Pop!!!!!

I'm at estimated due date with no real signs of a grand entrance soon. I have been walking, swimming, walking and swimming. See look of the day - my walking outfit a Nike top with a long white singlet from Ally under it with ASOS three quarter maternity leggings - note I have to walk in thongs because my feet are to swelled up!

I have bought a ton of disposable travel change mats because I didn't want a nappy bag change mat. Now (at the very last minute lol), I have decided I want a travel change mat (and I can use it at home as well vs using the change mat all the time. I reckons this Babymel Zebra one is perfect :-). Again can't get instore so will need to order online (I have four baby parcels on the way!). Lucky baby is taking its time I guess.

Watching, Waiting, wishing

Three days before baby due date. I actually thought baby would come earlier so I'm very impatient right now! I have been spending my time wistfully browsing websites for gender specific baby clothes and making wishlists. If I have a bang girl I have found the cutest clothes!

Look of the day is a supre skirt/dress. I love this because it clings to my belly! ASOS necklace, mimco bag, fav zebra shoes!

ASOS, a Breast Pump and Look of the day

I was waiting for ASOS to have a boxing day sale before I bought the two breastfeeding friendly tops that I had in my saved items for about a month. I am beginning to feel a bit panicked about the whole breastfeeding wardrobe thing.  These tops are not totally bf practical but with my strapless breastfeeding cami underneath they should be quite workable.  No ASOS sale so far :-( and with baby due ANY minute I really didnt want to wait any longer considering it will take about a week and a half to get here at the earliest (I am anticipating not really wanting to venture out to much in the first two weeks anyway).  But with a 10% off code they only came to $28 all together anyway which is still a bargain:

I also committed to an electric breast pump that was recommended by my midwife.  I was waiting for baby to arrive to see if BF worked out for me, but I found an awesome deal ($199 vs normal $299) and I also thought if BF didnt work out for me, I would still like to try pumping to be able to supply baby with my milk even if its via bottles.  Plus the resell value on Medula swing pumps are pretty good if it really didnt work out at all.



Look of the day:

This is a maxi dress from Ice - they are two for $50.  This is actually one of the maxi dresses that I really like, but I cant see myself wearing it after baby, probably will pack it away with the maternity clothes for the next baby :-).  Note my white thongs, I got two pairs of these from Rubi shoes - green and white - for a bit of a change from Havianas.  Feet and fingers have kinda swollen up a little bit again, but we are at 39 weeks now so not to bad!



Look of the day and baby capsule installed!

I hired the baby capsule from the ambulance service.  I was thinking of getting a Safe and Sound Unity but I just couldnt justify the price for only 6 months of use, and even when I thought I could probably use it for babe number two, I didnt want the clutter of keeping it around etc plus the price was still a bit out of my range.  If I had of lived in a capital city I probably would of got one secondhand since if you live in a capital city there is such an abundance of cheap secondhand gear, but alas I do not.  So for $70 the ambulance service installed a basic safe and sound capsule.  It is a little bit annoying it doesnt have a little head cover, but as I have discovered, there have been lots of clever pregnant ladies out there who have come up with amazing products (I wish I had some of their creativity) - check this out its a hood that attaches to one of the handles - awesome!:http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Funky-babyz-capsule-hood-liner-belt-covers-set-jade-/120821617241?pt=AU_Travel&hash=item1c21879259.

 I also bought a black polka dot capsule liner to match the pram liner, note that with both liners I choose something gender neutral :-).  Unfortunately it looks like its a month wait at least to get the capsule liner, the website I ordered the pram liner off doesnt do capsules and the only person I could find that does (and in the same design) has a backlog and says its at least a month wait POO.  Baby will probably be 3 weeks old by then, but oh well.

Look of the day is ASOS top and ASOS peg pants.  The tops have come in handy and I am sad that I actually bought to many maternity clothes and havent got a decent wear out of them all, but ASOS was sooo cheap!  I regret buying two pairs of peg pants as I only needed one - and I kinda regret buying them at all, the one thing I learnt this pregnancy is do not buy things that you are not your style just because they are maternity and you think you might pull it off (like my maxi dress fiasco).  Peg pants are not my style, they look okay and I know heaps of girls wear them all the time (not just maternity!), but Hammer pants they will always be to me (or pajama pants as my husband suggested)

Look of the day and waiting by the postbox!

