If you were 5 months pregnant and several thousand miles from home...

[Umami]

...what lovely things would you like in a pregnancy care package? My best friend is overseas, and I'd like to send her some bits and pieces when another friend flies out to see her in a couple of months.

Where is she?

What about some mama mio smellies? Can she get lansinoh there? Some homeopathy stuff? Nice John Lewis or Mothercare babygros? A Taggie? I could go on and on (am in Bahrain and thinking of the things I would want and can't get here).

Depending on where she is, I would get her practical stuff that she might not get there.

When I had my DC I was in Germany and we could not get (random musings alert):

Microwave steriliser bags

Hooks to hang shopping bags onto the pram

Infacol

Johnsons baby shampoo and talc (I could use Penaten which is basically the same but I found that the Johnsons stuff smelt like my childhood. Somehow comforting.

Pretty bibs .- the ones in Germany were very functional. Shallow I know, but I liked Next's slightly posher ones.

John Lewis bodies and babygros were great and much better value than anything I could get in Germany.

Again depending on where she is, I am 29 weeks and a friend just send some amazing things from home. My favorite biscuits, a couple of local baby magazines, baby lotion/wash made locally that I have been trying to get here and was willing to spend a fortune on. She also bought some funky baby clothes in bright colours as I had been complaining about only being able to find pale pink/blue/cream baby clothes for the first few months.

When you next speak/e-mail ask if there is anything she is missing from home not necessarily baby related.

I'm only just across the channel and can't for the life of me find decent Cocoa Butter. So maybe some Palmer's Cocoa Butter?

She's in the States. I wonder if you can get Johnson's over there, or if you can, whether it smells the same? Hmmm. So far all she'll be getting is Cadbury's chocolate and marmite. I'd like to get her stuff that is just for her and not for the baby (for now), or that her husband can steal share. Trying to remember what I would have liked as a treat in the later months of pregnancy, but it's all a blur!

I'd get her muslin clothes, nappy bags (LOTS), lemme think of some other stuff.

You can definitely get Johnson's there and IME it smells the same.

teabags
chocolate digestives

are you allowed to send Marmite to the US? I have a fuzzy memory about it being banned or something because it has folic acid, but isn't on the US/FDA agreed list of agreed fortified foods.

Hopefully someone will come on here to prove me wrong

second the Palmers cocoa butter suggestion

You could post in the Living Overseas topic, and put US in the title. We have a fair few US MNetters who can tell you what they really miss.

Eek! I have smuggled Marmite into the US! Although I'm fairly certain I declared it to The Man and got waved through I didn't declare the mincemeat last Christmas, as I thought that might be too complicated a conversation!

Will definitely send some Palmer's, and will post in Living Overseas now. Thanks all for suggestions!

Wonder if you can take Gaviscon over? I remember desperately hunting for some over there when fairly pregnant, not being able to find anything similar and making do with some revolting cherry-flavoured chalky stuff that just didn't do the job.

Hi (I live in the States) - you're a great friend

You can bring Marmite here (and buy it in some shops in NYC) so you're not breaking any rules, I don't think. Recently I've asked friends to send me Malteasers, Dairy Milk (there's a trend here) the teabags I like, muslins (they have 'burp cloths' here but I can't get my hands on just muslins!) and some boots maternity pads, since they don't seem to have them anywhere and in fact recommend you wear incontinence pants! My Mum's coming out the week after the birth (July) and bringing me some cloth nappies I bought on ebay.co.uk, and I might ask her to bring me some bravissimo bras, too, since I do NOT like any of the mat. bras here, and I imagine the nursing ones will be just as grim.
I suppose it depends where in the US she is, cos I can get most things in NYC but that's cos there are a lot of expats here (so I sometimes find a flake and scoff it before I'm out of the shop!). Hope some of this ramble helps!

I am 5,000 miles away and pregnant. I can tell you that what she really wants is you to visit. If you can find any way of flying over, do.

Failing that, the things I miss are: proper chocolate; proper tea (PG Tips) decaf is better than North American normal!; Timotea blonde; a decent sense of humour; chocolate Hobnobs. Marmite is available in Canada.

Depends a bit where your friend is. If she's in a big city, finding British stuff is fairly easy. I can buy Marmite and traditional things like digestive biscuits in several shops in California but it's expensive. World Market has lots of imported UK stuff and I tend to do a shop for custard, marmite, tea etc. every month or so from an online shop. I miss more niche or branded things like Thorntons choccies though (and Heat magazine for a trashy treat!)

When I had my baby here, I really missed Mamas and Papas. Ended up buying the M&P baby gym I wanted from a very posh European online boutique, but that's probably outside budget for a care package. Maybe a little toy or outfit or something though?

You can get palmer's cocoa butter in the states.