Lydia Mae is here!

Hello all!

I just wanted to let you know that baby Lydia is here, she was born at 42 weeks pregnant, and she was actually small -for me anyway! She was 8 lbs 12 oz, and 21 inches long! She is a joy! And of course, I'll update you on the the birth story when I write it, but it was amazing!

Until then... go here to see a few photos from the birth. :)

 

39 Weeks Pregnant

39 Weeks Pregnant

Unlike previous pregnancies at this same point...I surprisingly feel no anxiousness or feelings of being "DONE!" or like I want to get this baby out NOW!

I feel GREAT! I have energy, and I just feel very cool about the whole thing.... She comes when she comes... And it's kind of weird to feel this different about it. It's awesome, but weird...

35 Weeks Pregnant and EXCITED!

I'm about 35 weeks pregnant... depending on who's dates you're going by...

According to the medical establishment, I'm 35 and a half weeks pregnant, counting from my LMP.

According to my records... as you might know that I was TTC, so I was keeping track... I'm 34 and a half weeks because I know when I ovulated.

So we'll just take the average of that and say I'm 35 weeks. ;)

Besides, it really doesn't matter because babies are born on their birthday, not when any set amount of weeks go by. Ha! Especially MY babies, they don't pay attention to due dates...

But anyway... I am excited! And I honestly feel as great as ever! No really, I'm telling the truth.

The only hiccups... besides the baby's... :) is heartburn, but a drop of CPTG peppermint essential oil in my mouth takes care of that instantly. Love that stuff, that's why I have to have some by my bed.

It is a little hard to roll over in bed, but once I'm out, I'm OUT! Meaning, once I'm asleep, I sleep all the way through the night. I don't even have to get up to pee. I credit this to the Hypnobabies hypnosis and listening to pregnancy affirmations before bed.

The only other thing is that I feel slightly unprepared, as in having everything I need on hand... I mean, I don't even have diapers yet, so I need to get on that... And my midwife will be coming in a week and a half, and we'll talk more about what I need to have on hand for my home birth.

Yep, you heard right. :) HOME BIRTH

I'm so excited! I figure, I've had a hospital birth, a birth center birth, so naturally follows a home birth, right? But it only makes sense because I've heard that having a home birth is no different from going to a birth center because the midwife has everything on hand that she'd have at the birth center... so why make the car ride while working through pressure waves? (contractions) I think I'll just stay in the comfort of my own home, thank you!

So anyway... just excited for the upcoming Hypnobabies birth, and I wonder how big she will be, and when she will come and all that... But really I'm just chill right now, and I'm in no hurry to have this baby. I'm grateful for the full nights sleep I'm getting every night, because I know it won't be like that for long once baby comes...

 

How to Survive and THRIVE Pregnancy and Postpartum

I know how hard pregnancy and postpartum can be. Women often fumble around in a fog of desperation struggling just to survive. I have been there before. But I have learned tools to lift my spirits, increase my energy, release the pain and THRIVE and ENJOY mothering.

I work with these pregnant and postpartum women who are struggling, and I thought you may be interested in this free training or pass it on to anyone you know who is a woman who is pregnant or has small children.
So....

The day is here...

Registration is now OPEN for my live FREE
Renew Your Love Affair With Mothering Teleseminar!

Register HERE

I have just 100 seats available for this complimentary women’s motivational bootcamp . . .


So if you're ready to wake up your life & start jumping out of bed in the morning, don't wait!

Jump on this now and secure your spot on this one-time LIVE training with me where I'll reveal (among other things) how I raise 2 kids, nurture myself in pregnancy, and live each day with vigor, energy, and in fulfilling happiness. You will learn what the other childbirth and parenting classes DON'T tell you...



For the details and the link to register, go here now:

Register HERE

I can't wait to see you on the teleseminar!

Yours,

Cynthia Gough

24 Weeks Pregnant

-24 weeks pregnant-

As just for comparison's sake, here I am at -17 weeks pregnant-

So I'm 24 weeks now, and I must say that this has been the best pregnancy ever! Sometimes I feel so good that I forget that I'm pregnant. I often get up from a sitting or laying down position quickly or normally, and then I get light-headed a little, and remember, "Oh yeah! I'm pregnant! I need to get up slowly..."

So a couple of reasons why I think this is the best pregnancy ever...

First of all... is gratitude.

Since I had a hard time getting pregnant for 3 years, I feel so much more gratitude for this pregnancy. I relish and live present every moment. I love every movement of my baby, I love every visit to my midwife, I love every time my daughter gets excited while looking at my belly, "Mom! Your belly is getting bigger!!!" :) So, yes gratitude is a biggie, and I think it can be applied to any part of life, even the hard times.

Second is... energy.

I have so much more energy this time around. Even at 3:00 in the afternoon, I almost get a burst of energy and that's when I zip around my home cleaning something... I attribute this difference this time to doTERRA's vitamin supplements. They give me so much of the nutrients I need. I get my vitamins, my omega's and fish oil etc, and the cellular energy I need. It's all natural and even has essential oils included. It's the ULTIMATE prenatal vitamin. I love it! So this is a BIG difference from previous pregnancies where I didn't take these supplements, and can definitely tell the difference.

Third is... positive attitude.

Ok, this may be a little cliche, but a positive attitude makes all the difference. But the difference here is that I don't have to TRY. I don't think to myself, ok, I need to be positive. No, I actually already have it in my subconscious. I've been listening to Hypnobabies' pregnancy affirmations as I go to bed, and it makes a big difference. I have the best night's sleep ever, and wake up every morning with a smile on my face happy to be pregnant and looking forward to my birth.

