So you already know what was on my new baby wishlist, but today I wanted to share some alternate gift ideas that you could buy for the new Mama or baby (and Dad & older sibling too) in your life that I’ve recently discovered from some absolutely awesome brands across the internet. Some are bigger than others, some homemade and some not, but I for one would be thrilled to receive any one of them!

Notebook

Baby brain is a real thing. It takes over during pregnancy and then once bump has turned to baby it hits a whole new level. When Florence was born, I just remember having to write EVERYTHING down or I’d forget. A pretty notebook like this ‘Blame the Baby Brain’ one from Martha Brooks Stationery. It comes in a bunch of different colours and is a steal at £12.95!

Grocery Box Subscription

Never underestimate the value of a decent meal for new parents. Chances are the last thing they want to do having just welcomed a baby into the world is worry about food shopping or what to cook for tea. Why not treat them to a grocery subscription box for a couple of weeks? There are loads of brands out there that do them, Gousto and Hello Fresh to name a few. Alternatively you could cook a second batch of whatever you’re having for tea and drop it round to put in their freezer!

Mum’s One Line a Day Diary

Oh my goodness, if this isn’t the loveliest little gift idea for a new mother I don’t know what is. It’s a diary covering five years in time where you write a one liner about each day to record a special memory or ordinary moment you want to remember of your little one’s childhood. I think this would make a wonderful keepsake to look back on.

A year of dates for new Parents

I love this idea. It’s basically a box of date night ideas for new parents to pick from each fortnight to make sure they’re touching base and getting in some quality time as a couple – God knows that’s not something many of us manage to do very much, but it’s oh so important. They’re mostly things you can do either at home or with baby with a couple of special nights out thrown in too. They also donate 10% of the profit from each box to charities supporting families affected by Postnatal Depression.

Beautiful Biscuits

Who knew there was such a thing as biscuit art? Well, I recently discovered Biscuiteers when they contacted me about working together for valentines (watch this space) and soon ended up drooling over their amazing range of hand iced biscuits! This gift set of Beatrix Potter biccies complete with a gorgeous coordinating biscuit tin would make a lovely gift for a newly grown family and would be perfect for those feeding time munchies!

Giant Swaddle Blankets

Okay, okay, so I bang on about these all the time and how much I love them, but I recently came across a couple more brands who design and sell absolutely gorgeous ‘giant Muslins’ as I call them. My favourite at the moment has to be this Rainbow Chevron one from Lil’ Cubs and I love their new Elmer collection too! Another brand worth checking out when it comes to these baby must haves is Pattie and co who donate £5 from the sale of every blanket to Tommy’s the Baby Charity.

Personalised Twinning outfits

You know me, I love a bit of twinning and the potential of adding another little poppet to match with into the world has me way too excited. Primrose and Bear make gorgeous bright personalised t-shirts for littles and these rainbow name tops would be perfect for a set of siblings!

Letterbox Big Sister Gift

I found these awesome little ‘postable’ gift sets designed for older siblings to celebrate their new big brother/sister status. They are £12.99 and have some fun shaped crayons, a badge and a personalised pencil inside. I know that Florence would LOVE to receive something like this as she is well into drawing and colouring at the moment and at a time when the main focus will be on the baby, it’s a great gift idea to make her feel a bit special too! After all, she’s taking on a very important role!

These are just some of the gorgeous alternative gift ideas for new parents and their littles that I’ve stumbled across on Instagram over the last few weeks. How great are they? I regularly share gems like these over on my Instagram stories as I find them so make sure you’re following me if you too love discovering new, often independent brands with fantastic ideas and products. I hope I’ve given you some ideas for gifts that are just that bit different.

When I was pregnant with Florence I was adamant that I did not want to give birth anywhere that wasn’t on the labour ward at the hospital. I wanted there to be doctors on hand immediately should something go awry and I was determined that it would be the best setting to welcome my baby into the world. This time though, I couldn’t feel more different and I’ve found myself planning for an entirely different kind of birth at our local midwife run birthing centre.

We had our tour just before Christmas and I was immediately taken by how calm and quiet it is there. Everything is designed and laid out with relaxation in mind and as soon as we walked in I knew that this was where I wanted our little boy to be born. As soon as I got home, I started my course (gifted) with The Positive Birthing company and everything I learned from the videos just cemented the fact that the birth centre would be perfect for us and our baby in my mind.

Of course, it’s not always a given that you’ll be able to make use of their facilities and so on Saturday I headed there for my risk assessment. We were greeted by a friendly midwife who showed us through to the ‘garden room’ – a tranquil communal area designed for families to spend time together outside of the post natal bedrooms. I was asked a number of questions about my medical history, and how my pregnancy has been this time around. I explained how I barely see my midwife and what happened with the whole gestational diabetes saga and she was so very kind & understanding of my frustrations.

We also talked about my birth experience with Florence and I mentioned how despite it being a pretty complication free labour & birth I didn’t feel very in control at all. Most of the time I had hardly any idea of what was going on. I explained how this time I felt the need to have more control and more say about my birth and my baby and what I have learned from the online hypnobirthing course I’ve done through The Positive Birthing Company. She was very supportive of this and explained that the centre are very pro hypnobirthing techniques and would be happy and equipped to assist with creating the calm and relaxed atmosphere required.

I was then taken into the birthing room to have some regular midwife checks including urine sample, blood pressure and a quick measure of my bump. Everything was fine aside from the fact that I am fairly dehydrated so I’ve got to up my fluid intake quite significantly. Baby is measuring at the larger scale of the chart too so she advised me to cut back on sugar and carbohydrates. Easier said than done when all you crave is chocolate!

I came away feeling even more determined than before to have baby boy at the birth centre rather than on the labour ward. It’s a lot more practical as well, as it’s closer to home and will be easier to sort the logistics of childcare out for Florence if I go into labour while it’s just she and I at home. I just need to keep him tucked up in my tummy until next Monday when I turn 37 Weeks and with any luck it’ll all work in my favour.

I’ll be publishing my birth plan on here in the next couple of days, likely along with a 36 Week pregnancy update so keep your eyes peeled for those.

Just so you know…

I have been gifted a digital hypnobirthing pack from the Positive Birthing Company in return for my honest thoughts in the form of a review. I have not been asked to mention them in this post.

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