Product Review: Bravado Bras

About mid pregnancy, one of the first things that I noticed about my changing shape was that I could not comfortably wear my current bras. Suddenly, my body was a stranger to me. It was a bit of a bummer too, because just a month or two earlier, DH had splurged on some great Victoria Secret for me. *sigh* Enough of that. I spoke to my SisterL (the first source for all things pregnancy) and she suggested that I look into Bravado Bras and nothing else. I also spoke to my friend and at that time fairly new Mama Lindsey and she said the one thing she regretted was not purchasing quality nursing bras. So right then, mid pregnancy, I did the research and splurged on two fabulous Bravado Nursing Bras that I have worn through out my entire pregnancy and also my first almost three months of nursing mama-hood and I have only positive things to say.

It was about three months ago, when I emailed the Bravado Customer Service for some images and they probably think this review is never coming, but even in the business I think of how much I love these bras and by word of mouth have told many friends about them. Personally, I need to get some more!

The first bra is the Bravado Original in Bamboo.

The second choice I made was for the Body Silk Seamless Nursing Bra.

I bought the original in bamboo at the same price as the cotton as was super excited. The only option was white, but that really does not bother me. One of the best things about the Bravado Designs (www.bravadodesigns.com) website is their information and advice pages. The topic of "Whose breasts are these?!" is completely unique and so true every word (and emotion) of the pregnant woman. Since I was mid pregnancy, I bought the Original in my current size and then went for the approximate suggestion of postpartum size for the Body Silk Seamless. Both of them I could wear right away. Sleeping in them is quite comfortable too. To be honest, I was one of those people where when I was out about for the day, I looked forward to getting home and going braless for a while. Nothing was every very comfortable and always annoying. (Now that you know too much about me...)

The Original is so attractive. During my entire pregnancy it was practically my go-to bra. For whatever reason, I guess to show off the sudden cleavage, pregnancy tops almost always are low cut. (Completely annoying and not attractive in my opinion!) With the Original Bravado, I was able to wear practically any shirt that had been a no go for me before with only the Motherhood Sleeping Bras (my other pregnancy/nursing bra stash). The shape is smooth and flattering and the ease of one-hand snapping and un-snapping is unbeatable. The support for these, I swear they are not the ones I remember, is great and very comfortable. I really need more.

The Body Silk Seamless Bravado is fabulous. I was so certain that the bigger size was going to envelope me, but it did not. It fit right away. Now on the days where I'm very ready to nurse that screaming starving child this bra is the best and most comfortable, where the smaller size of the Original, which is great most of the time, just does not quite cut it as enough coverage. The shape is very flattering and the support is great. In the later months of pregnancy and postpartum, this has by fair become my favorite bra. This bra comes with inserts to protect your shape and give you coverage. With or without them, either way works for me. I just plain love this bra. The price makes it harder for me to stock my drawer with these, but oh if the gift cards would head this way. (Keep that in mind for your baby showers, you need new clothes just as much as the baby does!)

Both bras are very comfortable and attractive. The only draw backs in my opinion are the price, but that's just economics. All and all, they are worth every single penny! Speaking of saving a buck. Head on over to www.bravadodesigns.com right now and get FREE shipping using a special free shipping discount code. Tell them to enter FS-101 at checkout.

Birth Story

Mine's a little odd.

My girl was due August 15th. On July 30th, I had a normal OB check up at 37 wks and 6 days. I was 5 1/2 cm dilated and had felt no contractions or anything, but we decided to go ahead and sent me across the hospital (attached to doctor's office building by bridge). I got all settled and hooked up to a monitor. According to it, I was contracting every two minutes. I still felt nothing. They started Pitocin, which I was not happy about, but they were a little befuddled as to why I was not feeling anything. I stayed on the pitocin and monitor until 11 pm, when the OB came to break my water. By this time the monitor was finding contractions within a minute, but I still felt nothing, except maybe a little pressure on my back.

It was about one AM, when I really felt some pain, and then for the entire hour of one to two AM I was in pain every 20 seconds. I do not remember the hour from two to three AM, but I know the nurse checked me and paged the doctor. Apparently at one AM I was dilated still to 5 1/2 cm, but at two AM I was 9 1/2 cm. The doctor and an entire team of nurses came parading into the room. I was miserably in pain, and the doctor is asking me why I did not have an epidural or anything. She had me start to push, and on the fourth push my girl flew out (this according to my husband).

