• pregnancy - second trimester

    I want a Caesarean

    At my Booking in appointment a couple of weeks ago the first thing the midwife said to me was “I’ll be disappointed if you don’t want to try for a vbac”. (A vbac is a vaginal birth after caesarean) Now the one things that has been worrying me ever since I found out I was pregnant was giving birth. My last pregnancy ended with an elective caesarean. I was scared when I found out I would be having one but I had a few days to prepare myself  and my recovery was pretty swift with no complications. For some reason…

  • first trimester - pregnancy - pushchairs - second trimester

    First trimester over already

    I’m hoping to record the highs and lows of my second pregnancy. So, from the beginning: Week 5 – I did a pregnancy test to confirm what I already knew! I had an allergic reaction to something which made my skin itchy but the Doctor said it was nothing pregnancy related. I sent off my self referral form to the North Middlesex Hospital (where I had my son last year). Week 6 – Feeling tired, tiny weight gain and discomfort around csection. Suffering from terrible nausea all day long so started listening to a great mp3 from Mums 2 Tums.…

  • first trimester - pregnancy

    How does a second pregnancy compare to the first?

    When is the right time to have a second baby? The million pound question with no right or wrong answer. My husband is an only child and we always knew we wanted at least two children. There’s a 3.5 year age gap between me and my sister which meant we hated each other when we were growing up but have been best friends since we both left home. We decided to try for another baby in January and I’m pleased to day it didn’t take long. I missed a period and bought a Boots Value Pregnancy test (I’m a SAHM…

  • baby - labour - post-pregnancy - pregnancy - reviews

    Review: You and your bump

    I was recently sent a copy of You and Your Bump to review. I had never heard of the author, Emma Cannon, but she is a leading complementary fertility specialist. You and Your Bump has been written as a companion for pre-conception, pregnancy and the postnatal period. It differs from other pregnancy guides as it blends the ancient wisdom of Chinese medicine with conventional Western medical practice. There is plenty of advice to help mums-to-be prepare for labour and post-birth and solutions to pregnancy-related conditions. You and Your Bump gently takes you through each stage of your pregnancy with advice…

  • pregnancy - reviews

    Mama tea

    Mama Tea produce a range of natural caffeine-free herbal tea – three of them (Glowing, Morning and Cool) are suitable throughout pregnancy while Ready and New Mama are suitable just before and after birth. I was sent a box of each tea to try out and the first thing I was impressed with was how beautifully they were presented. The boxes were wrapped in tissue paper and ribbon – this always makes me happy if a product looks good! I have tried the three teas suitable for early pregnancy.   morning mama This is a subtle blend of ginger root,…

  • competition - pregnancy

    Sea-Band review and giveaway

    When I was pregnant I suffered from morning sickness like many pregnant women. I coped by drinking lots of ginger tea and keeping a supply of ginger biscuits in my handbag. I wish I had heard about Sea-Band acupressure wristbands which have been providing nausea relief to millions of people for over 20 years. They work fast and effectively for all types of nausea including travel and morning sickness.   Gwen Stefani was recently spotted wearing Sea-Bands for her morning sickness and other celebrities including Gail Porter, Ulrika Johnson, Fiona Phillips, Kirsty Gallacher have all been seen wearing Sea-Bands whilst…

  • flexible working - motherhood - parenting - post-pregnancy - pregnancy - weight

    Losing the baby weight

    Little Man is now 10 months old and I have arranged an interview with my employer to discuss flexible working. Today I went shopping to buy some new work clothes and I came away empty handed. I’m sure I’m not the only one who is struggling to lose their baby weight. I wasn’t too worried about my weight while I was pregnant and happily bought lovely maternity clothes and lots of cake. My weight began to drop off after I gave birth and a couple of months after my son was born I packed away my maternity clothes and slipped…

  • baby - motherhood - parenting - pregnancy

    Not quite a water birth

    Today Edward is 10 months old! Pregnancy, birth and his first months are passing in a whirlwind. I always meant to write more about his birth last March before I forget. I had a straightforward pregnancy apart from the usual worries over test results and swollen ankles. I was tired during the first trimester, felt full of life during the second trimester and tired again during the third trimester. From 30 weeks Edward was breech so after an unsuccessful ECV I was booked in for an elective caesarean at 38 weeks. Edward was born at 9.41am and I’ve not thought…