Day 13 - Will anything fit & a Postpartum Care Session

Carmen Fourie
3 days ago
6 min read

A baby in a white blanket lies on a soft rug, while a child in blue plays with blocks in a bright room with wooden furniture. Cozy atmosphere.

Today's the day I have my postpartum care session with Vivara - but only this evening.

The day started with me having breakfast downstairs with my family. This is becoming part of our daily routine and feeling easier and easier each time. That being said... I am getting this strong urge to declutter and organize our house (not yet). I am realizing with two kids I am going to need our environment to be simpler, easier to keep neat & clean, and just way less stuff with more order.

I am contemplating getting - How to manage your home without losing your mind by Dana K White on Audible.

It might take me a while to get in the flow of two kids... and I am not going to rush figuring that out now, but I am seeing areas and ways that our family can make some changes to make life less chaotic and feel easier. More on that later... (when I start figuring it out - for now... rest and nourishment still priority).

Wondering what I will fit into for the foreseeable future ...

Given the PP care session includes a photos... I've had some thoughts come up around what to wear. And what I will fit into for the foreseeable future...

Woman in a black tank top looking pensive, holding a baby wrapped in a white blanket, in a bright room with a neutral background.

This was hard for me after Elba's birth. Especially fitting my breasts into anything. They remained huge for about 5 months. I didn't buy bra's because I didn't know how long they'd be like that. I just uncomfortably squeezed them into bra's that are too small and I am not willing to do that again.

In pregnancy I made 2 x organic lounge wear bras that are awesome - link here. I haven't yet tried them on, but I will. For now I wearing a pack of polyester (urg) bra's I ordered last minute off Amazon to have anything that fits, but is loose. Aside from them being polyester, they actually are really great and comfortable (size up).

Pregnant woman in black bra takes selfie. Insets show black lounge bra, PDF sewing pattern. Text: "PDF Pattern & Instructions, Lounge Bra Pattern."

I've also ordered some cotton ones off Amazon, but I am still waiting for them to come. One I am back to doing my DIY things (really not sure when this will be) - I will make my own organic cotton cross over front ones for nursing and some more lounge wear ones based on whatever size I am at that time.

Ian "Are you wearing 2 sets of PJs every day?" (he asked with love because he was confused about the laundry.

Yes, I have worn 2 x sets of PJs every day. One at night and one during the day. I have not worn normal pants yet. I ordered 2 sets of large tank tops / camis off Amazon to wear as something a little bit fitting (to keep my nursing pads in place for leaking), but loose enough that not restrictive. I wear two of those every day under a thrifted cotton long sleeve top/shirt to sleep in.

I don't think any of my normal clothes will fit at this stage. Most of my maternity pants are too big and my normal pants are too small. It is absolutely wild to think in the last 3 years my body has fluctuated around 20kgs twice... who knows what it will look and feel like after this pregnancy and for right now my main priority is how I nourished I am and how well I recover to care for my littles. Once I am healed the priority will shirt to how nourished, well and also strong... I want to be strong to do things with my littles with ease.

BUT that being said ... with a photoshoot I am realizing that at some point I need some clothes that fit... While I am happy to wear PJs in this current phase... I do still want some comfortable non-PJ looking things for when I venture more and more out the room and we have visitors that are not support women who I don't mind seeing me in my bedroom state (which we will start lightly doing from next week).

Raising Elba

What a shift it has been for her, and for Ian. Today they went to an indoor ice rink (yes in Calgary in winter because we have a Chinook and all the ice is melted). The two of them are figuring things out, but we are also realizing that we could use more resources / support with this... To give her as much as we wish to give her (mostly in terms of attention and patience).

A cozy living room with a white blanket fort and plush cushions. Books and ukulele on the mantel, toys on shelves, soft lighting sets a playful mood.

Our lounge currently has a giant fort in it. Made from play couches.

Postpartum care session with Vivara

A 2-hour session in our home aimed at care and assessment and support for me & Baby M - by Jen & Celeste. Both registered nurses with lots of personal and professional experience with postpartum.

This session was a collab - with our shared passion for honouring this time. Ensuring that mothers feel held, cared for and receive a lot of support in this huge transition time.

