Hatch

 

Those of you who, like me, have completed the pregnancy stage of your lives, you'll relate to my seeing a product, service or tradition and thinking, "Oh, how I wish that had been around/I had thought of that when I was pregnan/had babies!"  This post is about one of those things.

For before, during and after baby, I present Hatch.  This collection of timeless clothing and accessories is any pregnant woman's dream come true!  21 pieces of perfection:  all must-have essentials that you will wear while pregnant and after!  (Wait, perhaps I could sneak a peek at a few things for myself!)

But you don't have to take my word for it.  Check out their entire collection at hatchcollection.com.  I guarantee you'll see something you can't live without...and perhaps a thing or two that will have you contemplating adding to your family again.  I kid.  Kind of.

BellyBuds

BellyBuds were not around when I was pregnant, but if they were, I would have used them! Music is a huge part of my family's life...it's playing most days from the minute we wake up to the minute we go to bed...and none of it is "kid's music." My children have been learning to appreciate the good stuff from birth. Although with the help of BellyBuds, you can take this even a step further...before birth!

BellyBuds are safe and convenient for prenatal bonding with your baby. They are custom headphones (or bellyphones) that gently adhere to the belly and play directly into the womb, so your developing baby can hear prenatal music, voices, soothing sounds, or whatever you like.

To learn more and to purchase, visit bellybuds.com where the entire pack retails for $49.99 or amazon.com where they ship free for $47.58!.

No Silver Lining on BPA

For the last few years my husband and I have discussed the bisphenol A (BPA) located in the lining of food cans. We only purchase and use canned tomato products and beans (seeing as four of the five of us are vegetarians) but still, it's troubled us. We've tried to distance ourselves more and more...and I have a feeling many more people will be joining us in this attempt. Why? Because a new study was just released outlining the risk associated with pregnancy and BPA...although obviously, this should be applied to everyone, not just pregnant women.

The study, title No Silver Lining, found that over 90% of cans tested contained detectable levels of BPA (which all public health experts now say have been linked to abnormal behavior, diabetes, heart disease, infertility, developmental and reproductive harm, and obesity). The study shows that "meals involving one or more cans of food can cause a pregnant woman to ingest levels of BPA that have been shown to cause health effects in developing fetuses in laboratory animal studies." And BPA has been found in newborn babies' cord blood as well as in 93% of the US population's urine (a word I never thought I'd type for Ugga Mugga).

So, what can we do? Well, as I write time and time again, eat fresh food. Eat simple, fresh food. If fresh fruits and vegetables aren't a possibility, eat frozen. And if you must consume canned goods, use the Guide to Recycling Codes shown below as a guideline as to what's safest for both you and the environment. And then, discuss this study with your friends and family. It takes a village...

FIT2BMOM

Let's face it, we all know that when we're pregnant, we're not truly eating for two...we actually only need an additional 300 calories a day. That's the equivalent of a cup and a half of yogurt (a great pregnancy snack, by the way). But that's not exactly how we all dreamed our pregnancies would go. We had visions of late-night ice cream runs and bon-bons. For me, it was Swedish Fish...I just couldn't get enough! But with the extra indulgences, comes the extra exercise...and yes, you should be moving (another pregnancy myth debunked...sorry!).

FIT2BMOM's fitted, tummy-hugging tops and stylish bottoms makes pregnancy fitness attire oh so tres chic! I love, love, LOVE the side-seam drawstring on the shirts! Oh how I wish I had discovered these last summer when I was pregnant.

The colors are delicious and sophisticated...such a calming palette. And the icing on the cake is that the fabrics are incredible! So soft and stretchy and just what you want against your sensitive, pregnant, growing baby belly!

Visit fit2bmom.com to shop online where prices start at $8.00 for their moisture-wicking headband...which this non-pregnant girl has been loving since it arrived!

A Favorite Quote of Mine

I had my post-pregnancy checkup at the doctor yesterday and realized that I'm no longer pregnant. I know it's been weeks, but it just hit me. And then last night, I woke to feed my daughter at 3:00 a.m. and noticed her strong self had moved so far and it got me thinking this morning of a quote I hold dear to my heart.

Any of you who have given birth will appreciate these quiet, thoughtful words by Elizabeth Berg:

"I worry about you, lost-looking in a crib that seems gigantic. I check on you a million times a day as you sleep there, your head nudged into the corner of the bumper pad. Is it familiar to you, that feeling of having your head pressed against something? Is that why you determinedly make your way there, regardless of where in the crib I lay you down? I am glad to have you out in the world with me at last, but sometimes we miss the way we used to be. Thus it is that I wake up and put my hand to my empty womb; thus it is that you inch your way up toward a memory, seeking a kind of solace in your sleep. We have not left pregnancy behind completely, either of us. We remember together."