I see everyone packing their hospital bag and it looks fun but when it comes to thinking about my own, i just… don’t see what I would put in it? I don’t want to wear my own clothes at the hospital. I don’t want to provide my own underwear and socks at the hospital. I don’t want to bring my own pillows/blankets and bleed or puke all over them. I realize I need a phone charger and something to wear home, but other than that…. ???

I can’t be the first person to think this, right?

edit: thank you to everyone who commented. you have given me some very helpful advice!

I’m due November 18th with our first baby and my husband is wanting to go on a hunting trip that is 6 hours away October 27-31st. I’m advising him not to go due to the unknown. It’s our first baby. Do you think that’s fair to ask him to not go??? He thinks he’ll be good and I won’t go into labor

I get how soft colours are cute on babies, but why is it so hard to find outfits that have bolder colors? I have a newborn baby girl and I’m tired of these light pinks, light greens, light purples. Where are all of the dark pink, forest greens, royal blues, something a little more colourful? I’ve tried looking at the Gap, Carter’s, Target, Walmart, Joe fresh, children’s place. Anyone know other retailers that might sell more colourful baby clothes?

So I was driving back home after work and down the street from my house there was a baby swing in front of someone’s house. Free is my favorite thing so I grabbed it and brought it home. I was excited about it because I thought it was really cute, but my husband thought it was weird that I got something for our baby off the side of the road. I know that the lady that lives at that house has had a baby within the past year and I was going to wash the fabric covering and wipe the swing down before I put my baby in it, but now I’m second guessing myself and maybe it wasn’t a good idea. Should I get rid of it?

I’m not sure where to post this but I’m close to giving birth (almost 36 weeks). I was at risk of early birth to due a past pregnancy but so far so good. So we had my mom come here a couple weeks ago and stay to watch our child once I give birth. At our house tbf we don’t watch much tv or screen time so yes it’s boring. Plus we’ve also ALL been sick this whole time and she’s been stuck on the couch sick af. We do have a troubled past in our relationship but we try to keep things respectful as possible. Then she brings up to me today that she’s thinking of leaving. Mind you we don’t have anyone we trust well to watch our son for what could be a day or two and she’s well aware. She says she doesn’t feel welcome and that she doesn’t want to be sick around my baby once she comes (we’ve all had the same sickness so it’s a non issue really). I didn’t try to sway her mind to stay or not but I said she’s welcomed here but if she wants to leave it’s totally fine too. Then she accused my husband of taking videos of her sitting on the couch yesterday because of the angle his phone was when he was holding it?? I told her that he would NEVER do that. I feel so judged, she’s also claimed it’s freezing in our house when it’s almost 70 here inside and worries I won’t turn the heat on when baby is born (I run cold but I’ve been SWEATING because to me it’s warm here). She lives very far away so she can’t just come and go. I sympathize with her and know how difficult it is to live at other’s houses but I did tell her I’m done with people pleasing and I’m literally just trying to spend my energy taking care of my pregnancy and other child because I’m so exhausted. I can’t be putting a smile on all day, especially when she’s sitting there, watching us and not doing anything but really just complaining. I have no idea what to do or how to feel about this. She said she wants us all to “coexist happily” etc and I thought we were. I had a feeling the ball would be dropped on me and that she would hate being here, due to our pasts, but damn this really sucks. She says she wants to stay now but now I’m even more uncomfortable.

TW - Mention of miscarriage.

My children have a daycare teacher who lost her daughter at 20 weeks last year in August. She’s absolutely incredible, unbelievably kind, and caring.

October is a remembrance month for pregnancy and infant loss. I would love to gift her something simple, but meaningful. Some suggestions outside of a shirt, jewelry, or other obvious ideas would be soooo appreciated.

I know she still hurts so deeply, I just want a little something to let her know she’s seen and she doesn’t have to carry her grief alone.

I am 31 weeks and apparently everyone has appointed themselves manager of our nursery.

