Today is BBs due date however we’ve been blessed with 6 days of him already.

His speedy entrance into the world came as quite a surprise and he instantly captured our hearts.

When I was pregnant I often said it felt strange thinking about loving 2 children. How could I have any more love to give when I gave everything to Lamb?

Well I do.

I have so much more love to give.

I can’t believe how much.

My boys are my world and I’m soaking up every second.

Happy Due Date BB.

X

Welcome to the last instalment of ‘what’s in my hospital bag?’ This post is all about what I’m taking for myself. You can read about what I’m taking in my toiletries hospital bag and baby’s hospital bag in previous posts.

As my toiletries are in a little separate bag (it’s too big to fit in my main bag) the majority of this list is the clothing I’m taking.

Because I’ve been told I carry strep b there’s a strong chance I’ll have to stay in hospital at least 1 night while baby is being checked for infection. I’ve packed my bag with that in mind, however when Lamb was born we stayed in 2 nights because of latching problems, so if this happens with baby number 2 I may have to stay in longer.

The bag I am using for my things is the BabyBeau Isabelle bag which I bought from Very. I love this bag and I’m really happy that I bought it. It has a removable insert (which I’ve taken out while I’m using the bag for my things) which has lots of compartments, a changing mat, bottle holder etc. All in a lovely tan faux leather. I’ll do a separate review on this bag once I’ve used it with baby.

So onto my list of clothes…

1. 2 cheap, black towels for the first shower (it can be pretty messy so I’ll throw them away once I’m home). I bought these from Poundstretcher for around £7 for both.
2. I’ll also take another towel in case I stay in longer, but will leave this in the car.
3. Slip on cheap slippers for walking to and from the bathroom. Ideally buy ones with rubber soles that won’t soak up water (the shower room is well used so always wet). These are from Matalan and cost £4.
4. 2 pairs of socks and 1 pair of thick slipper socks. (Old pairs).
5. 5 pairs of cheap, big, black pants. £6 from Sainsburys.
6. 1 long sleeve black maternity t-shirt (I gave birth to Lamb wearing this top so that’s why I’ve packed it), and 1 nursing vest. The long sleeve top is from George at Asda and the vest was from Matalan (both kept from my first pregnancy).
7. 1 nursing sleep bra and 2 nursing bras. The sleep bra is from The Essential One and was £7.99 in the sale and the 2 nursing bras are from Debenhams (can’t remember price).
8. Lightwight dressing gown from Matalan. This cost around £12.
9. Button front nightshirt. £12 from Matalan.
10. Navy striped, loose fit trousers that can be worn as either pyjamas or casual pants. These were £7 in the Next sale.
11. Maternity pyjamas. These were my favourite maternity purchase in this pregnancy. They were from ASOS and so comfy!
12. Maternity bikini which I’ve forgot to photograph! Just incase I get to use the birthing pool.
13. I also have a hand fan and cooling spray in my bag, although these may fit in my toiletries bag.
14. I have packed nipple shields in this bag as they don’t fit anywhere else. Using sheilds was the only way I could get Lamb to latch (after 2 days of trying) so I’m taking them to be well prepared.
15. I’ll also chuck in some breast pads as I had very leaky boobs after Lamb was born!
16. I will also have a back up breast pump in the car.

I think that’s it for my hospital bag. If I’ve missed anything please let me know.

Baby is fully engaged and has been for a couple of weeks but seems to be happy just sitting there! Midwife thinks he will be early but we all know these babies like to come in their own time! If he’s not here by my dute date I’ll be having a sweep and hoping to kick start things.

Either way by the end of this month baby boy will be here!

Ax

Welcome to the second part of my ‘what’s in my hospital bag’ series. As you can see this post is about the toiletries I’m taking. Iv’e also published a hospital bag for baby post which you can head over and look at if you need tips on how much to take etc.

The toiletry bag I’m using is from Amazon. I did a bit of browsing and decided to look for one that had a hook or handle for me to hang the bag up in the bathroom or shower room to avoid it getting wet or dirty (I remember the bathroom on the hospital ward being pretty gross last time I was there).

I’m really impressed with this Travel Folding Toiletry Bag in pink leopard print. It was really good value costing just over £5, however it came from China so took quite a while to be delivered. I definitely recommend it though as it has fit everything I need in with space for a little more.

