I’ve finally sat down to write this post and Baby Brother (as we affectionately call him!) is now nearly three months old. I don’t think he even officially had a name yet when I wrote my last update. But the newest member of the Silver family has been registered as Noah Ethan, and he now has a passport and everything. We’re even gearing up for our first holiday as a four!
I really didn’t want to leave my pregnancy diaries incomplete by not including the third trimester. Of course with it being such a long time ago I’ve completely forgotten everything and I’m writing this with my diary by my side in order to remember! The first thing in the diary of note is the 4D scan, this is a really fun scan which isn’t a medical one like the others so we bought along Oscar to see his brother. Previous scans have taken place at The Portland and The Fetal Medical Centre but this time we chose Meet My Baby for the more fun experience plus it’s close to where we live. Though we couldn’t get a really clear picture of the baby we got a few decent images of his face plus we got a recording of his heart to put in a teddy bear for Oscar.
A trip to Babington House was the perfect family moon for us and we had a great time at one of my favourite hotels with my sister and her boys and my parents. Though the hotel isn’t perfectly geared up for children it’s still somewhere the whole family will enjoy and the boys loved being together. Unfortunately around this time my nausea was ramping up again but when I realised it was heartburn / acid reflux the doctor put me on omeprazole. This medication was honestly a god send and completely took away my nausea – no more downing bottles of Gaviscon!
Easter holidays meant lots of fun with Oscar though I kept it relatively low key as I was entering the thirty week mark of pregnancy but we enjoyed cinema trips, the Peter Rabbit adventure, soft play and outings with the family. I even managed to enjoy a final girls trip with one of my best friends to The Pig Near Bath! Just after the Easter holidays, I had my baby shower. I honestly wasn’t sure about having one as a baby shower for a second baby feels a bit self indulgent but I’m so glad I did it as it was amazing to see friends I hadn’t seen in a while and Biscuiteers was such as brilliant venue.
At the this point I started to get really bad back pain, an old foe that I remembered from my previous pregnancy but this time it was even worse. A scan showed baby was lying back to back and it was causing the most tremendous pain. As the pregnancy progressed it turned into the worst pain I’d experienced in my life and no amount of massages or trips to the osteopath could ease it by then it was no longer back pain but full body pain. By the end of pregnancy I was completely bed bound taking all the help with Oscar I could get. I had a very easy pregnancy at the beginning but by the end it was truly difficult.
Despite the awful pain I still fit in a few fun things before I couldn’t move anymore and we had a party for King Charles’ coronation, we had a maternity photo shoot (the results of which I’ve used for this blog post) as well as few fun lunches, parties and school events.
In terms of getting ready for the baby I attempted to be little conservative. I bought way too many clothes and random baby gadgets when we had Oscar so this time I wanted to stick to the bare minimum. Of course we still had a lot of things from when we had Oscar but we’d had to give away a fair bit too due to lack of storage in our flat. When we prepared for Oscar I was addicted to buying cute baby clothes but this time I attempted stick to a capsule wardrobe of some good quality sleep suits, vests, bodysuits, leggings and cardigans. I knew I wanted to breastfeed again so I collected baby stuff with that in mind. When I get the chance to put my write again I’ll write a post about my newborn essentials.
What I will cover in this post is my hospital bag as otherwise the post will be woefully short due to my poor memory! It’s interesting (and quite amusing) to look back at what I packed in my hospital bag with Oscar particularly as there was so much I didn’t use. Last time I thought I was clever by packing for during birth, post birth and then clothes etc for myself. I then had a separate bag for baby.
This time I was even more organised with the packing but I bought way less stuff and fit it all in one case. I used these baby hospital organiser pouches to manage my packing and though not every bag was relevant for what I wanted to take, I put my own stickers on some of them to reference what was in there. As I would be immobile in bed after my c section, the important thing was Mr S would be able to find the things I needed.
We had both boys at the Lindo Wing at St Mary’s Hospital and when I had Oscar I stayed in hospital 4 nights but as Noah was taken to NICU and I stayed in hospital with him, this time we there a week. Despite the longer hospital stay, I still took way less stuff with especially as it clicked in my head that Mr S could go home and get things or wash stuff. Also last time Mr S stayed with me the whole time, this time he went home to be with Oscar.
If you read my previous post, you can have a laugh about the fact I bought lavender scent and tea lights to create a calming atmosphere in the hospital room. I didn’t use them then so I didn’t bother to bring them this time. Here’s what i did bring.
For Me
To Wear
Comfortable Pyjamas
I wore pyjamas for first few days in hospital to be as comfortable as possible. I highly, highly recommend these bump-friendly and feed-friendly pyjamas from Mori. They were essential to me both in hospital and they’re the only pyjamas I wear postpartum too. They’re very soft and incredibly comfortable around the waist and over the c-section wound. They’re button up at the top for feeding but you don’t even need to unbutton, you can easily pull them down to feed. I also bought the Mori maternity dressing gown with me which was great for covering up a bit. I took three into hospital with me but due to milk spillage Mr S had to take them home to wash them so you may need more if that’s not an option.
Maternity bras
You’ll definitely need some decent maternity bras especially if you’re breastfeeding. I also wear maternity bras to sleep in so comfort is really important. I had these ones from Jojo Maman from when I breastfed Oscar and they were so comfortable I took several into hospital with me.