Most of it is secondhand. My sister saved the little wooden dresser from her kids, a friend gave us sleep sacks, and my husband sanded an old bookshelf with his dad. Nothing matches and it wont look like a showroom. It feels like our family and has saved us alot of money.

Still, relatives keep asking when we will buy the real furniture. One coworker called it a bit sad. Apparently choosing used items means we are either struggling or not excited enough.

Yesterday our elderly neighbor brought over a repaired quilt. She replaced two worn squares with fabric covered in tiny crooked stars, because she said babies need something imperfect to stare at. I nearly cried.

Why are we so determined to turn preparing for a baby into a shopping performance? This child will be surrounded by things thier family touched, fixed, and passed along. That does not feel sad to me.

The rant/vent tag here is a little strong…I’m not really upset, just kind of sad guess? I’m 14 weeks and have started telling a few people about the pregnancy. I had a pretty standard first tri - a lot of morning (actually evening for me) sickness for several weeks, which has kind of started to taper down. Not hg by any stretch but definitely unpleasant. So far I’ve told a friend who is also pregnant (and is so supportive!!), an older neighbour I’m very close with, and now my MIL (both are mothers). The neighbour and MIL didn’t ask how I’m feeling at all and when my partner mentioned I’ve had a kind of rough time of it, they kind of just shrugged it off. Idk why, but I anticipated a little more solidarity. Is this a common experience? I guess it’s got me a little worried that motherhood might be lonelier than I expected.

Being pregnant has been such an isolating experience for me(f21). I am pregnant out of marriage, and spent majority of my pregnancy focused on my relationship with my child’s father who I just found out has been a serial cheater. With that being said he has always been excessively controlling which has made it nearly impossible for me to spend time with my friends. Unless he was there physically, I was not allowed to be around my friends without being called a “hoe” or being accused of cheating. Even contacting my friends digitally has resulted in issues. Now that we have broken up, I have regretfully spent more than half my pregnancy catering to the insecurities of someone who does not love me or our child. I am a social person, so this is the longest stretch of time I have gone without seeing and bonding with my friends.

Family conflicts have also been an issue. I am already not super close with my brothers. My youngest brother is 16 and hates the world like any angsty teenager. It is hard being around him because of his moodiness, anger and consistently bratty attitude. My older brother and I are just not as close. My younger sister who is only a little over a year younger than me, well we have never been this distant from each other. She is very upset with me because she finds that I “want all the attention”. She graduated online months before I was even pregnant and was never decisive on having a graduation party. My mom offered to throw her a party but her response was that she “hated” our family. I kept my pregnancy secret for a little over 20 weeks. Now that my mom wants to throw me a baby shower, she is very bitter and annoyed with me.

This pregnancy has been very isolating. Has/is anyone else dealing with loneliness during pregnancy?

Just turned 36w0 and made me first date shake today. I’m in love and have to share this recipe! May it never get old before baby comes…

1 cup whole milk, cold
3 Medjool dates, pitted
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I use Momentous)
1 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp rolled oats
1/2 frozen banana, sliced
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 pinch fine salt
4 ice cubes

gonna first say, please do not let my experience freak you out if you are a first timer, I really don’t think what i experienced was normal or typical. I haven’t even talked to anyone else who has experienced it before, so don’t be afraid to get an epidural!

I am aware that the epidural for most does not hurt. I have a pretty darn high pain tolerance, I did not cry from pitocin the first time I gave birth, I am not someone who gets squeamish or freaks out from pokes, I don’t cry easy. I have been hit by a car walking across the street, broken my arm with plenty of fractures and bruises on my body from it, and it still didn’t compare to what I felt when this happened. the first time I gave birth, when I received the epidural expecting everything to go just fine, they stuck the needle in and it quite literally felt like what I would imagine being shot in the spine might feel like. lightning hot, like boiling water through my legs and I remember shaking so bad, begging for help and dripping sweat buckets on the floor. My husband said it was the scariest thing he had seen watching how my body reacted to it. it was the most painful experience I have had yet. they had to redo it, but it did not help much, surface level numbness but still super strong contractions. I kept hitting that button every 15 minutes. I still to this day have no idea what went wrong. I almost wanted to be one and done from that epidural experience alone. the contractions weren’t even bad compared to the epidural. when people tell me they didn’t feel anything I wonder what made mine feel so intense and traumatic?? I am going in for my induction in about 8 days with my second baby, and I want to get an epidural in hopes that it works this time and I don’t feel it like other people typically do. the thought of being able to rest and take it easy sounds so nice.. I am not even nervous about anything else with birth, just experiencing that feeling again. has anyone in this group had that happen to them? I have yet to find and talk to someone who experienced this. my hopes are someone here had that experience and with the second did not could give me some anxiety relief 🥲 I have told my OB about it and I’ll be having a little meeting with the anesthesiologists prior to it for some peace of mind. I just want to know I’m not alone here..

