Am I overreacting?

On Saturday I woke up with a tightness in my chest, the pain was really hard to locaste at first, it just felt like a tight stabbing pain under my right boob somewhere. Convinced it was muscular, I spent the day trying to stretch it out, by the location of the pain made that quite challenging. Early evening I had a nap on my left side and on waking up the pain had gotten 10 times worse. I could barely breathe properly, because every time my chest expanded there was a severe stabbing pain. After calling 111, an NHS helpline, I followed their advice and went to A&E. Now the reason I’m even talking about this situation is because before I fell pregnant I probably would of waited to see how it was , maybe even slept on it until the morning, however ladies, it’s not worth the potential risk when your carrying a baby. ALWAYS seek medical help if something isn’t quite right. I originally was reluctant to because deep down I knew it was just muscular pain, in fact I had experienced something similar but a lot milder a few months prior after carrying my niece around. However, the pain was a lot worse this time , so off to A&E we went. After an ECG, blood tests, and a thorough examination I’m happy to say it was muscular like I expected. However the nurse praised me on coming in as a lot of the time we put things off, and wait things out to see if they improve. It is so important to avoid doing this during pregnancy as your not the only one at risk.

3 days later and the pain is almost completely gone. Who would of thought a pulled muscle could cause so much pain , honestly I’m not kidding. Looking back I’m still thinking, wow, you really went to A&E over a pulled muscle and quite frankly I couldn’t give a f**k. Don’t be embarrassed about seeking help, so what if people think your over reacting, ultimately you have to look out for yourself and baby. 

Essential Maternity Wear

Its really easy to go crazy when shopping for new clothes, especially when you have such a good excuse! "I'm pregnant, I need new clothes", now however true this is, when trying to keep the buying limited I have some great styling tips...

23 Weeks

On Thursday I turned 23 weeks, and baby is now the size of a bunch of grapes, cutteeeee. Talking of grapes, they are the best healthy sweet snack, I can literally eat half a packet at once. Talking of eating, wow my appetite has grown!! Im hungry a lot more often, and can eat bigger portions, so my 6 meals a day planner has been going down a treat.

Babymoon / Travelling during your 2nd Trimester

The second trimester is said to be the best time for travelling, your not too big and uncomfortable, and the first trimester nausea and fatigue should of reduced if not disappeared. Once getting the go ahead from your midwife its highly recommended from most mums to get away with your partner and relax before baby arrives. Even if flying is not recommended, this doesn't dash your babymoon dreams. Find an amazing location driving distance, or accessible by train and get a short break. You will not regret it.

FREE MAM Bottle

As promised I would keep up-to-date with great mum-to-be freebies, so here is a great new one on Amazon.

Similarly to the free nappy bin, you need to be an amazon prime member, however you can join to a free trial, or use a friends. Set up a baby wish list and spend £5 only to redeem your free MAM anti colic bottle.

Click Here to go to the link!

Naming Baby

So around this time you start to this seriously about bubbas name, and whether they are having a middle name, going traditional or fancy something completely unique. Playing around with a ton of options is actually quite fun, but... big question, do you ask peoples opinion ?

As you know we aren't telling people the sex of our baby, so this makes it easier not to break and ask everybody's opinions on names. Our immediate family however know what we are expecting, so while playing around with different combinations of first and middle names I think we will ask our their opinions. We have decided to have two or three combinations options ready for babies arrival but not to fully decide on a name. We want to see baby first, and see which name suits best.

This is my view, but everyone is different so I've asked a handful of real new mumas what they decided to do, and why...

Mama Body Tea

After posting about bloating yesterday it was perfect timing when I received a delivery yesterday  from Mama Body Tea. This Australian tea company has created organic and naturally caffeine-free herbal tea blends to help assist women throughout the different stages of pregnancy and motherhood.

Weekly Meal Planner

Is it just me or does anyone else feel twice as big in the evenings ? Oh my! I swear I grow 2 inches and feel like I've eaten my body weight in food every night. Now, this isn't ideal because its just uncomfortable and the evenings are the time when you want to chill out and well, be comfortable !
So, I've done a little research and apparently eating 6 smalls meals throughout the day combats this, rather than eating a big dinner, because lets face it your appetite grows exponentially. Now, I'm not entirely sure how easy this is for the working mumma-to-be, because surely you only get one lunch break, but heres hoping your boss isn't a complete asshole and understands the circumstances. I've put together a weekly ideal plan for 6 small meals a day that I'm personally going to follow to, so go ahead and do it with me :) This is also good for first trimester mummies, because its said to help with morning sickness too !