A woman cradles a baby on a bed, another reviews papers. A child in a heart-patterned sweater drinks from a cup. Cozy room setting.

With their medical expertise they conducted an assessment for me & for baby M. Answered all questions I had around both of us and they offered helpful suggestions for things, and provided (afterwards) resources for additional reading & videos on various things we discussed to help as well.

Person in a blue sweater holding a sleeping baby on their lap. Background shows another person standing. Warm, cozy indoor setting.

Craniosacral therapy (CST) for Baby M and for me. This was our first craniosacral session, but I have heard good things and had it suggested to me by friends. The huge thing here was having it done in the comfort of our home. I am all for gentle therapies like craniosacral, osteopathy, myofascial, etc BUT since we limit leaving the house in the first 40 days, I wouldn't leave to do those unless they were truly necessary. I love that this is an option for having it done in home, but then it comes with lots of PP care as well!

A woman meditates with closed eyes, sitting on a bed beside a baby in a patterned onesie. The room is softly lit, creating a serene mood.

Guided mediation

Celeste did a wonderful birth mediation - guided. I appreciate and find more value from guided mediations and this one was particularly wonderful in bringing back birth experience, but in such a gentle and beautiful way. I can see how anyone would benefit from this mediation for any birth experience they had as a way to process some / all of the birth. I wish I had something like this after Elba's birth. I hadn't even considered it at the time.

Foot soak, massage and mediation - they also did such a caring foot soak (epsom salt - you know I lose epsom salt) with a neck and foot massage while a beautiful mediation played in relaxed candle lighting.

Being there with my other little - Elba was there the whole time and both women were really great in terms of including her in a way that it was very relaxing. Everything was done in the context of being a mom, with the understanding that self care for me is not being away from my kids - but doing it with them there or even on top of me.

Woman meditates beside a newborn on a pillow. Another woman with a stethoscope reads papers. Child sits nearby. Calm mood, neutral setting.

Lactation support

Received some really great support! Yes, I breastfed Elba for 2.5 years (a bit longer but hard to know when it stopped). But the initial breastfeeding journey was a bit impractical - with having huge breasts. I of course just did it, because EBF (exclusively breastfeeding) is important to me, but it is really nice receiving some tips on ways that it could be better this time. Like a boob - sling (literally making a sling out of a soft blanket to hold up my boob).

It is also nice having people observe nursing and make suggestions for positioning and things to look for and adapt.

Concluding remarks on the session

If you can - I recommend it. One session or more (more would be better). The two women were very mindful of the space, of the sensitivity of this time. They were noninvasive, gentle, but also hands on in a way that felt very caring and supportive.

See Vivara website here

P.s. This is a collab around passion for the post-partum period - not promotion. I share all the good things because they were truly good and I felt the benefits that I think will be so beneficial to all women PP time. So if you're looking for an investment into your motherhood or something someone could gift - I recommend a session/s with Vivara.

I will share more in other days about the specific benefits of the different things they did in the session because some of it is things one could do more of for yourself (although I have mentioned this - there is something powerful about feeling the support and care from other women in this time. So it wouldn't be instead of it. It would be in addition to).

Thank you Celeste & Jen for a wonderful session.

A child in a pink sweater with black hearts holds a bouquet of flowers. Another person hands flowers to the child in a softly lit room.

Ending the day

Elba and I had some of the delicious banana bread brought by Vivara.

Packaged loaf labeled "Bridgeland Fresh" and a bouquet wrapped in brown paper on a marble table. Bright flowers and greens are visible.

Followed by some tuna & rice in cheese sauce made by my mom for our freezer stash for this time when she visited us.

Blue bowl with a spoon holds mashed food on a wooden table. In the background, a white bowl contains grated orange carrots. Warm, cozy setting.

Followed by Ian doing huge clean up of kitchen and lounge space - he has been doing this everyday. Usually this was team effort. And this was followed by what now feels like a long bath routine of me bathing with Elba while Ian does washing or holds M and then I hang out with the babies while Ian showers. We read and then sleep.

We will figure out some better rhythms with time and practice.