What to pack in your Hospital Bag for Labour + Checklist

What to pack in your hospital bag for labour

What to pack in your hospital bag for labour – So it’s nearly time for your baby to come out so I thought I would show you what to pack in your hospital bag.

I have had three vaginal births so I’m packing quite a minimal amount based on not being in hospital for very long at all. I’m hoping to be home the same day as I was with Isabelle.

What To Pack In Your Hospital Bag For Labour

So this is what I packed:

Hospital Notes – I wouldn’t pack these actually in the bag, just leave them in the top as you may still have appointments to attend between now and then.

Nightie – this is more for afterwards so I’ve gone for one with buttons down the front for breastfeeding.

Dressing Gown – I don’t know about you but I feel exposed walking around the ward without one.

Nursing Bra – for wearing after the baby is born for those first feeds.

A comfort bra – I’m taking this with the intention of wearing it in the birthing pool.

Vest top – Again I may wear this in the pool as I’m not really one for birthing in the nude.

Maternity Pads – I’ve bought Boots Maternity pads which seem to be the recommended ones at the moment but I may switch these to Always Nighttime ones which are a lot thinner.

Breast Pads x 3 sets – I intend to use washable ones but have a few disposable ones to take into hospital as well.

Nipple Cream – for sore and cracked nipples. This probably won’t be a problem to start with or ever if you’re lucky, but I suffered last time so this time I’m embracing breastfeeding with every single tool in my belt!

What To Pack In Your Hospital Bag For Labour

Flip flops – for walking around in both before, during and after the birth. Much easier than slippers especially if your waters haven’t broken.

Towel – Hospitals do provide towels but it’s always much nicer to take your own. Preferably not a pristine white one.

Knickers x 3 – I bought a pack of three from Primark for £5 which are just basic full brief knickers which will be comfortable afterwards. Definitely go for black or navy.

Face wipes/wash – whichever you find more refreshing. You will want this afterwards to help you feel more human and less hot and sticky.

Deodorant – for afterwards when you’ve showered.

What To Pack In Your Hospital Bag For Labour

Toothbrush and toothpaste – again an obvious one to take with you so that you can freshen up afterwards.

Hairbrush – my hair looked like I’d been dragged through a bush which kind of sums up how the rest of me felt.

Body wash – you will be thankful for a shower once you’ve had the baby and lots of kisses and cuddles. It’s best to choose a fragrance free one if you intend to breastfeed or even just for skin to skin so I’m taking the Dove Baby head to toe wash that I got in my Emma’s Diary Labour Information Pack. This is also the range that we intend to use on the baby for bath time etc.

Shampoo & Conditioner – for washing my hair when I have my post labour shower which will make me feel refreshed from the head sweat.

What To Pack In Your Hospital Bag For Labour

Hair bands – unless you’ve got really short hair you may want to tie your hair up so that it’s not in your way or stuck to your face.

Lip Balm – using gas and air last time my lips were so horribly dry and split so this time I’m taking a lip balm to help with this.

Clothes for coming home in – this is something that I forgot last time so had to go home in what I arrived in. I’m taking a pair of leggings, a loose fitting top and a cardigan.

Change for the car park – it’s amazing how people forget that you need to pay for parking at most hospitals and you don’t want to be scrabbling around looking for change. Have a bag of change on the glove compartment ready for when the time comes.

Camera – for taking those precious first pictures.

Phone – I don’t go anywhere without mine, but my hypnobirthing tracks are downloaded onto my phone which I intend to listen to during labour.

Phone charger – what a nightmare it would be if you’re battery ran flat.

Kindle/tablet/magazines – for both you and your birthing partner. It may turn into a long day otherwise.

What To Pack In Your Hospital Bag For Labour

Snacks – the hospital do provide meals for you but not for your birthing partner. Also if you go into labour in the middle of the night you may find that there isn’t anything available. Pack easy to eat snacks such as fruit, cereal bars, drinks, jelly babies and crackers. I’ve also packed some Dextro Energy sweets to help me get through if it’s going to be a long one again.

