Pregnancy Favorites

Below are a few items that I loved to use not only during my pregnancy, but also during my postpartum recovery.


1. Edy's Fruit Bars: These frozen gems are perfect during a summer pregnancy.  I went through box every few days! Plus they are pretty healthy, or so I am assuming.




2. Be Band: This was a life saver during the second trimester.  Between weeks 20 and 30 all of my pants fit in the butt and thigh area.  I just couldn't get them to button.  The maternity band was great because it held my pants up and together, but was disguised as a tank top. Genius.


3. I chose this body pillow over the huge modern pregnancy pillows.  It worked just as great and we still sleep with it in our bed. It was a big help towards the end when I need something firm to hold my stomach up when I was laying on my side.



4. These j.crew leggings are amazing.  They aren't maternity, but I was able to wear them throughout my whole pregnancy.  They are thick enough that they could almost pass as pants, but still light enough to use for a workout or a night out.  I absolutely love them.



5.  Victoria Secret's PINK pocket t's are super soft and comfy.  For whatever reason these are sized huge.  I was able to get XS/S and fit into them nicely even at the end of my pregnancy.  I also lived in these while I was recovering at the hospital and once we got home. Definitely worth the splurge.

6. Palmer's Coco Butter: I have heard mixed opinions on stretch marks.  Some people say that you will get them no matter what you try.  Others say if you take the proper precautions they can be prevented.  I decided to be safe rather than sorry.  I used Palmer's 3x a day. (Yep, I was one slick mo-fo.) I made it through 42 weeks pregnant without a single stretch mark! You can find it at your local drug store, Target, or Wal-mart. Don't forget to apply to your groin, lower abdomen, thighs, and boobs.  Pregnancy doesn't just affect your tummy. I am still using this once a day since delivering.  Still no marks!




7. This next item was by far my absolute favorite post-partum piece.  I read a ton of info on post pregnancy weigh loss and I found that a lot of successful stories include some sort of compression wrap. I did some more digging and found out that the Belly Bandit was a reasonably priced wrap with pretty good reviews.  Obviously it is NOT going to give you six pack in a week.  However, it does give excellent support and keeps your abdominal and lower back muscles locked and loaded throughout the day.

I started wearing mine the day after I gave birth.  For the first week I wore it all day every day.  By week two I was wearing it 6 to 8 hours a day.  By the end of my second week postpartum I was back down to my pre-pregnancy weight of 119. I do attribute most of that to breastfeeding, but the band helped keep everything firm and supported.  No sagging skin here! I am still wearing it a few hours a day at almost a month out. 

8. Medela Pump in Style: I was fortunate enough to get this pump and all of the accessories through my insurance for free. I don't really have anything to compare it to, but it has worked great for us and gets the job done.  More on my breastfeeding journey as an exclusive pumper in a later post.






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