Littlemummy.com

Guest post by Keris
For me, one of the many small joys of pregnancy was the excuse to buy more books! I wanted, I needed, all the information I could get. After asking for recommendations, scouring the shops and reading five-star reviews on Amazon, I had quite a library. Here are the five books I couldn?t have done without.
1: The Pregnant Woman?s Comfort Book
My copy is literally falling apart, I referred to it so many times. It’s about self-nurturing and may be a bit too touchy-feely for some, but I found …

The books and magazines would have you believe that you need everything. I’ll let you into a little secret, you don’t need all that stuff, but what you DO need you need A LOT of, especially in the newborn phase.
I’m going to attempt an inventory of everything I actually used during pregnancy, birth and the first three months.
Pregnancy

Maternity Jeans and/or Dungarees
I lived and [almost] birthed in my dungarees, well, until they got too small at eight and a half months. They did see me through a good six …

Socially recognised mothering standards eh? Yeah, you know, all that stuff that as a mother you are expected to do and the unsaid standards you are expected to keep [at all times].
1. One should work until they drop (literally) before beginning maternity leave, you should be so tired you can barely stand up and proceed to give birth the very next day. You should brag to other mothers about said martyrdom.
2. One should have a natural birth which should involve rose petals, water and classical music. …

When it comes to pregnancy, birth and therafter everyone has some piece of advice for you. Here are the pick of the (large!) bunch I was given.

1. Buy more vests and babygro’s than you think you’ll need.
2. Take baggy pyjamas and big knickers to hospital, especially if it’s a c-section.
3. If bottle-feeding, have at least 6 bottles, preferably nine.
4. Buy a microwave sterilizer, they can’t break.
5. The first few months will fly by, make the most of it.
6. Don’t be too proud to accept hand-me-downs.
and the stuff that nobody …

Invest in a maternity pillow, particularly if you want to get any sleep over the coming months. They come in a range of shapes and sizes, to be honest I got one off eBay for a fiver, I just removed the cover gave it a good wash and it did me fine.
Here is a similar one available online at Amazon;

Baby Name Selector
Caitlin (girl)
Evan (boy)
Joseph (boy)
Oona (girl)
Sven (boy)

I was really disappointed with the lack of decent maternity clothes (unless you spend a fortune) on the high street when I was pregnant.
So here’s my best of the worst run-down.
Dorothy Perkins – Good for jeans and casual tops, reasonably priced too.

Topshop – Small range, but they do have some ‘night-out’ outfits, but personally I thought they were a bit plain and everything was black.
Next – Has a good-sized range, similar in style to the rest of their ‘non-maternity’ clothes.

H & M – Wide variety of hit or miss pieces…….however …

You may be wondering about stretch marks? Accept that depending on your genes (and apparently whether your Mum had them or not) you may or may not get them regardless of how many creams you use (I used Palmer’s cocoa butter formula by the way). If anyone knows any differently please please let me know and we can help the rest of the female population with this horrible horrible disease!

Baby Name Selector
Akili (girl)
Diana (girl)
Grear (girl)
Kahil (boy)
Oliver (boy)

How long were you in hospital?
Great Nan (mother of 3)
Well, I wasn’t in hospital but I had to stay in bed for nine days (with a natural birth) and I was allowed up on the tenth day.
Nan (mother of 4)
Seven days was standard practise in my day although by the time I had my last child I was allowed home much quicker.
Mum (mother of 2)
10 days after a caesarean was standard practise.
Me (mother of 1)
I had Erin by caesarean and left hospital after 36 hours. I can’t believe the difference …

Start tracking history now….
Start a Blog
You can get a free blog at www.blogger.com. This is a great way to post photos with comments and give your child something to look back and read. If you want to go one step further why not purchase your baby their own domain name. Domain names cost around £15-£20, less depending on what you choose. Dave can build you a basic blog format at reasonable prices.

Start a Scrapbook
Not technologically minded? Start a scrapbook, include your thoughts, photos of you …

So you have your baby bible and know exactly what the script is….but what about your partner?
We all know that when it comes to this stuff most men don’t have a clue, most will try their best, but ultimately fail miserably to understand your cravings for coal or worse still those red bricks they build with (ask me about that story sometime!) your highs and lows or why you feel so tired even though you haven’t done anything.
Don’t Panic
I have the answer. I worked for me, it can work for …