HEY! This post if for my mamas or friends of new moms who want to get them something they need! It gets REAL. So there is your warning. Haha!

Also, alot of these are breast feeding tips because that is what I did!

Bamboobies- These are pads that you put in your bra to keep your milk from leaking through your bra and shirt. Okay, so I tried to like the reusable ones, but they just did not work for me in he beginning because I had to change them out SO often and then you have to wash them. It was just too much. I tried the bamboobies brand of disposable pads, and the the lanosin. I like the lanolin ones much better. It is honestly incredible how much milk they hold! I had to wear them pretty much all the time for a good while- I think it may have even been up to 6 months- maybe even longer. Ha! Towards the end I did transition to the reusable ones though because my milk bad obviously regulated by then.

Big pads- If you take them out of the package and think… wow. these are too big! They will surely stick out of the front AND back of my underwear!… Then you know you got the right ones. Haha! For real though, I was happy that I got the ones I did! I used these to make my padsicles (an ice pack for down there) with and used them regularly for a week for so PP. I got the ones with the wings- even though it added a step in making the padsicles. I just liked the added security. After about a week or so I went down a size in the pads but everyone is different.

Hand pump- I borrowed a machine pump from a friend of mine, and ended up also buying the modela hand pump. I love it! It is so easy to use- so simple and portable. 

hakka- A silicone little suction thing, lol. Just get one. This is NOT a pump, but it just suctions on the breast that your baby is not nursing on to catch all the milk that will flow out. (When you nurse from one breast, the other one will also get the let down- when your milk starts slowing.) Praise God for this thing! There would be so much wasted. Such an easy way to build a little supply in your freezer. 

Padsicles- yes, yes, yessss! It is exactly what it sounds like. An ice pack for down there. And let me tell you- you are gonna want them. Lay out a few of your biggest pads while keeping the wrappers as intact as possible. You need which hazel, lavender oil, and aloe vera. PLEASE if you use lavender oil, be sure to use 100% therapeutic grade oils like Young Living. Not something you found at target that says all natural. Long story short, it probably isn’t.  Mix up a spray of about 1/3 cup of which hazel and 15 drops of lavender oil. Then apply the aloe down the middle of the pad and spray a couple pumps of the mixture on the pad. I literally used a kitchen rubber spatula to spread it. Don’t saturate the pad too much with aloe or the spray because you don’t want to frozen block once you are done. Re-wrap the pad, pop them in a ziplock bag, and then freeze! I did this a couple weeks before my due date so I would have them.

Healing spray- after you are done go ahead and add a tablespoon or so of aloe to the mix and save it. I would spray it on a regular pad or on myself when I felt like I needed it. 

Target Auden cami- okay I have worn these camis almost every. single. day. The pads are sewn in so they don’t float around. So great to sleep in and easy to style for going out. Double win.

Tight shorts- Biker shorts or work out shorts. I didn’t like the adult diapers. They felt too loose and weird. Haha! I loved sleeping in these to help me feel secure wearing those big ole pads! 

Stool softener- Yea…. a weird subject. But be sure to take them every day until you have a b. movemnt for the first time PP. It may take a couple of days, and thats okay. It takes a while for your body to get back on track. 

Portable nursing tote- I had a little bag with diapers, cream, powder, hakka, bamboobies, water, snack, burp cloth, etc. in it. You don’t realize how many things you need until you really don’t want to get up to get them because it hurts so bad. So having everything in one little place makes it SO MUCH easier. 

This is more along the lines of advice- Peeing in tub- Your hospital or birth center will probably give you a peribottle to use while you potty. But it honestly still really hurt & burned. So for probably 5 or more days I ran a bath and…. I can’t believe I am typing this…. but peed in the tub every single time I had to pee. It did not hurt at all and was ABSOLUTELY worth it.
Also, you know how they talk about passing clots. I didn’t really believe them. Now I do. I am going to leave it at that. Just to say, don’t freak out if you do!

That is the brand of Pads I got, but I got the biggest ones- I think there is one bigger than the one pictured!

Also, when your milk comes in you may wake up to really painful, large, hard breasts and thing OMG WHAT HAPPENED. lol. This happened to me but it took a whole day for the milk to actually flow. I was terrified of getting mastitis so I was trying to hand express and do all kind of things to get them to feel like they had been drained but they still felt hard and painful. The next day my milk actually came in fully and started flowing. Now I know they were just swollen. If this happens just keep nursing your baby and don’t worry about trying to rush your milk. I think this just happens when it starts coming in. Within a day I was fine.

