What to give a 16 week pregnant first time mum?

[alicet]

Hi there, I'd appreciate your collective wisdom!

My sister is 16 weeks pregnant and I'm looking to make her a gift bag of all the little things that make life more bearable while pregnant, in labour and in the first weeks with a new baby. So far the contents are:

Infacol
Lasinoh
muslins
washable breast pads
what to expect when breastfeeding and what if you can't - Claire Byams-Cook (book)
The happiest kid on the block dvd (how to settle your baby with 5 s's)
tens machine
bio oil to stop stretch marks
belly belt for those fat / pregnant early days
Ina May childbirth book
What to expect the first year book.

These are things that me and my friends have found invaluable. Any other suggestions? She lives in New Zealand so can't give her anything too heavy or big...

maybe a new nightie for hospital?

an outfit to bring baby home in?

Oooo - My friend bought me a fabby,funny book called, "The Best Friends' Guide to Pregnancy" by Vikki Iovine.

I hope this doesn't sound too much of a downer, but I hated getting baby stuff while I was pregnant, until I'd passed about 30 weeks and felt "safe". I felt really superstitious about it and wouldn't have so much as a nappy in the house and it really upset me when people gave me babygros and toys.

Maybe you should sound your sister (or her DH/P if it's meant to be a surprise) out about it before you send...?

Sorry, this isn't to knock your idea which is really sweet and lovely.

However assuming she's up for it, my tip would be those things with a button and a loop for extending your trousers, saved me a bundle on maternity clothes, and one of those little towels with hoods on for bathing newborns.

id' leave out the claire byam- cook book, IMHO it is crapola, and get her the la leche book, the womanly art of breastfeeding or the sheila kitzinger breastfeeding book.

tens machine.. expensive to buy if she doens;t want one, why not give her a leaflet about them, then arrange it later on if she wants tens...

include :

arnica pillules - excellent for
bruising and soreness after delivery

tea tree oil

massage oil for use in labour and before and after, in fact , any time ! one that is safe for pregnancy

a sling

Just wanted to say what a lovely sister you are

My Mum gave me a massage kit for me and baby which was nice

A natal hypnotherapy cd or similar. I used one before DDs birth and although I fell asleep every time listening to it (ultra relaxing!) the techniques came back to me in labour and I simply breathed through the pain. Fantastic!

A sling would be a good one too. A ring sling or a stretchy wrap perhaps.

Agree about the Claire Byams-Cook book. Speaks a lot of nonsense on some things and IMO, even the title isn't exactly encouraging! The other two someone mentioned are supposed to be very good - heard a lot of good comments about the Bestfeeding one from friends that are BF counsellors.

Agree this is lovely and thoughtful, but I would have liked to get these things at the birth, not before. While pg, I liked pregnancy books - Belly Laughs by Jenny McCarthy really cheered me up - and one thing I loved was a pregnancy belly band that you wear over the bump which means you can keep wearing your normal tops. (They're small so easy to post.)

here is one
Mine was a lovely beige-ish colour though that went with everything, it was from Formes.

Belly bands are great. Great for keeping a tummy warm too and handy when breastfeeding as they hide your flabby sides!

'what to expect - the first year' is a fantastic book for first time mums - good choice .

What a lovely idea, what about some really nice bubble bath for some relaxation time (but check no aromatherapy oils because some you cant use when preg or bf

i wish i had had these earlier...

slumber bear (cuddly bear plays white noise / womb sounds, really calmed DD and sent us back to sleep too)

Book called "Stand and Deliver" - by Emma Mahoney the only book I could bring myself to read before birth and it made me feel so positive about it all

Lansinoh slim breast pads

Feme cooling pads (for stitches and piles!)

someone to tell me tips like the two-hour rule and that babies cluster feed in the evening so all the crying may not just be colic! (sounds like you can be that person)

terry towelling bath support (simple and great if DH not around to help with bathtime)

babysitting voucher from you!

small plastic syringes - if she has probs bf then can hand express and feed colostrum also useful for calpol later

and a nice thing for baby...
Burt's Bees Apricot baby oil (you could eat baby after using this they smell so gorgeous!)

