A few friends have asked me what I found to be the most helpful items for baby {and mommy}, so I thought I would share. Please keep in mind the below list was built with newborns in mind.
Must-Haves for Baby
myBaby HoMedics SoundSpa On-The-Go: This was incredibly useful in
the first 6 weeks. We brought it
everywhere, and the nice thing is it clips onto anything (stroller, car seat,
crib), or we would just hold it while we held our daughter to help lull her to sleep.
Fisher-Price
My Little Snugapuppy Deluxe Bouncer:
We still use this all the time!
Since she’s not mobile, yet, it’s great to put her in when you have
to go to the bathroom, pump, make a bottle, whatever. In the beginning, I would bring this into
the bathroom with me and put Grace in it while I showered. I would leave the shower door open so I could see her (showers became somewhat of a luxury the
first few weeks, especially after hubby went back to work, so I had to figure
something out otherwise I’d go 3 days without showering!). She loves napping in it too.
Summer Infant SwaddleMe
Adjustable Infant Wrap: These were super
helpful, because Gracie would break out of a swaddle blanket no matter how
tight we wrapped her. These are the
“cheat” swaddle, and they velcro shut to help keep baby in.
Aden + Anais Swaddle
Blankets: If you can afford to
splurge, the Bamboo ones are so unbelievably soft! The classic muslin Aden blankets are
wonderful too! We use them for
EVERYTHING!...as a blanket, burp cloth, car seat canopy (we do have the actual
car seat canopy, but it’s really heavy and can get hot…this is nice and light),
playing peek-a-boo…you can’t have too many of these bad boys. Plus they have some super cute designs. Another great brand is Little Unicorn.
Cloth Diapers for Burp
Cloths: These make the best
burp cloths! They are super absorbant,
more so than any other traditional burp cloth we’ve used.
Lady Bug Development Toy: Of all the stroller/car seat attachment toys,
this one is by far Gracie’s favorite. I
think because it has so many colors, the mirror, rings, crinkle sounds,
a squeaker, soft material, silky material, etc.
It has the most stimuli in one toy, and she is so fascinated by it! You probably won’t need this until 2-3 months,
but I wanted to add it to the list anyways J
And we can't forget Mom! The list below is what I found the most helpful right after coming home from the hospital.
Must-Haves For Mom
Mesh
undies: If you are giving birth in a
hospital, ask to take home a bunch of the super sexy large mesh undies. I read about them and thought, oh I won’t
need those, I’ll be in my Hanky Panky thongs in no time. Wrong!
Those mesh undies were all I wore for the first two weeks post partum.
Tucks Witch Hazel Pads: These were a godsend after giving birth. They felt so good, cooling and soothing, and I
truly believe they helped shorten my heal time.
Sometimes the hospital provides them, and if so, ask for an extra
container to take home.
Always Extra Heavy Overnight
Maxi Pads: Along with the super sexy mesh undies, these
were so wonderful the first 2-3 weeks post partum. You bleed for weeks, like a period (sometimes heavier),
constantly. These pads were great because
they can handle the amount. I would
place a couple of the Tucks Witch Hazel pads on this pad, and it was a perfect
combo.
Granny panties: For when you run out of, or want to graduate
from, the super sexy mesh undies, Hanes granny panties are great because they
fit the Heavy Maxi pads.
Sitz Bath Spray: This stuff is AMAZEBALLS! It definitely helps with healing and soreness
down there, and feels so good.
