Baby Essentials

I hesitated to call this list "Essentials", because what is essential to one person may not be for someone else. In fact, I found that some of my favorite things when Brooklyn was a baby have been all but ignored this time around. Different babies = different needs. For example when Brook was a baby, I loved the sleepers that had the little fold-over sleeves because she was forever scratching herself with her long fingernails. Emma hasn't even needed a single clipping of her nails yet, and has never scratched herself so I've only folded her hands into the little sleeves a few times, usually at night when her hands get cold because she hates having them swaddled.

So consider this a roundup of my favorite items for the newborn stage - you decide for yourself which ones are essential or not!





1. Receiving blankets/burp cloths.

crumbsinmypurse.blogspot.com

When I was pregnant with Brooklyn, my mom sewed us about a dozen huge receiving blankets, and she made us another set when Emma was born! On any given day, you will find these strewn all about the house; we use them for E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G.


 - To tuck under her chin when she eats; she's a messy eater and gets milk all over her clothes otherwise

 - To lay over my shoulder when I burp her, or when she's sick and her nose is running. Keeps my clothes clean :)

 - We have a receiving blanket rolled up inside her carseat. The infant head support is still too large for her, so this helps fill in the gap and makes sure she fits nice and snug inside.

 - We also use a second receiving blanket to tuck her into her carseat. She tends to be quite warm, and using a heavy blanket means that she just gets overheated and fussy.

 - When Brooklyn was a baby, her lamp was too bright and we used to drape a receiving blanket over the shade for middle of the night diaper changes. Not sure I'd recommend that, as it could be a fire hazard but in our sleep deprivation it seemed to do the trick.

 - I also lay one down on her change pad if I expect that it's going to be a particularly messy diaper change. We have two removable change pad covers that are washable, but it seems like in those first few weeks we were spending more time changing and washing those covers and they were rarely ever on the change pad for diaper changes because they were always in the wash. A receiving blanket is easy to lay down first and much easier in my opinion to toss in the wash. Keeps my fancy covers clean and looking cute :)

 - Who needs expensive swaddle blankets? Ask the nurse at the hospital to give you a quick tutorial on how to get a tight wrap, and a receiving blanket works quite nicely.

 - The large receiving blankets make perfect nursing covers!



 I could go on all day, but let's just say we find them very useful and I would recommend having a lot of them, especially the really large ones.




2. Cloth wipes.

Source: lebabyshop.com

Even if you choose not to use cloth diapers, having a few cloth wipes on hand is a really good idea. If baby gets a diaper rash, a soft damp cloth is so much gentler on their sore bottom than a chemical filled, scented cold disposable wipe.

I have also learned that they get the job done so much faster. One cloth wipe ( I just use baby washcloths, but any soft material cut into squares will work) can do the job of 3 or 4 disposable wipes. They really do clean up messes much faster and easier!




3. Fisher Price Cradle N Swing

We have most of the typical baby gear . . . a vibrating bouncy chair, a jolly jumper, a bumbo chair, a playmat. But the place where both my girls have spent the most time is definitely this swing. In fact, the first two weeks Emma slept in her swing all night long. She seemed to need to be snuggled, and if she wasn't in our arms she would just cry. Laying her down, even swaddled, in a flat bassinet or crib just wasn't cutting it for her. Our swing is contoured on the sides and has an infant head support, so she feels like she is being held when she lays in it. Those first weeks when she was so teeny and new, the swing seemed to be the only place she felt safe. Everywhere else she would throw up her little arms in alarm as if she felt like she were falling.

I love this swing specifically because it plugs in. Swings that only run on batteries can cost a lot of money if you are constantly needing to buy replacements, as most of them use 4 D batteries at one time! We love that we don't have to keep purchasing batteries, but we have the option to use batteries if we need to (it's great when the power goes out!) I also love that it has the option to swing in two different directions and it comes with tons of options for sound effects and music.




4. A sling or wrap.

I have a Peanut Shell  classic sling and I highly recommend it simply because it's easy. No tying and wrapping, no adjusting of any straps or anything. Just fold it in half, slip it on and baby goes right inside. Easy peasy.

 When you have a new baby you will find yourself saying things like "I can never get anything done around here" and "I didn't get anything done today".

