This post is going to cover a lot of miscellany that all, in one way or another, relates to parenting - a lot of it is fairly specific to parenting babies. It's kind of like a highlights reel of things that deserve to be blogged about, but don't have enough meat to stand alone as their own posts.
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(1) I recently downloaded the Legacy Countdown App. It makes it easy to visualize the amount of time your kiddos have been in your life - and the number of weeks until they fly the coop. It feels convicting in a good way. And, it's free.
(2) I think Letterfolk Boards are pretty great all around, but I particularly love the posts their company shares on Instagram. This one, this one, this one and about a hundred more. Good, true, and funny stuff.
(3) Postnatal hair loss. It's a thing. I'm on my third go around and it's worse than ever. I have actual bald spots on both sides of my head in addition to general all-over hair loss. My mom said that she had a similar experience during a particularly stressful time in her life. And (importantly) hers grew back. I talked to another mom who has permanent bald spots following postnatal hair loss. I feel like hair, and the having of it, should not be a huge deal, but somehow it is. I really, really hope that my hair loss will slow down soon and that those bald spots will fill in. Also, I've been too scared to google about it, so I just haven't.
(4) Lap shoulders allow baby clothing to be pulled DOWN over their shoulders (instead of up over their heads). Am I the last one to learn this? I'm on kid number three and just figured this out. Allow me to repeat: baby clothes with a lap shoulder neckline (google it if you have no idea what I'm talking about because I can't figure out how to describe it for you), can be removed by pulling them down instead of up. This is a big deal when it comes to things like diaper blow outs.
(5) Heating pads are a newborn's best friend. I've written about this before, but thought it deserved another mention as it fits so well in this post. If you have a new baby, put a heating pad in their crib / bassinet / swing / wherever you're going to put them after you get them to sleep. Once the bed is warm and the baby is asleep, remove the heating pad and put baby in its place. (Make sure, of course, that the bed isn't TOO hot.) This little trick does wonders for keeping sleeping babes asleep.
(6) If you have even a small interest in photography, buy a "nifty fifty" lens for your dSLR camera. There are a variety of types of fixed lenses, each with their own benefits and drawbacks and price points. When I was pregnant with Sam, I did a bunch of research and ended up buying the least expensive option I found (this is the one I own) and it is fabulous. I appreciate good photography, but really have no desire to learn more about it. This lens feels like an easy compromise between those two things. I am often rewarded with beautiful images of our kids and life by simply using my fixed lens, placing it on the "A" (aperture) mode and manually shifting the focus point. I think this is one of the best purchases that I've ever made.
(7) If you have the opportunity to buy baby things that are not baby-theme-y, do it. Particularly, if you're pregnant for the first time and / or are planning to have more than one child. I realize there are some people that won't find this important, but it really bothers me to have ugly baby-themed things around the house. I am thankful that, from the get-go, I bought a boppy cover that looks good even in the living room, a high chair that doesn't scream "jungle" or another kid-theme, and so on.
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And, as a bonus: People always say to "nap when the baby naps" which is good and fine, but I think an equally viable rule is "do something YOU LIKE/WANT TO DO while the baby naps."
(5) Heating pads are a newborn's best friend. I've written about this before, but thought it deserved another mention as it fits so well in this post. If you have a new baby, put a heating pad in their crib / bassinet / swing / wherever you're going to put them after you get them to sleep. Once the bed is warm and the baby is asleep, remove the heating pad and put baby in its place. (Make sure, of course, that the bed isn't TOO hot.) This little trick does wonders for keeping sleeping babes asleep.
(6) If you have even a small interest in photography, buy a "nifty fifty" lens for your dSLR camera. There are a variety of types of fixed lenses, each with their own benefits and drawbacks and price points. When I was pregnant with Sam, I did a bunch of research and ended up buying the least expensive option I found (this is the one I own) and it is fabulous. I appreciate good photography, but really have no desire to learn more about it. This lens feels like an easy compromise between those two things. I am often rewarded with beautiful images of our kids and life by simply using my fixed lens, placing it on the "A" (aperture) mode and manually shifting the focus point. I think this is one of the best purchases that I've ever made.
(7) If you have the opportunity to buy baby things that are not baby-theme-y, do it. Particularly, if you're pregnant for the first time and / or are planning to have more than one child. I realize there are some people that won't find this important, but it really bothers me to have ugly baby-themed things around the house. I am thankful that, from the get-go, I bought a boppy cover that looks good even in the living room, a high chair that doesn't scream "jungle" or another kid-theme, and so on.
- - - - - - -
And, as a bonus: People always say to "nap when the baby naps" which is good and fine, but I think an equally viable rule is "do something YOU LIKE/WANT TO DO while the baby naps."
I discovered the pull-onesie-down-over-the-shoulders thing with baby #2 and could not BELIEVE I didn't know that the first time around! Total game changer.
ReplyDeleteAlso YES to the bonus bit. Baby naptime (and kid naptime these days) is the time for me to do my own thing!