Everyone kept telling me they do not know how I did not feel all the contractions going into labor. They are also shocked that I was so dilated so early, and then later how quickly I dilated the rest of the way since this is my first pregnancy. The other thing they said is that it was unheard of for me to have gotten her out with four pushes.

She may have come out in a short matter of time, but that one hour, or perhaps I guess it was two as she was born at 3:11 AM July 31st at 37 wks and 7 days, was really painful and I thought I would die. She also gave me a good third degree 3 1/2 inch tear on her way out as well.

Baby girl was capable of discharge 24 hours after birth, but I was kept under observation for four days due to substantial blood loss and the tear.

Oh... and the u/s from the Monday of this week (she was born on Friday) showed her at 6 lbs 11 oz. She was born at 8 lbs 2.3 oz.

We cannot imagine what size she would be if we had attempted to make it to our due date of more than two weeks later!

Wordless Wednesday - 37 1/2 weeks

The Complete Illustrated Pregnancy Companion: a review

The Complete Illustrated Pregnancy Companion: A Week-by-Week Guide to Everything You Need To Do for a Healthy Pregnancy by Robin Elise Weiss

The comfort of knowing what is going on during pregnancy combined with advice that changes each week with an expectant mother’s body will warm the heart and well as calm the nerves.

This fully illustrated pregnancy guide gives an expectant mothers week-by-week information on their body and the child’s physical development; and then explains what they should do at each week of pregnancy for an optimally healthy pregnancy, delivery, and baby. A chapter is devoted to each week of pregnancy and covers everything readers need to know including, baby’s size, mother’s size, what’s normal in terms of physical symptoms and development, and what could indicate a potentially serious problem. Nutritional, exercise, and lifestyle advice, tips on treating common pregnancy discomforts like morning sickness and sciatica, and pregnancy do’s and don’ts, ensure a happy and healthy mother and baby.

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

At this point I think I own a copy of every pregnancy book that goes weekly out there including journals and this one is the best by far. It does not go into all the medical jargon as to what can possibly go wrong as some other books, but give tips and specific notes on what changes are occurring in your your body and your baby's body this week. My only down note was that I did not discover this until my third trimester. IF you are looking for a more medically inclined book I strongly suggest Your Pregnancy Week by Week, it is absolutely fabulous in that aspect.

This book gives you the "crash course" of what's going on in a checklist format, and then throughout a chapter goes into more detail, so you can immediately find pieces you are curious about, and skip things you are not so intrigue about or rather come back to them later. The coloring and changing of fonts with various sections as well as the images and pictures through out really makes this a beautiful and esthetically pleasing to the eye book. It is a big book as in wide and tall like a text book, but it is a fabulous resource that I recommend for every pregnant woman to have around.

View all my reviews >>

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Fair Winds Press (February 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592333583
• ISBN-13: 978-1592333585
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8 x 1 inches

What to Expect When You're Expecting (a review)

What to Expect When You're Expecting by Heidi Murkoff


This revised third edition of the popular pregnancy guide offers the authoritative yet reassuring advice that parents have come to rely on from all the titles in the What to Expect series. The book is arranged by month, from pregnancy test through labor and delivery. Each section offers answers to frequently asked questions, along with features such as "What You May Be Feeling" and "What You May Be Concerned About." Every imaginable issue is addressed, including the small but nagging subjects that women may not want to discuss with their doctors, such as how their bodies will look at seven months, or why some pregnant women "glow" while others have acne. While readers who already own this book won't have to rush to buy the new edition, the revised volume does offer a number of excellent expanded sections and illustrations, including a more detailed discussion of postpartum depression. There are also new illustrations and more text on breast-feeding, with diagrams showing different feeding positions. The travel section offers specific suggestions for "jettisoning jet lag" in addition to standard advice on traveling while pregnant. This book remains an indispensable guide for pregnant women and their partners.

My rating: 1 of 5 stars
I did not like this one. So many others I can recommend are better. Especially since this is broken into trimesters, you almost forget to read the next section along and along. I highly recommend Weekly books such as Your Pregnancy Week by Week and newly published The Complete Illustrated Pregnancy Companion A Week-by-Week Guide to Everything You Need To Do for a Healthy Pregnancy. I know it's a classic and recommended by many over the years, but there is just so much better available now. Sorry.

