Why should I have a birth plan if the plan is to have the baby? Right? Creating a birth plan is about more than just adding one more thing to your to do list. A birth plan gives you the opportunity to think about what you want during labor and delivery and newborn care. A birth plan does not need to be complicated. In fact, you may already have a good idea about how you envision labor and deliver. Expressing these wishes to your labor and delivery team can help you achieve your birthing goals. Where to Start? The best…

You can go into labor at any moment! You don’t want to be trying to pack in between contractions. Packing a hospital bag earlier will ease your mind so you can focus on your body and your baby. There are many hospital bag checklists available. However, this one will make sure you don’t over pack. You will only bring the essentials. The hospital will supply some items. Here are a few things you will want to bring for your own comfort. Don’t forget to bring items for the baby as well. Here is the ultimate hospital bag checklist. This post…

Growing a human is hard work! The first trimester can be overwhelming and stressful, not to mention all the pregnancy symptoms you may start to feel -- hello nausea and fatigue.

Like many birth stories mine did not go as planned. For starters I ended up having preeclampsia which came on very suddenly. Although this was a scary thing to deal with at the time, my doula helped me and my husband immensely through the entire labor and delivery. I'm so thankful we hired her to be at our side through every weird pregnancy question to the exhausting labor and delivery.

You've taken the test and it's positive! Congratulations! But now, you're starting to feel not so great. Here's everything to expect in the first trimester.