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Rosie Pope's 10 Tips for the Other Labor Day
10 Do's and Don'ts for women about to give birth!
Labor Day is on everyone's mind this week, but a different kind of labor day is on Rosie Pope's brain 365 days a year -- when pregnant women go into labor.
Thankfully, Rosie's an expert in that line of work, and because we just couldn't resist a good play on words, we chatted with the Pregnant in Heels star and author of Mommy IQ to get her list of 10 Dos and Don'ts for pregnant women and their spouses. Hint: Getting your hair done is one of them. Got you hooked now, ladies? OK, good -- please enjoy the list:
Rosie Pope's Dos and Don'ts for "Labor Day"
1. Make sure your car seat is installed and ready to go. You've got to learn how to do it yourself. I know so many people who go to the fire station to get it installed, but then if they need to take it out or switch cars, they have no clue how to do it themselves. Embrace the car seat.
2. Stay hydrated to avoid premature labor. People who get dehydrated can often have early contractions. Water is always best. No martinis.
3. Have your partner get a list of all the people you want to email so that it's really easy to send out that announcement. The last thing you want to do is be collecting that at the end. When you have a baby, it's the most beautiful thing in the world and people will be happy that you told them.
4. Make sure you talk to your partner about post-baby pictures. Many times you don't discuss this and he or someone snaps some really unattractive pictures. Your hair is a mess, you're half-naked. Make sure everyone's on the same page and that you get warning when he's about to take the picture.
5. Discuss with your partner how they can be most useful during labor. My husband likes to stay, um, north of the equator -- we talked about it before. Other people really like their person to be all up in their business. It's up to you.
6. Make sure you've read my book Mommy IQ. I think the last chapter called Countdown to 14 is the most important -- it talks about the 14 days post-birth and how to handle thim. (Pre-order Mommy IQ here!)
7. Have a good number for a lactation consultant if you plan to breastfeed. Most of the nurses won't give breastfeeding advice, and most of the problems won't start until you get home. The milk doesn't come in until 3-5 days after youv'e given birth.
8. Get a blowout. People think I'm crazy, but you may not wash your hair for quite a while after you have the baby. I went and got my hair blowdried so many times because I wasn't sure when the baby was going to come, but that's not a bad thing. Pamper yourself.
9. Pack some tasty treats. You are going to be hungrier than you'v ever been after giving birth, so make sure you pack a bag full of goodies.
10. Take time to relax and enjoy the time. When it gets down to the last days before birth, people take it really hard like "is this the day." Remember, enjoy every minute.
