The Snoogle: a pregnant ladies bff

I can't believe I forgot to include the Snoogle in my Pregnancy Favorites post. It was a serious life saver for me through my second and third trimester. I would have chosen it as my bedside companion  It was a great addition to our bed.

So why did it pop into my head for today's blog post? Well, I have been sick. First, it was this draining fatigue feeling with a drippy nose. Then, it morphed into battle of the nose vs. boxes of tissues. Now, it's a nasty wet cough (ew) and scratchy throat / weird voice monster of a flu bug. Poor hubby has been banished to the guest room to get some solid zzz's. Despite the cough, that's left me alone in our big bed with all 4 fluffy pillows to myself, and, well, it reminds me of my days with the Snoogle.

The Snoogle isn't all fluff and glamor. The main drawback is that it's a serious barricade for your hubby. You need to do your cuddling before climbing into the sucker.

But I found the Pro's really worked for me:
- forces side sleep / prevents you from rolling onto your back;
- helps keep your spine aligned;
- supports your aching back;
- keeps hips nicely separated;
- means you get 2/3 of the bed dedicated to you & your growing belly (Ok, little me is a bed hog)

If you want another testimony...one of my coworkers was in the dog house with his pregnant wife, so I recommended the Snoogle instead of flowers. He picked one up that evening and got huge hubby points - she loved it!

On top of that, this product came highly recommended by Jess, who really knows what's going on!

Pregnancy Favorites

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It was roughly a year ago that we found out we were pregnant with our 'baby bjorn'. I remember jumping on the bed at 7am so excited to announce the news to Mark. I had been anxiously waiting 5 weeks since the DOMLP to take the test. Yay - it flashed "1-2 weeks"!!! Such joy.

At that time, we were one of the first in our local couple friends to get preggers. Now everywhere we look there are growing baby bellies! Well mama's, this post is for you. Here were some of my pregnancy faves:

1. Motherlove Belly Oil: This was the best for preventing stretchmarks and belly itch, and it smells wonderful. I put it on in the morning and at night and never found it to stain my clothes. (Got mine at Evymama.)

2. Earth Mama Angel Baby Happy Mama Spray: I was really nauseous and barfy in the first 16 weeks. This blend of lime, ginger and flower oil helped my body & tummy relax at any time of day. Once baby arrives you can also use it as a little pick me up after a sleepless night (Also got mine at Evymama.)

3. Melaleuca Whitening Tooth Polish - Cool Mint: Every time, seriously every time, I brushed my teeth in the morning I gagged. I kept soda crackers next to the toilet to prevent the gag from turning into a full blown puke party. My Auntie introduced me to Melaleuca's tooth polish. It's made from all natural ingredients and has less of a foam than regular tooth paste. It also has a hint of Tea Tree oil, which is suppose to be really good for you. You can't buy this at a regular store ~ email me if you want some.

4. From the Hips, by Rebecca Odes & Ceridwen Morris: This Ultimate Pregnancy & Parenting book was given to me by my mommy-friend Jess. Just like it advertises, it's an uncensored, unbiased guide that tells it like it is. This one is also hubby friendly.

5. BellaBand: This nifty accessory helps you wear your regular pants through your second trimester (maybe even longer depending on your body type). (Also got mine at Evymama.)

6. Aromaforce Lavender/Lavande Essential Oil: I used this with a diffuser in my car to keep my tummy okay on my (ugh) daily commute. You can pick up essential oils at any natural store. Tip: only use 1-2 drops at first and if it isn't strong enough, add more. If you start with 10 drops you will arrive at work smelling like a natural...ew.

7. English Breakfast Decaf Black Tea: Once I was past 16 weeks I started craving my old morning routine: going to get cafeteria coffee with the ladies at work. My stomach still wasn't strong enough for decaf coffee so I gave decaf tea a try. Wow - it tastes just like regular tea! It quickly became my new ritual, especially on cold Toronto winter mornings. The good thing about tea is you can keep adding water and sip it all morning...beat that coffee!

8. Feathering the Nest, by Tracy Hutson: My MOH, Corinne, gave me this beautiful book about decorating the baby's room. It was a great inspiration for our cozy nursery. Hutson includes a palate for each of her designs that can be used as a colour foundation for your own room.

9. On Becoming Baby Wise, by Gary Ezzo & Robert Bucknam. CAVEAT: THIS BOOK NEEDS TO BE COMBINED WITH ANY BOOK ON ATTACHMENT PARENTING - IT IS VERY RIGHT WING. Madelyn started sleeping through the night (11pm-5:30am) at 2 months. By 3 months she was sleeping 9pm-6:30am. To be honest, this hasn't done wonders for my milk supply, but it has given me back my sleep. We followed this book to help with sleep routines, but also used a lot of attachment parenting principles for bonding, and just because we wanted to. Every baby is different so only you will know what's best for your baby and you. I'm just putting this out there since everyone seems to ask about it. I recommend reading Baby Wise before baby and, more importantly, your mommy brain arrives.

10. Foods: A pregnancy list isn't complete without mentioning food cravings. For fun, here were my cravings in chronological order:

• Weeks 6-14: Apples (whole), applesauce (at 3am, 6am, 11am, 4pm), apple/walnut/green onion/leafy salad, Thai food, pickles 
• Weeks 14-20: Clementines (4-6 per day, sometimes 10!), baby dill pickles, french fries, veggie sandwiches (cream cheese/pickles/lettuce/tom/cheddar)
• Weeks 20-37: Naval oranges, chicken finger burgers with lots of pickles, poutine, pastry, ICE CREAM!!!!

Bonus: weird pregnancy truth:

I went through a phase mid-pregnancy where I spent a lot of nights resting on the love seat couch at the condo while our house was being reno'd. In full disclosure, I got addicted to Bubble Shooter. I can't believe I'm admitting this - so embarrassing! The thing is, you have to wait months for your baby to come and your mind gets restless while your body is exhausted...anyway, I quit once I beat the game, and I haven't played a single round since Madelyn was born.  So, if you find yourself addicted to a crappy Internet game while you're on your back with your belly in the air, just know it's normal :)