Hydration during labor is apparently key. After reading many articles covering the subject and it's importance, I decided not to be caught off guard concerning my hydration levels. They say that labor is pretty much like running a marathon in many ways. First you have to be physically prepared, you have to train your mind and also make sure you have sufficient energy and hydration.Because of this I thought of getting a few electrolyte drinks ready. Electrolytes are great because you don't have to drink as much as you would normally for the same amount of hydration. Most blog posts I found on women keeping hydrated during labor was all about powerade and energade.

Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of high corn syrup and artificial flavor and colors in my drinks so I try to avoid those type of drinks in general. That is why I opted for a more natural approach. I decided to get natures very best source of electrolytes; Coconut water.

So far during the end of my pregnancy I struggled a bit with juices and coconut water as it gave me slight heartburn but I finally found a solution to this tiny problem. Just freeze it!

So I set about making my very own electrolyte cubes for labor and delivery with my favorite brand of coconut water at the moment and some cut up berries. The berries just give a tiny bit of flavor and a slight energy punch ( which I'm guessing would be helpful during the birthing process).  In some of them I also added a drop of lemon juice, but that, as well as the fruit, is totally optional.

What are your go-to hydration drinks and methods? Have you tried coconut water during labor? I will let you know how it went after the labor. Although, I can officially say that the cubes taste great, especially since it's summer and the weather has been a bit warm for my liking.

I'm in the final stretch! Actually wonder if I might not be in early labor as I'm sitting here writing this post (probably only wishful thinking but who knows?!) with some looming mid back pain that isn't exactly that bad but it's there, and it's messing with my concentration. I've been experiencing some Braxton Hicks the last few weeks already so any contraction could also only just be one of those. Agghh first time pregnancies are so confusing! I mean, I've done my research and know every possible sign of labor( you might say I'm obsessed) but still find myself wondering about every little thing. Earlier I had a light cramp and for sure went into a total new mom craze just to realize that I was only a bit gassy and the position I was in was not really, how would you say, gas friendly?

Enough about the weird TMI things. I decided to write this post about things I'm doing to prepare myself for labor so that after the birth I can come back to this post and give my honest opinions about it all.

Mental Preparation

There's a lot of fear around the unknown of what happens to our bodies during pregnancy and labor. The more fear that we have, the more we become anxious and the more stress hormones are released, thus making labor, in itself, more painful.For this reason I decided to educate myself as much as I can. I've been watching home birth videos, hospital birth videos and basically anything I could handle. I've done way more antenatal classes than I think is normal and the suggested videos on my YouTube has now become x rated. I'm now expecting a three day labor and the most intense pain ever. I feel that when expecting the worst and accepting it ( aka no fear) you can only be pleasantly surprised if labor is different than expected.

Physical preparation

 

Nutritional Preparation

 I've been drinking one cup of Raspberry Leaf tea every day since week 32 and ever since week 37 I've been drinking it at least 3 times per day. I buy the loose leaves and prefer to let it cool down before I drink it. Ive also added Motherwort herb to my raspberry leaf tea since week 38, but can I just give out a warning that motherwort is probably the most bitter tasting thing I've ever tasted.

Studies have also shown that dates makes your body produce the same hormones you produce when in labor or breastfeeding. It is apparently really good at preparing you for labor. So I've been eating about 6 dates per day since I read the study, which was at about 36 weeks. This is either with my soaked oats in the morning for breakfast, a date-o-raid snack or just munching on them during the day.

 

Spiritual Preparation

Our mind is a very powerful tool in pain management. Through specific mantras and sayings, we can decrease our pain. Here is my favorite 3 labor mantras.


I would love to know what you have done or are doing to prepare for labor.

xx

I've noticed it has become such a normal thing for women to only look at the negative side of pregnancy, and I'd like to be a change to that. Yes, pregnancy can be quite bad at times but come on. Look at the positive. Besides, how amazing is it that you are growing an actual human?!

So here are my top 10 favorite things about being pregnant:

"I'm just not feeling up to it' is a valid excuse to get out of just about anything. 

Getting out of any social situation has never been easier. I mean, No one can seriously expect you to go to that one weird friend's stand up comedy night...You are GROWING a BABY and all.

People are friendlier.

I can honestly say that going to the Traffic Department has never been this tolerable. People want to help you faster just because you have a bump. And who knew that the lady at the information desk could even smile?

People offer to carry things for you.

This is one of my favorite things. Although I honestly have not made complete use of this, it still feels good when people offer.

You have a reason to 'cry for no reason'

As a very emotional person, this is awesome! I am one of those that would generally just cry because I'm a little tired and maybe even because I was slightly overwhelmed. BUT these days I have an excuse. "Its the pregnancy hormones!"

People want you to sit down.

Although this could be slightly annoying at times, especially when you get into contact with one of those older people who believe that being upright is so incredibly bad for the health of you and your baby. But finding a seat in a crowded place has never been easier.

You don't have to suck it in.

Stretchy pants.  That is simply all I have to say about it.

You are expected to eat a lot.

 My portion sizes are bigger than my husband's and guess what... no one is looking at me weirdly! WIN! It makes the orders that the main character in Two Weeks Notice places seem absolutely normal!

People smile at you.

 This pretty much goes hand in hand with people being friendlier, but I decided to give it a point on it's own for the following reason. Whenever we are in public people would always stare at the bump. It's like they have a natural instinct to 'spot the pregnant lady' and hopefully protect her in the face of danger? But back to my point, when those people realize you have seen them staring they quickly flash a smile and look away. Non of that awkward looking away frantically and hoping I didn't see them.
 

You can blame forgetfulness on the pregnancy.

 Although this is a great excuse I have to admit that most of the time I do forget things because of 'pregnancy brain'. The struggle is real. I ended up looking for my phone in the fridge the other day because i had forgotten what I was looking for... scary thing is that I actually found it there and then proceeded to search for whatever I was searching for until my Hubs came to the rescue and told me of my absolute fail. 

You can have some fun with strangers.

This should be done at least once during your pregnancy! When some stranger asks you how far along you are, just reply with absolute astonishment and then tell them you are not pregnant. Enjoy them trying to gather their words but don't forget to put them out of their misery before it gets too uncomfortable.



So what are your favorite things about being pregnant?

xx

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 On Sunday, 4 Sept 2016, was the baby shower for our little one on the way. My mom and dad had held it at their house in Robertson. The weather was absolutely wonderful and the day was very successful.

My sister had been home from Uni the week prior and had pretty much gotten everything ready with my mom. They made bunting that looked absolutely stunning, some cards that people could pin to their clothes to say whether they thought we were expecting a boy or a girl and made the most delicious looking spread I've seen in forever.  There was cake, tarts, cupcakes, quiche and they held a braai outside where the men could chill while the women did the "girly things".

They had arranged some fun games starting with making me change the diaper on a newborn baby doll, you know those that came out years ago and could eat and poop and everything.Please note that I had to be blindfolded through the entire process. I'm guessing that was to prep me for changing diapers in the dead of night??  They had also gotten some string and everyone had to cut of a piece that they thought would perfectly fit around my belly. Adele, my sister in law, had won that challenge hands down while Carli had cut the longest piece ever. Her excuse was that she was rushed....

I should probably also mention that baby doll had to go sit with the dad to be after I changed the diaper. He tried to give it some bottle....beer bottle that is. I see great things in our future.

Ive included some random pics of the day down below if you are interested.































I just want to end off by thanking everyone that was there that day. It meant a lot to me to see your faces there, and the gifts are all absolutely gorgeous.

xx