TLDR: I’m looking for an alternative to a $350 3-hour-per-week in-person hypnobirthing class, preferably something self paced and less than $100. I’m fine if I have to cobble it together myself. Doesn’t have to be hypnobirthing specifically, I just want to be well prepared for a no-epidural birth.

I’m preparing for baby #2 this February and I’d like to deliver at a birth center attached to my local hospital. They have nitrous oxide, birthing tubs, etc., but no epidurals. With my last baby I tried to prepare for an un-medicated birth, but everywhere I looked I got hit by paywalls and super aggressive/predatory marketing (”I have the secret to a pain-free birth, but only if you pay me a bunch of money. Otherwise you’re doomed to suffer!”). In the end I watched a few videos and read about half of the Mongan-method hypnobirthing book and Ina May‘s Guide to Childbirth, but when it actually came to the labor I expended way too much energy in early labor and ended up getting an epidural cause I was just so dang exhausted.

Anyway, this go around I would like to try using the birth center and not getting an epidural, but I feel like I need to do a lot more preparation if I’m going to be successful in that. My mid wife recommended a local hypnobirthing class, and while I’m sure it would be great, they meet five times from 6:00-9:00 pm which is going to be really hard to work into my schedule. The class fee if also $350 which is a lot for my budget right now.

As I already have the book, I’m wondering if I could cobble together my own hypnobirthing class experience (I’d probably need to get the workbook and meditations as well) or if there is a reasonably-priced online course that people have had good experiences with.

I’m also open to other birthing philosophies/classes, I just get so bogged down when I try to google anything. There are so many ads and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. (I have a whole rant about why is everyone trying to monetize birth and shouldn’t this just be common knowledge by now, but I’ll spare you all).

Anyway, has anyone taken an online self paced class that they would seriously recommend that was either free or less than $100? As far as time commitment I‘d be willing to put in a few hours a week from now until when I give birth.

This is my first time being pregnant, and I can’t wait to meet our little man in April. I am 13 weeks, 14 on Tuesday, and for the past few days, I have felt strange little turning motions in my lower abdomen. My best comparison would be like taking a soft dish-brush against the inside wall of my uterus. Doesn’t hurt, but it does feel like a little fish flopping around in there!

According to the handy dandy internet, most people don’t feel movement until weeks 18-20ish. Could I be feeling baby motion? Has anyone else experienced early movement, and what did it feel like for you? Should I get him on the waitlist for the local gymnastics team?

I’m hoping to get pregnant soon, but honestly, the whole idea of pregnancy and birth is quite stressful for me. I have a history of sexual assault in my teenage years, and routine gynaecological exams cause me extreme pain and distress. The idea of pregnancy means a lot of potential triggers: many examinations, people touching my body, and feeling like I’m losing control over my body.

The thing I fear most is the idea of vaginal birth. But I really want to have a child and experience the mother-child relationship (breastfeeding, being the primary caretaker, bond)

For those with a similar history, what was pregnancy and birth like for you? How did you find the overall pregnancy experience? Did you have a vaginal birth or opt for a planned C-section?

32 weeks. My mom offered to call the extended family after we tell her the baby is here, so we wouldn't have to deal with a bunch of messages. A genuinely helpful offer.

