The Best Baby Items - At least in my opinion....

Now that I have my own child I totally have this whole parenting thing figured out - like what works best for a baby and of course, I have the right to judge your parenting skills. Totally kidding. Parenting is a journey, but so far we have been incredibly blessed with a fantastic baby. I wanted to share a few of the items that have worked best for us in these past 8 weeks. Sidenote: I cannot believe it has been 8 weeks already!  

Disclaimer: We have SO many other items that are critical to our every day sanity, but these are just a few I chose to highlight in this post.

E has been rooming in with us. Don't worry, she sleeps in the bassinet in her pack & play. The layout of our room has this little nook area with a light. Within the first week, we bought and installed (by we I mean J) a dimmer switch for the light. Genius. We are able to turn the light on low to change her in the middle of the night. I also dim it when we are doing her bedtime routine and getting ready for bed. In all honesty it is just easier on the parents since J is early to bed and early to rise.

This was one of the best gifts I received post delivery. We were gifted a 6 month subscription to emeals. Every Wednesday I get an email with 7 dinner meals and a grocery list to go along with it. This means that the majority of my grocery shopping is already written out for me AND the meals are already planned! We eat at home a lot and I pack J his breakfast and lunch each day for work so having emeals is an enormous help. I know I will appreciate it more when I return to work. You can choose a plan each month. We started with the Publix plan which was awesome because the meals were planned around the different deals that Publix had going on that week.You can choose plans from clean eating, low fat, slow cooker, paleo, gluten free, etc.

My family made fun of me for using the Baby Connect app, but it is great! I mainly use it to enter her stats at the doctor appointments, vaccinations, when she has been fed (bottle & nursing) as well as the number of diapers. I like to know that she is fed as evenly as possible from each side. You can also add users to enter her information and view it. So when J is with E, I can log in and see when she last ate, etc. It also helps so much with the doctors ask about her eating and diapers - you just pull out your phone! I know I could keep track of it all, but it's much easier to use this app.

When my sister came to visit she suggested using the Netflix account on my iPad for the nursing sessions. I am forever grateful. It helps pass the time when I feed E and J uses it too when she takes her nighttime bottle. I have also expanded my list of tv shows which I know thrills J! So far I have become hooked on Revenge, Once Upon A Time and I just started Army Wives - which I have cried during each episode. I'll probably breeze through this series as well so I am open for suggestions.

We do not swaddle E during the day, but she does sleep in her Woombie Air at night. She has crazy hands and I firmly believe that this helps her sleep. Around 4 weeks she started sleeping in long stretches at night (anywhere from 4-9 hours). I'm terrified her great sleeping will disappear when I go back to work, but we will see. I purchased two woombies and have been very happy with them so far. They are snug, but very strechy so she can move a bit. It also helps me when I feed her because she's confined.

My BFF Double L and I match....Even our Brest Friends match. I think this is a fantastic nursing pillow. It doesn't just fit on you, it buckles around you which gives a lot of support. It also has a little pocket to keep your phone, chapstick, etc. for your nursing sessions. I did not have a C-section, but it claims to be a great pillow for moms who fall into that category.

I know people may laugh at this and say "Give it a few months and you won't sterilize everything or wait until baby number 2 and you won't care that the paci fell on the ground." I assure you that we are not crazy sterilizers for our baby stuff. However, I do sterilize after washing bottles and especially after using my pump. I have this sterilizer plugged in right next to my sink and love the convenience. Surprisingly it holds SO many items (which is great for bottles like Dr. Browns that have a ton of parts) and is very simple to use. It runs for 10 minutes and automatically shuts off when it is done. It has been one of my favorite items thus far and I know I will appreciate it more when I go back to work and have to prep my pump bag and her bag each evening.

Hands down this has been the best gift we received. The Fisher-Price Rock 'N Play Sleeper has been a lifesaver. My plan was to keep this item downstairs for her to nap in during the day. E was jaundice when we left the hospital and we had to keep her on a biliblanket at home for 24 hours. This went on for 2-3 days which made it difficult for her to sleep in her pack & play. That's where this item came in - she was able to keep her blanket on and sleep comfortably in this sleeper. I did move her to the pack & play at night because I was nervous she would be used to sleeping at an incline and that would backfire when we tried to transition her to the crib. It's a great item to contain the baby and it is very easy to take with you while traveling or going up and down the stairs.

Month One

I have struggled with keeping this blog public and cannot decide if I am going to make it private.....Or if I will continue to post without pictures and full names. I have switched most of my picture posting to instagram, but hate not having pictures on here. The Criminal Minds/Law & Order part of me cannot bring myself to do it. Sigh. 

Unfortunately, time has absolutely flown by. In fact, I am writing your one month entry when you are almost 6 weeks old. Thank goodness I take notes on my iphone - otherwise I would not remember any details because you grow so fast!