 Well, this sling is how you get "anything done".

 Even at her fussiest, I can pop Emma in here and she calms right down. I also really like that I can get in my snuggle time and watch her WHILE I get things done; sometimes I feel guilty if she lays in her swing for too long because she's all alone. The sling lets me have my hands free but we are still getting in some good bonding time as well. Win win!



5.Gumdrops pacifiers

Source :doubledutymommy19.blogspot.com

Brooklyn wasn't too picky with her pacifiers; we had several different styles and she took anything. Emma was much more particular. We had bought a package of these and she used them a few times during her first few weeks. I bought another package of Gerber pacifiers that had a contoured nipple and she would choke and gag whenever we offered her one. I tried a Nuk, and she had the same reaction. Instant gagging and choking. Back to the rounded Gumdrop pacifier, and she latched on happily. They are the clear winner for this little girl!

crumbsinmypurse.blogspot.com

6. Live Clean Baby products

Source: makeupandbeautyblog.com

I've tried it all, from Burt's Bees to fancy organic lines to Aveeno to Johnson's. And this stuff beats them all hands down. It's super gentle, smells great - SO MANY baby products smell like great grandma's perfume, why is that? and is natural. Best of all, it's very inexpensive - I get mine at Walmart and it's reguarly on sale too!



7. A good stroller

When Brook was born, we were given a hand me down travel system. It was fine, honestly, but I really wanted a stroller with big tires. Our little town has a lot of rough curbs and big pot holes and I also did a lot of walking on gravel and muddy roads and the travel system really struggled. It was also gosh darn ugly to boot. When a neighborhood cat decided to start peeing on it, that was the end for me. I could not get the cat pee smell out, so we bought a used sit and stand stroller. I loved it, but again it had tiny wheels and was so long that it was really awkward to steer, especially in the mall or a store.

I also had a double jogger stroller that was given to me 3rd or 4th hand. Last summer I finally just sold all three strollers, and bought a used Phil and Teds E3 with a doubles kit. It was almost $400 used, which seemed so silly to me for a stroller. But honestly, it was worth it. Every time I use it, I say "Thank GOD we finally have a good stroller." What a difference in how it pushes and steers!

I've talked to several other moms who have had similar experiences. They wasted hundreds of dollars buying different strollers trying to save money but never finding a good one. Then finally they bite the bullet and splurged on a high end stroller. In the long run, it would have been cheaper to just buy a high end stroller to begin with!

I highly recommend splurging on a good stroller, whether it is Phil and Ted's or not. I am a huge fan of buying used and making do with what you have, and with all the other baby gear (play pen, high chair, jolly jumper, toys, and clothes) aside from carseats. I still say that you get the most bang for your buck by purchasing gently used. But don't waste your breath on that $80 bargain stroller from Walmart - find a high end stroller on Craigslist or Kijiji and get it! You won't regret it, and you can re-sell it down the road for a good portion of what you paid for it.

Tiny Baby, TONS of Stuff

Meet baby Emma! She graced us with an early arrival on February 11th, and we have been enjoying some much needed family time for the last few weeks. Our little peanut has been a very easy baby so far and I am enjoying being a momma to a newborn once again!


Along with a new baby though, comes new stuff. A LOT of new stuff.


Which is fun! I mean, who doesn't like opening presents? And getting out all of Brook's old baby things and reminiscing has been really special. I love having pink and purple take over my house!


But I am not a clutter person folks. I have a serious aversion to too much stuff. I am famous for walking around the house with a giant garbage bag and not stopping until it is full. We regularly take truckloads of things to our local thrift store and re-use shed at the local dump. My rule is, if I haven't used it in the last 6 months or I don't LOVE it - it goes. I am pretty ruthless in the clutter department.


So to have a constant stream of gift bags, dishes full of food, cards, and flowers comes along with a wee bit of anxiety for me. I appreciate each and every gift, don't get me wrong! But I cannot believe how much "Stuff" has moved into our house along with this tiny little 6 pound bundle.