The look of the day is another old one, it's about three weeks old. ASOS dress with Ally belt, I paid about $45 for the dress from the normal range not maternity.
I am anxiously awaiting for my last online purchase to arrive, it's from Figure 8 Maternity a US online shop. Because of my stomach muscle separation I needed to get the right compression garments to make sure things go back properly. I already bought a pair of SRC recovery shorts from EBay for $50:http://www.recoveryshorts.com/src-recovery-shorts/, but obviously wearing shorts all the time isn't practical for the wardrobe (and the heat!). After doing some research I bought a belly bandit ($30 cheaper then I can get it in Australia), and the specific stomach girdle for the stomach muscles to wear under the belly bandit. $128 for the belly bandit and gurdle, exercise DVD and book pack (plus delivery). A bit expensive but I see it as an investment :-).

Nursery musings and look of the day

Because we don't know the gender of baby, all I can do is muse about what the nursery is going to look like. It's a bit frustrating not to have it ready by the time baby comes but at least it will be able to suit his/her personality. I am a big fan of tree decals, we saw a nice pink one instore but I also like the owl theme for a girl as well. We got the fan replaced to match the rest of the fans in the house (with dimmer lights attached). This website had some great ideas http://projectnursery.com/.

Look of the day is a bit old due to my blogging issues - belly is heaps bigger now! These cotton on long tank/dresses are a little bit to short now but I lived in then got ages with cute singlets like these over them. At 38wks my outfit choices are becoming a bit more maxi dress looks!

Finished work and preparation angst

So I've officially finished work! Three weeks to go to due date (that's New Years people!!). Rocker and pram are here and I spent a whole day frantically buying the basic things that I needed in case baby comes tomorrow like nappies and a few yellow and white onsies and wraps. Not knowing what gender baby is has really impacted on my preparation. I bought all the things i need for the hospital including the nightie and dressing gown I blogged about earlier - yay for 30% off online cotton on. I also picked up some (what I hope are) breastfeeding friendly summer dresses. This us the last of clothes purchases - I feel confident that I have enough breastfeeding friendly clothes to get me through until I figure out what after baby world looks like ;-).

I kinda have got over the funk I have been feeling of not having the perfect nursery and baby wardrobe and feeling prepared. Instead I'm starting to feel excited that I get to meet baby and see their personality and then buy them a cute wardrobe and do the nursery! Hopefully there will be lots of January sales :-)

Puffy feet and I heart my chiropractor

Today's look of the day highlights that my entire wardrobe can now only be accompanied by three pair of shoes! My feet gave swollen up! So haviana things or two pairs of ankle bootie sandals are the only shoes that are comfortable now - eek! This is the third week since I have started seeing a chiropractor. Although I think my bellybean maternity pillow has contributed immensely to relieving the pelvic pain I was experiencing, combined with my chiropractor I am now completely freed from back pain and no longer waddle. Amazing! Though I still can't wear heels because of fat sore feet lol. Look of the day: one teaspoon shirt, jeans west black maternity jeans, lovisa turquoise bracelet beads, forever new turquoise earrings and my zebra sandals. As you can see from photos, unpacking in the new house is still a work progress.

Look of the day and indecision

I still want a cutesy bassinet! I am still tempted to buy the Phil and Teds smart pram and peanut but we will see what kind of financial situation I am in coming up to Xmas and baby's due date. Dropping another $300+ on a spare pram may not be feasible. annoyingly though I saw on eBay a perfect p&t that was pick up only in my old town! But I live nowhere near there now so will just have to continue to keep an eye out here. I looked into the bassinet attachments for the city mini jogger but to be honest it looks quite ugly anyway and unstable, I would prefer to lay little one down in the actual pram! Plus the cost of bassinet and pram attachment pretty much is the same price as the p&t.
Look of the day: dotti dress/tunic that I bought on sale for $19.95. Belly bump is now getting big at 35wks, I was shocked how this fitted (I.e tight) compared to last time I wore it earlier in the pregnancy. ASOS leggings of course because all my dresses are to short ;-). And old old old silver open sandals from sportsgirl- my feet are starting to swell and it's cutting down my shoe options!

