1. Borrow big items like a swing and bouncer, then buy if your baby likes them! Unless you get them off of your registry, then someone else bought them so you might as well keep it for the next one/sell it if the baby doesn't like it!
2. The BEST sleepers are the "stretchies" from The Children's Place. They're cheap, they're a good weight, and they have ZIPPERS!
3. Invest in some swaddle wraps with the velcro. Much easier than swaddling with blankets.
4. Don't buy any blankets-you will get 1,000 for your baby shower.
5. Don't be too hard on yourself.
6. Sleepers without feet in the winter are used better during the day with socks, unless you want to put socks on the baby when they sleep.
7. Purpose of baby shoes = to keep on baby socks.
8. Breastfeeding is hard, and it really sucks (in more ways than one) for the first month. It does get better. Keep at it.
9. Cloth diapers and wipes are awesome.
10. Purpose of bibs for babies who don't eat solids yet = drool catchers
11. Getting out of the house with a baby is like working out. You dread the thought of it, and it takes you a long time to actually do it, but once you're doing it it feels good and you're glad you did.
12. Don't isolate yourself.
13. You might think you won't need/want a video monitor, but you will.
14. Keeping a strict schedule of every 2-3 hour feedings during the day (no less than 2 hours, no more than 3) is crucial in helping your baby sleep through the night.
15. Putting the baby to bed sleepy but awake is crucial to help them learn how to fall asleep on their own.
16. Mustela baby lotion/no rinse solution is the best.
17. Best idea for the first month or two: put some blankets in a short laundry basket and use it to carry baby around room to room during the day to get things done
18. Get a TV series on DVD and watch it during the early months when breastfeeding takes forever. Gives you something to do and something to look forward to during feeding times so you don't want to shoot yourself.
19. Don't bring too much crap to the hospital. All you really need is a camera, chapstick, phone with charger, hair elastics, some nursing tanks and comfy pants.
20. Don't feel guilty about any of your choices. You know what's best for you and your baby and whatever choice you make is the right one!
21. Start introducing a bottle and pumping by 4 weeks so your baby won't refuse the bottle.
22. Take lots of photos and videos-you won't regret having too many, you'll regret not having enough.
23. Don't waste money on disposable nursing pads. Get cloth ones, Bamboobies are the best!!
24. Nursing tanks > nursing bras. You can cover up your middle (which trust me, you do not want to show off in public) and they look good and discreet under anything.
25. If your baby hates tummy time on the floor, have them do it on your chest or on a boppy.
26. Put the baby in their crib as soon as they sleep through the night. You will both sleep better. (This is where the video monitor comes in)
27. This is how to group baby clothes (since Carter's brand and some others has nb-3-6-9, etc sizing where most others have 0-3, 3-6, 6-9, etc.). Put 3 month with 0-3, 6 month with 3-6, 9 month with 6-9 and so on.
28. Make your big items gender neutral. You don't get a baby shower for the second one....
29. Bedtime routines are crucial in helping baby know its bedtime-i.e. nurse, read a book, sing, put in crib with mobile/white noise.
30. White noise is a lifesaver. Download the smartphone app. Now.
31. The boppy is good for propping, tummy time, etc. but sucks for breastfeeding. Get the Brest friend.
32. Accept help from others.
1.20.2012
1.10.2012
Three Months Old!
This has been a wonderful month filled with lots of excitement and milestones! Carter has been such a good baby, generally only crying when he's hungry or tired. He's been spending a lot more time awake and alert and likes laying on the play mat and sitting in his bouncer where he can bat at and grab toys. He spent his first night in his own crib on Sunday, December 18th. It was a lot harder for me than it was for him! The craziest part is finding him in a completely different direction than the one we put him down in. He shuffles all over the crib somehow! He generally goes to bed around 11pm and wakes up around 7am every day, which is wonderful!! Our bedtime routine consists of me feeding him, then one of us holds him while the other reads a book, then I sing "You are my Sunshine/I love you Carter" to him as I rock him the rocking chair. My mom sang the same songs to me when I was a baby. I put him in his crib sleepy but awake and put on his giraffe white noise machine and crank up the mobile. He usually falls asleep right away!
