Life has been full in recent weeks. It’s been a fun mad rush to the finish line with nesting & completing our basement reno, and making lots of big & small upgrades around our project home, as well as making major headway towards finishing up our schooling year. I feel like life went from slow motion (snowed in Feb) to hyper-speed with March & the coming of warmth & fun in the sun, and of course, lent & Easter. We’re now in a final countdown to baby, and I finally packed the bag (never having gone early, I don’t usually feel any urgency until 37 weeks ;))
Now, with this done, and baby spaces set up (little nooks around my room for now), it’s begun to finally feel very real, and very exciting.
I have had 4 extremely different births (and each one perfect & beautiful)…so I have learned to let go of my expectations around how it “should be” and be more aware & mindful that it’s going to work out perfectly, and baby has a crucial role to play in it too. This time, with baby staying in breech position until late (35 weeks) I was laughing that yet again, a reminder of how little we have in our control & how much this baby just wants to keep us on our toes 😉
Did lots of inversions (spinning babies), reflexology, acupuncture & some hypnobirth meditations, & baby turned & seems like he/she will stay put vertex (fingers crossed) for now. I don’t take any day of a healthy pregnancy, baby, and momma for granted, so now we’re just in the final waiting game, and eager to meet him or her.
With what I said above about realizing there’s no one “right” way for birthing to go, I like to approach birth in as empowered, confident, peaceful & prepared way as possible. I like to think of it like an athletic endeavor, so the tools I stock & bring with me are similar to what I would use for finishing a half marathon…with an even sweeter finish line.
I love holistic tools for pregnancy, birth & postpartum, so you’ll see exactly what I value, and rely on now as my toolkit for empowered & peaceful birthing, and initial recovery.
Birth bag roundup
For baby:
*I’ve learned not too much is needed–they provide many of the essentials like diapers 😉 & clothing is optional during the first crucial hours of skin to skin time. But of course, a few swaddles like the ones from Aden & Anais & Be A Heart are lovely to have, and an outfit or 2 for styling & for bringing baby home!
This is my first time bringing clothing for both genders, and it’s definitely a funny & exciting feeling.
*Frankinscense oil is a wonderful one for baby.
For labor:
*The best natural hydration drink on the planet–you need to keep your elecrolytes & energy up.
*Energizing tea–a clean energy boost perfect for laboring momma
*Arnica oil
*Essential oils like clary sage can help with effective laboring & relaxation. I love my young living essential oil lip balm too.
*headphones, a labor playlist that’s calm & inspiring, or a hypnobirthing meditation (I loved these in my labor with Blaise).
For initial recovery:
*cozy socks are a must
*sweater/bathrobe layer
*I love bringing my own pillowcase as well
*PJs that are comfy & easy to nurse in:) Mine are from Gap.
*Tea mug (I love my Yeti) & some of your favorite teas (they may provide some too)
*Supplements like cal-mag, optiflora DI probiotics, herblax, recovery for restful sleep, & others can make the first day after birth easier on your body
*Skincare travel kit: to pamper yourself a bit & take care of your skin in the hours/days after birth. I love my youth.
*Of course my daily pre-natal/go to–the meology personalized nutrition packets
Additional items:
*Book if you think you’ll get to it 😉 (I prefer it to endless instagram time & it helps me wind down to sleep)
*All the snacks!!! You need to replenish. I love trail mix & high fiber foods.
*Change of clothes for hub
*Charger 😉
Nutrition for 3rd trimester, and something I did differently this time
I also love focusing on good nutrition & support for momma in the final trimester. This time around, with an anemia diagnosis that was beginning to affect me… I went ahead and, at the recs of my midwives & some friends I trust, got 4 iron infusions. I did them through a wonderful wellness center near me, called Peak Wellness, and my dear friend runs the infusion room so I knew I was in good hands. They were a literal game changer for me. I feel SO much more energy, focus, mental alertness, and preparedness for birth & recovery than I did before I had them (at 32 weeks I was fading & wondering just how I would make it through). Anemia is extremely common in pregnancy, and while it’s wonderful to supplement iron orally (which I do always) & even add in floradix etc if needed, there comes a point that if your iron stores (ferretin) levels are too low, it becomes extremely hard to effectively (quickly) increase your iron levels without infusions. I’m a huge advocate for these now (if needed) & am so glad I went through the extra steps of getting the pre-scrip & making time for the infusion appts in these final weeks.
I also like to have awareness of the foods that can support us in birth prep
*pineapple helps ripen/tone the cervix
*dates are known to be helpful with a smooth & fast labor/delivery
*kale/celery & PB & other fiber rich snacks are crucial in late pregnancy when it’s harder to eat full meals but you need the nutrients
*Energizing tea along with chia seeds (protein & fiber) & the natural hydration formula gives me a perfect morning or mid-day energy/mood boost.
*Trail mix is another easy energy boosting snack to have on hand during late pregnancy, and even during labor
*Protein shakes are my jam when I don’t feel like eating real meals–they give me energy for hours, and help me feel amazing. (Kale, oatmilk, fresh or frozen pineapple, vanilla life shake, optional mangos or other frozen fruits). Babies & mommas need all the healthy protein we can get for building cells, so this super clean plant protein is what I rely on.
*Red raspberry leaf tea/3rd trimester tea blends. This one is a special one concocted for me by my reflexologist…it also has nettle & oatstraw and a few other key ingredients that serve me well both now & into postpartum.
I’ve been joking with my husband that the time around having the baby, being away & postpartum resting will feel like a major vacation, especially with how hard we’ve been working on some home projects & finishing off some spaces/nesting in an extreme way.
I love the postpartum set-up where I’m going to have baby: gorgeous river views, great care & amenities, it feels more like a hotel than a hospital 😉
As we wind down the homeschool year, and prep to welcome all the helping hands, I couldn’t be more thrilled with where everyone is at–the other kids are truly thriving & growing so much & I know they are ready for this big change too.
I take postpartum rest very seriously, and I’m SO grateful to have family & others stepping in to provide over a month of hands on round-the-clock help for us so that we can all transition well, I can enjoy baby time, and the kids can have their needs met well.
This time, I also wanted to make things feel a bit more special for the kids as they welcome a new sibling. I gathered some fun crafts & activities, with notes for each, and they are stashed away, to be opened while I’m away, doing the birth & recovery. Because of covid, they won’t be visiting me, but rather waiting until I bring baby home, so it feels extra important for them to realize their important role in all of this, and to know how much we appreciate them, while baby is being born.
Grateful for every day that I wake up with energy & motivation to face the tasks at hand, and to continue on with baby & general spring prep & loving life with these littles. Things are about to change permanently, and for the better, so I’m here creating space, creating awareness & ready for the next chapter with all the goodness it will bring.
See you soon, baby.
Love,
your momma