This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Nutrimom. All opinions are 100% mine.
Well guys, I’m officially 30 weeks pregnant! That means my baby will probably be here in about 6 weeks (we are taking her out a little early just to be safe and not have a repeat of my first daughter’s birth). I can’t believe it’s almost here. Our baby girl is growing perfectly and we are getting so excited to meet her. I’ve been feeling okay, but I’ve been put on limited movement to keep the contractions from getting too crazy. That’s been sort of a bummer, but totally understandable to keep this baby in my belly and growing.
I’m still trying to focus on keeping myself healthy by making sure I’m getting the nutrients at every stage of this baby’s development, and attempting to avoid most of my crazy cravings (I do have to give in sometimes, because cookies are so good and I want to eat all of them). A couple weeks ago I mentioned that I’ve been getting some personal coaching, from Nutrimom, to help me navigate the first 1,000 days of this baby’s life (from pregnancy to age 2) and I’ve been exploring the 7 Pillars of Early Life Nutrition to inspire healthy eating/living and to prepare myself for when baby gets here. Some of my favorite things I’ve picked up in the last couple weeks are planning out my meals, and prepping for breastfeeding (the dreaded breastfeeding).
Planning out my meals:
- The husband (my wonderful chef) has been making larger portions of our healthy dinners so we can have leftovers for my lunch. Cause I’ll be honest with you: I don’t enjoy cooking and lunch tends to be the meal that I’m most likely to eat unhealthy. If I have some healthy grub already prepared for me to eat and all I need to do is warm it up, I’m good. Sometimes just making a big portion of vegetables the night before will help me eat healthy the next day. I swear, I’m so lazy at lunch time.
- I have also been changing up my favorite quick meals. If I’m making a quesadilla, I make sure to add veggies to it. We love spaghetti squash in our home and we use that in place of spaghetti noodles (seriously give it a try, it’s so good).
- I’m making my snack time healthier by prepping my snacks the night before each day. I cut up carrots, apples, and other fruits to easily grab and eat in between my meals. This saves me from choosing other not-so-healthy snacks, like crackers.
Prepping for breastfeeding (ugh):
- I do have a negative view when it comes to me breastfeeding a baby. My 1st daughter was born through emergency c-section and the whole breastfeeding thing never worked. She just preferred a bottle and I was really hard on myself for not getting it to work (I realize now that I tried all I could and it just wasn’t going to work with her). I want to be more mentally prepared this time around. My Nutrimom coach sent me some articles that share tips and strategies to help me prepare before my baby actually gets here.
- I’ve found out what my hospital does to support moms with their new babies when it comes to breastfeeding: the baby stays in the room overnight right from the start, skin to skin contact is encouraged, they don’t give pacifiers to the babies, a lactation consultant will come help a few times, and no bottles (in the beginning).
- The biggest thing I will be reminding myself through this whole breastfeeding journey: it’s okay if the baby doesn’t get it. I’m not a failure and all I can do is try my best and prepare myself ahead of time. Also: don’t forget to ask for advice from other moms, like my friends and Nutrimom coach, that are already pros at breastfeeding.
All this research and support from my Nutrimom coach is really helping me prepare for this little baby. I’ll be sure to share another update in the next couple weeks with you guys!
To celebrate my 30 week milestone, I’m sharing my Delivery Nurse Gift Idea (with a cute printable label) for you to create your own thank you gift for the nurses. Back when my first kiddo was born, I had many nurses (I was in the hospital for a week) and I really wish I could have done something for them to say thank you for all their help. This time I’m actually prepared with my ‘You Rock’ gift bags. You just need a few items to create them. I prepared 8 bags and I think that should be enough.
What you need for your Delivery Nurse Gift Bags:
- my ‘You Rock’ printable (click here to download)
- 5 inch wide plastic gift bags (found at most party stores)
- chapstick
- lotion
- tissue
- hand sanitizer
- and maybe a little treat
Put all those goodies together in the little gift bag and staple my ‘You Rock’ to the top. Pack these into your hospital bag, and you’re ready to go. Yay!
– Chelsey
