15 Secrets To The Coolest SUMMER PREGNANCY

• 1. Feet UP! It’s just as important to sit & take breaks, as it is important to stand up & walk around. (P.S. These will be the last days you get to sit whenever you please, for quite some time. Take advantage of it.) Elevating my legs a bit, but not higher than the heart, helped relieve aches in my calves, relieved pressure on my knees, & most importantly kept the “kankles” at bay.
• 2. The Fruit Guy – Those Rainbow umbrellas are now dotted all over Southern California street corners. Have you ever seen them & been curious to try? They serve chilled Mango, Melons, Pineapple, Jicama, & Coconut freshly chopped in chunks & generously piled high in a to-go cup. The fruit salad is offered with a squeeze of lime & sprinkle of chili (optional). This meal made me happy & feeling full-yet-cool on sweltering Summer afternoons. *Check out my recipe for a healthy Mexican Fruit Salad Breakfast dish called a "Bionico" on my blog.
• 3. Water Bottle – Cold water 24/7. It kept me hydrated for 2, but also served as a grab-n-go cold pack to put on the nape of my neck or between my legs while driving. I heard that you should cool off your pulse-points in order to cool down faster. So, I do wrists, back of knees, inner things & side of neck. Those areas work for me! Best bottles that keep water chilly but still feel cold on the outside are the stainless steel kind. I avoid aluminum as it has been linked to Alzheimer’s & requires a lining, which is usually BPA.
• 4. Pool – I DREAMT of having a pool like the one Cameron Diaz had in the movie The Holiday. My house in “The Valley” wasn’t quite as hotel-like but it was a watering hole & it was private. Every darn day I put on a bikini & sunglasses, stuck my belly through the cut-out part of a floaty donut, cranked the KROQ 80’s music station, & I floated face down.. Weightless... And it was magic.
• 5. Maxi Dress – There literally is no other more comfortable & cool Summer pregnancy outfit. The maxi flutters & flows & makes me feel pretty. It’s a one-piece outfit so it takes the whole bending-over & searching for pants out of the equation. I have a friend who specializes in Maxi Dresses (Yep. The Maxi is her niche.) And I own a dozen of hers from BLUSH. BTW everything in her shop is under $100. These are worth every penny because I wore mine wayyyy into the 4^th Trimester as I was still losing the initial baby-weight. I got so many compliments & felt like a mommy goddess!
• 6. Birks – No-brainer, slip-on, no-bend-over shoes. Is there ANYTHING better when it’s 100 degrees outside & you can’t see your own feet? Plus I discovered that Birkenstocks aren’t just for the Earth Mother boho look (although I do love that too). The updated Birkenstocks now come in metallics, & patterns, & even in a thong design if you prefer. My feet were SO swollen from the heat, plus I developed edema. By D-day my feet were 1 full size larger & they never went back! Say goodbye to a closet of stilettos that will never fit again (I’m talking to you, Gucci sling backs! *Holding back a tear*)
• 7. Breathable Under-lovelies – YES you have to wear underpants even if it’s hot outside! (That’s also what I tell my toddler.) And YES they should be comfy and healthy. I wore breathable all cotton on the bottom, & “wick-away” bras on the top. Invest in them. It’s worth it. Kept sweat & bladder infections away. Kept me cool. Cotton is cute. You can even buy organic. For the bras I went with Breezies at QVC, but I hear Lane Bryant has a new “Cooling Bra” that’s amaze.
• 8. Frozen Baby Wash Clothes – You’re gonna buy thousands of these lil puppies for the next few years anyhow. Might as well start now. They're the softest things ever, & they're just the right size for a quick cool-off. I find them less sloppy than the bigger adult wash clothes. Just wet a few, roll them up, stick them in sandwich bags or cling-wrap, & stick them in the freezer. When feeling overheated I grabbed some & threw them on my feet, draped them over my head, shoulders, wherever.
• 9. Jersey Sheets – For the love of all things big 'n' small, please make your bed the most comfortable thing on earth! This is the last real sleep you will ever get. Make it count! Sleeping while gigantically pregnant (I had an almost 11 pounder in my belly!) is uncomfortable enough before adding sweaty hot weather on top of it. 100% cotton sheets means they breathe, unlike most synthetic fabrics. I felt like I was slipping into a hotel bed, that was also as comfy as one of my husbands old t-shirts. You can get them at Target.
• 10. Fan Me – I’ve lived in LA almost all my life, except when I was in NY & San Diego. Both are places that require a good ol’ box fan. This is an easy way to cool off & keep the air circulating. I’d place a bowl of ice on my lap, scoot my chair up to the fan, & put my face right in front of it, letting the breeze push over the ice onto my face like a blast from the freezer. Old-school, cool.
• 11. Spritzer – I had the mini spritzer that hangs around your neck. I had the traditional hair-dressers spray bottle. Have you seen the new water-bottle-spritzers that are all in one? My real treat was kept in the fridge & taken out when I wanted to indulge. The Evian atomizer! That's also one of my favorite travel hacks. I always use it to fight the dry airplane air when I'm flying.
• 12. Mineral Makeup – The makeup mudslide that pools around the base of my neck is so not an option while pregnant during the Summer. I managed this problem the same way I managed it for my wedding day, in June. Mineral Makeup! Because I am crazy about not using chemicals while pregnant, I chose to only wear Bare Minerals from head to toe. It was my foundation, cover-up, spider vein camouflage, bronzer & everything else. My skin looked radiant, not sweaty. My favorite tip is to dip your natural beeswax lip balm stick into the blush color mineral pot, & use that as your lipstick. It ensures you're not eating any gross ingredients off your lips & you don’t have to buy any lipsticks that are just going to melt in your car anyways.
• 13. *Bigger Fake Ring – My fingers swell in the heat, & I couldn’t fit into my wedding ring when pregnant. I really wanted to look married while I was pregnant! So what did I do? Bought a big faux ring that fits! It felt good to rock a (fake) rock that was sparkly & comfy. I got a white gold-plated metal ring with big princess cut "diamonds". I remember being complimented on my "beautiful ring" from a Hollywood Executive when I was interviewing for a show, & I admitted immediately that it was fake. She like my honesty so much that it got me a 2nd interview. *Btw: When I say “Bigger” I do mean size of ring, but hey, if you are going to buy a fakey cubic zirconia, why not GO BIG on the stone too? Just for fun ;-)
• 14. Flavored Ice Cubes – These are good on so many levels, & beyond. 2 easy steps: Poor favorite juice into cube tray. Freeze. That's it. I popped them out & stuck them in a bowl & snacked on them. I decorated a boring glass of water with them because I like things to look pretty, & it flavored my water. I tried not to drink too much straight juice because of its high sugar content. These cubes provided a happy medium. Later, I used the ice trays for baby food. (There are tons of recipes on Pinterest.)
• 15. Night Walks – Better than Night Sweats right? When the sun goes down in the valley during a heatwave, we finally get a break from triple digit weather. That’s the time (& only time) I went for walks, & it. was. beautiful. I felt alive & it felt good to move my body. Got some quiet romantic time to hold hands & talk with my hubby. Fresh air & an orange sunset over the Pacific Ocean. Those evening walks are some of our favorite pregnancy memories, ever.

Please add your tricks & tips for a cool summer pregnancy in the comments below. I'd love to give more ideas to my listeners. Feel free to share my list of my top 15 with your friends & followers too!

Kristin Cruz: Mom of 3. Ex-Radio Host. Get Her Favorite Weekly Newsletter & Lifestyle Tips.