Must haves for pregnancy and birth 📝

turned entrepreneur, social media personality and personal development junkie. This podcast is for my girl gang who want to feed their mind with positive and expansive thoughts to help them step into their power and live their most authentic life, which had a variety of topics including mindset, business, relationships, health, and so much more. Basically, wherever you are on your journey, I want to help you feel inspired and empowered to

rise up and conquer your next bold move. I know that's going to look different for everyone, but just no, I'm right here by your side and that you have the RNC community behind you. Let's do this. Hello and welcome back to the Rise and Conquer Podcast. Guys, I am back in your ears in a bit of a real time that didn't make sense, but you know what I mean, I can officially say baby brain. So it

is twenty twenty two. I'm a new mum. Baby Ivy is nearly nine weeks and I'm slowly easing back into work with Tim being at home with her full time and me just going back to work a couple of days a week. And I hope you guys are loving the mini episodes where we're just bringing you the really golden nuggets from really epic interviews we've had over the years on the Rise and Conker podcasts. And yeah, I

hope you've been enjoying them. But I thought, before we get into the new and very exciting season, I just wanted to feel some film. I wanted to record some real time podcasts for you about motherhood. This is something I did not plan even when I was pregnant. I you know, never well, I don't plan to be like a mummy blogger or you know that sort of thing. Of course, there's going to be motherhood and Ivy in my content and life, but that is no, it's not

like I, yeah, plan to do that. But if I have learned anything in this short amount of time of being a mum is. It can be super isolating, and it can be just really informative when you find out what other people are doing and you get little tips and tricks from other mothers. And obviously my dms have been a little bit full and I haven't had a

lot of time to get back to everyone. So there's just a couple of podcasts that I wanted to record for you guys, just to chat about new mum life, and you know, a couple of questions that you guys are asking me. I do apologize if the audio isn't the best. I'm in my office at the n H Warehouse, which is not There's no car or anything, so the audio is never that good. But definitely struggle to record at home with Ivy at home. So look, we're doing

our best. So I just wanted to give you a short and sharp episode with my must haves for pregnancy for birth, you know, our hospital stay and the first six weeks. If you guys missed it, I have recorded Ivy's birth story with Tim in our previous episode, so you can go in the show's feed and have a listen to that if you're interested. But yeah, I think a big question I get is like, well, especially when I was pregnant, I was like, you know what am

I even gonna need? What am I gonna use? I feel like there's so much out there, there's so much you know, marketing, and yeah, you just you don't really know what you need until you're actually using it. So I thought it would be helpful to do an episode on that. None of this stuff is sponsored or anything like that. This is just generally what I've used, what I'm using, and my thoughts on it will be super quick and this will be really easy for me in

DMS to direct people to this episode. So let's get straight into pregnancy. So, like, probably the two main things with pregnancy is I feel like I've raved about this a lot, but I didn't get any stretch marks on my belly. And I truly obviously, you know, genetics and stuff plays into that, and there's nothing wrong with stretch marks. I've got stretch marks on my hips and bum because

that's where I get it. But I used Eco Tans Glory oil religiously on my stomach through my whole pregnancy, and yeah, I just can tell like the way my skin felt, the way it was able to stretch and then also after I had IVY, I've been using glory oil and the way that it has like you know, gone back into shape and just how it feels and looks has been really great. And it just feels really

good and really nourished. So glory oil is something I actually used to use on my skin for acne scars and I also have used it on my under boob scars and it's just really new. It's really it's all natural. So you guys know, I rave about Eco tan Eco based on your products because they're all natural, they're organic. I was big on using all their products through my pregnancy just because your skin, you know, is an organ it absorbs everything. But yeah, I cannot recommend glory oil

enough for belly oil. I know there's lots of like specific belly oils, but that's what I use, and yet it was amazing. Again, this is not sponsored, but I do have a running code with Ecotan that you can use if you want. It's for twenty percent off and it is Georgie Loves. I will put in the show

notes if you want to Dissy. Another thing in my pregnancy which I found really helpful is because especially towards the end, I was still working out, and when you are to the point where you are bigger, just getting a bigger size of things doesn't really cut it. And I was living in my Lorna Jane maternity shorts. So obviously you're not going to go and buy like a

whole new wardrobe of active wear and clothes. But if I can recommend anything is to invest in a pair of tights or shorts that's maternity so they usually have extra material on the stomach, and it's just so comfy, and like, towards the end of my pregnancy, I was just wearing those shorts with a t shirt, you know, and sneakers, even if I wasn't working out, just so it was comfortable. And yeah, that was just something that I thought every goal needs. This just towards the end

