My Nappy Bag Essentials – slowly learning as I go

A few essentials…

I am certainly no expert but when a portion of my every day includes making sure the nappy bag is packed with all the essentials….. well, I could probably write a book!…. And so could most mums I know, so I thought today I’d share a few of what I consider MY super essentials…..

First things first… I have a fabulous Oi Oi Black Quilted Nappy Bag which I loooooove (similar here), it’s perfectly classic and non-feminine so Howard doesn’t mind slinging it over his shoulder! But with a very large baby bump, terrible balance and Evie not needing as much on our outings from the bag, I have recently purchased a simple, attractive Sportsgirl backpack (similar here)! BEST DECISION EVER! It is so so much easier having a backpack on when chasing a toddler around the shops, gives me two hands! Mine is also smaller in design so I can’t overfill it with a weeks worth of nappies… And thank God back packs are in at the moment!

My Essentials…

(Clockwise from Top Left) ** please not that this is NOT a sponsored post! Sharing my honest opinions on some great products…..

Cherub Rubs Skin Guard – Living in sub tropical weather it’s so essential to keep the mosquitos away from the little ‘uns but I always feel horrendous spraying anything overpowering or chemically laden on their skin…. especially when it’s a daily occurrence! This Certified Organic, all natural wonder is light, with no strong odours and does the job!!

Only Papaya Paw Paw Balm – Although Evie’s skin is a lot less sensitive these days, Paw Paw balm used to be one of the few things we could use on her little toosh for nappy rash…. We have many a tube stocked up ready for our next baby

Silicone Teething Necklace – I love this simple tube design for a teething necklace…. but honestly for the life of me cannot remember what brand it is! If anyone knows please shout it out!! Similar ones from Jellystones can be found in the link. I’m a big fan of necklaces, not so much when they’re destroyed by my mini me…. these are just the greatest, baby-proof invention!

Jeans West Lightweight Scarf – Trying to tackle breastfeeding in Queensland heat can be absolutely horrendous…. imagine drinking a milkshake in a sauna!! I now have a serious collection of large, lightweight ‘summer’ scarves that I use as breastfeeding covers when out and about! They look nice, aren’t bulky, they breeeeathe and are a bonus cover up for any spit ups or glamorous leaky boobs!

Moogoo Eczema & Psoriasis Cream – Queensland weather strikes again! Heat rash really smashed Evie this last summer and we really tried all sorts of creams but this bad boy honestly did the trick! Recommended by my fabulous Sister in Law who used this religiously for her 1 year old boy’s Eczema

Mint & Arrows Daisy Headband – You might think a kid’s headband shouldn’t be included in with Nappy Bag essentials but when you’re little girl’s hair is somewhere between Leo Sayer and North West, you stock up on headbands like tinned beans!! So instead of people worrying how my child looks like Kath from Kath&Kim (google it, it’s not a compliment), they comment on her gorgeous tamed locks peeking out from that saviour of a headband…. because, you know what, brushing knotted ringlets every day is just not on my game plan!

Natures Child Wonder Balm – We bought this brand originally to use as a Nappy Rash balm (which it did do a brilliant job at) but have since used it for other rashes, grazes, bites and stings. Organic and the brand also sell a brilliant Nipple Balm which I was totally happy using knowing that the ingredients would be getting passed onto my feeding baby.

I’m still learning and each different parenting stage brings a whole lot of new products and ‘essentials’ to navigate…. hope this helps someone out, it’s much nicer buying something from someone else’s honest feedback…. not because the cooing baby ad told you to.

xxx

Elise

Pregnancy brain ….. when even thinking of a blog post title is too much….

The fact that I’ve been sitting here staring blankly at the screen for about 10 whole minutes just about sums up this article….. my brain actually just shuts off… not distracted…. just a whole lot of _____________________________ and occasional blinking!

