5 tips for packing for the hospital or birth of your baby

One of the most exciting moments for me being pregnant is birth packing for the hospital. I want it to be perfect and I wanted to be as fashionable as possible. I know it's probably not going to be glamorous the moment my water breaks, but at least we have to try right? 

So what are the must have items for your labor bag? 

I was given a list of what expecting women should bring at the hospital by my OB. It is pretty good. It is divided by members of the family: mother-to-be, baby-to-come, and daddy-to-be. 
For the expecting mother here some of the must items to pack:

1. A rob and gown (preferably one that opens in the front so you can easily breastfeed the baby). You also want to stay away from pants, because if your water breaks and that baby wants to come out those pants are in the way!!!

2. Hair accessories (headbands, hair pins). Given that you will be pushing and sweating, you probably want to keep your hair in place. 

3. Snacks and drinks. Your hospital room will have a small fridge. Bring any snacks and plenty to drink for you and your hubby.

4. Any hygiene products (toothbrush, lip balm, contact lenses, shampoo, deodorant, make up). You don't know how long you will be at the hospital. You want to make sure you have everything you need. 

5. Music, camera, and note pads. While in labor you might want to listen to some music to relax you. Your hubby will want to take pictures of the moment your child is born and it is always good to have a note pad to write any important information. Don't rely only on phones!! A good pen and paper should always be in your purse.

There are other items that you should pack, but I focus on few for the mom-to-be. You obviously don't have to pick everything pink or buy new items. Check out my list for packing for the hospital on your due date below and personalize it based on your needs and your style. Hope you enjoy and don't forget to follow my blog.




GETTING READY FOR COLLEGE? COLLEGE OUTFIT


I remember those days of college when getting ready for a full year meant also getting a new wardrobe full of cute outfits. In my 20s it was so easy to feel cute and pretty. A trip to Forever 21 or other 'on the budget' stores would make me look awesome. Now, good luck pulling anything that is not supportive of my body. ahahah You know what I mean if you are passed 20s. Would I still wear this outfit? Yes, I can't help it. I love it. Maybe longer shorts....

32 Weeks Pregnancy


CRAVING: none
MOOD: Irritated
ENERGY LEVEL: in need of naps and sleep
PAIN: back pain, short of breath 
NOTE: First contraction at 32 weeks


At 32 weeks of pregnancy I feel still uncomfortable and just ready to go back to my normal or semi-normal life. I had my first contraction the other day and was not really sure what it was until I called the nurse to confirm. I had a long stressful day and was cooking later in the evening and suddenly I felt a weird pain in the lower back on both sides. It was a strange sensation. I could tell it was not due to a muscle. It was a wave of pain. At the same time I had pelvic pressure. In addition, I was dizzy and had headache. I went in the bedroom to rest, which helped to alleviate the pain and make it disappear. At that point the baby was going crazy: moving so fast and aggressively for over one hour. It was pretty impressive but also exhausting. Anyone body experienced the same symptoms?

Still getting bigger. I had to go and buy some more clothes because I grew out of the ones I bought few weeks ago. I must say Marshalls had a good selection of stretchy clothes and cheap. What do you think of this red one? 

32 weeks belly

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES ON WEEK 32 PREGNANCY 

REVIEW: BB CREAM by L'OREAL

I have been impressed by L'Oreal products. They have a good balance between price and quality. Plus, they do not test on animals, which makes their products even more appealing to me. As a matter of fact, they recently fired one of the new 'faces' for their brand when this aspiring young model posted a picture of an animal she had killed on her Facebook page. 

The one product I really enjoy is their Magic Anti-Fatigue BB Cream, which comes in different tones from very fair to light, to brown. If you have very fair skin like me you will find difficult to find fair make up. There is always a tint of yellow and especially if you are looking for a concealer you will be out of luck. Actually please let me know if you have found one that is super light. 

I bought both the light and fair version of this BB cream. First, because when I used to tan my skin would stay darker or yellowish for a long period of time. In that case the light version was perfect. Now, because I have been out of the sun for over a year my skin has gone back to fair, so I switched to the other one. 

BUY!!!

PRO: 

Smooth application and natural look on the skin. You can't even notice. 
Don't need to use a foundation if you don't want to. That is how good this cream is.
Makes you glow and neutralize imperfection, bag eyes and fine lines. 
Only need a drop or two

CONS:

None (which is rare for me to say)

WHERE TO BUY IT: Wallgreens, any large supermarkets, online on www.lorealparisusa.com

OTHER REVIEWS: 




Since I got pregnant I have not had food cravings. Quite the opposite I lost the pleasure of enjoying flavors and eating food. What I crave is reading or watching news about certain topics. For example, I  watched the entire season of American Idol, which I always hated. I hate these type of shows.

Lately, I got obsessed with everything elephant. Elephants mobile for the crib, elephants on sheets, elephants on rescue missions, elephants on shirts, on soaps.

A week ago I came across the story of Raju, the elephant that after 50 years of captivity and abuse was liberated and cried. You can read his story on the Huffington Post, but I originally read it on some animal news feed I receive from some not-for-profit organization. As I read the story tears came down my face. I started getting very emotional every time I read about animal cruelty especially in regards to elephants. I don't know why. I must have read 10 articles about his story, trying to find more details of his life. Literally I was obsessed with how humans abuse these very sensitive animals.