So what am I taking in my hospital toiletry bag?

1. Shampoo, conditioner and shower gel in Travel Bottles which I also picked up from Amazon for under £3 – bargain!
2. Roll on deodorant.
3. Dry Shampoo.
4. Baby powder (to make getting dry 10 times easier).
5. Water Wipes cleansing wipes.
6. Toilet wipes (so I can feel extra fresh down there 😉 )
7. My thyroid medication.
8. A mini pot of sudocrem.
9. Lip balm.
10. Medela nipple cream.
11. Sanitising hand gel.
12. Neals Yard facial wash (I have a mini bottle so have put it in in case I’m in hospital a couple of nights).
13. Neals Yard daily moisturiser.
14. Travel case for my Invisalign braces.
15. Tissues.
16. Face cloth.
17. Toothbrush and holder.
18. Toothpaste.
19. Paracetamol.
20. Hair brush, hair bands and hair grips.

When I gave birth to Lamb I had to stay in 2 nights/3 days. Now I know baby will need to be taken for checks for strep b when he’s born I’m preparing for at least a 1 night stay (which I don’t mind at all).

If you think I’ve missed anything let me know!

Ax

You read it right, I’m having a baby this month! My due date is the 15th, so even if I go 2 weeks over the chances are he will be here by the end of the month and I can’t bloody wait!

I’ve spent most of this pregnancy with anxiety about having a newborn. Not because I don’t want him, but because I’m anxious about struggling from the sleepless nights and difficulties with breastfeeding again. Who knows though, second time round might be easy as I’ve been there, done that and got the breastmilk covered t-shirt!

As you can see from the photos bump is nice and low, and has been for a while now. I keep getting comments on how low he is (not something I really noticed to begin with) and that he will be here early. I mean strangers are even saying this to me!

Turns out they were right. At my recent midwife appointment she measured bump at exactly 37cm (I was 37 +3) so perfect measurement, and felt his positioning. She confirmed he is 1/5th engaged! This is confusing because the lower the number, the deeper baby is engaged. Basically she said 1/5ths means she can feel 1/5th of his head – so basically he is almost fully engaged!

I could see she was pretty shocked by this, but was also super excited for me. Of course his head could pop back up again (please don’t do this little one) but she was pretty sure he would stay engaged and is ready to come out soon.

Knowing he could arrive any day now has fought off all of my anxiety. Adrenaline has kicked in and I’m ready for our new life chapter. Bring it on!

As you may know from my last pregnancy update I am back to being consultant led due to being a strep b carrier and needing antibiotics during labour. I spoke to my midwife about my birth plan options as I really wanted to be able to try the birthing pool this time. She confirmed I will have to go to the consultant delivery suite and can’t be midwife led, but there will be pools available to me (as long as they are not all being used!) This really relaxed me about being consultant led again, as I was panicking I’d be stuck in a bed on my back hooked up to a drip.

It’s really important to me that I can move around during labour. I gave birth to Lamb on all fours and that really helped move things along – gravity is an important factor in childbirth ladies! I would like to be able to push on all fours again if I can, and it looks like it shouldn’t be a problem as the antibiotics only need to be administered for 20 minutes at a time.

Since finding out baby is almost fully engaged he seems to have gone into hiding. Everything has calmed down! I’ve slept really comfortably with no achy legs or braxton hicks! What a tease!

Today however, has been different. This morning (around 11am) I had a funny turn and went really dizzy and sick. I rushed to bed with 2 slices of toast and ended up sleeping for 2 hours! Not like me at all. I’ve felt super hungry all day, but the nausea did go away after my nap. I’m now sat typing this with plenty of braxton hicks and period like pains. No, before you think it, I’m not going into labour, I just think my body is preparing for the real deal.

Wouldn’t it be lovely if it was the real thing though?!

I’m doing what I can to keep baby engaged. Lots of bouncing on my birthing ball and longs walks with Lamb and Daddy. I’ll be having pineapple for breakfast in the morning too 😉

I’m booking my next midwife appointment for Friday when I’ll be 38 + 5, and if he isn’t here by then hopefully he’ll still be fully engaged. I might even ask for a sneaky sweep… 😉

My gut feeling is my next update will be a 39 weeks pregnancy update, not an introduction to our new baby. But that’s ok, we know he will be here this month, we are on the home straight and we are all super excited.

Ax