I'm going to whine just a little bit here, but I am not actually looking for solutions/sympathy - I just want to vent. On my birth club message board, we call such ramblings "Dear Diary" posts. We have had two major challenges this week, one being that Maya's nighttime sleep has gone into the shitter - not that she was sleeping that well before - but for the past three nights, she's been up every hour between 10pm and 5am, and then napped in my lap (but only in my lap, and only if I remain very still) all morning to make up for it. The only good part about this is that all the extra nursing has been helping me resolve bad challenge #2, which is that I'm currently battling my 5th clogged milk duct in 10 days - quite the record for me! Clogged ducts are bad enough on their own, especially the ones that plug right at the nipple (oh lord, the stabbing pain!), but my coworker just had one turn into a raging case of mastitis and then an ABSCESS in the space of
Yay, a post! It was so great to catch up with you last week. I wish we were due date buddies in the same locale. I'm in the same boat in terms of purchases. nothing yet. What really sucks too, is that we have a boatload of baby and maternity stuff back in CA, but it's not really organized and I can't expect my parents to find the things that I actually would want, and ship them. Also, since we'll be in CA for 6 weeks after the baby is born, it will be good to have stuff there, too. But this means rebuying EVERYTHING.
ReplyDeleteMy two cents (in case you wanted them!): Get the fisher price papasan cradle and swing, if you can find the one that plugs into the wall (the battery operated ones suck and chew through expensive D batteries). Even if the baby doesn't like it while awake, you can put her in there after she falls asleep, park the vacuum cleaner near her head for white noise, and keep her asleep an extra 45 minutes. You're welcome. To GET her asleep, it probably won't be so easy, unless you're really lucky...
Penelope absolutely refused to use her bedside bassinet (arm's reach brand) or her crib, ever. That was $200 down the drain. But if you can get her to sleep in the bedside bassinet, that would probably be pretty great.
Baby carriers were the biggest problem. Penelope hated the moby and the ergo and the sling, but liked the baby bjorn. who could predict? You'll probably invest your life savings in baby carriers. Try to register for a variety of them.
I found a nursing cover to be a lifesaver. I am totally jealous of women who feel empowered enough to whip out a boob in a totally public place, and I will be envious and admiring if you are one of these. For me, the cover made me feel very comfortable, and Penelope really liked it too, actually-- it has a wire in the neck opening to help hold it open, so you and your baby lock eyes while she nurses, but the rest of the world is blocked out for her. Penelope wanted to cuddle under the nursing cover even after she was weaned. And trying to arrange a blanket for this purpose (boob coverage) is basically futile.
xoxo