My Top 9 Pregnancy “Must Haves”

Pregnancy is a journey.

It has up and downs, can leave you feeling a little lost and uncomfortable.

But luckily, someone decided to pioneer the pregnancy journey as a business opportunity—now we have aids to ease some of the aches and pains of growing a human (at a premium cost).

Short and to the point, here’s a list of my top nine God-sends for the pregnant woman:

P.S. this would make a great gift list for those of you who know someone expecting.

1. Pregnancy pillow

I believe I put this first on my list primarily because I never got one. However, I did use at least five regular pillows every night to keep me comfortable: one behind the back, one under the bump, one between my knees, one between my feet and one (or two) under my head. I’ve heard the Snoogle is an excellent pregnancy pillow, and you can by it at Bed Bath & Beyond with a 20% off coupon quite easily.

2. Preggie pops (or sour hard candy)

One of the best ways to help with the nausea in early pregnancy is to distract yourself with hard candy; I found that the “Preggie Pops” or “Preggie  Pop Drops” were really just overpriced hard candies with a few more vitamins. I personally love lemon drops, so that’s what I used.

3. Cute maternity clothes (or Kohl’s/Target/Motherhood gift cards) 

A great piece of advice I wish I would’ve gotten early on in my pregnancy is   start buying maternity and nursing clothes early.  I didn’t realize how expensive they would be! Nursing bras, tops, and accessories—I wish I would have began my collection prior to Izzy’s arrival. And if you’re worried about not knowing what size you’ll want and/or need, then I highly recommend investing in gift cards or certificates so you have the money set aside later (if you don’t you’ll find yourself spending it all on adorable baby clothes instead).

4. Handheld massager

This one is pretty self explanatory. I believe this to be more of a gift to my husband than myself, considering it gave my loving husband a break!

5. Yoga pants and/or leggings 

When I wasn’t wearing one of my two pairs of maternity jeans, I lived  in leggings during my second and third trimesters. I was so uncomfortable all I wanted was to wear something that gave me comfort—therefore, anything with a button or zipper was almost completely out of the question.

6. Oversized sweatshirts/T-shirts

Along the same lines as the leggings, oversized sweatshirts (by that I mean my husband’s) and old T-shirts were a necessity in the final trimester. Even early on, I began to feel bloated and uncomfortable, but I didn’t exactly have a bump to show off just yet. Solution? Oversized T-shirt over leggings to hide the food-baby bump.

7. High quality moisturizer 

You know that “pregnant lady glow” women rave about? If it shows, it certainly doesn’t feel like it. My skin was painfully dry through the entirety of the pregnancy. I’ve always had dry, red skin, and pregnancy only exacerbated that. I tried a lot of different moisturizers and creams, and they were all just okay. But I was too cheap to spring on the high end stuff; save your pennies and don’t skimp on your skincare regimen.

8. Bella bands

An alternative to dropping cash on those seasonal maternity pants, would be to stretch out (literally) the wear time of your current pants with a Bella Band; it looks like a tube top or short skirt slip, and it allows you to wear your pants unbuttoned, while also giving you bump compression and support. I’ve also been using them postpartum to help with belly support as well!

9. Vernors/Canada Dry

I’m pretty sure I drank a can of Vernor’s every single day. No joke. Sometimes it was my only relief and/or something to look forward to. Sorry for all you non-Michiganders, guess you’ll have to settle for Canada Dry.

For you lucky ladies who’ve had the chance to experience the lovely, uncomfortable journey of being pregnant, what are your pregnancy must haves?