Birthing Experience: 1st part of the upcoming series

You may have noticed P&P's last post was by my dear friend, Natalie (aka Zombie), who will be guest blogging with me. She is absolutely correct that with my pregnancy, I've become crazy about crafting. However, I must admit that I used to be a crazy crafter in my youth, even working at a quilting fabric store, a Michaels Store, and a Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts. And I'm not ashamed.

Or not that ashamed.


In addition to bringing you "How To" posts on fun crafts or reviews of children's toys/books/music, she and I will be starting a series on the birthing experience. I recently completed a prepared birth class, which gave me a lot of information, and I am eager to share the information from my prepared birth class with her actual experience. This series will lead up to my actual delivery.

The point of the series is to share and discuss how pregnancy and birth affects women differently. I would like to note that mothers of multiple births have told me that every pregnancy and birth is a different experience, so this exercise is not a comparison. There is no right way to handle pregnancy or delivery. We hope this is an interesting perspective on how vastly different this whole process can be! 

Following this week's class, I am now very excited to deliver and meet my baby in person. First, I don't think I do pregnancy well. While living in DC years ago, I remember seeing this beautiful woman in a short black dress and extreme high heels standing in front of me on the Metro escalator at the DuPont stop. She was with her husband and I could hear them talking about their date night plans. As she disembarked from the escalator, she turned, revealing this massive pregnant belly, which shocked me because no part of the rest of her looked pregnant. I thought and hoped I would be as sophisticated and stunning in my pregnancy.

Photo courtesy of stylishandtrendy.com

 My feet are so swollen I can't even dream of being in kitten heels. :(

Also, I whine a lot about my pregnancy. This baby needs to be born just to shut me up.

Second, there is a lot of unknown about the pain attached to labor and delivery. It's normal to be freaked out about pushing a bowling ball out of a vag. The class reinforced how difficult it is; however, the class reminded me that a baby will happen and there are many ways to manage the pain (even if you don't want to use medication). The instructor never let a moment pass without reminding expectant mothers that we have the deep instinctive energy and power to deliver a baby. It gave me a strong earth mother vibe.

She-Ra courtesy of One Hundred Days of Happy

Oh yeah. I'm going to be She-Ra in the delivery room! (Or not. Natalie has told me, "There are no heroes in the delivery room.") Granted, She-Ra is no earth mother but you get my drift. . .

Even if I'm not She-Ra, I will be stylish. I share the following with you.

Pretty Pushers (c) disposable delivery gown. 

Prettypushers.com has beautiful, easy-to-access gowns to modernize (or at least beautify) the delivery experience. The gowns retail for $28-22 and are disposable after use. You can purchase gowns directly from Pretty Pushers or via amazon.com. Styles include I dream of Mai Tais (the one I am getting), I dream of coffee, and I dream of sushi.

Sophie Gownie (c), by Baby Be Mine Maternity.

Baby Be Mine offers a hospital gown for that postpartum hospital recovery period. Continue to feel comfortable and beautiful while getting that much needed rest and check ups at the hospital. Easy back closures and a front flap that allows for quick breastfeeding access.  Retailing for $30-$50, you can order online from Baby Be Mine or Amazon.