Hellobee

A friend of mind recently found out she was pregnant, and it got me thinking about the items that I relied on to get me through the 40 weeks. Even though it’s only been 17 months since I was where she is, it feels like worlds away. While everyone’s experience is different, here are a few items that I really appreciated while I was pregnant.

1. Body pillow – A body pillow was the first pregnancy related gift I received and I immediately loved it. Once my belly was too big to sleep on (I’m a total stomach sleeper!), the body pillow was my saving grace. It contorts to your body in a way that makes it possible to sleep comfortably, which is something I never thought possible at 38 weeks pregnant! Admittedly, it’s been months since I gave birth, but I’m still snuggling up with my pillow each night. Recently Mr. Ice Cream’s mom told me she also started using a body pillow when she was pregnant with Mr. Ice Cream and she still has not given it up!

2. Baby onesie from her favorite sports team – Gifting your friend a onesie/pacifier/bib with her favorite sports team can temporarily alleviate new parent anxieties and remind her of fun times to come when she can share her interests with her little one. I’m a big UNC basketball fan and I loved receiving this onesie and pacifier while I was pregnant.

3. Pinhole Press board book – Create a board book with pictures of close family and friends. Pinhole Press makes beautiful and durable books that your friend will love flipping through and the baby will love once he/she is a little older. I love the idea that the baby will be able to familiarize him/herself with all the faces that will be important in his/her life. It’s a sweet and personal gift that is unexpected.

4. Pregnancy massage/pedicure – Give the gift of pamper. I got a pedicure and my eye brows waxed the morning I went into labor. It was 2 days before my due date and I was at the point where I desperately needed a beauty boost. Your friend will appreciate a gesture like this, probably even more so if you make it a girls’ outting. An at home alternative is a bottle of bath salts and a girly magazine.

5. Water bottle – I’m terrible at drinking water and probably operate at a semi-dehydrated state most of the time. When I was pregnant, Mr. Ice Cream bought me a filtered water bottle to carry around and it served as a reminder to drink more water. We even started tracking our water consumption with our fitbit apps and turned it into a friendly competition. Find a small sleek water bottle that is easy to throw into a purse and your friend will get a lot of use out of it. A few others I love are the S’well bottle, Element for their sleek design and that they can hold hot or cold things for hours.

6. Glow Pregnancy App – This isn’t a new pregnancy app, but in my opinion it is one of the nicer ones and isn’t cluttered with ads. While you are trying to get pregnant it tells you when you are ovulating, and once you are pregnant it gives you weekly updates on you and your growing baby. I loved reading the updates and talking to Mr. Ice Cream about our little pear that just became a mango. In the early months when I wasn’t feeling the obvious signs of being pregnant, it helped Mr. Ice Cream and me feel more connected to the experience.

7. Comfy Pajamas – At some point pregnancy can become extremely uncomfortable and soft comfortable pajamas are a must have. Depending on the season you either want something lightweight, breathable and airy such as this or flannel and warm such as this.

8. Coloring Book – Nowadays there are coloring books for adults everywhere, including the check out isle at the grocery store. The intricate designs are surprisingly therapeutic to fill in. Even if you don’t have much free time, it can be a nice break to mindlessly color instead of stressing over new parent jitters.

What gifts did you love when you were pregnant?