Favorites: Pregnancy

***I was planning to post this about a week or so before my due date but of course, Gracelyn came much quicker than expected! I follow other “mom blogs” and found this collage of favorite things to be a common occurrence in blogger world! :) I thought it was such a fun idea and I enjoyed reading them so I decided to make my very own. Here are some of the things I used while pregnant that made the ride smoother and more enjoyable!

Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Tummy Rub for Stretch Marks: I really love this stuff- It’s oily and thick at first but once it’s absorbed, it feels good! I also recommend the lotion from palmer’s as well! Definitely worth a try if you would like to have a stretch mark free tummy! I have a few stretch marks near my bellybutton so I can’t say it completely saved me from stretch marks but it definitely felt soooo good when my tummy was itching! The tummy rub and lotion are both about $6 and you can find them at Wal-mart, Target or somewhere like that :)

Old Navy Maternity Jeans: OK, so they don’t have to be “old navy” brand but I highly recommend maternity jeans if you are pregnant! I didn’t need new jeans until I was practically 6 months pregnant but once I got some, I was so relieved. The band is very stretchy and feels comfortable on a growing belly. Now that I am into the final countdown, I certainly cannot fit in ANY non-maternity clothes. Unless it is a stretchy cloth dress, I can’t fit in it! I’m down to a fairly small bundle of things to choose from which is fine because it means I’m getting closer! I got a good amount of hand-me-downs but the rest of my stuff I got from Savers which is basically another version of goodwill. I adore this store and the clothes are so cheap and cute!

Preggle:  I recommended this pillow whether you are pregnant or not! (Mine isn’t dark brown but I wanted you to be able to see it in the pic) It is a little pricey but so worth it! I cannot go a night without this thing, it is so comfy! You can manipulate it to go in a few different positions and you can even sleep on your tummy with it! It only takes a couple days to break it in and after that it’s pure bliss. I LOVE my preggle! I’ve heard you can even use it like a “boppy” or “breast friend” and nurse with it!

Nature Made Prenatal Soft Gels: I had tried a couple different prenatal pills but these were definitely my favorite! My friend Bethany recommended these to me and said she swears by them. They are a bit out of my ideal price range for prenatal pills (the bottle is about $20) but I love them so much! Within a week my nails need to be trimmed because they are so long! My hair has improved and is much shinier. Even my skin has improved! These pills are a bit large (about an inch long) so if you have trouble swallowing pills, these might be a little hard for you. The cool thing about these is that they don’t taste gross- they actually have a sweet taste to them when they touch your tongue. They are not hard pills they are “soft gels” so they go down very smoothly. I think these are a must have for pregnant women or even if you aren’t pregnant and just want to take a multi-vitamin! They come with DHA for fetal brain development and are packed with all the other necessary vitamins for you and your growing baby!

Nalgene Water Bottle: Of course, it doesn’t have to be Nalgene brand BUT I highly recommend a water bottle with the ounces displayed on the bottle. Water is important for everyone to drink but even more so during pregnancy! I was never reaching my goal of water intake which was discouraging! Then one day, David surprised me with this pink one! It holds 32 oz. of water and I usually drink and then immediately re-fill! I love being able to see how much I drink and when I carry this everywhere, I’m obviously more likely to drink. If you like your water bottle, you’ll want to fill it and if you fill it, you’ll bring it with you, if you bring it with you, you’ll drink it! It’s as easy as that!

Spaghetti Strap Cotton Bra: The belly isn’t the only thing that gets bigger during pregnancy- your boobs grow too! It seemed like immediately after discovering I was pregnant, I could no longer fit into normal bras. I never liked thick padded bras anyways so sports bras have always been my favorite thing to wear. Along with growing breasts came a lot of itchiness and tenderness. Normal racer-back sports bras are great but the straps show in the front when you wear normal shirts so that is why I recommend the “spaghetti straps.” These bras have absolutely zero padding so I wear them with pads I pulled out of my swim suit top (Lord knows I won’t be wearing that again!) Depending on the color and design of the shirt, sometimes I won’t even wear the pads. These come in packs of three from Wal-mart for about $10. I have them in every color now!  

Whole Fruit Popsicle Bars: OK, these are the best when you want something sweet! They are less than 100 calories and made with real fruit. I actually got the idea for these from another blogger’s “favorites” list. She recommended them in place of ice cream and let me tell you- it’s much better! It is cleaner than ice cream and just much more handy- plus tasty! They come in many flavors but strawberry is my favorite.

What To Expect Pregnancy App for iPhone: This app was awesome to use while pregnant! It keeps track of how many weeks you are and a cool countdown to your due date! I love that each week it compares your baby’s growth to a fruit or vegetable. When I first found out I was pregnant, she was the size of a blue berry! :) This also gives you tons of tips, tricks and advice about pregnancy along with full details about what is going on inside your tummy week by week. Loved reading this. It also has random advice for dads too! I’d highly recommend this particularly if it’s your first pregnancy since I had NO clue what pregnancy was all about!