Prenatal Exercise Videos

I bought two exercise DVDs, and my mom bought me one more. Three seems to be a good number to rotate through, although I tend to use my favorite one most often! I chose these mainly based on reviews at www.amazon.com. These were the ones that got good ratings for being safe but still getting your heart rate up. My favorite comment was "Some of the programs don't have you move around enough to get a good workout - I'm just pregnant, not dying, after all!"

Denise Austin: Fit & Firm Pregnancy

I had never done a Denise Austin workout before, and at first she was way too chipper for me. But, I really like this workout, and it has become my favorite one to do. It has a 20-minute aerobic session. Denise is not pregnant, so I think she's supposed to represent a first trimester woman. There are four other ladies at 20, 25, 30 and 36 weeks, so you can watch the one who is closest to your stage.

Following the aerobic session, you can do a strength and toning exercise. There is one for the second trimester and one for the third trimester. Each is about 10 minutes in length, so doing the aerobic session and one of the strength training sessions is a good half-hour workout. Sometimes I just do the aerobic workout. There is also a post-natal workout that I haven't checked out yet.

It was made in 2006, so the music, outfits, and set are modern. The moves are pretty easy to learn, although Denise is so busy saying how pregnancy is a special time in your life that she often forgets to tell you what move is up next :)

Supplies needed: pillows, weights (optional)

Kathy Smith: Pregnancy Workout

This is an old-school workout (made in 1989!!), but it is laid out really well. There is an 11-minute warm-up/energize section that gets you moving and breathing. Then there are three 6-minute aerobic workout sessions followed by a series of 3-minute strength and toning exercises that focus on legs, arms, etc. I usually do the energizer session, two of the aerobic workouts, and the strength sessions. That makes for a good 35-minute workout.

I've done Kathy Smith workouts before, and I really like her style. In this one, she is about 24 weeks pregnant, and she has five more-pregnant ladies working with her. It doesn't have workouts tailored for each trimester, but I think this one is good for the second and third trimesters. There is a heart rate check between each aerobic workout so you can keep track of how hard you're working.

The biggest drawback is the dated look - all the women are wearing hot pink or turquoise leotards and leg warmers, and the music is definitely 1980s. And beware of the end of the second aerobic session - the ladies do a really bad pregnancy rap! I wouldn't recommend watching it, but you can find it at this link :)

Preggo Shuffle

Supplies needed: pillows, weights (optional)

Summer Sanders' Prenatal Workout

This workout focuses the most on strength and toning. There are some aerobic moves in between the strength exercises, but no devoted aerobic workout. There are three separate menus for the first, second, and third trimesters. Each menu contains a full-length workout and an express workout tailored for the specific trimester.

Summer is pregnant and is led by her non-pregnant sister-in-law, who is a fitness trainer. It's just the two of them in a living room-like set with some cute baby things in the background. They have fun together, and it's a really relaxed, laid back workout. It's modern (2009). I like that they have time devoted to drinking water, although I have to pause the DVD so as not to fall behind - I don't have a personal fitness trainer working with me who will bring me water on demand!

Supplies needed: pillows and a resistance band (like the one below, although I don't have a fancy one with handles)

Cloth Diapers

We've decided that we want to use cloth diapers for our baby. I've read a lot about them, and they seem to have a lot of advantages:

• Baby has less diaper rash
• Baby potty trains earlier
• No filling up of landfills
• No chemicals
• Less costly than disposable diapers

There are cons too:

• More laundry, more hot water use
• More chance of leaks (maybe)

The debate rages on over which method is more environmentally friendly. I'm convinced that cloth diapering is better for the environment, because I do not like the idea of my diapers from almost 30 years ago still decomposing in a landfill somewhere. I plan to line-dry the diapers when I can, so that will save on energy.

The cloth diapers that are available can be quite fancy. They're not just the white sheets of cloth that you fold up and secure with safety pins anymore. They have waterproof exteriors and liners you can insert depending on how much leak-protection you need. Most of them close with snaps or velcro.

I've decided on the Fuzzibunz brand. They have snap closures and adjustable waist and leg openings. I have yet to read a bad review on these diapers. They come in a bunch of neat colors. The only drawback is that there aren't any stores nearby that sell them. There are lots of online stores, though. Here's a link to the main Fuzzibunz site: www.fuzzibunz.com

They cost $18 per diaper. We plan to buy 24 in size small and 24 in size medium. That sounds like a lot of money, but I figure that we'd spend at least $18 per week on disposable diapers. That means we'll have recouped the diapers' cost in less than a year, whereas we'd have to keep buying disposables for at least two years. Plus, a lot of reviews I've read said that their Fuzzibunz lasted them for more than one child. So we might not have to spend any money on diapers for the next baby!

I'll give an update on how our cloth diapering adventure goes...

Food aversions and cravings

I was very lucky and didn't get physically sick during my first trimester. I did have nausea, and there were a few times I sat in the bathroom for a few minutes, just in case! But the nausea was usually only (a) in the morning, (b) if I was near certain foods, or (c) if I ate too much for dinner.