Contact Lens stuff – I wear contact lenses to have to pack my lens pot, solution and saline as well as a spare pair of contact lenses. I wear 30 day ones so i will take a new set so I don’t have to worry if one goes astray.

Glasses – I do wear contact lenses but in the mornings before I put my lenses in I wear my glasses whilst i have my morning cuppa etc.

Hair stuff – I have wavy/curly hair so I’ll take some hair mousse just to put a bit through my hair once washed.

Toner & cotton pads – just for my usual post face wash face.

Moisturiser – a light day cream that I wear daily.

Make-up – this is totally a personal preference but I don’t go anywhere without make-up and having a baby is no different. I don’t wear loads but I will be putting it on as soon as I’ve had my shower unless it’s the middle of the night.

Comfy clothes for your partner – as I was induced last time we took in joggers, a t-short and flip flops for Chris so that he would be comfortable in the hospital.

Plastic bag – for putting any wet or worn clothes in.

Dextro Energy Tablets or Jelly Babies – my labour with Isabelle was long and exhausting so a sugar boost can help with your energy levels.

I must have packed and re-packed my bag so many times, just in case I’d missed anything.

If you’re unsure as to what to pack I’ve attached a downloadable Hospital Bag Checklist that you can print off and keep with your bag so that you can tick them off as you add them. I’ve even left a space to add your own.

hospital_bag_checklist

Good luck.

Lisa x

Pregnancy Diary 31 Weeks

Pregnancy Diary 31 Weeks

Pregnancy Diary 31 Weeks – So I’m now 31 weeks pregnant but feel 41 weeks pregnant. I’m tired – all of the time. It takes me ages to get dressed. My back is hurting and I’m still getting leg cramps, and now I’m getting tightening pains across my tummy.

Pregnancy Diary 31 Weeks

I’ve got 9 weeks of pregnancy left and 7 weeks of work. However, for the next 2 weeks I’m at home with Isabelle for the Easter holidays.

Rest they say – fat chance with Madam Ball of Energy around!

Easter Sunday we totally pigged out on chocolate starting with our own version of boiled egg and soldiers, chocolate throughout the day and a heifer of a roast dinner.

We saw family that day as well so I had a few baby squeezes from my nephew.

Monday brought my sister and mum armed with even more chocolate for the kids to scoff.

Back Ache

Tuesday we went to the Pregnancy Physiotherapist. She asked loads of questions about me and my previous pregnancies. We went through my job and how much walking that I do. I explained that I’d cut down as much as I can but was starting to feel too inactive. She’s recommended that I do as little as possible which might be tricky. I only pick Isabelle up from school on a Monday and Friday but the short walk from school to home which usually takes about 15 minutes has been taking me about 45. I’ve stopped taking the dog for a walk as this was really knackering me out, and my back would ache for the rest of the day.

I am intending to work up until 38 weeks but I may need to rethink this if it gets any worse.

We went through some exercises which Isabelle joined in as well. There was one where I had to get on the bed on all fours and suck in my stomach. It felt really weird to do that since sucking in your stomach whilst pregnant isn’t something you tend to do.

The other exercise was pelvic floor exercises which I should probably be doing anyway. A tip if you are pregnant and suffering with back pain is to clinch your pelvic floor when you stand or get out of bed. It’s all about strengthening the core which should help ease the back pain since all of your muscles and ligaments are relaxed to allow for the growth of the baby.

I did have to snigger at the leaflet that I was given!

Easter Holidays

my Sister-in-law took Isabelle to the cinema, McDonalds and bowling in the afternoon so I got so peace and quiet which was nice.

Wednesday we went to the library to return our overdue books. Chris told Isabelle that they were going to put us in library jail but thankfully we just paid a fine. We then went to Boots to pick up some baby/hospital bag stuff, and that was me totally spent for the rest of the day. I felt so lightheaded in Boots and it’s amazing how many people bustle about not paying attention to the people around them so thank you to the five or so people that barged into me, I hope you got served quicker!

Friday we took ourselves into town to have a bit of a mooch and take in the street entertainment happening in Princesshay. I think the umbrellas are so pretty.