of the pregnancy is just very uncomfortable. And also, I the specific pair of shorts that I'm thinking of, I got when I think I was about twenty weeks, so you know, you're not really showing that much, and they fit then, and then when I was, you know, forty forty one weeks, they were still fitting and they were my same size, you know, before I was pregnant, so they just really lusted me the whole pregnancy. So definitely

recommend that. And I also do have a code for Wuna Jane, which is just GS twenty if you need it. That's kind of the only thing I can think of with pregnancy. If you are going to buy new bras in pregnancy because of your boobs getting bigger, don't bother

just buying bras. I would definitely invest in maternity nursing bras because oh my god, you need so many when baby actually comes, so you may as well buy them if you plan to breastfeed or pump so hospital after hospital, I definitely recommend getting a couple of those, like disposable underwears. I think I just used a brand called Bubba Bump, but I'm pretty sure you can just get any you know,

in the chemists and whatnot. That was really helpful because you're just like so sore, You're in a lot of pain, and just to like put on a nappy. I know it sounds odd, but it's just yeah, it's just comfortable. It's better because there's just a lot happening down there. And I personally found that like pads weren't cutting it so just using a disposable you know, postpartum underwear or nappy is necessary. You only need a couple for like, you know, the first three days and then you can

go to period undies or pads. But yeah, those first few days you definitely need a bit more. And then obviously when you go to hospital you need nappies, onesies, wraps for bubb A mistake that we made is I only had enough nappies for a couple of days and we were actually in the hospital for two nights, and so by the last day we needed more nappies f ivy, and we had to go down and buy some just

at the chemists in the hospital. But definitely recommend And that's also another thing is like makes you bring stuff and clothes just in case you are there a couple more nights. Something in hospital that was very handy. Two is using the Hauker hand Express breast pump And it's just like this silicon thing that you put on your boob. It can express, but also it just catches the let down, which is very helpful, especially if you're trying to express

colosserum or if baby bump doesn't latch it first. You know, just to make sure they've got something that was super helpful for us. And then obviously you need stuff like a car seat, very obvious. That's kind of all I can think about. And then yeah, for me, it was just comfy clothes, slippers, you know, hair ties, water bottle,

that sort of just general stuff. In the first six weeks, so some think Ivy lived in was a Docker Talk, so one of those like baby bed things, I think they're called like sleeping lounges, and so we just had the brand Docker Talk and Ivy slept in between me and Tim in our bed in the Docker Talk for probably the first week, and then we took the Docker Talk out into her cot next to us and she slept in that, and then to transition her into her

cot in her own room, we also used the Docker Talk. Now, I do want to say, makes you do your own research. I know they are sleeping guidelines and they do not recommend baby to sleep in the Docker Talk. Obviously there's the SID guidelines where it's you know, baby on the flat surface, nothing around them. Just personally, we found Ivy really needed the you know, if you think about it, they've been in this like womb for nine months and then they're like out on their own. And she really

was comforted in the docker talk. So when she was very new, for the first couple of weeks, we did use it. But otherwise, like you know, if she's now just sleeps in her cot without it, but we do use it, you know, downstairs or whatnot when they're just with you, but they need to be laying somewhere, So that was really handy. Then oh my god, guys, a

must is the Hacker Lady Bug milk collectors. So when you're breastfeeding, what I didn't realize, so Ivy will be on one side and the other side has a letdown, And my letdown was hectic, Like I'm talking about seventy mills. So if I didn't have a Lady Bug collector on there, it would just be all over me. So every breastfeed, before I put her on one side, I would have the collector on and then put her on and I

would yeah, let down about like sixty mills. And then I would also keep that for the bottle that she had that she took with Tim. And with that though just an FYI don't just feed them that sixty mills. It has to be mixed with other expressed milk that is just not the fore milk, because the foreur milk is very sugary and has a lot of lactose. And then the hind milk, which is milk that comes after like ten minutes, has a lot more nutrients and is

a lot more dense and heavier for their stomach. So we found if we fed Ivy that for milk with that sixty milk from the Lady Blood Lady Bug Collector, she would be super gassy. So we would have to mix that with other express milk that has been expressed the whole time, not just the fore milk. I hope that makes sense. Okay, rn C fam. We're taking a quick break and I want to ask you, guys, are you getting your daily recommended intake of three fruits and

five veggies? No? Sometimes maybe I feel you on this. Wow. So, in a perfect world, we are getting all our vitamin minerals and needs from our food directly. But because we live such hectic lives and our soil is often lacking from so much farming done, that doesn't always happen that and that's why supplements are so popular, and that's why naked Harvest was born just to be very transparent with you.