Big Pants
One of the number one recommendations for hospital bags is high waisted knickers that are kind on your postpartum tummy. I’ve got a big stash of them in a couple of sizes larger than my normal from M & S – trust me you’ll continue to wear them long after hospital! During my hospital stay with Oscar I actually wore disposable underwear for most of the time and only really switching to proper pants when I left but as I was in hospital longer this time, the big pants made me feel more human (!) so I wore those towards the end.
Going Home Outfit
You’ll obviously need an outfit to go home in whether that’s a pretty dress for pictures at the hospital or super comfy lounge wear. I ended up wearing proper clothes towards the end of my hospital stay as wearing pyjamas made me feel like an ill person whereas getting ready in proper clothes made me feel half decent.
Slippers / Comfy Socks
A must really as I don’t like the idea of bare feet on the hospital floor even though it’s very clean!
For Breastfeeding
I bought this hospital bag breast feeding essentials kit from Lansinoh. The kit includes disposable breast pads which were an essential both with Oscar and Noah as my breasts leaked quite a bit. I also love the heat up therapy pads as my breasts were a bit lumpy at the beginning and these pads really help to ease an engorgement. It also includes:
Lanolin nipple cream which I didn’t need. Looking at my previous post I used loads of this the first time round but I didn’t use it at all this time.
Milk storage bags – I did store milk but used containers provided by the hospital.
A breast milk collector – like a Haakaa this pump works by suction and can be used to collect the let down from your other breast while feeding. Personally I’ve never got on with these but other people swear by them.
Lip balm – this a nice lanolin lip balm which I did use but obviously any lip balm will do.
Last time I brought nipple shields but I never used those. Some people might consider bringing a proper breast pump (I’m a fan of the Elvie!) and I didn’t bring one with me and while I did need to pump milk for Noah, the hospital provided the necessary equipment.
Lansinoh do a more extensive pack for after labour but as I knew I was having a c-section I didn’t bring anything for post birth discomfort.
One thing that was indispensable to me was my Bbhugme pregnancy pillow. I was in such pain at the end of my pregnancy but this pillow helped me sleep on my side more comfortably. It also helped me to find comfortable sleep positions after my c section and I also use the pillow to feed Noah more comfortably.
Sanitary Wear
Our hospital provide disposable pants and sanitary towels which I used most of the time. I did bring along a pack of sanitary towels with me just incase but didn’t bother with the disposable underwear as the hospital’s was very comfy.
Toiletries etc
I bought my usual toothbrush and toothpaste plus cleansers etc. Our hospital provide Elemis shower gel, shampoo and conditioner so I didn’t bring my own and just used what was provided. As well as other essentials such as hairbrush and hairbands, contact lenses, glasses. I am one of those people who brought make up to the hospital – I wanted to look nice in photos with the new baby and for guests when they came. I don’t regret bringing makeup and I certainly used it! I also brought my hair dryer and straightening irons which I also used. During my pregnancy I religiously used Mama Mio stretch mark oil but I didn’t bring that with me as I knew I wouldn’t want to touch my stomach or let oil near scar. I bought it last time but left it at home this time.
Technology
Camera and charger were a must and of course phone and chargers. During my stay with Oscar I was advised to bring a laptop stocked with downloads or for Netflix but I didn’t use it at all last time so didn’t even bring it this time. I watched the TV in my room a bit but mostly read my book during any down time. I was actually on my own a lot as Noah was in NICU and Mr S was at home with Oscar. We didn’t have lots of visitors as there was no baby to meet.
For Noah
Clothes
Obviously clothes sizes depends entirely on the baby but as Noah was looking to be a similar size to Oscar and was born at around the gestation I knew what I needed. Oscar was actually in tiny baby size and I knew Noah would be too. It’s not that easy to get hold of tiny baby size but M & S and John Lewis both have it.
5 x sleep suits (tiny baby and newborn but only used the tiny baby).
5 x vests (tiny baby and Newborn but only used the tiny baby)
1 x cardigan
A special going home outfit… which he wee’d all over so we had to change him!
The clothes weren’t used at first as he was just in a nappy in NICU.
I bought a couple of pairs of socks and I bought 1 pair of scratch mitts but we didn’t use them last time. I prefer buying sleep suits with fold down sleeves to stop scratching.
Hats – I think we bought around three. You’re required to put one on after they’re born and we put one on him to take him home.
Other
Muslins – I bought three of these and they useful
Blankets – I bought one ordinary which we used and a special cashmere blanket to take him home in. We’d used the same one for Oscar.
Toys – I bought one little toy for his cot which was more for photos.
We didn’t bring nappies, wipes, cotton wool or formula as the hospital provides everything.
Car Seat
Mr S bought the car seat to the hospital on our leaving day to bring Noah home. We used the newborn seat which we had for Oscar which is a Cybex Cloud Z. It’s not recommended to use a second hand or old car seat but ours for Oscar has barely been used and as we know it’s history it was fine.
As it happened I had most of this bag packed but Mr S had to scrabble together to get the last things when Noah’s birth happened more spontaneously than expected. But I’ll tell you all about that in my next blog post!
