A Few of my Favourite Things...

Now that I'm nearing the end of my pregnancy (39 weeks, heck yeah!) I am able to make a solid judgment on what helped ease the tougher days. Granted, my pregnancy has been healthy and happy - I worked through most of it, enjoyed no bedrest, and felt very little illness - and I have no complaints (even my iron levels are jumping up quite nicely and quickly!), but there were some times when I juuuust got by with a little help from my friends:

Relaxing Music

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 Now this sounds fairly obvious but the likes of Bob Marley, Brooke Fraser and Feist can get my mind into a place of relaxation and out of the worries of pregnancy... which even the healthiest person can become wrapped up in. The effects of a good song take away a headache faster than any Advil (which is good because the stuff's not allowed.)

Ikea HAMPEN High Pile Rug From Heaven

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John and I gave his at-home office a little makeover this January and am I ever glad we did. For one, it includes the office as a space appropriately next to our living room as opposed to feeling awkwardly severed from our living space... and secondly (almost as importantly), it means the inclusion of this lovely rug into our lives.

The office. Follow John on Twitter to get more fun updates about his work! And also (mostly) what good food he's eating / drinking. He really loves to tweet about that.

Although not conducive to a successful working environment, this rug is PERFECT for napping on. Our home is mostly old hardwood which is beautiful to walk on and look at, but if you're a floor-dweller like myself, there is nothing like snuggling up to a good movie on the carpet. Or rolling around on the perfectly flat surface to stretch. My back and hips began to love me once I was able to spend some quality time on this rug... I understand that this probably won't ring true for everyone (what's she doing on the floor?) but this is good news to me. Naps on the carpet. Awesome.

Bubble Baths

Yes, they are bad for the environment... but they're so gosh darn good for muscles. Mix in a little Epsom salt and all of the sudden the 8 lb baby weighing on your pelvis doesn't seem so heavy. My friend gave me some grapefruit dead sea salts as a shower gift and... can I tell you how amazing those things are?

Baths are a great opportunity to try out aromatherapy techniques and practice getting into a relaxed zone / state, which could be helpful for birth. Baths probably wouldn't be helpful year-round but for a winter pregnancy... this is a win. The only problem is getting out of one with a ginormous belly. It's a stressful and sad time when you finally realize that you can't do it on your own anymore (for me it was about the 6.5 month point), but that's what a good hubby is for.

The Exercise Ball

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I only JUST purchased an exercize ball - and right after we took it home and blew it up, I was so annoyed I hadn't bought one sooner! It's been on my list for so long! What was I thinking?!

I purchased it with the intent of having it available for birth (there are many labour positions which are great with these balls), but it's actually an amazing thing to help ease discomfort in late pregnancy. There have been quite a few times where my pelvis has been in serious discomfort, and just sitting on the ball takes all the uneasiness away! Recommended product for all pregnant ladies.

Bible Study

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Since about October I've been doing a bible study with 3 other ladies each Monday morning - we're working through the book "Becoming A Woman of Excellence" by Cynthia Heald, and it has been wonderful! Bible study has been an amazing source of encouragement and growth for me - and I would wholeheartedly recommend this particular study to any woman at any stage in her faith journey. I was a little nervous at first, having read nothing of hers before and a little apprehensive at the idea of Becoming a Woman of Cooking / Cleaning, but this book is so intuitive and embraces womanhood as who we are and how we express that, not what we do domestically. I feel like it's definitely helped me prepare to be a mom and has helped me grow into being a better wife.

The Hunger Games Trilogy

If ever there was a time to jump on a bandwagon, NOW IS IT. These are actually really fantastic books - although the story line itself is a little dark, there's no messy worry of "is this ok, or..." when you're reading (I think years of being told Harry Potter was Satan's plot to rule the world has made me a little self-conscious when reading.. thanks, my ever-well-intended Pops!). The story is GOOD. It's written for a younger reading level - so you can't fault the author that it's not a literary groundbreaker in terms of language and technique - but the story.. is just.. so good. I'm reluctantly reading through the final book, and every page I turn I think.. really? Do I want this to end? Read slower, Sam! Slower!

I bought it on Kobo - each book ranged from $6 - $8 each depending on what coupon code I could find that day - and read it on my iPad so I unfortunately didn't get that midnight page-flipping experience I've always dreamed of, (it was more page clicking), but this was close enough. And more cost-effective. Perfect baby-waiting-maternity-leaving-time-spender.

Bran

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I put that * on everything.

Lamaze Class

Now, I'm not going to stand here and defend Lamaze as "the best" preparation tool for labour. The Bradley Method also seems amazing. So does Hypnotherapy. But Lamaze is what was available locally, and whether we did one type of labour preparation or another, I would recommend a class like this to every couple considering natural labour.

We met other couples going through the same things at the same time, were able to ask the strange questions we feel too awkward to even Google, and had hands-on practice with breathing and positioning techniques. Our teacher was fantastic and I'd recommend her to anyone. It was a great support tool and helped me to feel more embracing of labour and less afraid of it.

Iron

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For the last 4.5 years I've been a vegetarian, which means that my iron stores are low. Now, this isn't true for all vegetarian women, but it was for me. My body wasn't absorbing the iron that John and I were eating (which, in my defense, is an extremely healthy amount - we are spinach junkies) because the heartburn that followed every single meal was so unbearable (that's no exageration) I was hopped up on Tums, a calcium supplement, immediately after I finished dinner. I didn't know that my body can't absorb calcium and iron at the same time, so when the two duked it out, calcium won. So, although I began and enjoyed most of my pregnancy with healthy iron levels, the last 3 months have been exhausting and it's because my hemoglobin was at the level of someone who had just endured a major hemmorage. Nice.

Anyway, cue in Floradix, my knight in shining armour. Right now I'm taking 3x the daily recommended dosage (with the advice of my midwife - DON'T go overdosing on this stuff just because you read this blog or self-diagnosed! Talk to that doc of yours.) The effects are enormous already. My friends, family, midwife and husband notice a massive difference, and so do I. I'm like my pre-pregnant self, all rearing and ready to go do stuff (although it's a little harder now that I have an intense waddle!).

After my iron levels have sustained themselves at a normal level and I've built up some stores, I'm going to switch off of this (extremely expensive) formula and move to a more cost-effective pill form for a little while.

If you think your iron levels might be low, talk with your health care provider & get a blood test. You won't regret it. But, if you can avoid it and aren't in a rush to pump up your levels, don't feel the need to buy an expensive formula like this.. it tastes like a Grapefruit Orange and Pee slushie.

There You Have It!

There you have it. A few of my favourite things that have helped me through pregnancy. I hope this list helps give an idea of some things that may help you relax and feel encouraged (pregnant or not), but it'll also be great for me to come back and take a look at when I'm feeling frazzled as a new mama!