So what we really wanted to do was make sure you're getting what you need in a convenient way when you're not getting your daily recommended intake of veggies. In so introducing our newest product, Gorgeous Greens, which is a

greenspowder that actually tastes delicious. So we have been for me relating this for quite a while because honestly, it was so hard to have a greens powder that has all the good stuff and that tastes delicious, Like I honestly get why so many other greens powders just taste so foul. And honestly, any other greens powder I bought it, I've just never finished and I just throw it away. So there are two flavors that is very vanilla and

mango magic. I recommend getting very vanilla if you just want to add it to your smoothies, but if you do want to have it by itself, Mango magic is so delicious and so flavorsome. Also, guys, the greens plowder is gluten free, dairy free, vegan, refined, sugar free, and

family friendly. So one scoop equals one serfs of veggies, so you're really getting veggies in at breakfast time if you're a smoothie lover like me, And it just makes it easier to get all the veggies in and to really making sure you're getting the vitamins and minerals you need daily. So I absolutely know that if you try this product, you will love it. That's how confident I am with this Greens powder because ah, we have just

we aiste, we've aced the flavor. So guys, if you need to get some veggies in your day in a more convenient way, try Gorgeous Greens today. So I do have a sneaky code for my Rising Conker Family which is just Rise and Conquer podcasts. You can just put that at checkout at Naked Half Supplements dot com and the Gorgeous Greens is under the wellness tab. Okay, enough about Gorgeous Greens. Let's get back into the show. Oh

big thing we used is a nursing pillow. So we just got one from Adairs and it's just super handy, especially when they're so tiny and you're so tired. Just having a pillow that they can lay on as you're breastfeeding, super helpful nursing bras, you need a lot of them, like I reckon at least four because you kind of go through them and you leak a lot. So I personally got mine from bras and things from Moody Body. Definitely recommend the Moody Body. It's like leakproof, it's really good.

And then also the Lorna Jane maternity sport bras were really good. When I started to go on my walks and then breastpeed her straight after, I was super handy not have to change bras. Period undies you do bleed for the first six months, well not six months, six weeks, so I already was using Moody Bodies period undies when I got my period before getting pregnant, so I had a few of them and I just bought a couple more.

But they're super handy. I personally am just not about the pad life and prefer period undies, but otherwise you would just use pads, so no pads and these I personally did the reusable ones, so they're kind of like a pad that you put in your bra that helps when you leak, and you leak so much at the start, oh my god. And then you wash them so instead of using disposable ones, which you just throw out obviously not that great for environment, I just had probably about

twenty reusable ones. Like, oh my god, you go through them and yeah, I would just like swap them in and out and then do a big wash on them. That was really good. Oh, absolute life saver. I am a routine person. I love you know, this sort of thing.

It may not be up your alley, but the Huckleberry app is so helpful, especially at the tie at the start, sorry, when you are so tired and so sleep deprived, Like for example, if Ivy was unsettled, I would just look at the app and it tells you the last time, like you obviously need to log it, but you just log anytime they sleep feed or you know, we or pooh, And it's really helpful because if she's you know, crying and unsettled, I would look at the app and it

tells me, oh, she probably needs to feed, or I haven't changed an app in a couple of hours. I'll do that, and it's just really helpful because the first couple of weeks is wild, so wild, and you're you're very sleep deprived, and you often there's a lot of brain fog, and it's really hard to you know, stay on top of it. And then I remember, I'd be like,

why is she so upset? And then I look at my app and be like, oh my god, she needs to feed or she needs to be changed, and I do that and then she'd be okay, and I was like, oh my And even what's really helpful is when you're breastfeeding, you click what side you last did and then you start with the other side. So that was really helpful too. Ivy is a super gassy and burpie babe. She's a bit collar ky, so she's got tummy issues. The pork owl and we found very helpful is the cloth nappies

from Kmart. So it's it's like the cloth nappis that back in the day they used to use as nappies, but it's just a cloth. But we just found they were really good, a really good size, and when we're burping her or even just holding her, we just have that on us because she often vomits. So that was just, you know, random but helpful baby carriers. I really like the baby Dink, which is like kind of you know,

the wrap situation, but it's already done. It's like you put it on like a T shirt and you just pop them in the wrap and they're really close to you when they're a newborn. That is really great because they're so small they don't really fit in like the proper walking carriers. But if you want like a proper walking carrier, I just got the baby born and a little cheetah one you've probably seen me in and that's really good. And that's a newborn size which they're in

until they're I think it's up to twelve months. Any baby carriers that are like the walking ones but just normal size, you generally will find newborns are too small for them. So I wouldn't even bother getting one until you know Babi's here. But if you are wanting a carrier for when they're a newborn, definitely invest in like a rap sort of situation. And for me it was having the baby dan Que it's already done, was just

