These are a few of my favorite things...

Five, to be exact, ranked from favorite to favoritest.

#5: Vaseline Cocoa Butter Vitalizing Gel Body Oil

Is it a butter, a gel, or an oil? Who knows and who cares-it's great! This stuff became part of my nightly, multi-step mositurization routine a few weeks ago and it's here to stay. A good dose applied to my tummy before bed stops my skin from screaming and I wake up with that just-applied-lotion feeling. And, with luck, it will ward off the stretch marks that babycenter.com so kindly reminds me with each sign-on "may begin to appear in the next few weeks."
# 4: Claussen Kosher Dill Spears

Cliched, I know, but you can't help what you love. If I had composed this list five weeks ago, this pickle would have been #1 without a doubt. Back then, I was plowing through 3-5 of these spears a day. Now, I'm content with a delicious, crispy pickle snack just every few days, but they're still great!

# 3: Crocs flip flops

I love to wear flip flops (much to Jacob's shagrin, since he thinks they're beach-only attire), but carrying a baby proved far too mighty a task for my ordinary thin-soled flops. Enter the Croc flop! It's not as cute as the wafer-thin, suede variety, but it's cushy, it's squishy, and it provides way more support.

#2: Carbs

Bagels and 'taters and pastas, oh my! I'd be the worst ever Atkins-dieter right now. For months now, vegetables have been hard on my stomach, I've had aversions to many meats, and dairy products have been a surefire way to get sick. So...I've been eating carbs and fruit. It's what gets me through. Thank goodness Baby Snodgrass gets the benefit of a prenatal vitamin each morning! (Don't worry, my doctor said trusting my body as to the limits of what I can eat is just fine for Baby.)

#1: The Snoogle maternity pillow

This tops my list of favorite things because without a Snoogle to snuggle, I am a sleepless, pained woman. Plus, it comes with a chart of about 12 Snoogle formations to try! The pictures below show the extended formations, but last night, when all else failed, "The Nest" (where the Snoogle is rolled up in a swirl and placed behind your back and head to allow for sleeping upright) was a real lifesaver. I would recommend the Snoogle to any and all with a baby on the way (or anyone with joint pain)! The only drawback is that in order to reposition, you pretty much have to unmake the bed (with you out of it) and flip the thing around. This is not so much fun at 3 AM, but it does a good job of keeping you from accidentally falling into the pregnancy no-no positions of back or stomach sleeping. The Snoogle also doesn't leave your husband much room on his side of the bed, but, hey, you're sleeping for two!