Those are the items my hubby and I to be the most useful the first several weeks with Gracie, and the mommy items are a must. Take it with a grain of salt, as everyone's baby is different, everyone's birth is different, everyone's needs are different. I'm just sharing what worked for us/me. And below is a picture of our happy girl :)
Wow! Where has the time gone? I can't believe my little monkey is three months old already. That's right, THREE MONTHS OLD!! I feel like I just gave birth to her, and yet a part of me feels like she's been in my life since the beginning of time. From the moment I first held her three months ago, my heart became full. Below are two of my favorite pictures from the moment she was born: 1) When she was first placed on my chest, and I'm crying tears of joy...I remember so vividly thinking in this moment, "She is mine, this is my daughter, I just birthed her, and I love her more than life itself. My husband and I created this little miracle, and she is ours. I can't believe it. I can't believe she's finally here." I had never been so full of love than in that moment; and 2) Sean's reaction...so full of love. He will tell you exactly what I just did, that in that moment, he felt more love than he ever thought possible. I fell in love with him all over again seeing him as a daddy and the love he has for our daughter. He is the best daddy to our Gracie, and I am so thankful to him and blessed that he is my partner in life.
And here we are now, three months later! SO MUCH has changed, that it would take me pages to write about it all. So I will do my best and keep it brief and share highlights :)
The 1st Month
The first month was both the hardest and easiest (contradictory, I know). I say they were the hardest, because we were adjusting to a new schedule that did not include sleep. I was nursing Gracie every hour or two, and Sean was always helping me, so we literally did not sleep much at all. I say they were the easiest because all we did was lay on the couch with Gracie either asleep on one of our chests or nursing, and binge watching shows on Netflix (Downton Abbey is a terrific show btw!). Despite the first month being chaotic and exhausting, it was also the most precious time spent with our little girl. Sean and I cherish the moments she would just curl into a little ball on our chest, enjoying the skin to skin contact and bonding with her.
Skin to skin the day she was born, June 30, 2015
Skin to skin the day she was born, June 30, 2015
1 Month Old!
1 Month Old, Star Wars style!
Celebrating her first holiday at 4 days old!
Fist pump for her two big cousins AKA her bodyguards
The 2nd Month
The second month was when things started to get exciting! Gracie was spending more time awake and she was so alert, observing everything around her. She also started cooing, and making noises. Around 6 weeks, she also smiled for the first time, and boy did our hearts melt. All she does now is smile, and damn her smile is beautiful!
And some other pictures in the second month for fun:
One of my favorites! She looks so coy here ;)
With her cousin, Audrey, who was born 10 days after Gracie. They are wearing matching mermaid outfits made by my cousin/Audrey's mom, Aysha (she actually makes and sells onesies, so check out her instagram @Audreys__Closet)
Gracie with her twin cousins, Zeke and Auggie (7 months old), and her cousin Audrey
This girl is all smiles all the time :)
Post-bathtime fun
The 3rd Month
The third month has been wonderful! She is sleeping through the night anywhere from 5-7 hours, which is fantastic! She can hold her head up without any support, however is starting to get frustrated with tummy time because she wants to move but can't yet. She also can stand on her own legs and support her body weight for a short period of time! We also go to MyGym once a week where we sing songs, dance, swing in swings, move our arms and legs, and practice important development skills. Additionally, she takes swim lessons twice a week: once a week she does a private lesson and once a week we do a Mommy and Me swim class with some other parents and babes. It's so much fun, and she absolutely loves the water!
I love my family :)
Tummy time with Daddy
This girl is so smiley!!! I can't get enough of her beautiful happy personality.
Swinging in the dolphin swing at My Gym
All smiles at her first swim lesson
Our 1st Mommy and Me swim class
She loves her daddy so much and lights up every time she sees him :)
I'm very late in posting this, but better late than never right?? We had Gracie's newborn shoot when she was just 6 days old, and I couldn't be more in love with her and these photos. Thank you to SisterLee Photography for capturing such precious moments. Gracie is now nearly 3 months old, and has already changed so much {another post to come on that later}. But in the meantime, enjoy some of our favorite photos from her newborn shoot :)
Words
can't adequately express the insurmountable love and joy my husband and I feel
about our darling angel, Grace. Our sweetheart was born on Tuesday, June
30th at 4:22pm, and she is absolutely perfect. From the labor,
to the delivery, to seeing her and holding her in my arms for the first time,
to hearing her little cry, to seeing her little smile, my life has changed
forever in the most beautiful and profound way.
