Mama Details

When I was pregnant (or any other time really) I loved reading about other people's experiences and 'must-knows' for being a mom.  So, for you mom types....or if you just have nothing better to do than read this blog, here are the 'mama' details...

Breastfeeding - Yes, we are doing it and it's going great.  We ran into a little technical difficulty (faulty equipment) around Day 5, but that issue was fixed with a $10 Medela purchase from Target and we're good to go.

Bottles - We just introduced E to his first bottle yesterday.  He really didn't seem to care that it wasn't a boob as long as it had what he wanted.  Question - how do we know how much to feed him?  We gave him a 4 ounce bottle and I think he would have eaten more if we would have let him.  However, later, he was spitting up as if to say...'I'm overflowing!'  Hmmm....

Sleep Training - Yes, we are doing it and it's going well ...for us.  This is definitely something that is a personal preference and it's not the only way to raise your baby.  I have a lot of friends who are the MOST wonderful moms and have very different philosophies that work amazingly well.  So, if you're a new/soon-to-be mom, find what works for you, not what works for someone else.

R and I both read Babywise and The Baby Sleep Solution....multiple times.  We are not hyper-scheduly type people, but we do agree with the philosophies...not just for sleeping, but for life in general.  (Having a 'plan' also greatly reduced the amount of parental anxiety we experienced.  We didn't know if it would work, but at least we had a plan!)  The basic purpose of these books is to help parents teach their babies how to establish a routine and how to become independent.  We want E to be able to self-soothe and calm himself down without being completely dependent on eating, on us, or on a certain piece of baby equipment.  The main rule we follow is to never let E fall asleep in our arms.  Yes, we cuddle him and yes, we rock him (plenty!) but as soon as he gets drowsy (or when mama decides she's hungry and wants to eat lunch) we put him down.  This way he has learned that he can fall asleep without us.  If he fusses when we put him down or if he wakes up in the middle of a nap, we follow the five minute rule...the "Limited Crying Solution" (sounds so official, doesn't it).  Essentially, we let him 'cry it out' for 3-5 minutes before going in to help soothe him.  This brings us to Rule #2 - Soothe the baby without picking him up.  We will  pat his tummy, give him his paci, shush him, or turn on his white noise, but we won't pick him up.  This will help him (eventually) learn that he can fall asleep without needing to be rocked, held or fed.  (Editor's note:  During the 3 days that mama ate the wrong food, these rules went out the window - when your baby's tummy hurts, you do what you have to do!)  Finally, we follow the Eat-Wake-Sleep cycle.  Eli eats, then we play for a good 20-30 minutes (or 2 hours if he's not feeling a nap) then he sleeps.  Again, this helps him establish a routine and it keeps him from falling asleep on the boob and becoming dependent on that.  Ok, enough of that.  If you're still reading this, more power to you :)

Time for a picture break?  I think so.

This was obviously an important day....Eli wore pants. 

- Stuff:  Now that we are a month into this and I'm clearly an expert (ha!!) here is my opinion on baby stuff.  Take it or leave it :)  (Note to new moms:  I have decided you will use exactly 10% of all the stuff you get when you have a baby...the rest of it will take up room in your closets :)  So, if I was running out of the house and could only grab 10 things, here's what they would be....

- Bouncy seat - ours is a hand-me-down and it is is our most used 'accessory.'  E loves it because it keeps him a little more upright which gives him a different view of the world and helps when his tummy doesn't feel real great.
- Halo sleep sack/swaddle - this is what they used in the hospital and we promptly sent Grandma to Babies R Us to purchase one for home.  He sleeps in it every night.
- 'Mam' pacifier - we have 3 different brands and this is the current winner.  We also like the Nuk, but it is too easy for the little man to grab the handle and pull it out of his mouth.
- Receiving blankets and burp clothes- In our house receiving blankets get used for warmth, binky blockers (Ryan has a great 'shoulder tuck' method to keep E from spitting out his binky), and carseat head rests.  Also, I quickly learned that having 25 burp clothes is not too many. 
- Books - We read.  A lot.  Our favorites include Goodnight Moon, Goodnight iPad, SkippyJohn Jones, I Love you Through and Through, I Love You Stinky Face, Mother Goose and Willie the Wildcat's ABCs.
- Diapers and Onesies-   And more diapers and onesies.  And then one more handful of diapers and onesies.  We bounced back and forth between Pampers Swaddlers and Huggies.  We had a lot of trouble with leakage....but we soon discovered it was an issue with mom and dad's diapering abilities, not the diapers.  However, we have chosen Pampers for the time being.  We'll see what happens as he grows.
- Nipple Shield - This was the remedy for the 'faulty equipment' mentioned above.  He is getting back in the swing of things eating without it, but for now it is like gold.
- Camera - R and I bought a 'good' one back in May.  All we had was our phones and decided our child deserved a little better than that.  We splurged and purchased a Canon T2i and we love it!  We've even learned how to shoot in manual mode.  We're not experts, but we're getting there.
- Boppy - Necessary?  Maybe not.  But such a wonderful convenience that it made the Top 10 list?  Definitely.  It will also serve many other purposes as he grows up.
- Quilt/Blanket - Eli was lucky enough to get two quilts made for him and he loves them both.  This is probably the most used item in our house and we can prove it by all of the spit-up and pee stains all over it (okay, just kidding about the stains, I wash it regularly.  But he really does use it all the time!)

Obviously we have lots of other 'stuff' that we use on a day-to-day basis, but this gives you a good idea.

Oh yeah, if you're a 'regular' - check the 1 month post again...the stats are updated :)