Survival tools.

Some of the best marketing goes into baby products. I cannot believe all the stuff at places like Babies R Us, they really know how to trick people into spending money! I have many things I might never use, and many things I never wanted because I knew I would never use. I would like to share the few, but very important, baby things that have made the first month of Olivia's life a happy time for everyone.

-Sleep Sheep, he lives in Olivia's crib and she loves him. So do I.
-Swaddling blankets, they can be used for many things.
-NUK pacifiers (BPA-free of course).
-Her vibrating chair.
-BABYWEARING! I cannot speak highly enough of it. We have the Moby Wrap, but there are cheap ways to make your own!
-Medela manual pump and nipple shield. My lactation consultant doesn't like the nipple shield, but I do. It works for me.
-Cloth diapers. Save money, easy, green. I use Rockin Green soap. If you cloth diaper, use it.
-A glass of red wine in the evenings while Olivia naps :)

That's all I can think of for now.

One month old.

Olivia is one month old today and I cannot believe it. She is a teeny tiny little piece of heaven.

Chill babies

Olivia is not a fussy baby. Is it correct to say "easy" baby? I don't want to curse myself. Now that I have a routine down, it seems so much easier. It was overwhelming the first few days Todd and my mom went to work and I was on my own. I got used to their help, especially while I was still healing. Also, being a brand-new mom was so daunting. She is three weeks old now and still sleeps quite a bit. What's great now though is that she is so alert. Now when she looks at me I feel she is actually looking AT me and not just staring off into space. She follows me with her eyes if I lay her on the bed and they are so big and full of expression . I love being her mom. She is so sweet, so peaceful. We do stuff all day long together (she mainly just naps in her wrap). I promise I will come back with more interesting material for the blog but for now I am going to get some sleep in while she naps. :)

Note: Any San Diego area moms that can recommend a mom group for me, please let me know. I would love to join one, but I'd prefer based on recommendation since there are so many. Or, does anyone want to start one? I don't have too many close friends with kids.

little blue eyes

Hello!

I am back with the living. I feel rested and I haven't had coffee yet. Olivia is sleeping for about 3 hour periods, which means only about one feeding in the late night. And last night I did it all myself, I need to practice for when we go back home and leave the luxury of my mom's home and help :/. Just a quick post... here is a pic of Olivia in my current favorite cloth.

Angel Baby

So that's what these big boobs are for!

Breastfeeding has not been the easy, seamless process I thought it would be. It is getting better, I am not giving up. I bought a nipple shield at Target and that has helped her latch on a lot more efficiently. There are several factors that may have contributed to our sort of rocky start. First of all, I was not able to nurse right away. I was so zonked out on surgery drugs that I did not get to nurse her until a few hours after birth. I was in the recovery room after my c-section for two hours! I could not go to my room until I could move my legs again. Also, I was in a great deal of pain for the first couple of days. It even hurt to hold her! She still got all my colostrum, I nursed her even though it was hard. She cried and I wanted to, too. She passed her meconium within 48 hours and I have read that colostrum helps with that, so I am glad she got all the good stuff. We (gasp!) supplemented with Similac at the hospital after feedings because my milk hadn't come in and she would get very fussy. And much to the horror of the exclusively breastfeeding elite, I also liked the break that I got from formula feeding here and there. Once I got home, pumping became my new best friend. She was happy drinking from a bottle and I was happy knowing she was having a few (2-4) ounces of my milk each feeding! I still nursed her, but the pumping gave me reassurance she was getting enough and it was indeed easier. I have seen lactation nurses and they help in the moment, but it never worked out so well when they weren't there. Now it has been over a week and we are getting better at it. Breastfeeding her is crucial to me, and I have gotten some great advice from breastfeeding moms that did not have the super smooth start some women do. They have told me it gets better after a few weeks and now they fully enjoy it. I look forward to that!

Olivia is one week old.

What has helped me survive week one as a new mom?

so far:
-my mom
-a man who changes diapers
-nipple creams with lanolin
-medela breast pump
-medela nipple shield
-boppy pillow for breastfeeding
-comfy pajamas
-hot showers
-600 mg motrin (c-section) also vicodin but i try not to take that
-naps

i really love:
-kissaluvs size zeros are perfect for newborns as diapers
-homemade wipes with warm water for diaper change
-aden + anais muslin wraps

They weren't exaggerating the whole sleep deprivation thing. I feel like a zombie. A happy zombie.