Pregnancy induced brain uselessness (official medical term that is), can hit at any time and manifests in a multiple of exciting ways…. such as frequently popping the kettle in the fridge (apparently an everyday occurrence for my beloved pregnant SIL Sarah), attempts at adult conversation just coming out as mumbled, fat-tongued gibberish usually only experienced after dental work, never arriving at the right place or time for anything scheduled and always ALWAYS stopping in a state of dumb confusion when entering a room thinking ‘what the hell did I come in here for again?’

This is me every.single.day! Please please please reassure me with some sort of ‘it happens to every one’, ‘it’ll pass as soon as that baby is out’, ‘it’s actually a sign of advanced intelligence’…. because right now I’m feeling like a pretty useless, mentally stumped, rapidly expanding whale who’s brain has decided to vacate for nine months.

So far my pregnancy brain (or momnesia as google just informed me) hasn’t caused any serious injury or death to anyone….. not as far as I can remember anyway. It just rattles me enough to not undertake anything too vital that it can’t handle being done 100% completely wrong, if at all….. which of course my husband loves…. I’m sooooo useful right now.

I’ve recently undertaken some wonderfully helpful (and simple) tricks to help me get through this pregnancy with hopefully, in the very least, remembering how to get to the hospital.

Lists, lists, lists!….

The surefire way to make a dent in the jumbled, mumbled mess of whirling emotions, reminders, tasks and distractions is to right it ALL down… I have a chronic, possibly diagnosable obsession with writing lists! I have a list currently open on my PC titled ‘Lists of Lists to Write’. No joke! I have to categorise the craziness happening in my mind before I can tackle any of it. Any time I feel overwhelmed (which let’s be honest, with added hormones these days is pretty damn often) one of the best ways for me to cool my lid is to write it all out…… I currently have my next three months whittled out in to twelve lists! It keeps me sane….. well…. marginally more sane

Buy a diary

And I mean an actual tangible one… made out of trees and everything. Buy one that you love, looks good, not so big that you’ll never have it with you and preferably shows the whole week across two pages. Sit down at some stage every week, scribble out anything scheduled, write out things you’d like to tackle that week (but keep it low pressure, because some weeks just surviving should earn you a medal) and if all this task gets you is actually learning what day today is…. then YAY!

Basic meals and emergency food

For me, things were certainly easier with my first pregnancy in terms of keeping fed. But the added responsibility of feeding an 18 month old is most days almost enough to undo me! I am perfectly happy (and this growing bump seems super keen as well) to live off constant vegemite toast and M&Ms….. but I don’t think I’m being overly health-conscious in striving for a bit more variety in my toddler’s diet over this 9 month stretch. And little Evie’s routine (which I love, love, love) doesn’t allow tooooo much room for me to totally blank out when it’s time for a meal. So two of my saviours have been to have a freezer stock of super easy, go-to meals, like veggie slice/savoury muffins; and to always have eggs on hand…. maybe random, but eggs have got to be the greatest meal-time creation ever! Many a last minute omelette, scrambled eggs or good ol’ hard boiled egg have been whipped up in this house. It’s a healthy no brainer, and I probably only overcook/destroy on average 30% of them 🙂 That’s good stats for ‘pregnancy brain’ cooking, don’t ask about my continued failed attempts at ‘simple, no-fail’ fritters.

But my biggest saviour has been actually allowing myself to be mentally rubbish for the time being… because every single brain cell has been re-assigned to focus entirely on growing this mini human inside  of me into the perfect combination of healthy, cute, polite and sassy! That’s backed by science right? I’m just careful about what I promise people and try to keep everyone’s expectations nice and low 🙂 The fact that I’ve kept this post relatively on track (please don’t ask how many weeks/hours it’s taken for me to write/stare blankly at it) has earned me at least some emoji high-fives?!!

So once again, be nice to yourself as your mind and body keeps throwing you curveballs ….. and have a good laugh!! … see the funny side to your pregnancy fog! I know a few of my nearest and dearest definitely get a giggle out of me….. I might as well join them!

What are your ‘pregnancy brain’ stories? Share them in the comments section for some collective laughs and to reassure me that I’m not alone!

xxx

Elise

Image – Modern Family