The baby swing sitting in the middle of our living room, I can handle. The playpen taking up every square inch of free space in our bedroom, it's ok. The carseat and stroller now filling my entryway, whatever. But the stack of three dozen gift bags and the mountain of tissue paper - ACK! The row of empty casserole dishes and tupperware waiting to be given back to their generous owners - drives me nuts. The piles of special momentoes that I don't have a box to put in yet...eek!


Receiving blankets and pacifiers seem to be laying on every suface in the entire house, the laundry baskets are stuffed with tiny puke stained outfits, and the garbage cans are constantly overflowing between the diapers and all of the packaging and wrapping that has come into the house along with all of the new baby gear. Add in a giant  stack of thank you notes that permanently lives on my dining room table so that I can work on them whenever I get a spare minute, and a LOT more mess and clutter from the husband who is home on parental leave and I am ready to have a heart attack wherever I look.


I crave organization in a  bad way. A few days ago I even broke down into tears over how stressed out all this extra clutter was making me. My wonderful husband knew what I needed - not a nap or a massage. Just to clean.


He took the baby from me and kept Brook entertained while I had almost two glorious hours to myself, armed with Mrs. Meyers and a broom. I cleaned my kitchen, folded laundry, and took out the garbage. As much as I like a clean organized home, I usually don't actually enjoy the process of cleaning but this day every pair of socks I matched, every crumb I swept felt like therapy. The tightness in my chest disappeared with every dish I washed, and when I was done I finally felt like myself again.


I never want cleaning or organizing to come before my children. That old poem that says

                The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow,

But children grow up as I've learned to my sorrow.

So quiet down cobwebs: dust go to sleep,

I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep

definitely has a point! My children will never remember if the sink was always full of dirty dishes, but they will remember the times I played with them. And the times I said I was too busy to read a story, or built a blanket fort. I want their memories to be filled with many, many more "yes" moments from their mommy than "no" ones. I don't ever want to be so consumed with the daily drudgeries of running a home that my children miss out on quality time with their mom. 

But I also feel like one of the best gifts I can give my children is a clean, organized home. Space to spread out and play, rather than a space that is crowded with too much clutter. A sofa that always has room for the whole family to crowd onto, not littered with magazines and blankets. Room to run without fear of tripping over things. Freedom to spread out, to create a mess where a mess wasn't already. To grow up with the calmness and peace that comes with being in a space that is also calm and peaceful. I also want to instill the lifeskills in them that come along with having an organized home - time management, responsibility, teamwork. 

It's a balancing act.

  I will continue to clean. I will always make time in my day to sweep the floors and sort the mail. I will still tell my daughter "Not now, honey, I am busy" sometimes when I am up to my elbows in dishwater or making dinner. But I will try to remember that sometimes, that "Not now" needs to be replaced with an "Of course!" and I will dry my hands on a dishtowel and let my frying pan sit until the dishwater has long gone cold because I am too busy playing dressup to care.

35 Week Pregnancy Update

35 weeks down. 5 to go.
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Overall I have been feeling great during the day. I have no aches or pains, no heartburn during the day. Generally I find I have enough energy to make it through a busy work day and still stay awake until about 9:30 or 10.

Nighttime however, is a different story. Climbing into bed is really difficult; it takes me several minutes to actually get in and get comfortable. Heartburn rages at night so I take Tums before going to bed and usually get up once during the night for more. Because of the heartburn I can't lay down flat, so I sleep propped up on 3 pillows. My tailbone aches at night, but my hips feel like someone is punching them so I can't find a comfortable position and end up tossing and turning all night. I get up at least twice to pee, and sometimes just to walk around or lay on the couch for a while to give my hips a break. There's really not much sleeping on and according to the husband when I do sleep, I snore so loudly that he is left wide awake.

Some of my maternity clothes are now too small. All of my dresses, a few pairs of pants won't stay up anymore, and a few shirts are just too tight. I refuse to buy more clothes now that I am so close to being done so I am trying to make do with what I have.