It
all began Monday, June 29th, with a visit to my doctor at which time she
informed me I was still 3cm dilated, same as the week before, and 80% effaced.
She was convinced I would go into labor any day now, but just to be safe,
we scheduled an appointment to induce me the following week in case I needed
it. Sean said to me as we were walking out of the doctor's office, "Perhaps
that's exactly what your subconscious needs to get things moving."
Boy, was he right. That evening my contractions started to get a
little more intense.
Around
3am on Tuesday morning, I was jolted awake by a very strong contraction.
They were still pretty far apart at this point, but I knew my body was
going into labor. From that point on, Sean and I didn't get much sleep.
We labored at home until about 7am, when my contractions started getting much
closer together. We practiced everything we learned from our Bradley
Method classes, including walking, breathing, massage, laboring on the birthing
ball, squatting, and more.I also made
sure to eat something, rest, and take a warm shower.
By
8am, my contractions were 2-4 minutes apart, lasting at least 60 seconds.
If they continued like this for an hour or two, that would be our queue
to go to the hospital. We knew it was imminent, so Sean took the pups to
the doggie hotel where they would stay for a few days. When he came back,
I said it was go time! I will never forget the drive to the hospital.
It was only 15 minutes, but it was the most beautiful day! The sky
was bright blue with not one cloud in sight, and the sun was shining ever so
brightly. Sean and I both said to each other that it was the perfect day
for our daughter's birth day.
We
checked in at the hospital around 10:15am, and they admitted me right away.
When they got me into my triage room and examined me, I was 4cm dilated and
nearly 100% effaced. Sean's mom, who was my doula, arrived shortly
thereafter. Per my birth plan, I did not want to be strapped down to a
fetal monitoring machine because I wanted to move around and labor in various
positions that were comfortable to me.The nurses were great in honoring this, and so I labored while standing
and made sure to walk in between contractions.At this point, when a contraction hit, I was most comfortable standing
and bending over the bed.Sean massaged
me and made sure to keep me relaxed, while my mom-in-law played music and
talked to me.
An
hour later, I was moved to our labor and delivery room, where we met our
wonderful nurse, Gerri. She was out-of-this-world and took extra great
care of us!Coincidentally, our
photographer, Lisa of SisterLee Photography, is Gerri's niece! They had
no idea they were working the same patient/client until we all were in the same
room. What a small world! We gave Gerri a copy of our birth plan
and let her know that I did not want any drugs, including an epidural, nor did
I want to be strapped down for fetal monitoring unless we were concerned Grace
was in distress.Gerri enthusiastically
said no problem, and let me labor in the room however I was comfortable.She honored everything in our birth plan.She was incredible!
Shortly
after settling into our L&D room, Gerri wanted to check my dilation.As she did, she looked at me with excitement
and said, “Dang girl!You’re already
9cm!”Grace was also very low at this
point; she was at a +2 station (the birthing stations are on a scale from -3 to
+3).Gerri also let me know that my bag
of waters was bulging and that we had two options:I could labor and see if it broke on it’s
own, which could take a few hours, or she could break it for me, which would
speed up the labor but make it more intense.Without hesitation and a big smile on my face I replied, “Let’s break
it!”I didn’t feel anything as she broke
it, but as soon as she did, I felt a warm sensation in my pelvic area.Here we go!And she was right…my contractions grew closer together and became much
more intense.I channeled the pain from
each contraction and used it as a power source to bring Gracie down and closer
to greeting the world.I knew with each
contraction, I was that much closer to meeting my daughter.