Those "certain foods" included turkey, other poultry (but not as bad as turkey), coffee, and broccoli. So strange, because those are usually foods I love - even broccoli! My sister-in-law couldn't tolerate lettuce :) For me, the turkey was a bit of a problem after hosting Thanksgiving - Devon had to eat all the leftovers. I couldn't even watch him eat them!

I couldn't get enough cheese. I'd have cheese and crackers, macaroni and cheese, cheese with fruit. That craving has gone away, and I'm back to my normal intake of cheese (which is still probably above-normal).

At one point I also craved nacho cheese Doritos and Friendly's Reeses peanut butter sundaes. I only craved these things until I ate each of them once - then I realized neither was as good as I remembered!

Now I don't crave anything specific... I'm just hungry all the time. I suspect the cravings might pick up again now that Rita's has opened for the season!

Maternity bras

My chest grew quite a bit (two cup sizes!) during the first trimester. Growth has leveled off since then, but I hear I'll get bigger once nursing begins.

Finding a comfortable bra has not been easy. I usually like the fit of Victoria's Secret bras, so I bought a bigger one. I find the underwire to be very uncomfortable, even though it never bothered me before. I think it's because as my belly gets bigger and rises up, the underwire hits the top of the belly.

I bought a sports bra at Target. This is definitely the most comfortable bra I have now, and is great for my prenatal exercise routines. But, it's not a very flattering shape for going out.

I tried on wireless bras at Victoria's Secret, but they didn't fit right. Not having that wire to shape things seemed to be a problem.

Some people have said they went right to nursing bras at this point. I tried on a few of those at Motherhood Maternity. They either provided not enough support, or way too much support for right now. Plus, I'll probably have to buy more of these later, when I know how big I'll get when I'm nursing.

I finally found a basic Vanity Fair bra at Macy's. It is wireless but still provides a good shape. I haven't worn it much yet, but I think it will be my favorite going-out-of-the-house bra :)

Maternity clothes

I figured that I'd rather spend money on baby things than on updating my wardrobe with a lot of maternity outfits, at least until the spring/summer when I was really big. That was before my belly started growing, though! Soon my sweaters didn't look right - they still fit over the belly but were much too short. So I decided at least a few wardrobe additions were necessary.

Motherhood Maternity "Secret Fit Belly" jeans

YYYYY 2 stars

The first thing I bought were two pairs of "Secret Fit Belly" maternity pants from Motherhood Maternity - one denim, one corduroy. I was excited about them because the spandex band goes all the way up and over my belly and is really comfortable. I started wearing them as soon as my jeans were uncomfortable to button (about 11 weeks). I usually fold the spandex over once, but I think I'll wear it all the way up when my belly is really large.

They're comfortable, but what I found is that they stretched, and now they don't stay up around my waist. I have to pull them up all the time. So, I only wear them when I go out of the house. The cords did better than the denim, and both pairs are fitting a little better as my belly gets bigger.

Motherhood Maternity "Tummy Sleeve" YYYYY 0 stars

I also tried a "belly band," which you're supposed to stretch over an un-zipped pair of jeans to keep them up. The band didn't flatten out the open top of my jeans, though, and you could see an outline of the flaps and button through my shirt. I didn't buy the band.

Liz Lange for Target dress YYYYY 5 stars

The next thing I bought a this simple black dress from Target (Liz Lange for Target). It ties in the back, which means I could adjust it for my small belly at the time (16 weeks), but it could still expand for bigger bellies. It also has pleated material that goes over the belly, so it will fit many stages of belly growth.

Maternity stores overall...

Motherhood Maternity YYYYY 2 stars

The clothes don't fit me very well. The prices are pretty good, though. I didn't like the pushy salesperson, who tried to get me to buy all sorts of belly balms and maternity underwear (which I don't think is a necessity). Once in a while, I check out what they have, though.

A Pea in the Pod YYYYY 3 stars

Very pricey. Finding things on sale is they only way I'd buy something there. But, the clothing is high quality and fits very well.

The Gap Maternity YYYYY 4 stars

Their shirts fit me well; I have two from them so far. The prices are typical for Gap (too high for the quality of the clothing), but buying things on sale is okay. Their website is really great because their review are very detailed. When a person reviews something, there are very specific questions like "Which trimester will this work for?"

Old Navy Maternity YYYYY 3 stars

You can't beat their prices, but their clothing is not great quality. They have some cute, lightweight sundresses that I have my eye on for summertime. Website: same comments as for gap.com. (I was even able to pick out a great bathing suit at the Old Navy website based on user reviews! See below...)

Target Maternity YYYYY 4 stars

They have a lot of options online for decent prices (the dress I bought was only $25). The selection in stores is not so great - at least not at the store near me. Plus the store doesn't have a well-defined maternity area... it sort of melds in with Juniors and Women's, so you have to look carefully at the tags to know if it's maternity.

Sears, J.C. Penny, Kohls Maternity

YYYYY 2 stars

Hit or miss at these department stores. Their small sizes are too big for my shoulders, so I haven't found much here. But, for basic things like long-sleeved t-shirts, these stores work.