We are beginning to get very excited about baby's arrival. What I am most anxious about this time around is that the baby is healthy. We had a very unique first trimester; I had a miscarriage at 8 or 9 weeks along and didn't suspect that I was still pregnant until I was 14 weeks along...(I know that sounds crazy, but after a miscarriage you just don't think it's a possibility. Doctors say I most likely lost a twin or it was only a threatened miscarriage but I have had a miscarriage in the past and it was exactly the same.) During that time period where I didn't know I was still pregnant I wasn't taking my vitamins and I had a few drinks on my birthday. My doctor says not to worry and that the baby will be fine, but in the back of my mind I am still carrying a lot of guilt over that. This week I have had 3 different people tell me about babies born recently with Down's Syndrome which of course in my crazy hormonal brain has me thinking that this is a sign our baby is going to have it and God is trying to prepare me for it.

When worries about the baby being healthy start to creep in, I try to stop them immediately and pray. Pray for the baby's health and for me to be calm and trusting, pray for a safe delivery and again over and over . . .a healthy baby. I think that when it's born, before I want to know what sex it is I will want to know that it looks normal and healthy. I've been carrying such guilt and I want to be able to finally let it go and just rejoice in our little miracle.

The White Stripe

The baby's room is almost complete!

We started by painting the walls in one of my favorite paint colors - Benjamin Moore's Revere Pewter. In this room it does take on a bit of a taupey/warm tone, but it is a soft grey.

My goal was to decorate the nursery without spending much, so after the walls were painted I hemmed and hawed for a while about what I wanted to do. I finally decided to paint a band of white around the room to add some interest. For the white, I chose Benjamin Moore's Cloud White which is another favorite I've used in the past.

I had the husband do all of the calculating, measuring, and taping. He's good at math and I am hopeless; it's just easier if I stay out of the way of any projects that use a measuring tape. After he taped off the room, I used an old gift card to burnish the painter's tape to make sure it was well adhered to the wall.

My number one tip for achieving crisp paint lines - brush away from the tape. What I mean by that is, I place my brush right onto the painter's tape and brush over the edge toward the middle of my stripe. That way paint is always being spread away from the tape edges, and not being pushed into/under it. When I am painting the top portion of the stripe, I placed my brush onto the painter's tape at the top and brushed downward; when panting the bottom of the stripe I placed my brush on the bottom strip of painter's tape and swept upward. Once all the edges have been brushed this way, I go in with a roller to finish up the middle.

After painting the second coat, I removed the tape right away while the paint was still wet. Another little tip - pull the tape toward the wet paint. When pulling the top row of tape, I pulled downward toward the wet stripe I just painted. When pulling the lower strip of tape, I pulled upward, again toward the wet paint.

We ended up with really crisp lines and no need to touch up! I was thrilled with what an impact that little quart of paint made in the room, the stripe was just what it needed.

The furniture was purchased three years ago at The Bay, when I was pregnant with Brook. We also re-used the crib bedding; I love it and it was in perfect shape, and we were trying to do this room on the cheap.

I bought some picture frames at the local grocery store for $14 each, and then filled them with images from a Winnie The Pooh paperback that was mine as a child - it was free at the gas station when my dad pumped a tank of gas, and somehow I still had it even though the cover was falling off. Normally I feel wrong tearing apart a book, but this one was really falling apart. And come on, it came from a GAS STATION in the 90's . . . I think that fact alone gives me permission to give it a new life as artwork!

I still need to add some finishing touches and organize the closet, but it's starting to look like pulled together!

23 weeks

23 weeks....

Indigestion seems to come every night now, and sciatica is rearing it's ugly head on my left side. Other than that though, there doesn't seem to be many bad symptoms lately. Well I guess I've been having some minor breakouts on my face but nothing too major. My brother got married last weekend and we spent the weekend in a hotel - when we got home I fell onto the couch and slept for 4 hours straight and my entire body was sore for a few days. I think I just overdid it with being on my feet and too little sleep. It was a great wedding though!

Movement is regular now. Usually 2-3 times a day I feel a lot of movement for a while. It's become thumps and taps now, but the Mister still can't feel anything on the outside. He hasn't tried very hard though.
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I hadn't gained any weight all month. And then after this weekend of feasting I had a doctor appointment and low and behold I've gained 2 pounds. And all of it in a weekend. Eek. Too much eating out!

We still haven't done anything to prepare. The nursery is not even started, I haven't gone through the tub of newborn clothes, and we still need to buy a carseat. There's lots of time but I think we need to get started on some of these things.