Isabelle made her mark on the graffiti wall and had a chill on a beanbag.

There was a vintage carousel which I thinj she wanted to have a go on, but being seven and oh so cool she wouldn’t have a go.

We did have a turn on in the Kooky Photobooth but we weren’t very quick between the timer to get our props on properly. It was loads of fun though!

There was also a wheel of fortune and whilst I won a free drink at Wagamamas, Isabelle won £50 to spend in Fat Face – Lucky thing!

We finished up by having lunch at Debenhams where we could overlook Princesshay and watch the world go by.

Today we’ve stayed at home and have done a bit of colouring and watching Boss Baby on Netflix which is an actual cartoon series now.

We have done something every day but it really takes it out of me. I feel so tired!

Eating

I can eat most things now, but have to be in the mood for it. Except for chicken not sure why I still feel so repulsed at the idea of it but there we go. EVERYTHING gives me heartburn!

I’m eating quite small portions as I feel super full really quickly.

I’ve been quite thirsty a lot as well which is good because I wanted to increase my water intake anyway.

I’m back on the cheese after my cheese overload. I love picky things like cheese, crackers, cherry tomatoes, cucumber sticks, silverskin pickled onions etc…..YUM!

Sleeping

I’m not sleeping that great now. I can’t get comfy, or I’m comfy and the baby obviously isn’t so starts kicking like crazy so I have to move.

‘They’ say this is good preparation for when you have to get up for night feeds. I think since this is baby number 3 that I’ve had plenty of practice thanks!

Giving birth

This is on my mind all the time now. I don’t think I’m going to go full term and I’m dreaming of all kinds of scenarios where I give birth. I’m always on my own with Isabelle when it happens which I hope isn’t a premonition.

I’m pretty set as I’ve said previously on a water birth. Having this recommended by the Unmumsy Mum and also Charlotte Taylor who is a fab You Tuber who recently gave birth made me want to give this a go. If these two non-hippy mums recommend it then I’m willing to give it a try. I went with Catharine Graves Hypnobirthing Book which you can get here  The Hypnobirthing Book and Antenatal Preparation MP3 – An Inspirational Guide for a Calm, Confident, Natural Birth.

I’ve listened to the tracks but find my mind drifting into thinking about other things. Hopefully some of it is sinking into my subconscious or it’s probably not going to work. It’s hard to listen to it as I don’t get a moments peace.

Development

According to my Bounty App the baby is the size of an aubergine measuring around 41.1cm (that’s a big aubergine) and weighing about 3.3lb and will continue to put on weight until it’s born.

The organs will continue to develop and their bone marrow is now producing red blood cells which the liver has been doing up until now.

The baby’s fingernails are fully developed and may need cutting once born.

At 31 weeks pregnant my wrinkles may disappear but I may feel hot, have heartburn and be getting Braxton Hicks. I think I may have been experiencing some of these in the evenings. I’ve been getting tightening pains across my belly and it feels like the baby is tensing up.

Names

I think we may have made a teeny bit of headway with this but we’re going to keep it secret until the baby is born.

Here’s to another week!

Lisa x

 

Mothers Select Pre-natal Vitamin Review

Mother’s Select Pre-natal Vitamin Review

Mother’s Select Pre-natal Vitamin Review – When you’re trying to conceive or have just found out that you’re pregnant there are a few things that are top of the list that you do, and one of them is making sure that you’re taking the necessary vitamins to ensure your baby has the best start.

Mothers Select Pre-natal Vitamins

It’s important to get enough of the following:

  • Folic Acid
  • Vitamin D
  • Iron
  • Vitamin C
  • Calcium

Whilst it’s important to try and gain these from a healthy balanced diet, there are lots of supplements that are available to ensure that you get the recommended doses which will help to put your mind at rest.

I was sent some Mother’s Select Prenatal Vitamins to try which is a brand that I hadn’t previously heard of. Mother’s Select make a range of Vitamin supplements to help support women right through from conception to breastfeeding, and also a range for babies and children. The whole Mother’s Select range is available via Amazon which I think is convenient for most of us. Mother’s Select range is made in the USA but shipped FREE to the UK. Yey!