Snuggle nest- Everyone is different but I loved the Baby Delight Snuggle Nest for co-sleeping. This seems like it is for the babe, but it was really for me! haha! She slept in her bassinet for the first two nights, and I told Devin I wanted to go buy it. Having her in the bed with us, in her own little safe space was a game changer. It was so easy to nurse her through the night. I also just wanted to be right next to her.

Sit on your boppy (a type of nursing support pillow)- This helps to take the pressure off your bottom and will give you some relief while sitting down!

Rest- Okay, so apparently there is a big difference between sitting and laying down to rest. I thought sitting and lounging on the couch was rest. Well… it is not. My midwife explained to me that if you are upright you are literally sitting and putting pressure on your wound. So for the first 3-4 days LAY DOWN. I know, you will have to sit up to do certain things. But if you don’t have to be standing or sitting for any real reason- girl, LAY DOWN.

Nursing help- Have your husband watch a breast feeding class or attend the one you go to. I cannot say this enough. Because he was educated, he was able to tell when she was latched properly, how to adjust, and support me. For the first week or so, there were many times when Devin helped me to get Diana latched on. Like I would just hold Diana and her head and he would hold and position my breast & her mouth to get the latch right. I cannot say how thankful I was in those moments. Sometimes I was just in a lot of pain, she was especially squirmy, or I was just really overwhelmed and having that extra set of hands (literally) made ALL the difference.

Don’t get out of the car or bed with one leg- This also has to do with healing and pain management. Usually, when you get out of the car you swing one leg out and then the other right? Well for the first couple weeks, try putting your legs together before getting out of the car or bed and putting pressure on both of your feet to get up. It really helps!

Have breakfast lined up- muffins, quiches, whatever is easy! But if someone asks what they can do- ask them to bring your something pre-made for breakfast!

Have someone to assign meals & help- Someone, that is, other than you. Even if it is your partner. I knew that people wanted to help and I even had people text me. But to be honest, I was too overwhelmed (not really even in a bad way) to communicate or think of what I wanted or needed. Having a friend or spouse handle those requests, will give you a clear mind to focus on your new little love and taking care of yourself.  Make sure who ever it is knows your favorite coffee, smoothie, fave restaurant order. Tell them when someone says let me know if I can do anything they can say, here are her go to’s if you are in the area and want to drop it off! Let me know when to expect you.
Lol. But for real, if someone wants to help make it easy for them.

Finally- a robe, comfy pants and cardigans/kimonos. Something that I could just wear a nursing cami under and feel a little cute and covered up, hehe!

And my last thing is really just an anecdote.

I remember sitting on the bed holding Diana and sobbing to Devin because of how much pain I was in. I think I was 3 days PP. While I did have a really easy time nursing, one of my nipples still really hurt when she would latch for a few days- I think just getting used to it AND while I did not tear I did get a hematoma- which is like an under the skin bruise. My midwife said, well its good that you didn’t tear because they take longer to fully heal but a hematoma hurts way worse.
And baby…. it sure did hurt.
I wasn’t just crying because of the pain though, I was crying because I felt like because I was hurting so much it was keeping me from fully enjoying every moment with Diana and I felt desperate to be fully present with her.
I am just saying that to say, have grace for yourself. Birth and an amazing, HARD thing. You need time to recover and rest. Sometimes it takes a while. Sometimes it is quicker. I would just say for the first few weeks to not really have much expectations for yourself. Take things slow and day by day. Before birth RESEARCH THE FOURTH TRIMESTER- this is SO IMPORTANT.
Ans finally, don’t be afraid to feel. The good, the bad, and even the pain. It is all a part of the process. Take each moment as it comes.

Okay, last thing I promise. DO NOT LET ANYONE TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN SPOIL A BABY. YOU LITERALLY CANNOT. Like, it is impossible. Contact naps are HEALTHY. Nursing for comfort is HEALTHY- people do know that pacifiers were made to mimic YOU right? Not the other way around. So they cannot use you are a pacifier. lol. That is all, hehe.

I love you , and you are going to be amazing!

Love, Catherine