Ways to make maternity leave nicer

[QueenOfWeeds]

I’m coming to the final few weeks of my time off with DC1 and I’ve been reflecting on what I would do the same/differently if we have another.

I know the usual batch cook/drink all the water/sleep when baby sleeps <hollow laugh>. But I was thinking about things for me, and to make me feel a bit more “normal”.

In the run up to my leave, I bought extras of my favourite make up and skin care so that when it ran out, I didn’t need to feel guilty about spending money I wasn’t earning on expensive things.

Next time, I would like to go out and do gentle postnatal exercise classes earlier. I was too frightened of how unfit I was and it took me 7 months to get to one - now I know what supportive places they can be, and I think I would have really benefitted from going earlier.

Anyone else?

I won't be going on Mat Leave ever again but I think it's lovely to make a list of things you'd like to do next time

@QueenOfWeeds With my second, because I knew how quickly time goes, I promised myself I would try to enjoy every minute. And I really really did! Knowing that each stage, both good and bad, has an endpoint helped to shift my perspective and made everything easier. The bad parts like sleep deprivation, post partum recovery, being nap trapped, painful breastfeeding, the loneliness you can feel, they all became easier to bear because I knew it wasn't forever. The good parts like newborn cuddles, the first smiles and laughs, the freedom of days with no structure apart from the one you set yourself, hanging out at the café or seeing a parent-and-baby cinema showing while baby napped, they became all the more precious for their fleetingness.

The trouble with second mat leaves is you’ve still got your first child!

Ahh yes. Forgot that little hiccup in the “peace and quiet” plan! 😂