22 Weeks

Today I'm 22 weeks, I still can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going !! Its quite shocking. I think because my husband has been working away a lot, weeks just pass by without us realising.

Preparing for Baby Update : We have officially had our first baby items arrive!! We received our Joie 2in1 Swing Chair and some beautiful Muslins and Swaddles from Aden & Anais. I will be reviewing and posting about this when baby has arrived so keep an eye out !! I've also brought 3 rompers from H & M Conscience range and 2 pairs of leggings with feet,  they're just adorable. We are having a summer baby so I figured it will live in rompers and vests with leggings! I'm pretty proud of myself for not going crazy in terms of buying baby clothes, it is SO HARD, but everyone I've spoken to regretted over buying clothes.

Bump Update : So I'm officially expanding lol. I'm out of my own jeans now and I'm just living in leggings and tracksuit bottoms. Classy, I know. However I will be receiving some chic maternity wear from Storq and I'll be posting all about my maternity style soon, so stay tuned !! I'm also pleased to say I'm still managing to avoid stretch marks, phew, the LoveBoo Miracle Oil seems to be doing the trick, fingers crossed it stays this way!!

Mumma Update: I feel like I'm really taking pregnancy in my stride, and I'm not freaking out about labour yet. So I'm happy about that. My hormones get the better of me sometimes, which is completely normal and I tend to loose my temper a lot quicker than normal, poor hubby!! However, he's been amazing and totally understanding so onwards and upwards ! I cry at nearly everything, TV, my dog if he's being cute, emotional songs, the list goes on... again totally normal, so I'm just embracing being a little wimpish for now ;) Having said all of this, I'm overall really loving life, I've got my energy back, hallelujah, and feeling baby kick and move around makes me feel crazy amounts of love. 

Ikea Nursery Hacks

I don't know about you but I have a soft spot for ikea. Not only because they sell cool reasonable stuff but there seems to be an endless limit to amazing ikea hacks. There's so much potential to buy a bargain piece and turn it into something unique for your home. So when thinking nursery ideas I thought I'd share my favourite ikea hack ideas ... Enjoy

Natural Treatments for Pregnancy Spots

Pregnancy glow ? Or not so much ? Pregnancy acne is a pain in a butt, I've been pretty lucky (so far) although my random breakouts have been more frequent and last longer. However , luckily there are some natural remedies you can use to help get rid of or even prevent it.

Damn Cold

Well there’s me thinking I’ve done so well to almost get through the winter months without getting sick, when usually I will have a cold or flu at least one. Well damn, I spoke to bloody soon. As of yesterday I am FULL of cold. Shit. Having a cold during pregnancy is not very fun, apart from the fact you can’t really take much medication, my bump is really beginning to grow of recent and when I get a surprise sneeze I always get a sharp round limagent pain. Ouch. For those of you that know what it is & feels like I’m sure you’ll feel sorry for me. For those of you who don’t its the ligaments that support the uterus, and as it grows they stretch & thicken to support its new size, any sudden jolts or movements in the body and they sharply remind you they’re there. You may feel them if you change position to quickly , cough, sneeze or get out the bath tub. It’s like a sharp stabbing pain on either or both sides of the uterus that lasts a few seconds. And it’s horrible, especially when you are sneezing, a lot. Besides from that there’s various other reasons getting a cold during pregnancy isn’t fun so I’ve been doing research and trying to find a natural solution that will help me get over this as quickly as physically possible.

What To Buy When Your Expecting?

Nowadays the lists of things to buy can be endless!! Theres gadgets and gizmos and cute little things drawing all mums-to-be in like a magnet. However, one question I see keep popping up a lot on on Facebook groups etc is "What do I actually need to buy before baby arrives". So with a little research and after speaking to real mums I've put together a pretty accurate list of essentials to buy before babies arrival.