so much more helpful. And then obviously you just need like a prem We have an Edwardson Co pram, which is our New Zealand brand, was really good, and we also have a I think it's called a Stokey pram and that was gifted to us. That looks really good. We actually haven't used it yet just because we're using the Edwards one, but we plan to have one in my car and one in Tim's car, and that looks

like a really good pram too. The baby born bouncer is really good to have Ivy in, just like to put her in if you know Tim's not home and or if I, you know, want to shower or go and do something to put her in that upright again, because she's a vomity baby, and if you put her down, like laying down, she often just vomits over herself, so I have to have her raised up and so putting in that while I have a shower or do some cleaning,

she's pretty happy in that. And then my best friend who has a baby girl who's about eighteen months, says they're really good when they can get a bit older because they literally just bounce themselves and they love it. And then obviously, just like nappies and Whites, I personally have chose like an eco conscious brand. So the brand is just called love Me. I'm trying to think of this other brand. There's a couple of eco brands which are quite good we've just been using them, and then

obviously you just need like onesies. A big thing I'll say with clothes is do not buy too many. First of all, you'll probably get quite a few, like newborn sizes from like your baby shower or gifts, and then like, do not buy because you just you don't know if you'll have a big baby. And I had so many newborn clothes and Ivy literally grew out of them in the first four weeks. I swear to didim get to

wear half of them? And it's just so sad, and I wish that I had waited, not had many clothes, and then had her, you know, realize that she's a bigger baby, and I would have gone straight to the zero to three or even the three to six months. So she's in the zero to three now, but she'll easily be out of these in a couple of weeks when she's three months. But she's definitely not a small baby.

And yeah, so that's just something I want to say, is like, don't go overboard with the whole clothes thing, because I kind of did, and it was a bit of waste of money. And I will know this for next time. I feel like everyone says that, but you know, you get so excited when you're pregnant. And then lastly, we are using the Doctor Brown's bottles, which are good for colic and burpiness. But I have recently been recommended by my lactation consultant to try the Pigeon bottles, which

are recommended by like nurses and doctors. So yeah, look, I'm probably going to change to them, so maybe go straight to them. But the Doctor Brown's bottles have been good. We got told to stay away from the usual body bottles like Medella or you know Timmy, Timmy Triumpet or that brand, the Timmy brand, just because they're not really good. They give baby quite a bit of air. If you have a baby who's not unsettled like Ivy, it wouldn't matter too much. But you know, all newborns can be

a little bit unsettled. So yeah, that's kind of just like a bit of a breakdown. I thought it might be helpful because again, I remember when I was pregnant and wanting to buy things or even us you know a bit of a list for my baby shower. I just really didn't know, So I hope that's helpful. Obviously very personal to me and Ivy in our situation, but yeah, I hope that's helpful. Oh. Another thing is we got

a little bath seat thing. I can't remember the brand. Hey, I can't remember, but it's just like this pink bath seat and it is your seat in my stories. It is so helpful to bath her and she loves it

and it's like really soft and yeah. Oh and also when bathing her, we also bought this bath set from Kama which comes with like a padding that you put over the side of the bath and then also on the floor for your knees, and that is really helpful because you know, you sit down and you baff them in the bath and otherwise you get really sore hands and knees and it's very uncomfortable. So that has been

really good too. Bit I hope that's helpful. I realised this episode is not going to be for everyone, but I thought it would just be, you know, good to sum it up and chat about it in an episode and anyone who's listening, who's pregnant, who's having a bubba soon, good luck. It is such a special It's yeah, it's just such a special life advent life event. Wow, it is so challenging, but it is so beautiful and yeah,

you've got this. Wait one more recommendation. So a big thing that I did when I was pregnant is I did a lot of prep for the birth, which is good. Definitely prep for the birth. But something I didn't prep for was just the newborn stage and having you know,

a new baby. Cannot recommend to start researching and reading up on feeding and sleeping and newborns because that's something I didn't do and I really regret because then I had to do it in a rush when Ivy arrived because I just realized that I had no idea and knowledge is power. So definitely recommend get some baby books. Ask your friends and family what they recommend. But yeah, I hope this episode is helpful to any new mammas

or soon to be mammas. Sending you so much love and I will see I will chat to you in my next episode. Bye for now. Thank you for listening for another RNC episode. I really appreciate taking the time to be here with me, and also for taking the time for yourself. If you found this episode helpful, it would be so amazing if you shared it on your stories and tagged us, or simply just send it on to a girlfriend or family member who would benefit from listening.

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