Sleep: You are sleeping in 3-4 hour increments. In the last few days you will sleep anywhere from 5 hours to 8 hours. At first the long stretches made me nervous, but now I just appreciate them! You are the LOUDEST sleeper. Seriously. I don't know if anyone has a sleeping baby as loud as you. When I get to sleep I don't hear you unless you cry. Your father is not so lucky. Every noise you make wakes him up. On work nights he sleeps in one of the guest rooms so he is rested for work. You have crazy hands and a lovely "startle reflex" - is that what they call it? It's pretty funny to watch when you are napping, but at night you sleep in your wombie which I believe helps you rest. At first you slept and napped in the napper your grandma got you. We would carry it all around the house! I did not want you to get familiar with sleeping on such an incline that we switched back to the original plan of you sleeping in the bassinet on your pack & play. Now you sleep in the bassinet and nap in your swing or napper downstairs.

Clothes and Diapers: You still wear newborn clothes and we will occasionally put you in 0-3 month outfits like your game day onesies. You were in newborn diapers, but due to a horrible diaper rash we have been fighting we have moved you into size 1 diapers. For your first month you have been wearing the Pampers Swaddlers diapers.

Medical: You were a bit jaundice when we left the hospital so for the first few days at home you had a biliblanket. After two days and some blood work, the pediatrician said you were good to go. We also took you to the doctor for a very mild tongue tie and he felt there was no reason to snip it if feeding was getting better (it has stretched) and does not think you will have any speech problems in the future. I think you have a little bit of reflux because you have days where you spit up a ton, but you are a happy spitter and it does not appear to bother you. Your mother is crazy and was convinced that we had thrush so we got medicine as a precaution. As mentioned before you also got a horrible diaper rash around 2 weeks that we have been fighting which was crazy because we are constantly changing you ALL.THE.TIME.

Food: I am currently nursing you which was a bit difficult at first, but has gotten much better. I have started to use the pump with the hope that your mom and dad can go to the Iron Bowl game. As a result, we have begun to try to get you to take a bottle. The first time was crazy due to a lack of preparation on mom and dad's part, but on the second attempt your dad was able to feed you. You seem to prefer the Tommee Tippee bottles thus far. I was really against giving you a bottle before 4 weeks since nursing was going much better, but I know you will need to get ready for daycare. Ugh.

Stats: You weigh 10 lbs and 2 oz so clearly you are getting fed plenty! You have grown a little bit and are 21 inches long.

Events: Your aunt flew all the way from Germany to come meet you! She also used mom's ticket to go to the AU/uga game with your dad. AU had the craziest (and luckiest) catch and won the game! You and I watched the game at home with your grandparents and it is a miracle I did not drop you after the game winning catch. 

Likes:
Mommy Milk
Being held by Dad
The Swing
The Napper - you love the napper and it helped out so much when you were attached to the biliblanket

Dislikes:
When your diaper gets dirty
Being hungry
Being gassy

Around two weeks we had newborn pictures taken. Your aunt was still in town from Germany so she came with us and was a huge help! It was quite an experience and the pictures turned out great. I may be bias, but you are such a beautiful baby! You have the cutest little cheeks and get compliments on your lips almost all the time. Comments have also been made on how alert you are and how much you keep your eyes open. We started doing some tummy time with you on your playmat because you love to bop your head around like crazy. Your dad, grandpa and myself swear that we have all seen you smile and you are starting to "coo" a bit more. Your furry sisters were not quite sure what to do with you. Miss Friski quickly adjusted (because she is our perfect child) and will often hop in my lap when I am holding or feeding you. Fendi Foo does not like the noises you make and is pretty much terrified of you. You are the most loved baby in our family of course and you are the first grandchild on both your mom and dad's side. We love you sweet girl and cannot wait to watch you grow up although the thought makes me cry which could be due to my hormones.

All About Mom:
- I am pretty much thirsty all the time.
- Dropped 29 lbs within the first two weeks. So the baby weight plus some (I had some to lose before getting pregnant) has been lost, but my body definitely does not look like it did pre baby. I am pretty sure the extra weight being lost is from my muscles going away so I cannot wait to work out again. I try and take you on walks when I can, but the cold weather scares me. #paranoidfirsttimemom
- The first two weeks were very sleep deprived, but it got much better.
- Soreness from delivery is still evident, but I can tell that my body is recovering.
- My blood pressure was high when we left the hospital so I am on BP medicine until I have my follow up appointment around 6 weeks. I have never had high BP and it was fine during pregnancy so hopefully it will return to normal at the appointment. I am pretty sure it's a symptom from the trauma that labor and delivery caused - he he. 
- I am cold all the time - even when it's 73 degrees in my house. I hope that goes away when my hormones adjust.
- So very glad to enjoy sushi and sub sandwiches again!