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The Pregnancy Journal (a review)

The Pregnancy Journal, Revised Edition: A Day-to-Day Guide to a Healthy and Happy Pregnancy by A. Christine Harris

Since its publication in 1996, this definitive journal for expectant families has sold over a million copies. Author A. Christine Harris brings a revised and thoroughly updated edition to today’s parents-to-be. Still featuring daily entries, a personalized timeline, and pregnancy glossary, the revised edition provides a clearer picture of the baby's in-utero development and the latest advice about giving a growing baby every advantage prior to birth.

My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Early on, when I first got a copy of this journal I was so excited about the idea of keeping a journal of notes and thoughts through out my entire pregnancy. Honestly, this specific journal was not the best choice for me. The places to actually "journal" are sporatic at best and usually at pages and sections when I just feel like I have nothing to write. Then when I have many thoughts to write, there are no journal lines. It was a bit irritating. The other thing that was odd was the way that you personalize the dates of the journal. Their counting system was off from every other system I have heard of, and there are instructions, but they do not quite add up to what they say either. Next time around, I'm going to look more specifically for a journal to journal in. This I would not really have titled a journal, but a day by day guide to what's going on with you and your baby during pregnancy. The facts especially the cultural anthropological world details are really neat. I also enjoyed hearing about measurement averages and changes from an average day to day. But overall, I cannot really recommend this as being my cup of tea.

View all my reviews >>

• Spiral-bound: 206 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books; Revised edition (January 20, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811846970
• ISBN-13: 978-0811846974
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.3 x 1 inches

Change over the last 9 months??

11 wks



14 wks



18 wks



25 wks



29 wks



32 wks



37 wks

Your Pregnancy for the Father-to-Be (a review)

Your Pregnancy for the Father-to-Be: Everything Dads Need to Know about Pregnancy, Childbirth and Getting Ready for a New Baby by Glade B. Curtis


My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From my husband:

• Organization makes sense. Good chronologically, do not have to read all at once.
• Easy to read, not too much medical jargon. Explanations were in a understandable format.
• Wording in general was easy to read, not like a text book.
• Inserts of real life examples and humorous events keep the book interesting. Not just about the pregnant woman, but also things to think about when baby comes home.
• Useful information, that as a male, he did not know about. Good explanations about the female body to the male reader in what to expect. And generally how to know that your wife is not just crazy.
• Instructions and pointers it gives for possible situations were clearly laid out and easy to follow if needed; such as emergency delivery at home and transportation to get to the hospital and so on.
• Overall it was worded in such a way that it did not drag on and on. It was a decent book to just sit down and read bits in an evening or so and gave good information.
• This comes from a guy who would rather be out in the garage working or playing video games instead of reading. And when he does read it would be a sci/fi or adventure book.

View all my reviews >>

Expectant fathers often take a backseat when it comes to those crucial months before childbirth, but Your Pregnancy for the Father-to-Be has helped thousands of dads learn to take an active role in the months, weeks, days, and hours leading to birth. This one-stop guide has shown dads-to-be how to focus then nervous energy into productive efforts, like better supporting their partner and preparing the home for baby.

In this updated and expanded second edition, Dr. Glade B. Curtis and Judith Schuler take us one step further, addressing the questions and concerns of today's dads--everything from consuming artificial sweetners and caffeine during pregnancy, to handling multiples, to dealing with depression during and after pregnancy. This revised edition also features medical information that's on every parent's mind, and even includes the most current ACOG guidelines for Down syndrome testing. And it has a whole new chapter on preparing for the next pregnancy.

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books; 2nd edition (January 5, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 073821275X
• ISBN-13: 978-0738212753
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches

Also, feel free to go back and read my review on Your Pregnancy Week By Week.

Your Pregnancy Week by Week (a review)

Announcing a fully revised and updated new edition of the only best-selling pregnancy and childbirth guide written by a doctor...

Your Pregnancy Week by Week by Glade B. Curtis, OB/GYN
and Judith Schuler, M. S.

Sixth Edition

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In the category of pregnancy reads, I would say this is one of my favorites and most useful books. In the category of weekly updates of what is most likely happening in your pregnancy, this is by far the best book of it's kind. I had so many recommendations to read a different book that has been around, but I am so glad that I found this one, in comparison the "other" book has nothing on this one. When curious about this book in it's republication, I found several negative reviews that talked about how it could cause a person to become neurotic knowing all the possible things that can go wrong. Really, what I can tell you from reading this cover to cover, is that it definitely has information on a bit of everything, most plausible diseases and complications. When I was reading this, if I came to a section on smoking mothers, it obviously did not apply to me, so I skipped over it. Same with other categories such as ethnic specific diseases and so on.