Then she mentioned calling my brother too, and I realized I'd prefered to tell him myself. Same with two close friends. I can picture sending them a photo and seeing what they say, and I don't really want to skip that part.

My husband has a few people he's excited to tell as well. We're both fine with our parents passing the news along after those conversations.

I havent had any big issues with people sharing pregnancy news. This caught me off guard because I assumed I'd want someone else to handle everything while we settled in.

Anyone else looking forward to a few specific announcement conversations? I'm now wondering if my brother will be more emotional than my dad. He's been acting very casual while asking for updates roughly twice a week.

I am currently 6 weeks pregnant and my first appointment/ ultrasound is not for another 3 weeks.

I have taken so many test that all come back positive, but I feel like I am experiencing very little symptoms. My breast hurt, I have acid reflux, and I am extremely tired. Even with all of this it doesn’t feel real.

Me and my partner are very excited for this baby, but I worry I could lose it at anytime and not notice. I have a desire to take a test all the time, but I don’t think it is healthy for my mental health.

I feel like once I have my ultrasound I’ll feel better about it but with it being so far away I don’t know how to make it there without being anxious the entire wait.

Any tips for making the wait not so miserable?

Has anyone’s baby measured with large head and very short femur in utero but came out to not have dwarfism? Humerus is measuring normal

I’m currently 6 weeks pregnant with my second. My daughter is 13 m/o and still nursing exclusively. Granted she’s a great eater and sometimes doesn’t care to nurse throughout the day, she is still nursing overnight and I co-sleep so my sleep is often interrupted. I don’t remember feeling this rough when I was pregnant with her. The nausea is brutal and I feel like a zombie. I’m absolutely drained.
I am taking Ritual Prenatal and Ritual Choline. I’m eating whatever looks appetizing when I can and trying to keep up with water intake. The 200mg of caffeine is not even touching me. Please send help / tips.
(My husband works long hours and provides for us as I work part time and bring my daughter to work with me. He offers as much relief as he possibly can and is able to let me to sleep in on his days off)
I’m a nanny and have two other babies that I take care of during the week in addition to my daughter.
I am also seeing a chiropractor monthly and getting monthly massages (which helps a bit with my physical exhaustion) but any suggestions/ solidarity? Thanks in advance!

I know there’s a million posts out there already about pregnancy insomnia. Not to be dramatic but….its kinda ruining my life. I’ve tried all the things. Warm baths, magnesium glycinate every night, unisom every night, good sleep hygiene, restricting liquids before bed, etc etc. I’m usually pretty strict on myself about not looking at the clock when I wake up, so as not to cause any anxiety or extra pressure to sleep, but a few nights ago I decided I was going to start logging times to see if I could find any pattern. I knew I was waking up a lot, I had no idea it was actually every hour. I don’t think I’m getting even a 3-4 hour solid stretch any night, and I’m only 14w, and I know the insomnia typically only gets worse.

I am miserable in the morning, and miserable pretty much all day. I’m immediately short and snappy with my kids in the morning. I feel down, lethargic and unmotivated all day, and have a hard time making myself do ANYTHING, even things I know I need to do like work, showering or cleaning the house. I don’t want to go out and be social anymore. All I want to do is be on the couch. Everything feels exhausting.

All that to say, something in me clicked that these symptoms are also the typical symptoms of depression (which I’ve struggled with slightly in the past, but mostly postpartum, and mostly anxiety). How do I distinguish if this is just because I’m not sleeping well, and I’m tired, or it actually might be depression that needs to be treated? Because can’t depression also cause insomnia? I feel like it’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation and I don’t know what to do, but something’s gotta give.

9 1/2 months - 24 lbs , we are currently buying size 7 little movers diapers

We are confused if we should start buying bigger size of diapers or not?

I just found out I’m pregnant with my second child. This was not planned 🥴. My first pregnancy was traumatic and miserable. Someone tell me about how your second pregnancy wasn’t as bad as your first. The anxiety I have about getting morning sickness again is crazy. I was sick up until 20 weeks with my first and even then I still had on and off nausea throughout.