He smiles all the time which melts our hearts! Often he looks like he's laughing, but no sound comes out! I can't wait to hear his first giggle! Although a few times we went to get him in his crib and he was laying on his side, on December 31st we witnessed him roll to his left side from his back numerous times on the play mat! Since then, he rolls to his left side immediately when we put him down to sleep and sucks his thumb. He is SO CLOSE to rolling all the way over onto his tummy but can't quite get his arm out from underneath him. Also, one of the best milestones of the month was finally being able to ditch the nursing shield! He latches on great now and it only takes him 15 minutes or less to nurse at each session which makes a HUGE difference in my day!
One not so exciting event was when he got the dreaded 2 shots at his 2 month appointment, which actually went a lot better than I expected. He stopped crying pretty much as soon as I picked him up and gave him the pacifier. The Nurse Practitioner said that he was a "fabulous baby" and also that he was the size of a 6 month old (95th percentile for height and 90th for weight). Figures, since he is wearing 6-9 month clothes already!
Nana, Poppie and Jimmy came into town on December 20th and stayed through Christmas until December 30th. This was the first time Carter got to meet his Uncle Jim! Nana and Poppie couldn't believe how much he'd grown since they had seen him last. He had his first Christmas and athough he didn't know what was going on, it was still fun to take pictures of him in all his Christmas outfits!
Carter got 2 colds this month, the latter of which he developed a 101.4 degree temp on January 1st and we had to bring him to the ER for the first time to be evaluated. It was really hard for me because my RN instincts told me that he was okay and just had a cold, making the ER trip pretty unnecessary but my mother instincts to know for SURE he was okay won out. So after giving him a dose of Tylenol, off we went. We were there from 10:30pm-2:30am. It made for a long night for all 3 of us!
Milestones:
Drools
Pulls at/grabs blankets and clothes
Bats at/grabs toys
Clutches own hands together
Brings objects to mouth
Sucks on fingers and thumb often
Rolls from back to left side
Holds head steady most of the time
Tries to sit up, likes to sit up assisted
Likes to stand up assisted for a few seconds
Pushes up on legs when held against chest
Verbalizes discontent without crying
Says "ahh-goo" and gurgles often
Likes being tickled under the chin
Hugs blanket animal toys
He smiles all the time which melts our hearts! Often he looks like he's laughing, but no sound comes out! I can't wait to hear his first giggle! Although a few times we went to get him in his crib and he was laying on his side, on December 31st we witnessed him roll to his left side from his back numerous times on the play mat! Since then, he rolls to his left side immediately when we put him down to sleep and sucks his thumb. He is SO CLOSE to rolling all the way over onto his tummy but can't quite get his arm out from underneath him. Also, one of the best milestones of the month was finally being able to ditch the nursing shield! He latches on great now and it only takes him 15 minutes or less to nurse at each session which makes a HUGE difference in my day!
One not so exciting event was when he got the dreaded 2 shots at his 2 month appointment, which actually went a lot better than I expected. He stopped crying pretty much as soon as I picked him up and gave him the pacifier. The Nurse Practitioner said that he was a "fabulous baby" and also that he was the size of a 6 month old (95th percentile for height and 90th for weight). Figures, since he is wearing 6-9 month clothes already!
Nana, Poppie and Jimmy came into town on December 20th and stayed through Christmas until December 30th. This was the first time Carter got to meet his Uncle Jim! Nana and Poppie couldn't believe how much he'd grown since they had seen him last. He had his first Christmas and athough he didn't know what was going on, it was still fun to take pictures of him in all his Christmas outfits!
Carter got 2 colds this month, the latter of which he developed a 101.4 degree temp on January 1st and we had to bring him to the ER for the first time to be evaluated. It was really hard for me because my RN instincts told me that he was okay and just had a cold, making the ER trip pretty unnecessary but my mother instincts to know for SURE he was okay won out. So after giving him a dose of Tylenol, off we went. We were there from 10:30pm-2:30am. It made for a long night for all 3 of us!
Milestones:
Drools
Pulls at/grabs blankets and clothes
Bats at/grabs toys
Clutches own hands together
Brings objects to mouth
Sucks on fingers and thumb often
Rolls from back to left side
Holds head steady most of the time
Tries to sit up, likes to sit up assisted
Likes to stand up assisted for a few seconds
Pushes up on legs when held against chest
Verbalizes discontent without crying
Says "ahh-goo" and gurgles often
Likes being tickled under the chin
Hugs blanket animal toys
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