The Third Trimester - Weeks 28-40 - Part 2

Weeks 28 -33 were pretty much unremarkable and similar to the latter stages of the first half of the Third Trimester.

My iron levels were found to be low after the 28 week blood test and I was taking Floradix but I found it was making me feel ill rather than energising me. I have since switched to taking SpaTone and what a difference it has made to how I feel and boosting my energy levels. I highly recommend it.

The baby bump is bigger and far more noticeable and so it should be as I am almost there!

I am trying to keep active by walking as much as I can but since week 33 the SPD pain has ramped up a bit and baby is still loving sitting/pushing against my bladder..

Since 35 weeks I have been experiencing really heavy legs without any swelling (I keep checking!). This has made walking quite an effort as it feels like I am dragging lead weights around. The baby is also very active but does like to wedge itself into painful positions, nothing really new there!

36 weeks - all the above still applies... My lovely school mum friends surprised me with cake and gifts - isn't the cake above just the cutest?! It tasted incredibly good too.

37 weeks - So baby is now deemed to be term and no longer premature, baby can come any day now!!

I have been measured for nursing bras, both baby and my hospital bags are ready - we just need to build the crib and we are ready for baby's arrival :)

38 weeks - Bump seems huge now! I really feel quite heavy.

I have also acquired puffy feet (oh the glamour!) Weighted legs are still a feature and walking any distance is incredibly uncomfortable.

There isn't much room in there now and the baby's movements are even stronger if that is even possible... I feel it stretching from my ribs right down to my bladder area. I have even had the baby push out something that feels quite bony out of my rib area, to the family's amusement.

At times it lays in a position that sends shooting pains down my legs and this can last for a good 15 minutes where I think that my hips are going to disengage from my legs, scary I can tell you.

The baby's room is painted, the drawers are in place and the crib is built... we are almost there!!

39 weeks - I am not going to lie, this week has been a struggle - the pressure building down below is quite something. The nightly toilet breaks are getting to be harder too, getting out of bed comfortably and walking is so painful. The pain sometimes just to turn over in bed has me biting my pillow, and this pain can go on for up to half an hour until baby decides to move...

A few days ago I felt regular pains and pressure and we all got excited to think it could be contractions but alas it wasn't labour - this has happened a fair few times now but it goes away after about an hour. It can happen a few times a day.

Bump seems lower now too, are things imminent?

Emotions - I have had a few crying spells, full on sobbing fests. Apparently this is completely normal as your hormones prepare for labour and is caused by a drop in progesterone.

40 weeks - Today is my due date with no sign of baby making an appearance... I guess I will be having an April baby afterall!!

Bettina x

Easter With Hotel Chocolat - Caramel Chocolate Scrambled Easter Egg

Think gorgeous and tasty Easter Eggs and Easter chocolate treats and I automatically head to Hotel Chocolat. In the past I have enjoyed Hotel Chocolat's deluxe egg Rocky Road To Caramel and my young son has had the Egg on Toast amongst others...

This year Hotel Chocolat invited me to choose an egg to review and as I have a real love of caramel tasting chocolate I chose the delightfully sounding Caramel Chocolate Scrambled Easter Egg 

It features one generously sized caramel chocolate Easter Egg and a packet of 6 bite size scrambled pralines - smooth praline encased in deliciously sweet caramel chocolate.

Unfortunately for me I made the mistake of showing my seven year old the Easter Egg and he asked (very nicely!) if we could have an early Easter...  Who am I to deny my little boy ... well it turns out he adores caramel chocolate and he pretty much devoured the Easter Egg, Hotel Chocolat you have a real fan of yours right here, he LOVED it! Declaring it yummy indeed. As it was a good size egg and fairly rich we did manage to eek the egg out over 3 days which I reckon is great value. I did manage to have a sneaky piece or too - oh by the way I must mention that allow the egg is hollow it is fairly strong, it took a fair few attempts to crack it!!

I ensured the pralines were safely ensconced in my possession so that I could enjoy them in peace with a cup of tea for elevenses once he was safely deposited in school. These taste every bit as good as they look. Crispy sweet caramel chocolate on the outside with a deliciously smooth praline inside, these are sophisticated and grown up, oh how I enjoyed my tea break :)

Well we were both completely sold on the Caramel Chocolate Scrambled Easter Egg and I think it is fabulous value and worth every penny at just £15. 

However, I recommend that you should definitely make a visit to a Hotel Chocolat near you or visit their website as there is a huge selection of Easter Eggs & Kiddie treats, something for every budget and taste.

Happy Easter!

*PR Sample

My Favourite Beauty Products Of 2015

For my favourite beauty/makeup products of 2015 I went for the products I reached out for the most in my makeup bag...and unsurprisingly the products took in my eyes, cheeks and lips!

You would have had to have lived under a shell not to notice the trend for contouring (made really famous by Kim Kardashian) and not being blessed with lovely cheekbones this has been one trend that I have been embracing in a small way.

I love to accentuate/fake my cheekbones with the extremely affordable SEVENTEEN Define & Conquer Contour Kit which costs just £5.99 from Boots. It is a really simple way of defining and illuminating the face contours and comes with a handy instruction sheet to help you.

I simply adore a good nude lippie, lord knows I have plenty in varying shades but as you can see by how much the one above has been used,  this is my favourite everyday shade and formula - Max Factor Colour Elixir in shade Simply Nude and coming in at £7.99 is the perfect price for everyday use. My lips but better.

Finally, readers of BeautySwot will know that I don't use fake lashes or inserts so I am always on the look out for mascaras and products that enhance my natural lashes... Estee Lauder's Little Black Primer was an absolute essential last year with its multi uses. Promising to tint, amplify and set it does it all. Use alone for pretty and natural lashes, use as a primer under your mascara to give the 'wow factor' to your mascara. It thickens lashes, lifts and lengthens. My favourite use is to set the mascara you are wearing with a final coat of the LBP. It makes the mascara waterproof which is absolutely essential for me in the Summer as I suffer from Hay Fever. I also used it at my sister's wedding and there were many tears of joy but my mascara stayed firmly in place. A brilliant, brilliant product. It costs £20 but is worth every penny.

So there you have it, my favourite products of 2015. What were yours?

Dermalogica Hydrablur Primer Review

The newest Dermalogica Primer (Hydrablur) I have been testing had a hard act to follow as the previous one I have tried I described as the Rolls Royce of Primers - Skinperfect Primer SPF30 so how could this latest one possibly compare?

Dermalogica say 

Hydrating, smoothing primer

Lightweight, non-greasy primer minimizes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, mattifies against oily shine and imparts a silky, luminous finish to skin.

My thoughts 

Well Hydrablur doesn't disappoint. It has a lovely lightweight texture that leaves skin feeling soft and silky, blurring everything in its wake. Skin looks younger and smoother instantly which is great for this thirty eight year old, pores are blurred and skin basically looks and feels great. It provides a fantastic canvas for foundation as it literally glides on after this primer application. I found it locked my makeup into place and kept it there all day, with no tell tale shine on the nose after a few hours.

A fabulous primer and one that I reach for every day. It may be fairly pricey but based on the previous primer I used it really lasts a long time so in my mind is well worth it.

Ooh yes I forget to mention... there is a handy little tool that comes with it to squeeze out every last bit of your product from the tube. Handy.

Dermalogica Hydrablur Primer costs £38 

*PR Sample