Monday, April 16, 2012

Accessories Every Baby Should Have

The latest crazy in baby accessories are: mom or dad. Every baby simply must get them right away. Mom or dad come in a variety of shapes, colors and sizes. They work wonderfully together or separate and are the perfect complement to every baby.

A mom or dad will keep you warm, clean and fed. They are very versatile and creative. A mom or dad can find multiple uses for a single item, clean the biggest mess, and make the most dull situation exciting. Often the sound of a mom or dad's voice will turn the grumpiest baby into a smiley, happy darling.

Never carry anything again, a mom or dad has limitless carrying capasity. You need it, just hand it to mom or dad and they will hold it. Often feel hungry when out on the town? Mom or dad to the rescue!They have a never ending supply of food and always know just when to produce it. Do you often feel sleepy or tired and need a pick me up? Never fear, mom or dad can take care of that too. Babies can find comfort in the arms of mom or dad and sleep soundly.

Don't wait another minute, get your mom or dad today. A baby with a mom or dad is a happy baby!

Friday, April 13, 2012

Advice for New Moms: Follow Your Instincts

From the time my husband and I decided we wanted a child and then learned I was pregnant I have read as much as I could on every aspect of conception, pregnancy and raising a child. I wanted to find out how to increase my chances of conceiving. Once pregnant I wanted to know what was happening to my body, how my baby was developing  and what to do to give my child every opportunity for the best start possible. From diet and exercise to labor methods to feeding options I read it all and analyzed which method would give my daughter the best start possible.
When my husband and I brought her home we intended her to sleep in a bassinet in our room. I wanted her to be close by for night time feedings and honestly I didn't want to let her out of my sight. I felt an overwhelming fear at being responsible for another human being. At 10:30 our first night home we went upstairs with our sleeping bundle of joy and placed her in the bassinet. My husband and I then got into bed, turned out the lights and the baby began to cry. Our dog jumped from her bed to the bassinet and began to whine. I got up, turned on the lights and picked up the baby. Tripping over the dog, I tried to sit on the bed to nurse her (after all, it worked well in the hospital).  The dog immediately jumped on the bed and wanted to see what I was doing. My husband pushed the dog off the bed, baby got fed and back in the bassinet. I went back to bed and turned off the lights. She whimpered and I jumped up again. Nothing wrong, just making noise in her sleep. Back to bed. 15 minutes later another noise from the bassinet and I was up again. 5 minutes later the baby was in her nursery, sleeping soundly in her crib and I was back in bed asleep.

Lesson number one of motherhood: forget about what the books, your friends and relatives say, what you planned and follow your instincts. No new mother gets a good night of sleep, but I wasn't going to get any sleep with my daughter in the room. Every sound she made woke me up and I felt the need to check on her. A little distance worked well for us. She slept well and I slept as well as I could between feedings.

Advice from friends, relatives or books is just that: advice. If it sounds good, try it and see. It may work for you and your child, it may not. There isn't a set way to raise a child and what works for one parent may not work for another. In parenthood the end result is the most important, not necessarily how you got there. I find myself repeating that often when hearing about what children should or should not be doing. Schedules, sleeping through the night, starting solids, there is no right or wrong.

Baby Smiles

There is nothing as sweet as a baby's first smile. After my daughter was born I was in a constant state of exhaustion and anxiety. Adjusting to interrupted sleep is no picnic and to top it off the bundle of joy my husband and I left the hospital with does not come with a user manual. Every cry was an experiment. Diaper change? Hungry? Tired? Bored? Just want to drive mom nuts?
 Around week 6 I stumbled into the nursery, picked up my crying baby and cuddled her to my chest. Her cries stopped and I felt a small frisson of satisfaction. I placed her on the changing table and smiled. That little face broke into a huge smile that reached her indigo eyes. I felt my heart melt and all exhaustion left my body. For the next 10 minutes I talked to her and tried to coax that smile back onto her face.

To this day making that little face break into a smile is a huge accomplishment. Her smile means I am doing something right. She is happy and feels secure.