Things
started to get significantly more intense.As it turns out, my bulging bag of waters had stretched my cervix to
9cm, so when we popped it, my cervix shrunk down to 7cm.After breaking my water, I labored for three
excruciating hours where my contractions were one on top of the other with
hardly a minute in between.I couldn’t
get comfortable so for a while I moved frequently changing my labor positions.I labored in the shower with warm water
running over me, in a squatting position, on my hands and knees, sitting on the
toilet, and laying on my side, all the while with Sean holding my hand, rubbing
my back, rubbing my head, and speaking calming and loving things to me.His mom was unbelievable as well.She had relaxing music playing and talked me
through each contraction by telling me to focus on certain instruments in the
songs, and helping me to control my breathing.
After
an hour of laboring in various positions, I had to lie in bed on my side.My contractions were so strong that I
couldn’t move anymore, and Grace was so low that my body’s natural instinct was
to push, however I couldn’t yet because I wasn’t completely dilated and didn’t
want to tear.My mom-in-law held my hands
and we were face to face for every contraction with her breathing deep while I
mimicked her to keep me from hyperventilating.There were times I squeezed her hands so hard I thought I broke
them.Sean continued to rub my back and
speak calming things to me.They kept me
focused, calm, and most importantly, they kept me breathing.There were a couple times I almost lost focus
and almost lost my breath, but my mom-in-law brought me back to deep breathing
before I lost control.I remember going
into an almost trance-like state of mind, an out-of-body experience of sorts.
About
3 hours after we broke my water, the pressure in my pelvic area was nearly
unbearable, and the urge to push was now impossible to resist.I looked at Gerri and said, “I’m a 10, I know
it!”She measured me, and sure enough, I
was dilated to 10cm!It was time to
push!Gerri had already set everything
up and my doctor arrived right away.I
asked for a mirror so I could see my little darling emerge.I gave one big push and there was her
head!I remember seeing a black, slimy
ball!It was her.It was my daughter!I couldn’t believe how much hair she had and
how dark it was!We thought she’d be a
little blondie or red-haired girl.I
gave a second big push and felt a huge relief of pressure in my pelvis.Her head was out!!With the next contraction I pushed again, and
out popped her shoulders and the rest of her body.She was here, and she was perfect.She was so alert with her eyes open.The doctor called Sean over to cut the cord,
and so he did.Then they immediately
placed Gracie on my chest, and I felt an insurmountable feeling of love and
joy.She latched on to my boob right
away and fed for the next hour and a half!Sean and I cried tears of joy.This
little bundle was ours.We had a
daughter.After years of trying, our
dream of starting our family finally came true.We couldn’t stop staring at her with her chubby cheeks, full cupid lips,
deep blue eyes, full head of hair, and teeny tiny feet and hands.She weighed a perfect 7lbs 2oz, and was 18.5”
long.My brother had just arrived and
came into the room with us.There was
never so much love in a single room as there was in this moment.Me, Sean, my mom-in-law, my daddy, my
brother, my soon-to-be-step-mom were all crying tears of joy with the biggest
smiles on our faces.We were in complete
awe of this darling little being that I just brought into the world.I’ve never been so happy in all my life.
Everything
about my labor and birth went so smoothly and I am so grateful for that.Sean and I prepared, mentally, physically,
and emotionally, and it paid off.I gave
birth without drugs, without tearing, and without an episiotomy.My “drugs” were my husband and his mom and
all the relaxation and breathing techniques we had practiced for months on
end.That was the way I wanted to give
birth, and so we did it.I could not
have done it without my husband as my coach as my mom-in-law as my doula.They kept me calm, focused, relaxed, and
determined.It was a quick labor, as I
only labored at the hospital for 6 hours, and only pushed for about 10
minutes.Grace was ready to greet the
world, and the world was ready to meet her :)
Below
is a quick birth story video (don’t worry, it’s very classy and tasteful) along
with some pictures our photographer took.She captured the beauty, pain, fatigue, strength, and love during the
labor and birth of our sweet angel, and I’m beyond happy.
