mum2be useful information and tips

During my pregnancy about 2 years ago even though there were many useful information out there, they appeared to be all over the place so this was the motivation for putting together a quick summary of useful information, tips and apps on pregnancy that particularly helped me during this important, exciting and sometimes daunting period hopefully this post would be useful to another mum-to-be.

Pregnancy Apps

Below are highly recommended and FREE pregnancy apps on iphone and Andriod most of which were useful for various purposes during MY OWN pregnancy:

Pregnancy sprout

This physician-recommended app displays essential newborn advice, checklists and journaling options, and stunning images. Personalize your pregnancy timeline with a due date countdown and customizable info on your baby’s kicks! You can also post content to Facebook for excited family members and friends to see. Pregnancy Sprout also gives you fresh daily content from Parents magazine.

Baby Names

According to The Washington Post, the most popular baby names for 2013 were Noah and Sophia. If you’re still searching for names, you might want to study the 30,000 names in the Baby Names app. This app will give you name origin, annual popularity (who knew that 20,000 Ethans were born in 2008?), pronunciation, and more. There are even sharing features so you can poll your friends via email and Facebook. The name generator concocts the names that go best with parent names.

My Pregnancy Center

Wondering where your kids are and what they’re doing doesn’t start when they become teenagers. It begins in the womb. With the My Pregnancy Today app, all of your pregnancy questions are answered by other moms in the Birth Club and through videos and nutrition guides. You can also get a better understanding of your pregnancy by using the calendar function and tracking your baby’s movements. Use the growth widget to help visualize where your child is in development. This is a very helpful tool for the mindful mother.

Gerber Pregnancy Calendar

When you’re pregnant, your body is changing in new and unexpected ways. Keep up with what’s going on with the Gerber Pregnancy Calendar. You can track doctor appointments, upload ultrasound images, and record audio of your baby’s heartbeat. It will even help you satisfy those strange cravings. Do you want something tangy today? Maybe something creamy? Or crunchy? Gerber will recommend the most fitting and healthy snack with their Snack Finder. This app makes it easy to count down the days until baby’s arrival.

My due date club

The Due Date Club App connects mums-to-be with similar due dates, so they can give their babies the best start in life.Being pregnant can be a joyful and exciting experience that mums-to-be want to share with each other. The Due Date Club app provides a platform for you to make your own community and share advice, questions and go on this journey together.

You can find and chat to other mums-to-be nearby with similar interests and even see, plan and share local events where you can get together.

Mum to be essentials

New born Baby Essentials
This list is not exhaustive and would vary depending on personal preferences and budget. One useful tip from my experience is as a first option Amazon is the place to get the most reasonably priced and good quality  baby items usually with free delivery if you have Amazon prime. I purchased my Moses basket, baby bath, towel,cellular blankets etc from Amazon.

1. Moses basket with fitted sheets and stand- used this for first 5 months although some babies outgrow much quicker in which case crib is preferred
2.  Baby crib if preferred
3. Room thermometer
4. Baby bath- bought two but the most practical one is the tippitoes as it literally frees your hand and makes the experience very easy and secure for the baby as well
5. Changing mat
6. Changing bag
7. Baby hat and Mitts
8. Baby pram and push chair
9. 4 newborn sleep suits
10.  4 newborn cotton body suits (newborn/0-3 months)
11. 4 newborn body vests (newborn/0-3 months)
12. Baby car seat- cybex aton  and car seat adaptor
13. Baby Towel
14. Nursery dresser
15. Cellular blankets
16. Feeding Bottles x 6- philipps Avent 
17. Baby coat and cardigan
18. Baby shawl
19. Fleece blanket for extra warmth
20. Socks x 6
21. Baby dummy/ Teeter
22. Bibs x 8
23. Pampers Newborn Nappies
24. Baby Wipes
25. Large Cotton wool pleats/pads
26. Muslin cloths x 10
27. Olive oil/Johnson baby oil
28. Baby lotion
29. Electric steriliser
30. baby bjorn carrier
31. sleep growbags
32. Carbon monoxide detector
33. Angelcare nappy bin/sacks- i purchased the angelcare
34. Playmat
35. Baby bouncer- got the baby to toddler 3-in-1 bouncer as it said the baby could use until 2 years my son is super active so he easily outgrew this within 9 months
36. Baby monitor
37. Bath thermometer – I didn’t use this as my elbow was sufficient to determine suitable heat level
38. Flask- i had 2 a small for short outings and a bigger one
39. Baby Nappy cream- Sudocream was very effective

For Mum

1.    breast pads
2. disposable hospital pants
3. Nipple cream
4. Nipple shield
5. nursing bras x 4
6. Rocking chair
7. Breast pump
8. Breastfeeding support pillow

From crawlers to 2 years

1.  Stairs Safety gate
2.  Cot bed, mattress and bumper set
3.  High chair
4.  potty

Useful information

1. NCT courses- prenatal and postnatal courses
2. Pregnancy yoga- check your local area for available classes you can also ask our midwife to provide this information
3. NHS Information Service for Parents- This is by far the most trusted place to get useful information on pregnancy and until baby is 18 months
4. Baby Show- these are very good events to attend as you get expert information and one-stop shop for most retailers with discounts on several items purchased from the fair. Preferably in your second trimester when you’re more likely to still be able to move around a bit easily if you’re like me and was too curious to find out the baby sex that would further help to inform your buying decisions.
5. I found that baby clothing were generally much cheaper in the United States as compared to the United Kingdom or other European countries e.g Sweden and France hence I did majority of my baby cloth shopping in the US considering they would outgrow them very quickly
6. Download the mothercare app to receive £10 off when you spend £50 or more using the app.
7. Mum-to-Be Bounty Pack- One of the free packs your receive from Bounty in hospital or from your midwife after your fist scan containing product samples, money off coupons, helpful advice and useful information on pregnancy
8. NHS Maternity Exemption certificate- Pregnant women and those who have had a baby in the last 12 months get the certificate free and can be used to receive free NHS prescription, dental treatment during the validity period. Ask your midwife to provide the required forms.