What’s so great about these vitamins?

  • These vitamins can be taken before you are pregnant, during pregnancy and throughout your breastfeeding journey which is great.
  • You only have to take them once a day
  • They include all essential vitamins including Methyl Folate which is a natural version of folic acid, DHA and Omega 3 for Brain Support, Eye and Nerve Development, Mutivitamins, Antioxidants and Minerals for bones, immune support, and hair growth.
  • They come in capsules which are really easy to swallow and free from common allergens including wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts and eggs.
  • Made with only the highest quality ingredients with no fillers or chemicals.
  • They also have an unconditional money back guarantee. No questions asked.
So as you can see they have everything  you need to take you right through to the end of your pregnancy and breastfeeding journey.
You get 60 capsules in the bottle and since they retail at £14.77 per bottle, taking two a day that works out at 49p per day which is nothing for the comfort of knowing that all the vitamins you need are covered.

My thoughts on Mother’s Select Prenatal Vitamins

I know it’s really important to stay as healthy and do everything possible to ensure my baby can be born as healthy as possible. during the first five months of my pregnancy my eating habit wasn’t the best. I wasn’t able to eat a huge variety of food and was sick a LOT so it’s a worry that you aren’t getting enough to keep the baby healthy. Taking vitamins makes me feel better in the knowledge that by taking them I’m at least providing the essential nutritional vitamins that both the baby and I need.
The tablets are really easy to swallow. You have to take them after you’ve eaten so I take mine after my evening meal and I’m getting really bad heartburn at the moment and I get a bit of a tablety taste afterwards, but that may just be because I’ve eaten rather than the vitamins exacerbating the heartburn and causing me to burp (the joys of pregnancy). The price of these is around the same as other leading brands, but the difference with the Mother’s Select brand is that you can take the same tablets all the way through.

Where can you buy them from?

You can buy theMother’s Select range from Amazon or directly from the Mother’s Select website where there is also a 5% off discount code.
Hope you’re having a healthy and happy pregnancy. You can follow my week by week progress via my Pregnancy Diary updates.
Lisa x

*We were sent a 60 capsule bottle of Mother’s Select Pre-natal Vitamins for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

Pregnancy Diary 24 Weeks

Pregnancy Diary 24 Weeks

Pregnancy Diary 24 Weeks – I’ve been off work this week with Isabelle as it’s half-term. Of course like always, half-term has been ruined with Isabelle having the worse cough and cold. Add in the abysmal weather and it’s made for a rubbish week.

Pregnancy Diary 24 Weeks

As always I’ve taken the time off whilst Chris is at work so I’m left feeling like a single mum most of the time. I really need to get my driving sorted so that I have a bit more freedom.

Pain

I’m aching all over every second of the day. As I feared, my neck and shoulder pain has come back with a vengeance. I’m so sore so I feel miserable.

I can’t walk that far at the moment which I’m really peeved about. My pelvis starts to grate and my lower back gives me really horrible painful twinges. I had to jump out of the car at the exit of a car park the other day so that I could stretch out the pain going from my back down through my entire leg. We literally blocked the traffic but hey I needed to stamp my feet!

You’d think that with being home this week I’d have had the perfect opportunity to get some rest, but Isabelle doesn’t give me a moment peace. I know a lot of mums say this, but she literally doesn’t give me a break. She’s loud, can’t sit still and needs constant entertaining. It’s totally draining me and having no help at all is just making it worse.

She does like to cosy up on the sofa but I can’t get comfortable with her half covering my body and the thought of getting her germs isn’t a great thought either. I really can’t wait to go back to work next week just so that I can get out of the house and the conversation is more varied than:

‘Blow your nose’

‘Put your hand over your mouth’

‘Stop jumping on the sofa’

‘ Stop shouting’

Friday saw the first day of no rain or hail. We actually had a blue sky. Daddy I think has finally picked up on my low mood and arranged to take Isabelle and her friend to ibounce to burn off some energy. It was nice to have some Isabelle free time!