I find that this book is a wealth of information. Reading through can tell you plausible things to go wrong, but it also tells you all the miracles that are occurring step by step along the way. There are drawings that show about what the development looks like for your babies stage. There are fabulous exercise suggestions for each week and I would easily say that this is medically current and a comprehensive guide. With my background in nursing I would suggest this book highly.


View all my reviews >>

With millions of copies sold, Your Pregnancy Week by Week is a book that mothers have depended on for over a dozen years. Now, it has been carefully brought up-to-date and expanded to reflect the latest changes in obstetric practice and technologies, and the most recent research on gestation, labor, and delivery. This sixth edition includes more than eighty new topics, such as newly proposed folic acid intake recommendations (and why green tea should be avoided), the new ACOG guidelines for episiotomies, and a new at-home screening test for Down syndrome. It also contains new material on everything from multiples, to alternative and complementary medical techniques, to anxiety during pregnancy due to misinformation on the Internet. Always reliable and now re-designed to include an exercise page for every week, Your Pregnancy Week by Week, Sixth Edition is the most medically current and comprehensive guide on the market.

Because changes to a pregnant woman and developing fetus occurs constantly, doctors refer to a pregnancy in increments of weeks, not months or even trimesters. Expectant mothers look for thse changes and compare the details of their pregnancies based on the same weekly shcedule. Hence this book is organized in a week-by-week format. Each of the forty weekly chapters features a wealth of medical facts, as well as invaluable coping and planning advice in the form of a tip of the week. There are even "Dad Tips" for the mother's partner. Other special features include a fifteen-page glossary of pregnancy and childbirth terms, a chapter devoted to overdue (post-term) pregnancies, and a six-page reserouce section that outlines what happens to a woman's body in the days, weeks, and months following her pregnancy.

More people turn to Dr. Glade Curtis for information about pregnancy and childbirth than to any other doctor in the world. Board-certified by the America College of Obstericians and Gynecologists, he has delivered thousands of babies-- including three of his own. He has written eighteen books with Judith Sculer, who holds a master's degree in consumer and family studies, including Your Baby's First Year Week by Week, Your Pregnancy after 35, andYour Pregnancy for the Father-to-Be. Combined, their books have been translated into over twenty languages. Dr. Curtis lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Judith Schuler divides her time between Tucson, Arizon and Laramie, Wyoming. For more information about the authors and the Your Pregnancy series, please visit www.yourpregnancybook.com.

• Paperback: 648 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press; 6 Rev Upd edition (March 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738211095
• ISBN-13: 978-0738211091
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1.5 inches

Also in another post, look for my husband's thoughts on Your Pregnancy for the Father-to-Be.

New Mom's Guide to Dealing with Dad (a review)

New Mom's Guide to Dealing with Dad, The by Susan Besze Wallace

New moms run into a host of new challenges once baby arrives, including getting back into shape, developing a parenting style, readjusting schedules, and interacting with their husbands in new ways. With compassion and humor--and always the privilege of motherhood in mind--The New Mom's Guides go straight to the heart of these matters, offering moms guidance and encouragement in this new season of life. Each of the four books in the series offers real advice from women who have been there, done that, and want other moms to benefit from their trials and triumphs. A perfect gift for baby showers, Mother's Day, or any day, these small volumes are compact enough to take along in an overstuffed diaper bag and designed for the mom who can only find a few minutes of peace each day to read.

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a fabulous resource this is! Not just for new mom's, but for moms of many, and one-day-to-be-moms. This is not just about little book about dealing with dad, as one more thing to be tackled when there is a new baby, but really a useful device for all around good tips for marriage in a family. Each chapter and every page is filled with quotes and tips and tidbits from experienced moms and dads who share their mistakes and breakthroughs with readers. Learn from their mistakes, instead of making them yourself! I highly recommend this little book and I cannot wait to dive into some of the other titles available through MOPS from Susan Besze Wallace and Monica Reed.


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• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Revell (January 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0800733002
• ISBN-13: 978-0800733001
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 5 x 0.6 inches