Happy Halloween

Our little Steve Zissou.

10 Things I'm Loving Right Now

I have been asked by a few people about which baby products I prefer or have found really helpful, and in the moment nothing came to mind- yay for sleep deprivation.  After some sleep and a quick inventory of what I use the most, I came up with this list.

1. iphone 4- This is number one for a reason, it serves so many functions; allows me to obsessively take pics, record video to document his milestones, entertain myself while nursing, has access to baby related apps, check my emails, send texts, listen to music....I could go on.  Recently I was stuck in stopped traffic alone with L, he began screaming and nothing I did would calm him down.  Granted there are very few things one can do from the front drivers seat when baby is in a rear facing car seat secured to the middle back seat.  If I reached my farthest I was able to touch his cheek.  But as much as I was amazed at the flexibility of my arm and reach-L wasn't very impressed.  He continued to cry, I called D trying to maintain some sanity.  Finally I turned Pandora on my iphone, to the lullaby station (L's favorite).  Shortly after L calmed down and fell asleep.  Pandora is awesome btw.  

2.  Fleurville diaper bag- I got the Re-Run Hanna (for about half the price on amazon).  This was not our original diaper bag, prior to this we had a messenger style from a different brand.  It never closed right, the strap was uncomfortable, and I found myself complaining about it every time we went any where.  Finally D said, "just buy another one if your gonna complain every tine."  So I did! What I was looking for was a zipper close, moderate size, durable strap, and just a bag I didn't have to fuss with. This one fits the bill, and it has a nice pattern.

3. Waterproof multi-use pads- I got these at my mom's suggestion and we use them all the time!  They go great on top of the diaper changing table- prevents the need to wash your changing pad cover every time there's a messy change.  We also use them as portable changing pads so at night we can change him right there in our bed and not worry about messing up the sheets.  They are even great for giving L naked diaper free time.

4. Vitamin D drops- Our pediatrician recommended that we supplement vitamin D to L since we are exclusively breast feeding.  Apparently not a lot of vitamin D transfers through breast milk, there's research supporting most Americans have a deficit of Vitamin D, and winter/rain is about to be upon us.  Here is a good blog post about it by an RD.  Most vitamin D supplements for infants come with added ingredients we didn't want to give L, or the ones that came free of those ingredients were oil like and he wouldn't take them.  But then we found Baby D Drops.  It take one drop to give you recommended amount of vitamin D, and you can put it directly on your nipple (L doesn't even notice it), or in a bottle- without worrying about flavor change.

5. Bouncer - Although he wouldn't sleep in it in the beginning, it now allows me to take a shower and watch him at the same time.  I think some sort of "seat" is a must have for the moments when you can't carry/wear your infant.  

6. Boppy - I use this for most nursing sessions at home.  I have heard the breastfriend is better, but I got a Boppy and have found it does what I need it to do- help me prop up L for easier nursing.  I usually have to use some extra pillows to prop it exactly how I want it, and at night we just use regular pillows in the bed.  So the boppy isn't perfect but I use it  A LOT, definitely worth the money.  I can also prop L in it- like while I am getting a wrap or sling on.

7. Babywearing- I wear L at least 80% of my waking hours.  It's been enormously helpful with L wanting to be held all the time, and me still wanting to be able to get a few things done.  Like right now (L in my Sakura Bloom Ring Sling) :

I currently also have the Babyhawk & Mobywrap. Mei tai's and ring slings are a lot easier to use on the go then wraps, and L seems to go through phases of which carrier he prefers- right now it's the ring sling.  We also have an Ergo, but will be using that when he is a little bigger.  I personally don't like taking L in his car seat or stroller while running errands.  The car seat is heavy and I can never get comfortable carrying it. The stroller is fine (if L will be in it without crying), but some places aren't convenient for a stroller (either allowable space or terrain).  Being able to be hands free and hold L close is awesome.

8. Dr. Sears Baby Book- I love that this book really fits with how I want to parent.  It also has a lot of information that has been immensely helpful with understanding L.  It goes from newborn to toddler so I see us referring back to it for years to come.

9. APNO - This should be given to every nursing mother with early nipple injuries. It stands for "all purpose nipple ointment" and was formulated by Dr. Newman

10. A Good Support System- Having a supportive partner and family members has been BIG DEAL to me. Having D be present with L is a life saver.  D changes diapers, wears down L at night, and gives me breaks when I am about to loose my mind.  L has a hard time falling asleep with me sometimes because he only wants to be nursed to sleep. With D he doesn't smell the milk so he allows to be soothed in other ways. My mom has also been a great help; running errands, cleaning, laundry, and helping out with L.  D's mom is going to babysit L on our first date night since his birth...it's not till Nov 30th, hopefully I will be ready to leave him.  And we have been extremely fortunate with hand-me-downs.  My Dad just had another boy, so my step mom and him have been very generous.  We really don't need to buy clothes for L for a long time, that doesn't stop me though...


And having a good support system is more then just help with the day to day, I have to say it's also important to be surrounded by people who support you with the way you want to parent.  