Look of the day and I need some glam nightwear

Look of the day is a bit boring, ASOS cargo shorts and ASOS white top, my fav zebra sandals. Very preggy casual look. I have started thinking about what to wear in the hospital, I am being optimistic and hoping that I only stay two nights max! I'm not a nightie girl, but I think that would be more practical and comfy and I also don't want to spend to much money. I found a few decent slips (the polka dot slip is for home ;-)) at Cotton On Body and a dressing gown- this one is the short version but I'll buy the longer version :-)

Rockers, online shopping angst and look of the day

So now we have made two baby purchases, only four weeks to go to baby due date, what's the rush? ;-). First purchase the city mini jogger pram in purple arrived last week. This purchase was made from an international seller on eBay at a pretty big saving. Turned out to be the most painful eBay experience I ever had, but many weeks later pram is here safe and sound! Very happy with pram, it has eased my anxiety about not having the cute bassinet pram. Second purchase is a rocker/cradle/swing: fisher and price my little lamb cradle 'n' swing. It's probably the most expensive one on the market so I ummed and ahhed about it (this is why we have only bought two things in 36 weeks!!!). After much research I found it online for $50 cheaper and have purchased. Hopefully it takes less time then then the pram did to arrive! Having a really awesome rocker has been very important to me ( much to my hubby's frustration!), we have a very spacious house so it will be good to be able to have baby in a secure movable rocker. I also want to be prepared as much as possible to have a relaxed baby and this rocker looks like it would relax even a devil child ;-). Look of the day : not much work things are fitting me anymore, this is a size large skirt I got from Cotton On for $5- it has an elasticized waist so perfect! My work vests have proved very stretchy so still cover bump fine. I went for amber jewelry theme and squeezed my fat footsies into a loose pair of stud ballet flats from dotti.

Actual baby purchases!!

We have booked in to hire a car capsule from the ambulance service for $70. I just didn't want to pay out $$$ for something I could only use for six months. And as much as I wanted the cutesy bassinet pram, i just couldn't find one that was practical. Im still hopeful I will magically stumble upon a cheap one though!! But we have now committed to the purple city mini jogger as blogged about previously. Bought online for $90 cheaper then in-store, yay for bargain buys! It does now need to kitted out with a rain and bug/shade cover which will be an extra hundred. And I found this website that sells the cutesy pram liners and car seat liners: http://www.harmonyj.com.au/. Because we don't know what gender baby is we will probably get the black polka dot or a an animal print, then get a gender specific one when our New Years surprise arrives :-).

Look of the day and summer lovin

It's getting hot hot hot! It's break out the swimmers time :-). It was actually really lovely to float the bump in the pool, and my ASOS swimmers that cost $25 are so cute!

I over invested in maxis which ate already a bit stifling. Luckily Cotton On have a good range of long tanks/short dresses that you can layer loose singlets for a classic summer look. They are short though! My ankles are starting to get a bit cankley but the legs are still okay lol.

I also bought one more cute work dress - $17 from cotton on. This is a after baby dress and can a non work dress so a good budget buy ;-).

Getting comfortable, not stylish - eek!

At 32 weeks I have become very uncomfortable with lower back pain while walking and sleeping at night.  When I wake up in the middle of the night, and try to get comfortable, my hips hurt and its a bit of a pill!  I had tried heat packs, stretches - deep therapy massage actually helped considerably.  At my physio appointment today I got diagnosed with Pelvic Girdle Pain, which  is triggered by the release of to much Relaxin hormone.  POo!  So now I have to do a few things (including always engaging my pelvic muscles ;-).  ONe is to get a maternity pillow - but I am shuddering at paying out the $90 for a bellybean maternity pillow.  It looks like it would be perfect, its just a shame it is so expensive!!  I plan to have another Little One after this one, so whats the price of comfort for two pregnancies....!

The other things was to invest in a core stability belt $50.  This is supposed to not be visable under clothing. 

Finally, pregnancy Yoga!  So I have enrolled in a 5 week pregnancy yoga workshop (which brings me three weeks to baby arriving!).  Hopefully the combination of all these things will help relieve the pain.  Though high heels are definetly out now until after baby :-( Sad FAce.