We then went to the library in the afternoon. Libraries are supposed to be quiet, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. It was ridiculously loud with kids running around karate chopping each other. Some other kids were fighting over the huge rocking horse and the mums sat there pretending that nothing was happening. End of the week syndrome I think! Mums frazzled but the kids are still hyper!

Eating

My appetite had definitely picked up, but now I don’t have any room to eat. My tummy feels so tight that eating a big meal is just not manageable.

Haircut

I’ve finally got round to having my hair cut. Aren’t we all supposed to get really lovely glossy hair and glowy skin when we’re pregnant? My hair is probably a reflection of my mood = FRAZZLED. I’ve had to have quite a bit cut off just to get rid of the straw like ends so it’s a bit shorter than I was expecting. I do, however, like it and it already feels a lot lighter. I read somewhere about putting coconut oil on it overnight as a conditioning treatment which I think I might give a try.

I’ve also got a flare-up of my eczema which I get when I’m feeling stressed.

Development

At 24 weeks the baby is now the size of a papaya measuring around 30cm and weighing about 1.3lbs.

The baby’s lungs are now maturing so that they can breathe air rather than fluid and the organs in their ears are starting to develop so that they can work out sounds – poor thing probably knows that I’ve been telling Isabelle off quite a lot this week.

Their face will now be fully formed with eyelashes, eyebrows and hair. This will still be white due to lack of pigment, but will start to change colour soon.

Apparently it’s quite common to experience lower back pain at this stage of pregnancy – Yey!

All in all Week 24 has been CRAP!

#thatisall #miserablecow

Lisa x

P.s – if you have any tips for pain during pregnancy i would love to hear them xx

To read my week by week Pregnancy Diary pop to the top of the page of click Here. I’m also linking up to Let’s Talk Mommy Bumps and Babies Linky which if you are a fellow pregnant blogger you should link up to or if you are pregnant yourself pop over to read other’s Pregnancy journeys.

Old Wives Tales – Gender Prediction

Old Wives Tales – Gender Prediction.

Lots of people I know are pregnant or have recently had little ones.

There was a stage where everybody was finding out the sex of their babies and now I think this has reduced and people are waiting for the ultimate surprise.

Both of mine were surprises but it didn’t stop me guessing what they were likely to be.

I thought I was having a girl and Ryan came along, and when I thought I was having a boy Isabelle popped out.

Everybody had an opinion on whether or not I was carrying a boy or a girl.

 

Here are some Old Wives Tales which will clearly correctly predict whether or not you’re having a boy or a girl.

ways to predict the sex of your baby using old wives tales predictions

Gender Prediction – You’re having a BOY if:

Your skin is better than it’s been before
You’re craving salty food or meat
When doing the ring test, the ring spins backwards and forwards like a pendulum
Your baby’s heartbeat is less than 140 bpm (the midwife should be able to help you with this)
You’re carrying low
You have cold feet
You’re clumsier than normal
You sleep on your left side
You don’t get chubby cheeks
If you have dry hands
You gain most of your weight on your thighs
If you eat a clove of garlic and the smell comes out through your pores
Your right boob is bigger than your left (no idea why)
Your bump is round like you’ve swallowed a football

Gender Prediction – You’re having a GIRL if:

Your skin isn’t as clear as usual
Your baby’s heartbeat is more than 140 bpm (the midwife should be able to help you with this)
You crave sweet things and ice
You carry high
If you have soft hands
If you eat a clove of garlic and no smell is detected through your skin
When you do the ring test it moves in a circular motion
Your left boob is bigger than your right (again no clue)
Your belly is wider rather than round
You gain most of your weight on your belly
You sleep on your right side
Your face is rounder than usual

There is also the Chinese Gender Prediction where you add your age at conception with the number of the month you conceived in. If it’s an odd number it’s a boy and an even number it’s a girl.

Do you know any more Old Wives Tales to predict the gender of your baby?

Pop us a comment.

Read my Pregnancy Diary right from when we found out to the birth of our little boy in 2018.