Mommy Lessons from the First Month

I've been thinking I need to do a post like this all month. And because I have only been jeeping mental note, I know there's much I have forgotten that will be left out, but here it goes...

1. Always have a diaper ready. When changing diapers, quickly remove the old and pace the new underneath... can't risk any accidents...
2. The 5 minute rule. I now have a 5 minute rule when it comes to Lilleigh's poop diapers. Baby poops are loud, so when I hear her, I have to wait 5 minutes from the last poop sound heard before changing her... that's just the safe bet.
3. She has only worn Huggies twice, and both times she's had blow outs. Just saying.
4. While we aren't officially cloth diapering yet (I'm waiting till the amount of diapers slows down.), I am amazed at how well they hold it all in on trial runs that we've done.
5. That said, when a cloth diapered baby is wet, they'll let you know.
6. Those $10 Amazon coupons are handy for buying wipes for free! See how I did it here.
7. Always have a burp cloth nearby. Or on the shoulder is even better.
8. Cloth nursing pads are a good idea. (I didn't think disposable were comfortable.) I prefer these: BabyKicks Nursing Pads - Jersey, Set of 3
9. But sometimes there's still nothing that will do the trick. I've only had issues at night though... no embarrassing leaks.
10. Stocking up on healthy snacks in a must when breastfeeding... both because I'm hungry constantly and I need a good middle of the night snack during her feedings... speaking of which, it's time to go find that banana.
11. It takes time to lose baby weight. I should have known this. It's taken all my friends time to lose their weight. But since I'm not someone who has ever been able to gain weight (and I've tried!), I figured surely I'd lose it all quickly and be back to my normal weight within the month... yeah... right.
12. I can survive on less than eight hours of sleep. Who knew? And I'm still in a good mood too.
13. Sleep when baby sleeps. Having said I can survive on less, I must still say that naps are amazing and a must.
14. When Lilleigh is sleeping, just because she makes noise does not mean she is waking up or that she needs me. She was in a bassinet in our room for the first 3 weeks, and I woke up at every sound, convinced she needed to be fed. So I'd get up, change her diaper, by which point she was wide awake, and feed her. Turns out babies make a lot of noise in their sleep. So at 3 weeks we moved her to her crib in her room. Greatest thing ever. I am now getting two 3-3.5 hour stretches of sleep. Wonderful!
15. As for naps, the swing buys me so much time. We just received the Fisher Price Cradle n Swing, My Little Lamb as a gift, and it's been just that - a gift! She loves being cradled side to side. Totally worth whatever cost the constant use of batteries is going to be.
    
16. It's hard work getting a baby out of the house! So much preparation. I'm starting to think it might be easier to just stay home...
17. But when we do get out of the house, the sling keeps her very content. We actually made it to the grocery store, just us, on Monday - Lilleigh in sling. I got a ton of grocery shopping done - probably an hour's worth - and was able to coupon shop some too. She just slept in the sling. She even stayed asleep for the car ride home and while I unloaded groceries. That's my girl!
18. Taking a walk each day makes me feel human. And it prevents me from going stir crazy.
19. As great as I am at saving money - Miss Thankfully Thrifty, I know - we save A LOT more when I am house-bound.  
20. People are going to give you their advice or two cents no matter what. No matter how annoyed you might be at a perfect stranger, just smile and nod. One lady in the grocery store asked if I was afraid Lilleigh was going to fall out of the sling and then went on to tell me how she hates it when moms leave their babies in the carseats in grocery stores, especially when the baby starts to cry. Right... I'm thinking she's forgotten how hard it is to go anywhere with a baby.

I am writing this during a late night feeding, and now that Lilleigh has fallen asleep, it's time for me to sleep! There will be more mommy lessons to come. Feel free to share yours in a comment below!