BabyLegs

L's BabyLegs arrived today.  BabyLegs are basically cute leg warmers that make diaper changes easier, no pants to take off and on - bonus, they allow for showing off diaper covers. I ordered the Newborn size so he could wear them now.  I was happy to find they are even made of organic cotton.  

They are having a sale right now too.  It's on their costume legs, but there are many that would work for every day, especially for girls.  Great deal for christmas presents - 7 pairs for under $30! 

 

 

Polo

The Lorax

I grew up with Dr. Seuss stories - my favorite book was Green Eggs and Ham....till I read The Lorax. It even became a little cartoon which my brother and I loved.  My brother even dressed up as the Lorax for multiple Halloweens.  It has a great message that is definitely still applicable today (about the environment and materialism), if not more so, and it is so creatively told.  

Anyways, it's now becoming an animated film.  Danny DeVito will be the voice of the Lorax and Ed Helms as the Once-ler (he made thneeds-things everyone needs!).  Betty White, Zac Efron, and Rob Riggle also provide voices.  I'm really excited that my son will get to enjoy and learn from this story in a more modern animated film (I imagine the original will be dull to his generation).  More info here.

The image of Lorax to be used in the film.

Looks like we will have to wait till March 2012 to see the 3D animated film. :(

Today

Right now we are a single car family.  This means that when D is at work I am usually at home (our town is not very public transportation friendly and we are smack dab in the burbs).  But today my mom (L's Babka) came to visit.  It's a nice change to have visitors and to go wherever I want to go, yet I still very much enjoy staying home - L and I are often content to have each other to ourselves.  Here are some photos of the day.

Let's just sleep in a little longer.

Good morning!

 Bath time.

 

A trip to babies r us to exchange some glass bottles for plastic (future daycare has plastic only rules) 

Napping in one of the cute outfits Babka brought. 

Got a pedicure - hard to tell in the pic, but it's a dark inky blue with some sparkle to it.

All tuckered out after nursing.

Cloth Diapering Begins

We are finally starting to cloth diaper, we have been slowly collecting what we needed.  Just got our Rockin' Green detergent, and pail liner.  Here is L wearing a prefold and snappi.  We are mainly using  Bummies covers.

2 Month Photo Shoot

Keeping with tradition, this is 1 day after he turned 2 months (we did the same with his 1 month shoot).  It was a lot more enjoyable taking pictures of him this time around.  L is much more expressive and engaging (compare him from 1 month here).  He even shows off his new skills, smiling, lifting his upper body.  See the full 2 month set here.  Below are a few of my favorites.  It's nearly impossible to pick just a few...

Beautiful dark eyes.

Smiles and dimples.

In his cloth diaper.

Adorable profile.

Lifting his head.

Yay!

Happy 2 months kiddo!

Sleep...

As a mother of a newborn, good sleep has been hard to come by.  L could have been described as "high needs baby" (see Dr. Sears).  He hated being put down, hated having his diaper changed, and couldn't sleep without a lot of assistance-mainly from the boob. Oh and forget about putting him to bed.  Not even all those amazing baby products meant to ease infants to sleep worked-he could not be tricked!

Bouncer-NOPE, Pacifier-NOPE, Swing-NOPE, Swaddling-NOPE, Sleep Sheep (white Noise)-NOPE

The list could go on...Ultimately nursing, babywearing, walking while holding, and cosleeping were the only things that worked.  If you notice, those all require effort and energy from Mom and Dad-yes even nursing and cosleeping, at least in the beginning before you get a system going.  So restful sleep hasn't really happened in this house for a while.  I personally have nothing against cosleeping and think it's really beneficial-and necessary for us-but we got this awesome thing called the Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper, see below.

Obviously thats not a picture of us-the bedroom is pretty outdated-but what really gives it away is that they are using it!  So to the get point of this post....we hadn't been able to use our cosleeper due to L's preferences-he slept in the nook of my arm, often with my nipple in his mouth-ouch! Not only are my nipples suffering but I'm sore from the positions I have to be in.  Well, last night L turned 2 months (happy birthday L), and for the first time slept in the cosleeper for what I consider a good chunk of time-almost 3 hrs!  I was so excited that it was finally happening; giddy that my little guy was able to feel secure sleeping away from the boob, relieved I could now sleep in whatever position I wanted, but also anxious this bliss could end at any moment, that I couldn't fall asleep!  So what I anticipated would put an end to the crap sleep ended up causing me to be very sleep deprived today....the energy and focus it's taken me to write this is unheard of.

But here's to hoping that L will continue to blossom as a slightly more independent sleeper.  And of course, I took a picture of him sleeping in it.

Welcome

So this blog will  be mainly viewed by family and friends, an intro is needed none the less.  With all the time I spend frequenting blogs on the internet, and with the bordering on obnoxious amount of photos of Cherry Baby I have been putting up on facebook, I figured it was time to start a blog of my own.  How often this will be updated-or how coherent my posts will be in my new mom sleep deprived state-is not known.   I think the focus of this blog will be updates on L and anything else that comes into my life that inspires or enrages me.  


Welcome!