So there's just a few thoughts on how I'm having the best pregnancy ever! No, seriously, I LOVE being pregnant!

What They Didn't Tell Me About Postpartum...

So I was thinking about my postpartum days for my previous babies, and I came across this blog post, and it made me remember these days, like it was yesterday! I could totally relate:

A mom who recently gave birth, Saydi Shumway, talks about how she loves the birth process, the support, the attention, the challenge, everything about it. And then, talking about the days following giving birth, this is what she says,

 

"And then, after a few days coasting on the highs of all that birthing glory and drinking in the beauty of new life, reality sets in.  My body is empty and exhausted (and un-showered, sweaty, stinky, engorged and leaking).   My brain has turned to mush.  My emotions are a wreck.  I’m cranky and unkind and my patience is nearly non-existent.  And I start complaining and wallowing.

I never feel prepared for this part.   Sure, toward the end of pregnancy I remind myself it’s going to happen and going to be hard.  But I’m always a bit shell-shocked by the reality of it all.

I have a great post partum team, my mom, Jeff, Jeff’s mom, great friends who are helping on every front.  But, in the middle of the night when I’m up with a gassy baby, so tired that I can hardly lift up the little guy, no one is sitting by my side, holding me hand and telling me how totally awesome I am.  During the day my kids aren’t standing around me in awe at how I’m handling the pain of those first few seconds of nursing, telling me how great I’m doing.   And I’m certainly not telling myself many positive things (I’m mostly feeling pretty sorry for myself and pretty lame that I can’t keep everything together).   I don’t feel much glory in the work I’m doing.  I mostly feel, well, empty and exhausted.

Sometimes exhaustion brings me my best thoughts and this is the one I had the other night as I was up nursing:  post partum work is every bit as hard and demanding as childbirth, and it’s also just as important and stretching and amazing…….and I need to treat it that way.  Somewhere in my journey through motherhood I’ve decided to revere childbirth.  I need to attach the same importance and glory and respect to the work I’m doing right now."

I recommend reading the rest here.

 

This is totally the way I felt after my babies came. It was utter exhaustion, struggling, and just crappy! No one told me about how hard this was going to be. Sure, I always heard, "Motherhood is the hardest thing you'll ever do." But I never thought that it would be like this!

No other childbirth class or parenting class told me it would be like this. For me, childbirth was the best part especially since I prepared for it using Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis. But then it just went downhill from there... Somehow, there needs to be a better way for preparing for the shell-shock of what happens next.

I have learned a lot since then though, which I hope I will be better prepared for this time, so I can enjoy my postpartum period as much as my birth experiences.

This time I will:

• Ask for help early and OFTEN... The first two times, it was a pride thing I guess. I didn't ask for help very much, and if I did, it was often too late. I thought I was up for the super-mom award or something, and see how much I could figure out on my own or something, like it was a test. NO! Big mistake. It's OK to be vulnerable and let others see the pain I'm going through and seek help from others.


• Actually listen to my Hypnobabies Breastfeeding Success and After the Baby Comes CD's. I came to love and know from first-hand experience how well hypnosis works, as evidenced from my births. So I don't know why I all of the sudden forgot all about hypnosis after my birth.


• Actually get an in-home visit from a lactation consultant. I had a HORRIBLE time with breastfeeding before, but I really want it to work out this time. I was so embarrassed and shy, I didn't want anybody else to witness me breastfeeding.


• Get help. (Refer to number 1:) But no really, get help with cleaning and cooking, and don't think that I have to be in that super-mom race again, to see how well I can keep house while caring for a newborn. It's OK to let things slide, and for the more imminent items... after-all, we still need clothes and food, so GET HELP and take it slow.


• Above all, connect to source. Connect spiritually somehow, whether it's meditation or prayer, however it works for you to connect to your source. For me, I need to connect to my God and pray, and "Be still and know that I am God." I think I forgot about Him far too many times because I thought that I just didn't have the time, or thinking he forgot about me, or something. Which is silly to think now, because I know he was there every step of the way, and I just needed to look up and acknowledge Him and seek His help. And there's always time for prayer.


• Talk to other moms, or a close friend or mentor. Talk authentically about your feelings, and get support. And remember, in the middle of the night when baby is up and you're frazzled and need someone, God is always up.

 

So there's my list so far. I'm sure there are other things that I will quickly remember when I am in the thick of this all coming up in October, but I think if I remember these things and take my own advise, this will be a very good start.

 

 

20 Weeks Pregnant

I'm over 20 weeks pregnant now.

And I just have to say that since we got our ultrasound last Friday, it seems a lot more real to me! Oh yeah, and by the way...



...It's a GIRL!!

We are so excited! And my daughter had it right. She always said that this one was a girl, and that a boy is coming next time... So maybe she knows more than us, and apparently we're having another baby after this. :)

So anyway, with it feeling a lot more real to me now, I just get a huge sense of gratitude. Especially after thinking about the many months we tried to conceive this one. Month after month I would get so depressed when I had many negative pregnancy tests and then my period came. It was so frustrating! Wondering what was wrong with me, and spiraling further into stress and depression. What a mess it was, but I'm so glad that I came out of that and learned many thing to change my mindset on it all and be grateful for what I already had. And of course now I'm just so grateful that I have a little girl squirming inside of me! It's her reminder to me that she's there and and worth every minute of struggle I ever had.

I'm just so happy to be pregnant, and yes there are times of discomfort, but I'm so glad I've learned ways to relieve those. Like for one... my back was killing me the other day, so I had my husband rub a Doterra essential oil blend called, Deep Blue, all over and my back felt so much better! The pain was gone! I love it when I find solutions to these sorts of problems.