Last night, I was trying to find something to watch and came across a documentary about Daphne, this woman who lives/d in Kenya and rescued animals who were orphans beginning 1970. Her name is Daphne Sheldrick. The documentary tells the story of how she founded an elephant orphanage after she had rescued Aisha, a 3 months baby elephant. The first part of the film goes through the bound of Daphne and this little cute elephant, how emotional and in need this small creature was, and how sensitive and loyal elephants are. I won't spoil the movie, but I can tell you that I had to stop watching it because I got so emotional that I started crying uncontrollable as little baby Aisha died because she thought she had been abandoned by Daphne (you have to watch the movie to understand). Shawn, my hubby, thought I was crying because I was relating the experience of the elephant to my baby or fear of what could happen, but in reality I was crying because the elephant was so sensitive that she had rather let herself died than survive with the idea of having been abandoned twice. I cried because of all the pain this little creature had been through (due to human activities, since the haunt for elephants was and is still prominent in many countries). At that point I had to turn the TV off, but even as I am writing this post I have tears in my eyes. I just can't help it. I don't know why.

So here you have it, a pregnancy obsession with elephants - Are there any studies on pregnant women and emotional reactions when consuming media?

Read more about Daphne's amazing work and help for many elephants here:

1. Elephant Foster Mom:
2. Official Website
3. PBS documentary (the one that made me cried)
4. Cute elephants play soccer



In two months I will be officially done with my pregnancy. Looking back I have not done 1/3 of all the fabulous things I had always envisioned myself doing. This included taking pictures every month of my belly next to a chalk board with the number of weeks displayed on it, numeral glorious pictures of my fashion style and bump, glorious pictures of my glow, and of course step by step pictures of the baby room, baby blankets I sew or knitted.

As I thought I would diligently record every and any steps of my journey to show one day to my baby, I never really realized how tired and unmotivated I would feel and how much work taking pictures and staging these pictures would be. Most of the days unless I am at work I look like shit. I barely put make up on or brush my hair - I know it is ironic because I have a fashion blog and love fashion. But the only way I feel good is to be bare naked in my house- well almost- my shoes are too small to wear and when I wear my clothes I feel I am a burrito and I am the condiment inside. Talking about burrito now I am craving Chipotle. Ah the pregnant issues :)

As my life gets full with other things (work, setting up doctor's appointments, getting the home ready, figuring out maternity leave at work, insurance change, bills, etc) setting up time to record fashionable moments are suddenly not a priority. I know it should not be an excuse to 'let go' but I don't feel my life need to be recorded at every 5 seconds like the many bloggers we all see on Instagram. Of course I would think differently if I was not pregnant or maybe if I did not have a full time job. The last trimester is just when you want shit to be done. You want to be over, get back your body, your diet, your fitness routine.




A look into the making of the baby room

Let me tell you something about cribs. I went to Jacksonville few months ago to shop for a crib or baby bed. I walked into Pottery and Barn Kids and a nice gentleman explained to me the functionality of a really nice crib on sale for $399. I thought what a great deal you get a bed to use at least for 5 years. Apparently I did not understand that a crib is useless because your child will really not use it that often and will have long legs sooner than you think. I also did not know the difference between crib and bassinet. Why do you need all these stuff for such a short period of time? I don't understand how people spend money on this stuff. So, I went on Ikea and ordered one of their crib and I am really satisfied. I am not getting a bassinet. I got a play and pack and will use that or my stroller came with a bassinet. And just for info, Ikea cribs are also environmental friendly and non-toxic.  If you want more info on what baby products are not toxic this blog post is pretty good, The non Toxic Nurse. 

What to expect during your 30 week of pregnancy


I hit the 30-week of pregnancy and I feel miserable again. My nausea has come back not as violent as during my frits trimester. It usually happens every time I eat something. I can hardly walk without looking like a giant walking blueberry and my feet and hands are swollen. I am also tired and moody. I went to yoga today because it has helped me to keep my balance and flexibility and I could hardy do anything because of my ever-growing belly. Believe it or not the baby is only a little bit over 2 pounds. That means that in the next weeks this belly is going to get even bigger. I don’t know how it’s possible. I have withdraws from working out and stare and drool over pictures of people doing push ups on Instagram like it’s cupcakes.

On top of the way I physically feel I am staring to get worried about what still need to be accomplished and the little I have accomplished in preparation of this baby, from getting the room ready to finding a doctor, to figuring out maternity leave, etc.

Is this what every woman goes through?

On the happy side, we just came back from Cincinnati where my mother-in-law threw me a fantastic baby shower. Please enjoy some of the pictures.





Wearing an H&M long dress

1. In love with these sequin hangers for children from  Pearls and Pastries.  (Pearlsandpastriesshop.blogspot.com)
2. Always inspired by the assortments of this Canada base home decor that ships everywhere. (http://www.thecrossdesign.com)
3. A cute little boutique in Canada called Blush Shop (www.blushshop.ca)
4. Little gems from the sea (www.luluacalifornia.com)
5. For the guess bedroom get these frames on the wall (www.etsy.com at the Black and Type Shop)
6. Inspiring and custom made letters by Allison Cornu (https://www.etsy.com)

PS. I am having major issues with my site (you can see a lot of photos are missing). Sorry. I am working to fix the problem. :(