rough on your nipples like some of the disposable ones are. I never had a problem with them becoming over-saturated and soaking my clothes, but you do have to change them once they're wet. (So get a couple pairs. I had an overnight pair and two regular pairs, plus a pack of Organic Cotton Pads and the Lansinoh Disposable Pads). 

Birth Preferences (infographic)

This will be a short post...
I am not going to go into the details of creating a birth plan and choosing what to put on it right now. I just wanted to share a Birth Prefrences infographic that I just created on Easel.ly
I had created my birth "plan" (which is what they're usually called, but you can't always plan for everything and I know you may not get what you plan for... so I use the term loosely) on a word document, nicely typed with a friendly introduction ("We are so excited to be birthing our baby at Mission Hospital!" etc) before going into my bulleted requests for my labor and delivery. My husband did help create it and then our doula looked over it as well to give her suggestions.
Though I still plan to use my typed one, I saw a cute infographic-style birth plan on pinterest (that you could have someone personalize for you on Etsy for $10) and just had to make my own!

Here is the one you can have made for you on Etsy:

And here is the one I made! I actually made two... one with my contact info on it and this one here, which has no name or contact info (for sharing online... don't need my phone number floating around the cyber-universe!) I'm not sure if I will actually use it, but I was bored and enjoy playing around creating different things like this.

 

Happy to hear your thoughts on it!

Thanks for reading!


UPDATE 3/1/14

I edited my birth preferences infographic to be a little more printer-friendly (less color).
There's an open space at the bottom below the feet, that is where I put my name and contact information.

Human Milking and Making Milkshakes: Breast Pumps

So I had my first request for a post... breast pumps! Breast pumps can be very confusing (as are a lot of things you may need for a new baby I have learned!)
So here is my attempt to concentrate the smorgasbord of information out there on breast pumps... from what they are, to whether you may need one, to the different types available, to safety information, to the best selling pumps on the market today...

What is a breast pump?
Simply, a breast pump is a FDA regulated medical device used to extract breast milk from a nursing mother. They can also be used to "maintain or increase a woman’s milk supply, relieve engorged breasts and plugged milk ducts, or pull out flat or inverted nipples so a nursing baby can latch-on to its mother’s breast more easily." (FDA)

Do I need a breast pump?
Whether you are a working mom or a stay-at-home mom, you may find you have a need for a breast pump.

Doulas - Who? What? Why?

I had heard of doulas before - but wasn't sure what they were or what they did. I got them confused with midwives and thought it was just someone only women having home births had to help them. Then, I came upon the term again in my reading, which I have done a lot of at this point.

So... what is a doula? A doula is trained to provide emotional and physical support to women during childbirth. Doulas do not perform medical tasks, unlike midwives - some of whom have nursing degrees.  Though I originally associated doulas with homebirths, some sources actually say that it's more important to have a doula for hospital births.