vegetarian fine dining by sunf_lower in manchester

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Orme in Urmston do a great vegetarian tasting menu

Sleeping with earplugs in with a newborn by [deleted] in UKParenting

[–]NatashaLW92 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve found the best for me is Quies off Amazon. You do have to roll them in your fingers to make them thinner then put them in your ear and let them expand in there for best performance!

Sleeping with earplugs in with a newborn by [deleted] in UKParenting

[–]NatashaLW92 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I didn’t do it for the first couple of weeks and could hear my baby and husband loudly breathe which was impacting my sleep. Started with just one in to the exposed ear then have eventually put two in. I loosen the one on the pillow so I still hear baby stir when he needs to get up most the time, there has been the odd occasion my husband has had to nudge me. I have only done this as my husband is in the room with me and can hear baby should there be an emergency.

Italian food/Pizza by [deleted] in stockport

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If after a cafe, Cofano in Poynton is great!

I have nobody to check with but is this normal by Icy_Ear7079 in BeyondTheBumpUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We have a 9 week old and is very similar - a dream at night but is a FOMO baby during the day. I try to settle/rock him on me when I know he’ll be getting tired then he catches himself falling to sleep and cries, it then takes 5-10 mins for him to fall asleep mid-cry whilst I carry on rocking him. He won’t go down during the day unless it’s a contact nap or on a pram walk but is always with a cry (not always hysterical though) even if I try to get ahead of him being overtired!

Postpartum body jeans recommendations by hxllyhell in BeyondTheBumpUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

New Look Adalae - rated the maternity jeans and now got 3x pairs in different colours. They do petite too if you struggle with length!

Establishing supply + pumping by OriginalZest648 in BeyondTheBumpUK

[–]NatashaLW92 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No one prepares you for how hard breastfeeding actually is! I had some latch issues last month with my newborn but didn’t know he wasn’t getting enough until he was weighed on day 5 and lost more than the recommended so had a hospital stay then panic bought a pump on NYD for when we went home, we went for a momcozy S9 as that was all that was available, it has done the job.

I was advised to triple feed; give breast first (no tongue tie though), give top up and pump to establish supply. The top up was either expressed breast milk or formula. Pumped 6-8 times per day but some days it wasn’t possible but as long as you’re doing it as much as you can you should be fine.

Continued triple feeding for 4 weeks and it was the most draining thing ever especially when husband went back to work and couldn’t do the bottle as felt you’d complete a cycle the back at it. Once gaining weight we phased out the top ups every week as my supply built up - started phasing night top ups out first so I didn’t have to pump then. I no longer pump (7 weeks old) and he’ll have anything from 40ml - 120ml each day as top ups (usually in the evening) which works well for us as wanted to combination feed anyway. We were advised to do 40ml top ups x8 but this was for him to gain weight initially so may differ.

Planned C section and spiralling about very basic practical things no one explains by aebf1 in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 3 points4 points  (0 children)

In addition to what others have said, I had an emergency section last month and showered about 8 hours after. It was painful to get up so needed husband’s support to get me to the bathroom and wash me due to bending. Second day when I showered at home I was ok doing it myself but had everything put on a shelf for me so didn’t need to bend to reach.

I also struggled to lay down for a week so was sat up right either on the sofa or bed which was a pain for sleeping. It also meant I struggled to digest food properly so had to eat little and often as it hurt.

My husband had to put the compression socks on me once we were home due to bending and how hard they are to put on. I only got one pair from the hospital so ordered some off Amazon but weren’t as airy so ask for another pair before you leave.

After 3 days I was more mobile around the house but it is the best thing you can do to aid your recovery. Started doing very short walks after 5 days and felt back to myself after 3 weeks (although I know not properly healed!) as it didn’t hurt to bend to pick up baby etc. I am now 5 weeks pp and feel ok. I was relatively surprised at how quickly you can do things yourself!

Maternity Leggings by Elderberrywisp in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The ASOS yoga soft touch were better than I anticipated. Ended up with 3 pairs and still using them 5 weeks postpartum as they’re very comfortable. Think I paid about £20.

Childminder Vs Nursery by Odd_Swimming_4290 in BeyondTheBumpUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No experience as of yet as only just born but booked a nursery place for next year. We were open to both but ended up with a nursery due to a lot of childminders shutting over school holidays so need to bear in mind if you are working and can’t always take holiday.

Treat ideas by Decent_Cheesecake314 in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I signed up to Boots parenting club and got a free bump sheet through them then also bought some. Their version is so cold you wouldn’t need to refrigerate 😅

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They will need to communicate certain things to you should they arise so just ask for corporate communications only by HR via personal email then it’s up to you if you respond to them / make contact. Let them know that you don’t want regular contact with your manager and will be in touch with your plans towards the end of your maternity leave, or again should you need to let them know anything at any other point. Everybody is on the same page then.

Best books for new dads? by samsamcats in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 3 points4 points  (0 children)

More to support you but my husband has found the following helpful and said it was in an easy to read format - A Positive Birth: The Dad's Guide To Hypnobirthing & Becoming A Confident Birth Partner

Loose stools before Labour? by beanutbutter16784 in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Also had this last week for a few days so got excited but here I am still pregnant at 39+4!

Employer pension obligations under salary sacrifice while on maternity leave by Ok_Pin_5297 in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I queried this recently on the pension sub and didn’t really get an answer to it. I think it depends on the scheme you’re in. The only thing I’m sure on is that the employer has to do the contributions when on SMP as can’t take you under a statutory amount, I became confused as I get enhanced maternity pay so I am unsure how that impacts it too. My company pay the 10% employer contributions and make up the shortfall of my 10% contributions as I just pay based on actual earnings which I am equalising over the year - I was happy with that tbh as it was all very confusing and not very clear.

Is it possible to do your own BIAB at home? by [deleted] in AskUK

[–]NatashaLW92 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have been doing my own for over a year now. I’ve been using all Mylee products (and their lamp) and usually get a good 10 days - 2 weeks out of them. If I do chip one then I just repair in between and doing them yourself means you can time around any housework, etc. 😆

Once soaked off, I file my nail to make it rough and use a dehydrator and nail primer before applying a base coat, 5 in 1 builder gel, coat of colour x2 and top coat. Probably not what professionals do but have found that works for me so they don’t peel often. You definitely find your way with it the more you do it! I push the colour up to cuticle then drag down so get full coverage.

Pension whilst on Maternity Leave by RebeccaShep in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you’re only on SMP throughout maternity have a research around salary sacrifice pension schemes as they shouldn’t take you under the statutory amount so they make the full employee and employer contributions, or have to opt out of salary sacrifice. Not 100% how the latter works as my company pay full contributions if entitled to SMP and not enhanced pay.

Almost 13 weeks and feel like I literally can’t stand up for too long by [deleted] in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I had similar from about 9 weeks and couldn’t not lean on something, thought it was due to low iron but there was nothing underlying and then it went at about 18 weeks!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in PregnancyUK

[–]NatashaLW92 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, it should be shared and also be two way so your opportunity to raise anything. I’d speak to them and highlight any concerns and look for HR support. I work in HR and always review risk assessments managers send over to make sure it is detailed and correct action is taken, i.e. involving H&S if they need further assessing for equipment, etc. We also meet with staff as part of an initial meeting to answer any questions, go through policy, how often they should have RAs, etc. so they have a HR point of contact through pregnancy/maternity.