Super Mammy Diaries

It's quite a waiting, and even a guessing game - trying to know when your baby will be born. 80% of babies are born between 37 and 42 weeks of gestation (with gestation being calculated from the Last Menstrual Period, i.e., LMP, or from the due date given at your nuchal scan in the first trimester.) Your babies gender could give you more of a clue as baby girls (due to their smaller size), and smaller babies tend to be born later, as do babies to parents who are under 30 years old. Babies to first time parents, also tend to have a longer gestation than subsequent siblings - so if you are expecting a second or third one, you can expect them to arrive a little sooner than your elder one did. In the long run, it doesn't matter if your baby is one of the 9% who are born on their due date, if they were a few days early, or many days late. However, during pregnancy, the waiting game can feel a lot more stressful than it will when you look back. You are likely uncomfortable, sleepless...

The second trimester, often referred to as the best one, offers relief when it comes to some of the pesky first trimester symptoms like nausea and frequent urination (don't get too comfy, this will come right back with a vengeance). However, there are a number of other symptoms you should be on the look out for, and some tips on how to deal with them if they do come for you. For first trimester symptoms and tricks click here, and keep in mind that many of these do stay with you throughout. 12 second trimester symptoms that every expecting mom should know: 1. Back pain: Your center of gravity is no longer centered and there is increased pressure on your spine, which can cause pain. Often times though the discomfort is from sciatica which radiates up and down your legs, and there is a simple stretch you can do that does offer relief and helps you get some sleep at night. This one below is as simple as it looks but make sure to lean forward and press down on your knee. Sleeping with...

If you are a first time mom you should definitely know what to expect, and below are some very common first trimester symptoms that you may not be aware of until you experience them. However, if you are a second time, third or even tenth time mom, you should still know about these, because you (like me), have likely forgotten what it felt like until you were in it all over again (thank you, pregnancy brain, because if you hadn't wiped my memory clean I wouldn't have signed up for this again so agreeably). 16 First trimester symptoms that every expecting mom should know about:  1. Nausea and how: I know a few lucky people who skip this stage, but for more than 60% of us, "morning sickness" kicks in around 6 weeks, tends to occur at all times of day, and leaves at the end of the first trimester. For a lucky few, it stays until the end. Diclegis (also called doxinate or doxylamine, which is made from vitamins and an antihistamine and is a blessing for morning sickness),...

It's likely my age, but I know a lot of people who are expecting. For some, it is a wonderful journey filled with glowing skin, the ability to sleep and shiny hair. For others, it's a path you have to endure to get to hold your baby. And then there are those like me, who may likely be the majority. I had several days that I enjoyed the journey and embraced the bursts of energy by nesting and doing baby laundry, but even more days when I just wanted to sleep, throw up, sleep, eat, sleep, work, sleep, read, sleep. Did I mention I really wanted to sleep? There were times I was awake though.. (all my amazing maternity shots have been taken by Namita Azad Photography ) I did manage to work (and drive myself to work) till the day I delivered (in the crazy New York polar vortex with a 20-mile commute daily), so growing a baby doesn't mean the rest of your life has to go on hold or that you cannot be as productive or efficient as you like. But be prepared to take things at a pace t...