Over The Half Way Line

So today marks my 21st week, wow I'm over half way !!! I feel like we should have so much more sorted and planned but truth be told, we have done nothing as of yet. I say nothing, but I have brought some newborn plain white sleepsuits & vests and some cute rompers from H & M. But other than that, nothing !! We have also done nothing to prepare the house yet, we have a spare room and I feel like other women around this time start on their nursery, however we are going to wait a little longer otherwise if its sat there ready I think that it will make the second half of the pregnancy drag. I will however, starting today start sorting through drawers and cupboards and getting rid of any crap, I feel like we have at least 3 drawers in our house that just have accumulated shit in. I guess this is called the nesting period for a reason. 

Hypnobirthing Explained

If you had asked me a few years ago what my dream birth plan would be, I would of said " I plan to feel nothing",  meaning give me everything, epidural, drugs, gas & air the lot.  How differently I answer that now. Around this time in pregnancy I've began to briefly think about how and where I want to labour. I don't know all that much about labour, but what I do know is that I want to fully experience it and be completely present. Therefore, the most natural and drug free birth seems to be the most appropriate for me. I've been listening to an audiobook throughout my pregnancy called "The Mama Natural - week by week guide to pregnancy & childbirth" by Genevieve Howland. I've gained a lot more knowledge on natural health remedies for pregnancy, healthy food recipes , appropriate exercising and also different 'natural' birthing techniques. I say 'natural' like that because I really think however you give birth its the most natural thing ever, so Id rather say no/minimal intervention births. The more I've researched and read, the more I know that Labour Ward medical birthing isn't for me, I'm not a hippie by any means but I want to be as relaxed as possible and I think, personally I will stress less in a Birthing Centre with the option to move around and use the birthing pool if I wish. So, if all goes to the Birthing Centre is my 1st option. I've seen and heard the word Hypnobirthing be used loads but need really known what it was. So when I found myself googling it I came to realise its pretty much what I've been thinking about for my labour plans. Before anyone starts freaking out at the hippie dippie name that it comes with ,I assure you its just labour back to basics. I came across this post by Nicki from Mamacan Hyponobirthing and thought I'd share as it explains it perfectly. 

First Kicks

I'm now just over 20 weeks pregnant and what a brilliant experience it has been so far. But my favourite moment was when I first felt a solid little kick. I started feeling Baby O move at around 16 weeks, almost bubble like while s/he was twisting and turning in my belly. However, I can easily differentiate and  remember the exact moment when I felt baby's first kick. I was laying in bed with my hand on my belly listening to some relaxing music almost drifting off to sleep when suddenly this thud on the palm of my hand, it actually made me jump. I was so shocked initially by it that I rolled onto my side, closed my eyes and tried to sleep lol. I couldn't believe that I had felt baby actually kick that hard so early on in my pregnancy, as this was 18 weeks. My husband was away working , so I was alone in our house and was busting to tell someone, so I think I told the dog the next morning lol, as well as texting my husband and sister. Its such an amazing blessing to be able to feel my baby moving around and kicking everyday now, its just nice to know its still there :)

Pregnancy Facial

So while being pregnant I noticed a change in my skin. Not only am I more prone to breakouts but after the spot clears its leaving a faint red scar that I can't seem to shift. How annoying. I think this is because my skin is just more sensitive and basically taking longer to heal.

Not ideal!

However, I did some research and to minimise these breakouts I decided to have a pregnancy facial. Which is basically a deep cleanse to clear all your pores and hydrate your skin as well as being thoroughly relaxing. Because of the limitation of pregnancy friendly products it important to see a professional that has knowledge of pregnancy facials.

Baby Essential Boxes

My sister had a beautiful baby girl last July, I watched her adapt into motherhood so well and so I'm extremely lucky that I can learn from her and steal all her good tips and tricks. The main one being her baby boxes around the house for nappy changing, so she can change Nellie-Rose quickly and stress free wherever in the house she is. I've taken this idea and expanded it slightly further.

Dog & Baby

So admittedly I already have a baby, well a fur baby. Winston, our blue french bulldog is going to be 5 years old just before my due date.

Boy or Girl ?

So today we had our 20 week scan and found out the sex of our baby ... It's a ...