I agree with theyoungvisiter, I am 16weeks rpegnant and if anyone bought me something that wasnt for me right now I'd be pretty pissed off!
I want to feel like a woman again, not like I'm already forgotton of as one of those!
So for this stage, things like bath bombs, chocolate, nailvarnish, face masks, an eye mask for sleeping (if she manages to sleep during the day at all, cos I find I get better sleep early morning than night time, only the light annoys me)
Leave the stuff for labour/early days, til closer to the last trimester.

You can get cheap belly bands in topshop here

What a lovely thought. I'd be tempted though to give presents now "for the pregnancy" and presents later "for the birth and the baby".

What about a gift subscription to a mother and baby magazine, like Prima Baby or whatever the New Zealand equivalent is?

Hi alice

anyone mentioned a hypnobirthing cd yet?

i'll send you mine if you want, it at least sent me to sleep when pg even though i didn't use it in labour!

disposable camera just in case her batteries choose to fail when she goes into labour(like mine did!)

dummies(just in case!)

baby mag subscription is good idea

maybe a voucher for somewhere, maybe not very original but still useful

Hi Alice - what a lovely sister you are! I know I went through a faze at around the halfway mark of being obsessed with pampering myself so maybe some nice lotions and potions to make her feel less grotty...

Someone also lent me a book called 'The Yummy Mummy Survival Guide' by Liz Fraser which I really enjoyed and have referred back to throughout the pregnancy.

Or (if you know her size) you could get her a really pretty support/nursing bra - if such a thing exists! I've lived in my 2 support bras brought in Mothercare in the early stages of the pregnancy and being rather large chested anyway, they've really helped with back pain etc but boy are they ugly! I can't wait to get back into something that makes me feel vaguely feminine!

Hope you had a nice time with Choc.

xx

My mum and dad wanted to bring out the champers when we found out I was pregnant but I obviously couldn't drink, so even though it was very early on, they bought me a huge basket of things. Included were:
The entire tommy tippee range
tommy tippee dummies
tiny booties
scratch mits
white baby vests and grows
newborn white bibs
bath time things like shampoo and bodywash for baby
a relaxation CD for my bath times
a couple of newborn pampers
an outfit for baby

and everything else you can think of! I hadn't wanted to buy so early but found myself to be over the moon!! It's a fantastic idea.

Good luck thinking up some more bits. I reckon a good relaxation CD is key.

My mum and dad wanted to bring out the champers when we found out I was pregnant but I obviously couldn't drink, so even though it was very early on, they bought me a huge basket of things. Included were:
The entire tommy tippee range
tommy tippee dummies
tiny booties
scratch mits
white baby vests and grows
newborn white bibs
bath time things like shampoo and bodywash for baby
a relaxation CD for my bath times
a couple of newborn pampers
an outfit for baby

and everything else you can think of! I hadn't wanted to buy so early but found myself to be over the moon!! It's a fantastic idea.

Good luck thinking up some more bits. I reckon a good relaxation CD is key.

maybe some kind of baby/pregnancy magazine subscription? i loved reading all about it. I had stretch mark cream which i used on my bump but someone also got me some sanctuary 'mum to be' cream which i used everywhere else, was really nice, you can get it in the baby section in boots.

Thanks loads ladies for your great ideas!

Personally I found the Claire Byams Cook book to be fantastic but will check the others too...

Take the point about it being a bit early and also about stuff for her - I know she will be fine about being early - she bought some bibs before her 12 week scan! Plus she is VERY excited and I think will like baby stuff now. Will certainly add some pamper stuff though and her Christmas pressie will be all about her.

The TENS machine is mine too that I don't need anymore so not expensive - plus she has a 2 hour trip to the hospital so sure it will be useful!

Thanks again x

Alice, do you want the hypnobirth cd? i can pop it in the post when i get chance, god knows when!

J20 that would be really kind if you're sure you don't need it anymore? I can CAT you my address.... Hope you're doing well - off to catch up on the Oct threads now after a busy weekend!

Some good ideas on here